Trashy tees - A&F at it again

Allie Martin - OneNewsNow -

The American Family Association and OneMillionMoms.com is spearheading an e-mail campaign to a popular clothing store over a new line of T-shirts. According to OneMillionMoms.com director Monica Cole, Abercrombie & Fitch is pitching a new line of trashy tees. "A few of their little slogans are pretty offensive to women in general, so you wouldn't want your daughters or nieces wearing these shirts," she contends.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=678784

Damage control for teens of divorce

Mark Gregston

When parents split up, it can cause a number of problems in the life of their children; especially if the children are in the pre-teen or teen years. I would never say divorce is responsible for every problem for the kids from split families who come to our teen-counseling program at Heartlight, but it is a major factor for many. Divorce piles on emotional problems for a teen a little higher than there would normally be for an already emotional adolescent.

While there is no real way to fix the problems that divorce can bring into a teen's life, there are ways to do damage control to help them through one of the most painful experiences they will ever encounter. Since half of all marriages end on divorce, I thought it may be helpful to provide a few ways for the parents to address the after-effects of divorce on a teenager. It can help them better deal with the hand they were dealt.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=675470

How Facebook Ruins Friendships

Notice to my friends: I love you all dearly.

But I don't give a hoot that you are "having a busy Monday," your child "took 30 minutes to brush his teeth," your dog "just ate an ant trap" or you want to "save the piglets." And I really, really don't care which Addams Family member you most resemble. (I could have told you the answer before you took the quiz on Facebook.)

Here's where you and I went wrong: We took our friendship online. First we began communicating more by email than by phone. Then we switched to "instant messaging" or "texting." We "friended" each other on Facebook, and began communicating by "tweeting" our thoughts—in 140 characters or less—via Twitter.

http://sbk.online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204660604574370450465849142.html

Conservatism reigns in Croatia

Pete Chagnon - OneNewsNow - Abstinence education is celebrating a legal victory in Croatia. Roger Kiska of the Alliance Defense Fund says the case was particularly dangerous because it involved a charter body of the Council of Europe. That body polices compliance with the European Social Charter -- a binding human-rights document on all states within the Council of Europe.

The case involved a lawsuit against the Christian nation of Croatia, which Kiska says has a low rate of teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. The suit alleged that the country was not teaching appropriate sexual education in their schools because they focused on abstinence.

"So the potential of this case was to completely liberalize sexual education throughout Europe," he explains. "And thankfully the committee agreed with our arguments, agreed with the arguments of Croatia, that because of the cultural sovereignty of Croatia, because of the low prevalence of sexual transmitted diseases and teen pregnancies, obviously the program was working" the attorney notes.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=660524

Abstinence, yes, but what about marriage?

Carolyn Moynihan

The abstinence-until-marriage movement in the United States has been a positive and courageous response to the sexual revolution. As the basis for sex education it has met with determined opposition because of adult scepticism, and probably dislike of the very idea of abstinence. Now a sociologist who is also an Evangelical Christian is suggesting another reason for reviewing the way Christians promote abstinence.

…[A]fter years of studying the sexual behavior and family decision-making of young Americans, I've come to the conclusion that Christians have made much ado about sex but are becoming slow and lax about marriage—that more significant, enduring witness to Christ's sacrificial love for his bride. Americans are taking flight from marriage. We are marrying later, if at all, and having fewer children.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/abstinence_yes_but_what_about_marriage/

A parent's guiding influence

Mark Gregston

A parent's desire to hold on to a child's innocence in his early years is normal and necessary. Early childhood is obviously not the right time for them to know certain things. But kids today are exposed to negative influences at earlier and earlier ages, and it is often out of a parent's control.

Age 16 used to be the benchmark for teens. It was the age most could begin to drive, and when given a set of car keys, the influence a parent has on how much of the world their teen experiences changes dramatically. But today, a younger teen has the keys to "drive" on over to some of the seediest places on earth, with the click of a mouse button. The Internet has changed everything.
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=640998

Lead us not into temptation…

Carolyn Moynihan

In a refreshing change from research that looks for excuses for everyday vices in people’s genes or family background, a study from the Kellogg School of Management looks at things like temptation, willpower and humility (yes, really) in impulsive and addictive behaviour. Previous research has shown that people in a “cold state” (not experiencing hunger, anger, sexual arousal and so on) tend to underestimate how a “hot”, impulsive state will influence their behaviour.

