Sorry, Kansas teens, but I feel awful for you.

A few days ago, during my daily browsing of boston.com, I came across this op-ed article. In short, it's about a law in Kansas that states that sex involving minors (even if it is consensual between two minors) is illegal and is considered abuse. The main proponent of this law is Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline (pictured above). To get a good mental picture of what Kline stands for, picture me... and then the exact opposite of me. And there you have it. He's a Republican, an adamant pro-lifer, and so on and so forth. As you can imagine, this article did not make me very happy. The article states:

"The Kline Theory goes something like this: If sexual activity between teens is illegal, there's no such thing as consensual sex, and thus every act is harmful. These acts, by the way, include 'any lewd fondling or touching of the person . . . with the intent to arouse or satisfy the sexual desires.' In short, healthcare workers have to rat on 15-year-old sexual criminals who are lustily and mutually 'abusing' each other in the back seat of a Toyota."

This is actually kind of amusing. I wonder if he realizes how many teenagers are made guilty by this law? Kline is one of the many politicians that have an overly idealistic view of the world, and, in this case, the lives of teenagers. It is completely unrealistic to expect teenagers to God-fearing, law-abiding citizens with no desire of sexual activity. The only theory I can come up with to explain his wacky notions is that he has forgotten what it's like to be a teenager... or, perhaps more likely, he simply couldn't get any as a teenager and is now extremely bitter. I imagine him saying, "if I couldn't get any, no one else will!" Haha. Okay, I'm kidding. Sort of.

Anyway, to continue dissecting Kline's baffling beliefs, I quote the article again:

"The healthcare workers sued, and the recent trial produced some pretty odd exchanges. When lawyer Bonnie Scott Jones of the Center for Reproductive Rights put Kline on the stand, she asked if anything beyond kissing was acceptable. Is oral sex performed by a boy a reportable crime? Yes, said Kline. Oral sex performed by a girl? 'I'm not certain,' he said."

In order to avoid being completely infuriated by his response, I am simply going to laugh. Hysterically. Basically Kline claims that oral sex performed on a girl is definitely a crime, while a blowjob is not. I don't even know where to begin. What is this, Africa? Where, in some regions, it's considered unacceptable for women to experience sexual pleasure but perfectly acceptable for men? This is sexism in an awful way, and it's leading to the radical belief that (as I discussed a few blogs ago) women are here to please men. It's completely outrageous.

Moving on from Kline, here is radical feminism at its worst:

"There was also the testimony of Dr. Elizabeth Shadigian, best known as a stalwart of the abortion-gives-you-breast-cancer misinformation campaign. She said that teenage girls are always the victims of sexual activity because 'there's always a power differential between a boy and a girl.' When girls have sex, they aren't doing, she said, 'they have been done to.'"

This, folks, explains why I identify myself as only a slight feminist in my blogger profile. Shadigian's above statement is absolutely ridiculous and complete hogwash. I can't believe there are people out there - women, even - that believe this. How can anyone possibly claim that girls never have sex for pleasure, because they want to, but because they are forced to? I know girls whose libidos (and consensual sexual experiences) greatly surpass those of many boys that I know. Plus, teenage boys should be given more credit than that. I think it's safe to say that the majority of teenage boys would not take advantage of a girl for sex, which is what Shadigian implies that she believes in her above statement. She is another example of someone who completely misunderstands the teenage psyche.

I suppose all we really can do is laugh at the complete absurdity of these people. That, and be thankful that we don't live in Kansas (and be sorry for those that do).

P.S. I fully endorse this blog.