Unemployed teenage parents who are living with

[blueamy66]

their unemployed parents.

WTF?

Can someone explain this to me?

[valerief]

1. They must be rich people. Rich people live off their investments. nt

[Fumesucker]

2. Unemployment checks go further the more people share the costs of housing

Seems pretty obvious to me..

On edit: Oops, meant to reply to the OP..

[SoCalDem]

3. and parents are notorious for helping their kids..

those teens are probably not even getting unemployment checks.. Many teens have spotty work records (if they even had a job), and often are denied unemployment compensation.

There are not many parents who would not take in a child of theirs..at any age

[valerief]

4. Doesn't say they're collecting unemployment. Doesn't say they're poor.

So I choose to guess they're independently wealthy and are living in a SuperMcMansion.

I don't understand the OP's point, of course, so I'm making it up as we go along.

[Renew Deal]

5. What is there to explain?

[blueamy66]

7. EVERYTING.

NT

[Firstzar]

13. Have these people harmed you in some way?

If not, shut up already!

[Obamanaut]

22. I was expecting a long list of things with the "everyting {sic}, but only

found a simple NT.

How about "everyting nt" and no one will open the response.

[MineralMan]

24. Ting! Ting! Ting! The bells are ringing, for me and my gal.

[blueamy66]

6. Here's my point....

teenager knows parent(s) are unemployed...yet they get pregnant, continue their pregnancy and bring the baby into this house of unemployment.....Daddy? where is Daddy???

What are they thinking???? Then child with child gets mad at parent(s) who are unemployed.

Yeah, I am watching True Life on MTV and am ready to puke.

What is wrong with this picture???

[JVS]

8. What makes you think the father of the new child is employed?

[blueamy66]

88. It was included in the show.

He had promised diapers, wipes and other things, but only gave the mother $25.

[Robb]

9. You must not know many teenagers.

They are idiots.*








*There are exceptions, of course. Outliers. :D

[tkmorris]

19. Oh. THERE"S your problem.

You are watching True Life on MTV.

[Fla_Democrat]

32. I believe the accepted term is..

+1 :evilgrin:

[JNelson6563]

50. Maybe you shouldn't watch stupid TV shows.

I never get upset about the stupid stuff on these crappy shows because I never watch them.

Julie

[blueamy66]

89. Sorry. Every now and then

I watch some crap. I apologize.

[StarfarerBill]

68. Um, that you're watching "True Life" on MTV?

If you don't like what you're seeing, then turn off the television; garbage like that show is only meant to demean some while allowing others to feel superior, anyway.

[Quantess]

72. The sensible teens get abortions, and try not to make the mistake of getting pregnant again.

[Greyhound]

76. Q: "What is wrong with this picture???"

A: "I am watching True Life on MTV"

[blueamy66]

90. Again, I apologize to those

people on this board that are above watching swill every now and then.

Sheesh.

[piratefish08]

86. Reality TV is what is wrong it this picture.

[Heidi]

87. That you're this emotionally attached to a TV show _pretending_ to be reality

is what's wrong with this particular picture. That you think you have any business judging whether a teenager--a complete stranger to you--should "continue their pregnancy" is another thing wrong with this particular picture.

[eShirl]

109. there's your problem right there - you are watching MTV

When did they turn into the Jerry Springer Network?

I am so old, I remember when they played nothing but music videos.

[Hello_Kitty]

10. Didn't you get the memo? All baybeez are Precious Miracles.

And the mere suggestion that it might be a bad idea in some cases to bring more of them into the world means you're a bad progressive. And anti-choice too. All choices women make are equal and ethically neutral.

:sarcasm:

[Fumesucker]

12. I'm fairly progressive and I'm not personally comfortable with abortion as birth control..

Doesn't mean I want to make abortion illegal but using abortion as a form of birth control is immoral IMO.

[Hello_Kitty]

15. Abortion is a form of birth control, like it or not.

Prevents a birth from happening. I'm perfectly comfortable with abortion on demand for "convenience" or "as birth control". I'm far less comfortable with the existence of millions of unwanted and poorly cared for children. I guess a lot of other people place greater emphasis on punishing sluts for having sex they don't approve of.

[Renew Deal]

21. How do you feel about aborting poor people or old people?

I mean, the simple existence of these people must make you uncomfortable. :shrug:

[Hello_Kitty]

23. I have no idea where you are getting that from what I said.

A bizarre statement and probably more indicative of your own mentality than anything you think you deduced about me.