The new study led by Loran Nordgren confirmed that, and also found that those who are most confident about their self-control are the most likely to give into temptation. “People are not good at anticipating the power of their urges, and those who are the most confident about their self-control are the most likely to give into temptation,” said Nordgren. “The key is simply to avoid any situations where vices and other weaknesses thrive and, most importantly, for individuals to keep a humble view of their willpower.”

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/lead_us_not_into_temptation/

Lead us not into temptation…

Carolyn Moynihan

In a refreshing change from research that looks for excuses for everyday vices in people’s genes or family background, a study from the Kellogg School of Management looks at things like temptation, willpower and humility (yes, really) in impulsive and addictive behaviour. Previous research has shown that people in a “cold state” (not experiencing hunger, anger, sexual arousal and so on) tend to underestimate how a “hot”, impulsive state will influence their behaviour.

The new study led by Loran Nordgren confirmed that, and also found that those who are most confident about their self-control are the most likely to give into temptation. “People are not good at anticipating the power of their urges, and those who are the most confident about their self-control are the most likely to give into temptation,” said Nordgren. “The key is simply to avoid any situations where vices and other weaknesses thrive and, most importantly, for individuals to keep a humble view of their willpower.”

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/lead_us_not_into_temptation/

Free Teens USA

Free Teens USA reaches more than 10,000 teens annually in urban and suburban areas of NY and NJ with messages of healthy relationships, self-leadership, and character development. Free Teens aims to help youth achieve their life dreams and goals including that of preparing for a committed love relationship that can last a lifetime!
http://www.freeteensusa.org/
http://www.culturemachine.com/home.html

Young people quiz their peers on YouTube use and abuse

A survey of teenage use of the popular video-sharing website YouTubeconfirms that it is very easy for minors to give their age as 18 orover when creating an account on the site, and therefore to accessobjectionable material. Parents need to advise their children againstlooking for R18 videos and YouTube needs to make its safety featuresmore prominent, a new report suggests.
http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/young_people_quiz_their_peers_on_youtube_use_and_abuse/

Throwing oil on the blaze of teenage sex

Carolyn Moynihan

From the country that brought you the highest teenage pregnancy rate in Europe -- television ads for condoms and abortion. Will the British government never get it? The more “harm reduction” they go in for, the worse the problem gets. Friday last saw the end of a three-month consultation by the government’s broadcasting standards watchdog, the BCAP, on a proposal to allow abortion clinics to advertise on TV before 9pm. Condom ads, currently confined to one channel, would also be shown in the earlier time slot. Pro-life pregnancy counselling services could also advertise -- if they could afford it -- but would have to make it clear that they do not refer for abortion, “so that delays do not result in medical complications,” as one news report puts it. It would be too bad, wouldn't it, if women had time to think about what they were doing.
http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/throwing_oil_on_the_blaze_of_teenage_sex/

Student agrees - parents' rights rule over teachers'

Pete Chagnon - OneNewsNow -
An Alberta student is voicing his support through Facebook for a controversial bill dealing with sex education.Bill 44 is the controversial human rights bill that was recently passed in Alberta, Canada. The bill gives parents the right to opt their children out of controversial sex-ed programs in school and carries stiffs fines for teachers who do not adequately warn parents when such programs and lessons take place.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Education/Default.aspx?id=565024

Dealing with teen anger

Mark Gregston

Anger in your teenager can take on many faces. It can be a seething anger kept quietly below the surface, or a tidal wave unleashed on everyone around them. Anger can manifest itself in a covert refusal to comply with your household rules or wishes, or outright acts that can ruin their relationships, undermine their own future or bring harm to themselves. And if left unchecked, it can lead to violence and trouble with the law.

