I am writing in response to Peggy Bates' Nov. 18 letter, "Parents must educate sexually active teens."

I agree with most of her points, but I have a few comments to add.

Our country's obsession with teen pregnancy has gone too far. We are bombarded with shows like the ABC Family show, "The Secret Life of the American Teenager."

To all of you who support abstinence-only sex education: Would you rather have teens have safe sex or have a sexually transmitted disease or be a teen parent?

"Juno" was a good movie, but we all have to remember that not all teen pregnancy situations end like Juno's and stories like this don't represent many of the girls from low-income backgrounds who get pregnant.

Why is there never an ending in stories or movies where a girl gets an abortion?

It seems very odd to me that around the time Jamie Lynn Spear gave birth, girls from a Massachusetts high school - most of them under age 16 - were reported to be expecting, too.

Jamie Lynn said motherhood was so much fun. She's only 17. What message does that send to young girls?

I personally think she should be explaining the harsh realities of teen pregnancy and motherhood and how even though she has really good resources to help, it's not something you should do.

John McCain's vice presidential pick, Sarah Palin, supports abstinence-only sex education. Would her daughter Bristol be pregnant at 17 if she had been better educated on the consequences of sex?

Roseanna Ahrens

Bloomington