I prefer abortion (within the limits outlined by Roe v. Wade) to unwanted and neglected children.

[Renew Deal]

37. You said "I'm far less comfortable with the existence of millions of unwanted and poorly cared for

children"

What other types of people make you uncomfortable and how would you dispose of them?

[Hello_Kitty]

104. You are either being deliberately obtuse or are incapable of basic reading comprehension.

I support abortion rights, including abortions for "convenience" or "as birth control". I'd rather see fewer unwanted and neglected children in the world than more women punished for having unprotected sex with pregnancy. The latter seems to be a priority for a lot of people, including some who post right here on DU who call themselves progressives. Somehow you are conflating my position on abortion with a desire to extinguish living, breathing children and other persons on my part. I have no idea why.

[dsc]

28. and apparently you think the temporary absense of a job is the definition of a bad parent

not so sure you should be lecturing other posters.

[Hello_Kitty]

33. Bullshit strawman.

Temporarily losing your job while being a parent is not the same as deliberately bringing a child into the world when you don't have a job. Honestly, is the concept of "planned parenthood" just something to give lip service to or do we really believe it?

[dsc]

60. so if a person is pregnant, gets fired at say month 8, she should get an abortion?

or is that only for month 6 or month 4? Unemployment is assumed to be temporary by most people. I sure wouldn't advise a person to get an abortion of a pregancy they otherwise wanted simply due to being unemployed.

[Hello_Kitty]

71. She wouldn't be able to get an abortion in most places

And should sue her employer for discrimination, most likely.

Godammit, I cannot believe how eager so-called progressives on this board are to facilitate the creation of serfs and cannon fodder for the plutocrats! WTF?

[Quantess]

79. no shit.

It is extremely difficult to find any doctor willing to do an abortion past 11 weeks.

[dsc]

94. gee and you are class biased not at all

I am trying to imagine the reaction to a pro life conservative who posted the exact same words you just did. I don't think it would be pretty. Unlike you, I happen to believe that just because a person is born into poverty he or she isn't a worthless piece of shit. Or to use your exact words serfs and cannon fodder for the plutocrats. The simple fact is that you apparently think that poverty, even temporary poverty, makes a person useless and that is nothing short of sad and horrifying at the same time. It is almost a conservative's parody of what a pro choice position is. I have to say, hatred of the poor is not a progressive value where I come from.

[Dogtown]

116. Props, Hello_Kitty

Your post #15 was absolutely clear to any of us *not* looking to pick a fight. I haven't checked the list of responders-to-your-post against *my* list of certified-dickhead-trolls, but I'd guess that a few aren't progressives, at all.

I bet you'll find some Operation Rescue stalkers trying to interfere with our discourse. I'll check back now to see if any of your tormentors are candidates for my list.

:hi:

[Hannah Bell]

107. "deliberately bringing a child into the world when you don't have a job"

the horror of it!

[Fumesucker]

29. When my daughter was born in 1980 we didn't even have a car

We were living in a trailer park and the only way I had to get to work was a clapped out and very small motorcycle. I carried my pregnant wife to prenatal checkups on that thing, we went to the store and to the laundromat on it.

And yet today my daughter is a talented writer and photographer with her own business and three beautiful children. We didn't have a lot of extras but she never lacked for anything she really needed, including education and love.

But I'm sure there are at least some DUers who would have looked at our circumstances when she was born and said we were irresponsible not to abort her.

[Hello_Kitty]

34. Glad it worked out for you. Your family is an anomaly.

Children born into poverty are statistically at a far greater of being malnourished, sickly, abused, not be able to read at grade level, end up in prison, etc.

And frankly, you have a lot of nerve acting indignant when YOU were the one spouting off about your disapproval of "abortion as birth control". Beam, mote, eye, you know the drill.

[Fumesucker]

39. I'm not indignant at all..

Just pointing out that not having much money does not mean that it's not possible to do a decent job of raising a child, it's all about the choices you make.

And also pointing out that I have actually practiced what I was preaching, neither my wife nor I ever considered an abortion although it would have made things much easier for us.

[Hello_Kitty]

41. It's not impossible to raise a healthy, well-adjusted child in poverty.

It's just not nearly as likely.

[Fumesucker]

45. Thing was, we didn't *stay* in poverty..

Things were rough economically in the late 70's early 80's.

