I won't make fun of MTV again, well, at least not as much :)

[catbyte]

I heard a report on NPR that teen pregnancy rates have been dropping, but there's been a marked drop since 2011. Researchers invesstigated and discovered that at least 1/3 of the decline is due to the MTV show "16 and Pregnant." Rates drop even more in areas where MTV is widely watched. Wow. As I've always suspected, bagger abstinence programs are essentially useless. So I guess Bristol Palin isn't earning her money, lol.

I was channel surfing a while back and caught an episode of "The Steve Wilkos Show." The show involved an out of control 17 year old who was disrespecting her parents & was actively trying to get pregnant. The show gave her an "infant simlator" for 24 hours to give her a taste of what having a baby would really be like. Her reaction to that doll was hilarious, and when they brought her ba,k on the show the next day, her baby fantasy had vanished. She said after that experience she doubted the EVER wanted kids, lol. She also asked to keep the doll to show her friends what having a baby is really like.

[MADem]

1. Well, the results on that show are always the same...

The girl is in LUUUUUUUUV and she and the teen boy-daddy often live with one or the other set of parents. The teen girl's friends come around a bit, try to be supportive, briefly, and then they get on with their lives having fun. The pregnant mother feels left out of everything; school fun, dances, gossip, etc. Oftentimes she drops out or goes to some adult program or homeschool.

Then she has the kid; lots of hollering in the hospital--sometimes the baby-daddy shows up, sometimes not. If not, he's in trouble! And if he misses the big moment, he gets an ass chewing that lasts for several episodes.

The lad who fathered the baby--and he is a lad--doesn't like to change the diapers, he isn't serious about parenting, he wants the teen mom to do it all; the young lady is resentful, no one gets enough sleep, the living conditions always just suck, money is tight, the fellah starts going out more and more with his friends, he gets sullen and unresponsive, even secretive.... eventually they split up, and there are usually hurt feelings when the guy starts dating some other young lady. Occasionally, teen mom finds herself a new lad, but not nearly as often.

At the end, Doctor Drew interviews them all. The mothers usually look about seven years older than their stated ages, even with professional "hair and makeup" before going on camera.

At least that's my take--I was trapped watching a marathon of those things awhile back!!!!

[Journeyman]

2. That show probably has an impact, but then, so does this. . .