A traditional Christian marriage

I watch a bio of Sarah Palin and caught a quick mention about her marriage.

Nearly twenty years ago, Sarah and her now husband Todd secretly eloped, with no notice to family members and friends.  Two kids run off to tie the knot and finally consimate their love within the bounds of marriage.  A romantic tale of love.

However, one small detail caught my ear.  Less than eight months after the Palin’s suprise marriage, their first son Track was born.

This leaves two possibilites:

• Track was conceived in the cheap honeymoon hotel and born more than one month early
• Track was conceived in the cab of a Ford F150 and born a couple days early

I have no proof concerning the validity of either statement.  However, it is possible that and after missing her period and taking several pregnancy tests, Sarah eloped Todd to ensure that that Track was legitamate in the eyes of God and chruch.

I come from a big Catholic Family.  To me, Senario 2 seems more probable then possible.

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Why does this matter?  Am I just fueling the tabloid politics?

Yes, Maybe.

This is important because it hightlights the problem of sex education.  Sarah Palin strongly opposes comprehensive sex education.  She says, “The explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support”(http://eagleforumalaska.blogspot.com/).  I think what she means by “explicit sex-ed programs” is “factual sex-ed programs.”

Sarah Palin supports abstinence-only programs.  Abstinence-only programs have been proven over and over again to be ineffective (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/13/AR2007041301003.html).  Part of their failure may have to do with the fact that many students of abstinence-only programs in the US receive information that simply isn’t true (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26623-2004Dec1.html).  Abstinence-only programs don’t prevent kids from having sex, they don’t prevent girls from getting pregnant.  I could go on about how ridiculous these programs are, but on to the main point.

The reason I bring all this up that the Palin family have benefited from a strict Abstinence-only education in the home.   The result has been a (possible) unplanned pre-marital pregnancy with Sarah and Todd and an obvious unplanned pre-marital pregnancy with their daughter. Bristol.

The problem I see here is that values get in the way of reality.  How can you continue to pretend that abstinece works when it fails statiscally and fails in your own family?
If Sarah Palin makes her decisions based on her values in spite of their effect, what else will she apply her values too?  Instead of spending time making this country better, will Palin spend her time making this country fit her values?