We eventually owned our own suburban home, etc, etc.

My father grew up without indoor plumbing or any heat in the home besides a fireplace and sometimes not enough to eat and he was a very sharp cookie. My son in law's grandmother who I talk to regularly grew up literally raising sugar cane which they took to the mill so they'd have sweetener among all the other vegetables, chickens and pigs they raised, in her late 80's she's still pretty sharp.

A lot of immigrants came here with nothing at all and yet raised successful children, it's not so much what you have, it's what you do with what you have.

[Renew Deal]

46. Should there be a financial backround check before someone is "permitted" to have a child?

Since the odds are so out of their favor?

[Hello_Kitty]

51. Do you believe in the concept of "planned parenthood" or don't you?

Do you honestly believe that a person's financial situation shouldn't be a consideration in their decision to bring a child into the world? Or do you think that they should procreate at will, and just hope that society will provide?

Let's think about it in terms of the reality of the world as it is, not the socialist utopia we'd like it to be.

[Fumesucker]

70. Contraception is not perfect..

I've read here on DU that a goodly percentage of women coming into reproductive health clinics are stunned forty year-olds who are suddenly pregnant despite having an IUD or being on the pill.

I've personally had condoms rip open at least several times in my life so I know even condoms are not a perfect protection against pregnancy, sometimes I've realized it happened at the time but other times I haven't realized it.

[etherealtruth]

49. the same Du'er would be very upset when I was pregnant in 1982

I was a 19 year old college freshman ... I worked in a coffee shop. I chose NOT to marry my son's father (a good choice) and I chose to give birth to and raise my son (a wonderful choice) ... I went on and earned two degrees. My 27 year old son is a responsible, educated, married adult (and an awesome "big" brother to my two youngest children) ... not forgetting what a great son he is.

Circumstances change ... I am forever grateful that at 19 I saw that. My choice was my own .... it may not have been the right choice for others but it was the best choice for me.

[Hello_Kitty]

52. Other DUers would be upset at that "abortion of convenience" I got at age 23.

Even though I knew from a very early age that I had no interest in being a mother and would suck royally at it.

[etherealtruth]

56. And they might be upset ...

... with the abortion I had at 21 ... but, they were my choices ... not yours or anyone else's. Just as it was my choice to have two more children in my thirties ... was that OK? I was married to a man that earned a couple hundred thousand dollars a year (i was an RN at the time and didn't earn any where near that) ... did money give me the right to choose?

[varelse]

108. I'm very grateful that you made that choice

and that you were free to make it.

[blueamy66]

92. No, I wouldn't be upset.

Um, you were in college and had a job.

I know, I shouldn't judge.

Almost everyone in this thread has made this abundantly clear to me.

[Name removed]

105. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[REP]

16. Um, okay then. Thanks.

Good thing no one is required to check with you to make sure theyre having an abortion for the right reasons.

[Fumesucker]

30. I wouldn't *want* them to "check with me"..

I'm not the morality police and don't want to be.

But that doesn't mean I don't have an opinion.

But I do know what things were like when abortion was illegal and, having a daughter and two granddaughters, I don't want to go back to that.

[etherealtruth]

25. I am progressive ... and I am PRO-CHOICE

Pro-choice: meaning it is the woman's choice ... that includes the choice to believe abortion is is morally wrong for her. I would never presume to judge a woman going forward with her pregnancy ... just as I would not be entitled to an opinion regarding her choice to terminate a pregnancy.

Believe it or not .... I am (very circuitously) agreeing with you :)

[Hello_Kitty]

36. Pro-choice doesn't mean your choices are off-limits for criticism.

Especially when they involve bringing humans into the world. It's funny how only when it comes to abortion do some "progressives" feel free to opine. It's apparently hunky-dory to wax emotional over the fetuses - "I just think life begins at conception" - or tsk tsk over the irresponsible sluts - "I don't think women should use abortion as birth control" - but don't you dare suggest that Octomom is a dangerous nutcase or that people living in their cars probably shouldn't be having a baby right about now. It's frankly bizarre to me how DUers can, OTOH, understand how deferring childbirth and limiting family size can be the single most important thing underprivileged women can do to improve their lot but, on the other hand, blanch at the idea of actually telling poor women that they should do just that. Just goes to show how much the forced birther lobby has coopted the dialogue.