Anger in teenagers usually comes from some unmet need or heart-longing. Such "wants" can be immature and selfish; like wanting more material things. Or the more complicated want for control and independence. But these can also be a smokescreen for deeper wants, like the want for love, acceptance, or even the want for more clearly defined rules to live by. Or, it can be a want for life to be the way it was before a major event took place, like the breakup of the family, the loss of innocence, or a betrayal. Anger can also come from the want to not be ridiculed or bullied, or the want to be "normal" as defined by today's teen culture.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=560652

Sense of family obligation healthy for teens

Children of immigrants often excel as students because their parentshave very high expectations of them and make sacrifices to ensure theyget the best opportunities. Now a study of Chinese-American youthsshows that they have another advantage over their peers: they tend tohave better mental health than average in their mid-teens. The reasonhighlighted by the study is their sense of obligation to their families-- caring for siblings or helping elders, for example.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/sense_of_family_obligation_healthy_for_teens/

Fearless parenting

Mark Gregston

Fearful parents of teenagers today often believe that they'll avoid trouble by keeping their teenager always in their sight, by fixing their every problem, and by generally keeping them under their control. But I've learned that parents will gain more in the long run, and could avoid a season of teenage rebellion, by taking decisive steps to give up some of the control they have over their teen's daily life.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=551698

Hollywood cleans up teen movie language

Carolyn Moynihan

Is it a bit of Harry Potter magic? While profanity is increasing on television and in music lyrics, some Brigham Young University researchers have been pleasantly surprised to discover that it has markedly decreased since the 1980s in movies aimed at teens.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/hollywood_cleans_up_teen_movie_language/

Many teens wired, caffeinated well past bedtime

By Anne Harding

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Caffeine-fueled teens are texting, Web-surfing and gaming for hours into the night, which is affecting their alertness and ability to function during the day, a new study in Pediatrics shows.

"They're up at night and they're dong a lot less homework than we thought and a lot more multitasking," Dr. Christina J. Calamaro of Drexel University in Philadelphia, the lead researcher on the study, told Reuters Health.

http://health.yahoo.com/news/reuters/us_teens_wired.html

Fewer U.S. teens report being sexually active

By Anne Harding

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The percentage of U.S. teens having sex showed a "dramatic" drop between 1992 and 2002, while there was a similarly striking rise in the use of contraception by those who were sexually active, a new analysis of national US data shows.However, very recent increases in teen pregnancy -- after a decline lasting more than a decade -- show that more work needs to be done to help improve teens' reproductive health, according to Dr. Jennifer Manlove and colleagues from Child Trends in Washington, D.C.

http://health.yahoo.com/news/reuters/us_teens_sexual.html

WETZSTEIN: It's not always just about you

It isn’t just about you. Thankfully, some scholars and media commentators are getting the point that “self-esteem” is not an unlimited good: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/may/24/wetzstein-its-not-always-just-about-you/

Posted by Jennifer

Friday Five: Marriage Advocate Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse

by Jennifer Mesko, editor

'I came to the conclusion that there was a real desire among college students for lifelong married love.'Most young people want to get married and stay married, research shows, but they don't have a clue how to do that.That's where Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse comes in.She founded the Ruth Institute to prepare students to stand up for marriage. It's affiliated with the National Organization for Marriage and focuses on educating, networking and motivating.The first Ruth Institute campus conference takes place in San Diego in August.

http://www.citizenlink.org/content/A000010034.cfm

Conference planned to help students ‘speak the truth’ on natural marriage

San Diego, Calif., May 16, 2009 / 04:40 am (CNA).- A student conference on the importance of marriage and its defense is scheduled to take place this August in San Diego. It aims to bring together students and faculty who support natural marriage to help educate and motivate a new generation.

The conference, titled “It takes a family to raise a village,” is co-sponsored by the Ruth Institute and the National Organization for Marriage. It will be held at the University of San Diego from August 6 to 9 and is free to accepted students. Some travel assistance is also available.

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=15997

Teens and the stress they put on parents

Mark Gregston

Has your teen figured out that he can live without a care in the world for the problems his irresponsible behavior creates, or the stress it puts on you as a parent? Do you spend all your time worrying about him or trying to figure out how to get him to behave differently?

