The really sinister states are the ones that require signatures from both parents (or, depending on your perspective, perhaps you think this is great). But, measures like this seem to me to be designed as roadblocks. Birth control is available without parental approval, and while not directly parallel, abortion is the extreme end on the continum of womens' reproductive health access.
It's well documented that girls who come from troubled or non-nurturing environments (I studied it in the case of families living without fathers in the home) become sexually active earlier than their peers - the ones with good, supportive families that every poster to this thread has demonstrated their possession of this sort of parenting.
Not all parents are good. Some are abusive - such are the ones more likely to have young pregnant daughters. I cannot imagine anything more destructive than being beaten, emotionally abused, and forever knowing you've demolished any respect your parent(s) might have had for you while waiting to give birth to a child that is unwanted. Every child should be wanted. Every parent should be good enough to help a child evaluate options with the benefit of loving, supportive, informed advice.
Late last year a baby was deserted in the toilet of the high school where my husband and half of my immediate family works. As much as I want abortion to be avoided, when it comes to the choice of seeing a bright young women severely curtail her life's promise to keep a child she cannot adequately care for and may come to resent, or seeing that child delivered into a toilet to die shortly thereafter - even the pregnant's woman's suicide, I know which of the unappealing alternatives I prefer tokeep available. If going alone is what's required, that is unfortunate, but should not be prohibited in an effort by lawmakers who can't make abortion illegal seeking similar results by making abortion more difficult or impossible to access.
Kelly
PS: Does this club accept new members? I am beginning to wonder if the practice is "ignore them and they might go away." Perhaps I could start an arguement as an initiation?