[etherealtruth]

44. I prefer to try not judge others (I try .... no one is really all that successful))

We all have opinions and we all make judgments ... My thoughts have not been co-opted by the "forced birther lobby" ... they have influenced me to the degree that I don't want to be "just like them" ... they presume to pass judgment and criticize any woman who chooses to terminate her pregnancy because THEY don't believe its "right" .... I'm not going to stand on the other end criticizing women that choose to go forward because I don't thinks its "right." The "Octomom" is an extreme example .... an outlier ... an aberration .... she doesn't belong in any reasonable discussion.

I don't "wax" emotional over the fetuses ... the truth the fetus in these cases are not a real concern of mine ... I do, however, wax emotional over a woman's right to self determination.

As a feminist I am offended by anyone that presumes to know what is best for a woman in any given situation .... poor women should/shouldn't do this .... do that.

[Hello_Kitty]

47. It's not just about her and her "self-determination"

It's about what the child will be subjected to as a result of being brought into the world by someone ill-equipped to care for her properly. This is where I actually agree with a popular forced-birther cliche - "It's a child, not a choice" - though not for the same reasons, obviously. Again, is planned parenthood something we really believe in, or is it just something we give lip service to?

[etherealtruth]

53. How do you know that the mother will be ill equipped?

She is at this moment, but what about the next ... you can't presume to know what the future holds for her.

"Again, is planned parenthood something we really believe in, or is it just something we give lip service to?"

Planned parenthood is an organization that allows women the freedom to plan their parenthood ... not an organization that sets itself up as moral arbiters of who should or should not become pregnant.

My question to you: is "choice" something we just give lip service to? A woman either has the right to choose or she does not.

[Hello_Kitty]

62. Of course she has a right to her choice.

But others have a right to tell her that her choices suck, particularly when they involve living, breathing post-natal children. Same goes with men. Just because you are physically capable of impregnating several women, and derive a sense of power or pride from doing so, doesn't mean that it's a good thing for you to be doing. BTW, financials are just one aspect. A person can have plenty of money but be incapable of giving appropriate care to a child for a variety of other reasons. I estimate that most parents with sufficient resources do a fine job, but a sizable minority don't. And in many cases, it was obvious from the get-go that these people shouldn't have been parents.

[etherealtruth]

64. You have a very interesting perspective ....

Who is the judge of who should or shouldn't become a parent. Who decides who the "good" parents are. my children think i'm a good mother ... my adult child tells his younger brother and sister that they will truly appreciate what an "awesome mother" I am when they grow up. Am I really? Who decides? I am sure by some standards I "suck" as a parent ... and by others I am great ... and still others I am merely adequate.

Within what parameters is it acceptable (without criticism)for a woman to become a mother?

One woman's choice may not be right for you, but it may be right for her. One decision may be right at one point and very wrong at an other (for her). Your opinions are your own ... regardless of how stridently you promote them, they are not necessarily correct.

[Hello_Kitty]

67. Again, you miss the point.

Whether or not her choice to be a parent is right to me or you or her is irrelevant. It's whether or not it's right for her child. You and I and she can only make predictions based upon the experiences of parents and children in situations similar to hers. Why is it wrong to point out that it's not a great idea for people in certain situations to become parents? I'm dumbfounded as to why that's a bad idea, particularly from people who claim to "care about children"? :shrug:

[etherealtruth]

69. I don't think I am missing the point ...

I think I am countering the point by asking who is the arbiter of such things? I would love (not really, it would be very boring)to live in a world where everyone made decisions based upon my standards ... the truth is my standards are not right for everyone. circumstances change, people change ... the world changes.

"Why is it wrong to point out that it's not a great idea for people in certain situations to become parents?" at the point the comments are made they have already become parents .... I would prefer supporting the choices that have been made.

I know that I and others have told the stories of our youthful (read teen) pregnancies (up-thread) on the surface it looked like we all made pretty bad decisions ... but amazingly (and from the perspective of the children involved)it worked out well, as evidenced by children that grew into reasonably happy, well adjusted, educated, productive members of society. How does one tell from the outside how things will turn out.

I make a concerted effort to reach out to and lend support to new and young mothers ... it takes a lot of work but you can be a successful parent.

As my reproductive years are coming to an end (at 47 really ending ... and none too soon) if I somehow did become pregnant I can not imagine any circumstance that would compel me to become a mother again ... yet there are women in their 40's that choose that path. Right for them but very wrong for me.