Whenever I see a teen who is irresponsible, and happy to be so, I know his parents are the ones who are quite miserable. The more they try to take control and change their teen's poor choices, the worse the behavior becomes. It's what I call "the spin cycle," a downward spiral in teen behavior that often results in their life spinning totally out of control or ending in dire consequences. And the whole family spins out of control, too.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=535090

A new sexual revolution

Marcia Segelstein - Guest Columnist -

We are awash in sex. We, and our children, can't escape it. The teen clothier Hollister prominently displays Maxim, a "soft core" pornographic magazine on a shelf next to publications devoted to skiing and skateboarding. Urban Outfitters, another retailer targeting teens, has naked models in its catalog. Victoria's Secret TV commercials, which run during supposedly family-friendly fare like American Idol, show high-heeled models strutting down runways in suggestive barely-there underwear. The Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, available annually at your local drugstore chain, has become an American icon. Sexual references and innuendoes abound in television shows and movies. "Women's" magazine cover headlines regularly promise to reveal secrets to better sex. Hotel chains make huge profits from their in-room X-rated movie offerings. Hugh Hefner -- who almost single-handedly brought pornography out of the shadows and into the light of day (making himself a fortune along the way) -- is just another celebrity.

We have "mainstreamed pornography," as author Michael Leahy puts it. Our hypersexualized, pornographic culture has all but obliterated a vision of what healthy sexuality is. So it shouldn't come as any surprise that the intentional viewing of pornography has become commonplace on college campuses and in the workplace. Michael Leahy documents these trends in his books, Porn University and Porn @ Work. Leahy is also a self-described recovering sex addict whose immersion in pornography nearly destroyed his life.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=533912

Embracing the sinful child

Mark Gregston

Some parent may not understand the need for my encouragement to continue loving their adult children regardless of their actions, thinking it impossible to do anything else. But for others, they know exactly what I am talking about. It's all you can do to keep from ringing their necks!

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=526682

The Right and Wrong Responses to "Sexting"

by Mary Graw Leary

A proposed law in Vermont will not only do little to solve the problem of “sexting,” but actually risks resulting in making even more children vulnerable to sexual exploitation.

The issue of so-called “sexting” has captured the attention of the media and, now, the legislatures. But the way the media has handled the complicated social issue of children sending pornographic pictures of themselves to others has brought the Vermont legislature to the verge of creating a bad law. The Vermont proposal would exempt the trading of self-produced images of child pornography from some child pornography statutes. The issue of self-produced child pornography (which is defined as a minor creating a picture of him or herself which meets the definition of child pornography: i.e. engaged in sexually explicit conduct) is a complex one. The Vermont legislature seems more concerned with the secondary problem of unwise prosecutions than it is with the behavior itself. However, by neglecting the main problem, the legislation risks significant damage to the children engaged in this behavior and undermines the broader battle against child pornography.

http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/viewarticle.php?selectedarticle=2009.05.12.001.pdart

Hooking Up

Check out the video: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/episodes/may-8-2009/hooking-up/2896/

Dr. Morse will be talking about it on Lutheran Public radio this week.

Obama would ax abstinence-only funding

Jim Brown - OneNewsNow -

If Congress approves President Obama's budget requests, there will be no more federal funding of abstinence-only education programs. Barack Obama has recommended completely zeroing out Title V abstinence programs to states, as well as abstinence education programs to community-based organizations (CBAE) and replacing them with more than $100 million for contraceptive-based sex-education programs. The massive omnibus bill signed by the president had already reduced funding to abstinence programs by $14 million.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=522676

Sexperts only a text away from curious teens

Carolyn Moynihan

Adolescent health experts in the United States think they have made a great leap forward in sex education. Since the vast majority of teenagers have cellphones, and since an awful lot of them appear to be sexually active, programmes have been set up in several states to receive and answer questions about sex by text message. The beauty of the scheme is that kids can ask the rudest and the most serious questions about sex without bothering their parents.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/sexperts_only_a_text_away_from_curious_teens/

Video game addiction among kids is real, a study suggests

Carolyn Moynihan
When does a 12-year-old’s fascination with video games become an addiction? Perhaps it never does, but only looks like that to over-anxious parents. Psychologist Douglas Gentile was inclined to take that view before conducting research on the subject. It turned out he was wrong.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/video_game_addiction_among_kids_is_real_a_study_suggests/

Court lets private schools expel lesbians

Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer

The state Supreme Court left intact Wednesday a lower-court ruling that said a private religious high school wasn't covered by California civil rights law and could expel students it believed were lesbians.

