Bristol Palin's Pregnancy: A Private Perspective
The big news in the world of presidential politics yesterday was the announcement that Bristol Palin, the 17-year old daughter of Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin, is pregnant and has decided to keep the baby and marry the father.
Lot of different angles here.
First: Is the story a private, family matter that should remain off limits in the political arena?
I'll stop snickering when you do.
C'mon. We're talking about her party's candidate for vice president of the United States here. The presidential candidate is 72 years old. The average American's life expectancy is 77.6 years. If you have ears, then hear.
But we're also not talking about the vice presidential candidate. We're talking about the candidate's 17-year old daughter. Bristol is not running for office. She's a kid. Kids make mistakes. She's owning up to her's. Bravo.
But in a sense, we are talking about Sarah Palin when we're talking about this issue. She's asking to be one heartbeat away from the helm of the empire. Like I've said before, I don't put a lot of stock in the idea that we should look to the President for much; I put a lot of stock in the idea that the person of the President has a lot of symbolic purchase. In other words, what does it say that this person is President? Think Kennedy. Think Mandela.
So what does it say that this mother's 17-year-old daughter is pregnant? Not that she's keeping the baby. Like I said, bravo and may God's strength be with Bristol. No. What does it say that the 17-year-old daughter of the vice presidential candidate, the 1984 runner-up in the Miss Alaska beauty pageant, is pregnant?
That kids make mistakes? Sure they do.
That you can be the greatest mother in the world and still have that happen? It's possible.
Does it say something about beauty pageant contestants and what message that sends to a daughter? I'll leave that one alone.
But here's the thing. And this is just my own private, gut-level, judgmental, not-knowing-all-sides-of-the-issue take on this thing.
If you're the parent of a 17-year-old kid and that kid gets pregnant, that doesn't say much to me about your executive abilities. And I'm not talking about the night that Bristol went out and came back pregnant. I'm talking about the 17 years prior to that night.
Pretty judgmental, I know. And I would probably never voice such an opinion about an ordinary mother. Too many variables. Too many splinter-versus-plank issues abounding.
But this ain't no ordinary mother.
Like I said, that's just my own, private take on a not-so-private matter. I'll be praying for Bristol and the baby and the new family. Please join me.
**UPDATE: I've run into a few posts on this issue (here's one) where the following hypothetical was posed: What if this was Obama's 17-year-old daughter? I found that to be a fascinating hypo. Think about it.**
Grace and Peace,
Raffi
Hey Raffi,
My gut reaction is different, but just as judgmental. My gut reaction is to chuckle at the kid who screwed the governor's daughter. Can you imagine? By the grace of God my mistakes at that age have not been so public.
I'm in disagreement with you on your final thought though.
Do you think Biden's sons have ever had pre-marital sex? Do you think that Obama's daughters ever will? - I need not remind you about his comments about his daughter's hypothetical mistakes in that area.
What does her response to her child's pregnancy say about her love and grace for a child that makes mistakes? And does that play into her "executive abilities?"
I think Obama's response, at least the one that I've read, is most appropriate. He simply said that family is off limits. And yes I do think they put too much emphasis on the candidate's spouses. The pressure on his wife is bizarre, but I write this as a pastor whose wife has strange pressures on her for a job that is not her own.
I'll admit my own bias here, I'm not voting for Obama (although I did enjoy the series you did on the book on his faith), but I don't think I'm voting for McCain either. I'll either write in someone or vote libertarian. I'm doing this because our political system is a circus and the government is not competent enough to do much well, let alone Kingdom of God things (welfare, healthcare, education - I don't think you and I disagree here too much to be honest). Meanwhile a couple of kids who made a mistake or two, mistakes that I made without the pregnancy, are being held up for all the world to see. This issue will not enlighten us on anything relevant, it will only strain these kids' sanity in unimaginable ways. I would be shocked if her daughter's marriage works out, not because of her youth, but because of this craziness that will surround it. And that makes me sad.
But I still chuckle about this boy whose hormones got him into a lot more than he bargained for.
I'll be honest, Mofast, I never looked at it from the perspective of the kid who screwed the governor's daughter. I wonder if it was a "mistake," though. I'm making a lot of assumptions here, but knowing what I know about teenage boys (and especially the type who would have access to the governor's daughter), having been one myself, I wouldn't be surprised if "screwing the governor's daughter," in and of itself, wasn't the goal for the kid. And, if so, that just might be the saddest part of the story.
I bet he would have thought twice if he lived in Kah-li-fo-nia.
Grace and Peace,
Raffi