With that, goodnight. I am old and have teenagers that need to be chauffeured around in the a.m.

[Hello_Kitty]

74. Whatever gets you through the night.

Keep focusing on the "success stories" and ignore the millions of children living nasty, brutish, and short lives right now.

[Dogtown]

115. Glad you qualified your post, Fumesucker

with "IMO". I don't find it immoral. Wasteful, yes. Irresponsible. But I have no moral issue with abortion under any circumstances.

I had a vasectomy at 30, never regretted not having children. Certainly never regretted putting any of several women into the position of making the decision to terminate an unwanted pregnancy.

I would absolutely have moral qualms about someone parenting a child they didn't want because they felt abortion-as-B/C is immoral. Having unwanted children is immoral, in my humble estimation.

[REP]

14. Now now. That pweshush miracle is gonna cure cancer and wipe our asses when we're old

Didn't you get the memo? Being pro-choice means celebrating really bad decisions, no matter what. Not just affirming the individual's right to make stupid decisions - we must celebrate them as empowering and super good.

[Hello_Kitty]

18. Yep. The right to choose has morphed into the right to be free from criticism.

I understand where it comes from but IMHO there's quite a difference between exercising your right to use contraception or terminate a pregnancy and bringing that pregnancy to term and creating another human being. Having an abortion affects your body. Having a kid affects a lot of other people, not the least of whom is that kid.

[verdalaven]

83. Imposing abortion on someone who might not want it

Yeah, that sounds very progressive to me. (sarcasm thingy not required here, I believe)

I have supported and fought for my daughter to have the right to make choices when it comes to her own body. Do not denigrate "choice" just because you disapprove of another woman's choice. If you disapprove, well then say so but don't pretend that it is progressive thinking to take rights away from another human being just because you think you know better. That type of thinking is entirely in the realm of the conservative side of the coin.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

113. This might help your argument

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics

[Cleita]

11. Neighbors down the street have the son, the wife and the grandchildren

living with them because they fell through the cracks of our economy and both are college educated and unemployed. The younger ones besides losing their jobs lost their house in the mortgage crisis. The parents or rather grandparents to the younger children are retired so there is a source of income there, but the neighborhood gossip that I've heard is that they are struggling.

[debbierlus]

42. What is wrong with them? Not having jobs in the worst recession since the Great Depression

[Cleita]

63. I know. It's sad.

There is no more opportunity unless you are willing to be a shark and a thief.

[seabeyond]

17. wow... reading the posts, all the working of agendas going on in this thread

interesting replies, depending where a person stands on any given issue, just from a view lines in the op

[NYC_SKP]

96. Post has a lot goin' on... havin' babies, not working, MTV...

And what's funny is that probably only one person saw the TV show that's the subject of the matter.

And that show would have been heavily edited by MTV to obscure reality.

I'm gonna keep out of it!

:P

[seabeyond]

99. teenagers, OMG. lol. keep out of it! yup. nt

[spinbaby]

20. Are we talking about the Palins?

:eyes:

[MineralMan]

26. Perhaps we are, actually...

I wonder if the OP would rather the teenaged parent just starve to death, rather than move back in with parents. But, hey, I wonder a lot of things.

[MineralMan]

27. How about explaining to us how what anyone

who is not related to you, dependent on you, or under your influence affects you? How is the arrangement the people you are discussing any of your business in the first place?

And you saw this on MTV? Who watches MTV...really?

[mrcheerful]

31. Sniff sniff sniff damn does it smell like the under side of a bridge in here?

MTV, preggy teens and unemployment? WTF, how about there but for the grace of invisible power mad beings there go I?

[BoneDaddy]

35. Pulease

there are lazy rich and lazy middle class and lazy fucking poor people. Let's stop this all or none shit about every group.

I know rich people who earned everyone of their dollars and I know poor people who strugle everyday. I think this damn the rich attitude in DU is immature as well as the deification of poor people who don't do shit to improve their lot in life is ridiculous. The opposite is true as well. I know rich people who never earned shit in their life, and I know poor people who have given their all.

[mrcheerful]

38. Yeah, I made the right choice by graduating from HS my buddy quit school 4 months

before he graduated. I ended up doing dead end jobs and he got into GM because that year they were only hiring HS drop outs. Yet he claimed through hard work he got his job and I never tried hard enough, never mind we both filled out the same number of apps at GM. Such is life.