Over Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdegar's dissent, the court denied review of an appeal by parents of two girls who were expelled from a high school in Riverside County. A lawyer for the parents said the ruling, which is binding on trial courts statewide, would allow private schools to discriminate against students on any basis they chose, including sex and religion.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article/comments/view?f=/c/a/2009/04/30/BA5817BGU2.DTL

Video game addiction among kids is real, a study suggests

Carolyn Moynihan

When does a 12-year-old’s fascination with video games become an addiction? Perhaps it never does, but only looks like that to over-anxious parents. Psychologist Douglas Gentile was inclined to take that view before conducting research on the subject. It turned out he was wrong.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/view/video_game_addiction_among_kids_is_real_a_study_suggests/

Court lets private schools expel lesbians

Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer

The state Supreme Court left intact Wednesday a lower-court ruling that said a private religious high school wasn't covered by California civil rights law and could expel students it believed were lesbians.

Over Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdegar's dissent, the court denied review of an appeal by parents of two girls who were expelled from a high school in Riverside County. A lawyer for the parents said the ruling, which is binding on trial courts statewide, would allow private schools to discriminate against students on any basis they chose, including sex and religion.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article/comments/view?f=/c/a/2009/04/30/BA5817BGU2.DTL

'Sexting' prosecutions in limbo

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow

Questions are being raised over court jurisdiction in cases involving teens who are "sexting" -- sending nude and semi-nude pictures of themselves via cell phones. A Pennsylvania district attorney planned to charge the teens under child pornography statutes, but the American Civil Liberties Union successfully sued in federal court to block the prosecutions. Pat Trueman, special counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), believes the judge was out of order.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=502786

Teen pregnancy still a growing trend

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow

Out-of-wedlock births have reached a record high. Bill Albert of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy says roughly four out of ten births now occur outside of marriage. He believes the more it becomes normative behavior, the more teens will not see it as out of the ordinary. Plus, he points out that teens see other teenagers, relatives, and celebrities doing so, so they believe it is okay for them.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=499896

TCU nixes plans for 'gay' student housing

Associated Press

Texas Christian University won't provide on-campus housing for homosexual students this fall as previously planned. But in a statement, TCU's chancellor says the Fort Worth school "will maintain its long-standing commitment to the inclusiveness of all people."

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Education/Default.aspx?id=493664

Anorexic girls increasingly arrive in hospital

Carolyn Moynihan

Hospital admissions for girls aged 16 and under with anorexia rose by 80 per cent over the decade to mid-2007, new statistics from the UK show. The figures for 2006-2007 range from141 admissions for 15 year olds to five admissions for under-10s. Relatively few boys suffer from anorexia: there were 306 hospital admissions among boys under 16 during the decade.

http://www.mercatornet.com/new_family_edge/view/anorexic_girls_increasingly_arrive_in_hospital/

'Safe sexting' - permission over principle

Pete Chagnon - OneNewsNow

The special counsel to the Alliance Defense Fund is outraged over a Vermont state bill he says effectively legalizes production of child porn. Vermont Senate Bill 125 will make "sexting" legal for teens ages 13 to 18. Sexting refers to the sending of nude photographs via cell phone -- a growing phenomenon among teenagers. Some teens who have been caught sexting have faced penalties ranging from expulsion from school, to child pornography charges, to having to register as sex offenders.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=489510

Keeping my face off of Facebook has my girls all a Twitter

Erin Manning

Social networking sites may not offer children the type of "socialisation" the experts call for.

