Earlier this year, John McCain's Vice Presidential pick, Sarah Palin, slashed funding for programs that help support teen mothers in her state of Alaska.
It's funny. When my great niece got pregnant at the same age as Bristol, no one considered letting the state pay for her mistake. Wasn't the state taxpayers' responsibility. Her Tennessee, Christian family pulled together. The kids, poised for college, had to change plans. Their parents were hard working, but hardly rich and difficult choices had to be made. Since they had pride and dignity they made those choices. The kids got married. The parents helped out with getting a house built on some inherited property. The young mom raised her kid (followed by several more
in wedlock) with some help from the family -- but mostly pulling their own weight. The young man went to work and built himself up. They are still married more than a 15 years later. Sounds like the Palin experience. Are Alaska taxpayers expected to pay Bristol's way? Don't think so.
Compare and contrast to urban Chicago, full of progressive democratic handout programs for those "poor" people. You have mothers with multiple illegitimate children by multiple fathers (who walk out as soon as the babymomma gets knocked up to father other children with other women) getting a fair sum of my tax dollars to go out partying while the streets raise their kids. Not only is personal responsibility a dirty word, there are govt. program rewards for irresponsible behavior to discourage personal responsibility. In many cases it's a multigenerational way of life. And I pay the highest tax rate in America to support them and their "way of life."
Sorry, but the way Palin's family is handling this whole issue points out the core failure of progressive policy and why so many of us who are not loads on society find it offensive.
Charon