[BoneDaddy]

54. But at least

you understand it. Life is not always fair. It sucks, but we make the best of it. When we quantify success as just "you were given it" and deify unsuccess by "you are a victim" we totally lose a huge piece of the human puzzle.

Not all poor people deserve it, nor all rich people have earned it, but after working inthe mental health field I have seen a diverse population of EVERYTHING. Nothing surprises me anymore.

[debbierlus]

40. Cast stones much? It isn't the poor the world can't afford

It's the rich.

[Hello_Kitty]

43. Which, IMHO, is why the non-rich should stop producing serfs and cannon fodder for them.

Not that it will ever happen, but I can dream.

[Quantess]

78. but...my baby's gonna win the lottery!!!!

I said "baby needs new shoes" when I tumbled those dice.
Baby never got any new shoes, but, now that baby's grown up and outta jail again, all three generations of our family sit at the table together each Sunday night with a scratch-off lottery ticket. Everybody loses.

[Hello_Kitty]

102. Yep. Which is why you need to have MORE babies.

More people to buy lottery tickets. More chances to win the lottery! ;)

[voc]

81. This makes absolutely no sense because

people do have babies out of love for each other.
Love is one of those words that seems absent in this discussion, if one can call it that.

That fodder/serf baby brings joy and happiness and hope to the family it is born into, and the world,possibly.

Since when did we remove the most important reason and reduce it to a monetary decision?
Should it be a monetary decision? No.
No one has a child simply because they can or can't afford them.

And no, Planned Parenthood is not a panacea for the poor. It, in fact, was started to stem the birth rate in poor communities and its founder was a staunch supporter of eugenics. It was a method to reduce the "Lesser races"But somehow I bet you know the history.

If one chooses abortion or not, the decision in large measure should hinge on what the woman decides not her net worth.

The only valid thing I can come up with from this "discussion" is which are the ones worthy of being born?
Worthy=monetary significance, social status? That is anathema to any thinking human being.

Abortion is only a topic anyway because quite frankly men can legislate it and it is an example
of further subjugation of women as a whole in this country.;)

[Hello_Kitty]

101. Well shucky wuckies.

:eyes:

:puke:

[tammywammy]

48. My friends just moved in with the husband's parents

It has actually been in the works for a while. They've all lived together before and loved it. The wife said she wished they had never moved out. It's easier on the bills for all of them, plus they have a 4 year old son and it's better for him as well. But then my friends are 29 & 35, not teenagers.

Even older couples living with parents isn't a totally bad idea. Sure I wouldn't want to live with my own parents, but really, for a lot of families it works and it's worked for generations and all over the world.

[pitohui]

57. it hasn't worked for women or for anyone who loves freedom

of course older couples living w. parents is a bad idea unless you never want to yourself be an adult, never want yourself to have the freedom to make decisions in your own home

the multi generational household was fine when people died around age 35 or 40

do you truly never want to be free until your mom dies when she's 90 and you're 70? do you truly want to miss your whole life?

the longer lifespan is why it don't work, a decent person does NOT want to spend her middle age wishing her parents were dead so she could just get their money and finally be free

i see people who do this -- none of them are free and happy, they are bitter and resentful, don't kid yourself that this is somehow romantic and a lifetime movie of the week

[tammywammy]

58. Actually I'm not kidding myself

My friends do like living with his parents. They have a separate living area from them, but are under the same roof. Because you haven't seen happier people do it doesn't mean they aren't out there. Like I posted before, I wouldn't want to live with my mom, but that's more because she's an alcoholic. But then his parents don't look at it as "this is my house" it's the home for all of them. That's probably a difference, the parents look at it as they're all partners in this, it's not "this is mine and you need to obey me."

:shrug: To each their own. For some people this maybe an ideal situation, but for others not.

[pitohui]

59. yea but what i'm saying is, the plural of anecdote isn't "data"

you have one example of where you see people who on the outside (and you are not living w. them) put on a good brave face and pretend to be happy, and you believe they are happy, and we have no way to tell whether they are or not

and i have a thousand examples of where i can see people on the outside who can't even put up the brave face because it is truly that awful

i guess if the odds are 1000 to one against, i'm going to play the odds, you know?

most people in this situation are terribly unhappy and terribly ashamed and even if they can pretend for awhile...they're terribly unhappy and terribly ashamed

i'm glad you have some evidence to believe it isn't 100 percent misery...but really...it's close enough

adults want their own home really, and to be an adult you need your own home really, and one very adaptable family is not gonna make up for thousands of private hells

[quiller4]

65. I know at least three households where 3 generations are living under

one roof another where 4 generations are living together. None of these families are miserable.