“Mom, can we check our email?” I get that question quite a bit these days. With three daughters, one an actual teen, and the other two hovering on the brink of their teenage years, I probably should have seen this coming.

http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/keeping_my_face_off_of_facebook_has_my_girls_all_a_twitter/

University of Maryland statement on screening of porn film

The University of Maryland is a diverse learning environment that respects the right of a free society to offer opinion, including opinions that may differ dramatically from the larger community.Last week, following cancellation of this movie as a university-sponsored event, we pointed out that we would explore other ways to return to the topics of responsible decision-making and effects of pornography in our society.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/college/bal-umdstatement0406,0,5604320.story

ACLU defends teens charged in 'sexting' scandal

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow

A temporary restraining order has been issued by a federal judge, who found that the three girls accused of sending child pornography via text message would likely win in a civil rights lawsuit against George Skumanick, the attorney who threatened them with felony charges. He had hoped the girls would be forced to participate in a five-week educational program to learn about the negative effects of their actions. The ACLU is representing the girls and their parents who allege the photos were not child pornography.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=472172

Confronting the Hook-Up Culture

by Robert P. George and John B. Londregan

A new approach is needed to support students in the hostile hook-up culture on college campuses.
In Tom Wolfe’s best-selling novel, the beautiful 18-year-old Charlotte Simmons leaves her home in the South to attend prestigious “DuPont University.” There she finds brilliant professors, gifted fellow students, extraordinary athletes, impressive gothic towers, impeccable lawns—and, of course, flowing kegs and plenty of utterly meaningless sex.

http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/viewarticle.php?selectedarticle=2009.03.17.001.pdart

'Plan B for girls' court decision hailed as triumph of science over politics

Carolyn Moynihan

With new bosses about to take over at the US Food and Drug Administration, a New York judge has ordered the federal drug regulator to make the morning after pill available to 17-year-olds and to review whether to make the emergency contraceptive available to all ages without a doctor’s order. Judge Edward R Korman’s 52-page decision is the outcome of a lawsuit by the Centre for Reproductive Rights against the FDA’s 2006 decision to deny girls younger than 18 access to the Plan B pill without a prescription.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/plan_b_for_girls_court_decision_hailed_as_triumph_of_science_over_politics/

NC's 'Healthy Youth Act' healthy in name only

Charlie Butts and Jody Brown - OneNewsNow

The vast majority of North Carolina school districts teach abstinence until marriage -- but one family advocate in the Tar Heel State says a backdoor approach is under way in the legislature to push an agenda that promotes promiscuity.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=466794

Parents' rights paramount in Calif. school district

Charlie Butts and Jody Brown - OneNewsNow

One school district in California has bucked the trend and opted to protect parental rights. The board of trustees of the Vista Unified School District voted unanimously to require that pupils obtain parental permission before leaving campus for "confidential medical services" -- including birth control and abortions.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Education/Default.aspx?id=459736

Plan B ruling 'puts politics above women's health'

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow

A judge has ordered the Food and Drug Administration to make the controversial Plan B "morning-after" pill available to 17-year-olds without a prescription.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=463218

Christian school confiscating cell phones to stop cheating

Associated Press

FAYETTEVILLE, NC - A Christian school in North Carolina plans to confiscate students' cell phones during class hours because teachers have caught students texting test answers twice this year. The Fayetteville Observer says the ban at Fayetteville Christian School takes effect on Tuesday.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Education/Default.aspx?id=461888

STDs a growing trend among America's youth

Charlie Butts

A government report reveals a strong need for more attention to abstinence education. Janice Crouse of Concerned Women for America has seen the report on sexually transmitted diseases which comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=458138

School caves to tuxedo-clad lesbian

Pete Chagnon - OneNewsNow

A family advocate in Indiana says he understands why an area school would cave to the demands of a lesbian student. The incident took place in the small farming community of Lebanon, Indiana. The town's high school had a policy concerning prom night that students wear appropriate attire, meaning boys wear tuxes and girls wear dresses. But a lesbian student decided that she wanted to wear a tux to the event. The school initially refused her request, but then the ACLU got involved.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Education/Default.aspx?id=455118

Like a Virgin: The Press Take On Teenage Sex

WILLIAM MCGURN

The chain reaction was something out of central casting. A medical journal starts it off by announcing a study comparing teens who take a pledge of virginity until marriage with those who don't. Lo and behold, when they crunch the numbers, they find not much difference between pledgers and nonpledgers: most do not make it to the marriage bed as virgins.Like a pack of randy 15-year-old boys, the press dives right in.

"Virginity Pledges Don't Stop Teen Sex," screams CBS News. "Virginity pledges don't mean much," adds CNN. "Study questions virginity pledges," says the Chicago Tribune. "Premarital Abstinence Pledges Ineffective, Study Finds," heralds the Washington Post. "Virginity Pledges Fail to Trump Teen Lust in Look at Older Data," reports Bloomberg. And on it goes.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123120095259855597.html

Weekend sleep-ins bad for teens

Carolyn Moynihan

An amazing amount of research is being done on the subject of sleep -- especially among adolescents. One of the hardest things in the world, apparently, is to get teenagers into and out of bed on time. In an Australian study, a school-based programme of four 50-minute classes over four weeks gave two groups of students aged 15 to 17 advice about healthy sleep habits along with other input on personal well-being, including healthy eating and exercise. Those in the classes were compared with control groups who did not do the programme.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/weekend_sleep_ins_bad_for_teens/

Study Links Explicit Lyrics to Teen Sex

A new study raises the issue of whether or not listening to sexually aggressive lyrics prompts teenagers to have sex at an earlier age. See Breitbart. The study, in which researchers at the University of Pittsburgh graded the sexual aggressiveness of song lyrics, used songs on the US Billboard chart by popular artists.

First, the investigators graded the song lyrics from the least to the most sexually degrading. Then they asked 711 students, aged 15 to 16, at three local high school about their sexual behavior and their music preferences.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Blog/Default.aspx?id=436184

Parents Discouraged from Discussing Right & Wrong with Kids

by Marcia Segelstein

Big Brother appears to be alive and well in Britain. Across the pond, the government has put out a leaflet for parents called “Talking to Your Teenagers About Sex and Relationships.” It recommends against stressing values in such discussions so that teens can “form their own values.” At taxpayers’ expense, Britain’s children’s minister (pray that we don’t get one of those here) initiated the effort which advises parents, when talking with their children, “that trying to convince them of what’s right and wrong may discourage them from being open.”

According to a representative of Britain’s Christian Institute, “The idea that the government is telling families not to pass on their values is outrageous.”

Read the full story at The Times Online.

A Parent's Prayer

by Marcia Segelstein

Writing about the dangers of internet pornography and children for my column today reminds me what a frightening world we live in. My “St. Augustine’s Prayer Book” includes this wonderful prayer for parents trying to protect their children:

"O Heavenly Father, I commend the souls of my children to thee. Be thou their God and Father; and mercifully supply whatever is wanting in me through frailty or negligence. Strengthen them to overcome the corruptions of the world, to resist all solicitations to evil, whether from within or without; and deliver them from the secret snares of the enemy. Pour thy grace into their hearts, and confirm and multiply in them the gifts of thy Holy Spirit, that they may daily grow in grace and in knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ; and so faithfully serving thee here, may come to rejoice in thy presence hereafter. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen."

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Blog/Default.aspx?id=426232

What parents need to know about porn and their kids

Marcia Segelstein - OneNewsNow Columnist

Most people probably don't picture kids when they think about who's viewing pornography. But according to statistics cited by the non-profit advocacy organization Enough Is Enough, the largest group of viewers of Internet pornography is children between the ages of 12 and 17. And there's more. The average age of first exposure to Internet pornography is 11. Eighty percent of 15- to 17-year-olds have had multiple exposures to hardcore pornography. Nine out of ten children between the ages of 8 and 16 with Internet access have viewed pornographic websites, sometimes inadvertently in the course of looking up information for homework.

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Obama asked to keep abstinence education funding

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow

The campaign to retain federal funding for abstinence programs in public schools continues.The Obama administration supports what is called "comprehensive sex education," which Valerie Huber of the National Abstinence Education Association believes encourages young people to be sexually intimate. She fears losing federal abstinence funding but notes her organization has found that many lawmakers, when informed of the truth about abstinence education, will listen.