I lived in a three generations houseghold for part of my childhood. As far as I've concerned, those were the happiest years of my youth. I hated it when my parents got a house of their own. Among my friends, multi-generationsal households were the rule--not the exception.

[tammywammy]

66. And my friends are not miserable by any stretch of the imagination

I know this because I'm one of their closest friends. I helped them pack. They had been talking excitedly for months about moving in with his parents.

[Name removed]

55. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[rockymountaindem]

73. Even if I accept your premise I don't see why religion matters to this

Even if everybody stopped believing in God, the human urge to procreate wouldn't go away. How is religion making this problem worse?

[rucky]

61. They made it on TV, tho. n/t

[KillCapitalism]

75. Why would anyone question this in the current economy.

Have you seen how high the unemployment rate is? Not the "cooked" govt. reported rate. The real rate is approaching 20% and in areas like Detroit it's running close to 30%. It would not be an anomaly for each member of an entire household to be out of work right now.

These people are likely staying together to pool any resources they might have, and for emotional support. It's a lot easier to be destitute with someone/others than it is on your own, at least that has been my experience.

[Liberal_in_LA]

77. unemployed parents probably have more resources than unemployed teens

parents might have 401K, house equity, unemployment to pull from. Teens...not so much.

[Quantess]

80. But, the thing is, that teen girl should not have gotten pregnant in the first place!

Abstinence education somehow missed her.
Abstinence education also somehow missed the teenage boy who had unprotected sex, and fathered the new baby.

[madokie]

82. sometime when you're down and out as likely would be the case here

schooling their resources would be the smart thing to do. Not everyone has a peachy life to live. Now, in saying that what are you getting at anyway?

[verdalaven]

84. Life is messy sometimes

Moral outrage just makes a bigger mess.

[Taitertots]

85. The government intentionally destroyed the economy, what needs explaining

Why don't YOU try to find a job right now? There are simply NO JOBS available.

Are children a luxury only the rich are allowed? Why don't we stop infighting about petty bullshit and see this isn't a problem, but a symptom of an even bigger problem?

[blueamy66]

91. I really cannot believe the respones that I received to this post.

You people are brutal....seriously brutal.

[Forkboy]

93. Well it WAS a pretty silly OP.

:shrug:

[blueamy66]

106. Why, because I think it's absolutely selfish

for a teenager to go thru with a pregnancy, when she she no job? At the same time that her father is unemployed?

And that same teenager expects to live in her father's house?

What is silly about that?

[Forkboy]

112. You probably should have included that in your OP.

[Stevenmarc]

95. Well maybe if you were clear and concise in your OP

and put it into some sort of context you would have eliminated most of the brutality, although the use of the term brutal is a tad drama queenish.

[arcadian]

98. You made one crucial error.

You didn't mention that everybody involved in the OP was a Republican, Right-winger, Palinite, Glenn Beck listener, Dittohead or various and sundry form of the right. You would have gotten 150 recs by now and been the toast of DU... at least for the moment.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

111. Yes you can -- that's why you posted it. (n/t)

[Honeycombe8]

97. It's only the babies who get welfare. Adults don't. So I guess everyone's living off hte babies?

That's my understanding, anyway, of how welfare payments work. My unemployed adult sister was never able to get monetary assistance because she didn't have children.

[NYC_SKP]

100. That has been know to happen, having a baby as a way of life...

Now, much as that statement can be criticized as being a RW talking point, it doesn't change the fact that young women often do that.

I know it, as a teacher I heard it straight from their mouths.

And it seemed like a good life to these girls, and lots of their friends were doing it.

Having these babies isn't just carelessness with birth control, it can be deliberate.

Whole generations have been doing it, often money comes in "on the down low" through under the table jobs or, dare I say, illegal activities, or combinations of these.

It happens.

:patriot:

[crim son]

103. I get the gist of what you're saying:

clearly somebody screwed up in their life planning. The thing is, we all do it at one time or another and we probably ought not judge, especially these days when people who have been well-employed for decades are suddenly not employed at all. You know?

[TwilightGardener]

110. What a weird post. Shit happens, families depend on each other--

who cares?

[Xenotime]

114. They must have the state to provide for them. That's what welfare is for.