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Sex-ed leaflet: ‘Don’t mention morality’

Carolyn Moynihan

A leaflet urging parents not to put advice about sex to their children in a moral framework is about to be released through pharmacies in the UK with the support of the government’s minister for children, Beverley Hughes. It comes in the wake of the case of Alfie Patten, a 13-year-old boy who fathered a child with a 15-year-old girl.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/sex_ed_leaflet_dont_mention_morality/

Boys behave better with a baby in the classroom

Carolyn Moynihan

Mothers are taking newborn babies into schools as part of a scheme being launched in Britain to help cut aggressive behaviour among pupils, including teenage boys. It is based on a programme called Roots of Empathy, which is running in 1579 schools across Canada and is reported to have helped children’s social and emotional knowledge. The programme, which involves monthly question and answer sessions with a mother and her baby, has also been taken up in Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/boys_behave_better_with_a_baby_in_the_classroom/

Bebo brains may only be fit to twitter

Carolyn Moynihan

Earlier this month 17 leading web firms signed a European agreement to improve the safety of under 18s who use social networking sites -- a concern of experts and governments around the world. The European Commission, which brokered the agreement, praised the move saying: "Social networking has enormous potential to flourish in Europe, to help boost our economy and make our society more interactive - as long as children and teenagers have the trust and the right tools to remain safe when making new 'friends' and sharing personal details online.”

http://www.mercatornet.com/family_edge/bebo_brains_may_only_be_fit_to_twitter/

CA minors can purchase adult-rated video games

Allie Martin - OneNewsNow

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down a California law designed to prevent the sale of adult video games to minors.

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=426492

Weekend roundup nets pimps, rescues teens

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow

The FBI, joining with local authorities in "Operation Cross Country," has rescued dozens of child prostitutes during weekend roundups. A total of 45 teenage prostitutes, ranging in age from 13 to 17, are now in custody, as are 50 alleged pimps. The goal of the three-night initiative, according to FBI deputy assistant director Daniel Roberts, was to recover children. "We consider them the child victims of prostitution," he told Associated Press.

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Internet safety for children, teens

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow - 2/21/2009
The federal government is providing resources for parents and children to protect themselves from harmful Internet material.

Laurie Nathan, a spokesperson for NetSmartz.org, says children continue to be victimized through the Internet, but her organization is offering children and parents tips for Internet safety.

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“Finding True Love in a Hook-up World”

Written by: Sean McDowell

If you were like King Solomon in the Bible and could have any one wish come true, what would you wish for? When I pose this question to my students they often say things such as, “to be rich,” “to be famous,” or “to find the perfect mate.” But of all the responses I have heard, the words of Ashley, an 18-year-old high school senior, stand out most vividly in my mind. After I spoke on sexual purity at a Tuesday-night youth group, she came up to me with tears in her eyes and said, “If I could have one wish in life, it would be to go back four years ago and hear this same message. I might not have ruined my life.” Ashley simply said thanks, and then walked away.

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School board 'misled' by GLSEN

Allie Martin - OneNewsNow

A family advocacy group in Pennsylvania is blasting members of a school board for allowing the formation of a pro-homosexual club at a high school.

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Teen media exposure linked with depression later

by Carolyn Moynihan

Over-exposure to television and other electronic media during the teenage years may contribute to depression in young adulthood, especially amongst young men, according to a report in the February issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. Depression commonly begins in adolescence or young adulthood, and many factors have been identified, including genetic inheritance, temperament and parenting styles. Media exposure is another prime suspect as teens spend on average eight and a half hours a day with electronic screens and gadgets.

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Cannabis use falls among teens who stay home more

by Carolyn Moynihan

Marijuana use is declining amongst young people in most European countries and North America, and the reason seems to be that teens are going out less, according to an article in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Researchers who set out to find whether adolescents tended to “catch” the pot-smoking habit from unsupervised socialising with their peers, confirmed their hypothesis.

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High court says no to protecting minors from porn

Charlie Butts - OneNewsNow - 1/22/2009

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to revive the Child Online Protection Act, designed to protect children from sexual material and other objectionable content on the Internet.

Pat Trueman, who was a pornography prosecutor in the Ronald Reagan administration, is now special counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. He objects to the decision by the nation's highest court on Wednesday not to revive the federal law that would have barred websites from making harmful content available to minors over the Internet.

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What Youth Give Society

Interview With Vatican Aide on Upcoming Youth Day Plans
By Anita S. Bourdin

ROME, JAN. 21, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is sending a message to young people for the next World Youth Days, and it is important for them to read it, affirms Father Eric Jacquinet.

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