While 15 may be a bit young, 18 is definitely too old. Just because the law says “no,” doesn’t mean that people under 18 aren’t going to have sex. Maybe 16 would be a better legal age for consensual sex.

Thank you for writing about what we all have been thinking.
I know it’s not PC.
But Heros and Boldness are needed in these times.
Thank you-
Robert Clark

According to the Pulitzer Prize (for history) winning book Paul Revere and the World He Lived In, his second wife was 21 when they married. She had a 5 year old child when they got married (her first husband died during the revolutionary war). Given the 9 month gestation period for humans, it is likely she conceived when she was 15. Back then, it was common for 14 year old women to marry, and unmarried 18 year old women were commonly known as “old maids”.

But for some reason, in the last century, in spite of all the evidence to the contrary, we’ve taken to thinking that a girl is a girl until she’s 18 (why not 21, or 25?). Actually, she’s a woman as soon as she has passed through puberty, which, as the article says, is happening sooner. But, in an obvious contradiction, this article continues the trend of refering to a young woman as a girl, which is inaccurate, and does a disservice to the debate. We, as a society, need to rediscover that girls become women once they pass through puberty, regardless of what numerical age they are, and these days that’s almost always happened by the time they’re 13. If they aren’t prepared for adulthood and what it means by the time they’ve passed puberty, then their parents have failed.

This doesn’t mean that they should be ready to have children, but that they should understand that they can have children, what that entails, and be able to make an informed decision about whether they should risk being sexually active. This isn’t a new issue (obviously). In The Grapes of Wrath, Hemmingway makes mention of parents watching their 14 year old daughters heading into the woods with 16 year old guys, and having to hope that she remembers what they’d taught her, because the parents understood that they couldn’t prevent her from saying yes to sex. “Just say no” isn’t education, and history has shown that it has never worked.

So Mr. Hefner isn’t expressing an interest in “an underage girl”, he’s expressing an interest in a young woman who happens to be younger than the arbitrary age we’ve somehow decided she needs to be before she’s considered a woman. If this does nothing other than spark debate on when girls become women, with a resulting change in attitudes about teaching young women what they should know, it will be worth it. However, I doubt the masses are willing to pull their heads out of the sand on this issue.

yep, 15 should be the legal age. because who are we to tell young girls that they can’t start motherhood and adulthood long before they’ve truly matured? will the boys step up to take care of their babies and significant others? nope, of course not! they want to party the night away! 15 year olds should stick to school, casual dates, and growing up. enough of trying to make our kids older than they are.

Hugh Hefner should realize that one of a 15 year girls worst nightmares is the thought life of a dried out prune(y) looking lecherous old man.

I’m a 40-something guy. About two months ago, I had a 15ish BOY try to pick me up.
He seemed to be rather hurt when I pretended not to understand what he was saying.
A month before that, I had a 17ish guy try to pick me up.
I ignored his come-on too (It is the law, you know!).
Why does the law require that adults who “kids” find attractive break their hearts?
I have always obeyed the law, I do obey the law, and I will continue to obey the law.
But I KNEW what I wanted when I was 13.
I think lots of kids do.
Rape is agaist the law, as it should be, but lets not pretend that young people don’t know what they want.

Michael are you nuts?!?!!!

While I am not afraid of the debate and certainly this is an important issue, currently have you thought about emotional maturity at all. Girls may be physically fit for sexual activity at 12 but are you suggesting that they are emotionally fit. Get you mind out of the 18th century. The times didn’t necessitate 12 years of primary education and then 4 to 8 more for specialization. People could start out young…very young and with hard work get their farms prosperous in ten to 15 years. They were emotionally committed to each other. You compare that with what is required today to just survive in life. To suggest that a 15 or 16-year-old girl has the ability to emotionally untangle herself and express herself sexually says more about you than the issue. Seems like you would want to desensitize these young women at such a young age so they would fulfill you NSA fantasies. Yes sex is great; yes sex is fun!! Sex though doesn’t come without responsibility. Children should not be having sex until they can live with those responsibilities that come with it. That means babies. You can argue till your blue in the face but the stark realty is that these young women barely are able to get the concept of life without the next boy band or pop sensation much less protect themselves from life altering consequences such as sexually transmitted diseases, conception, abortion, and all that is required to understand for what would be deemed a healthy sex life. To think that these young women are ready emotionally for such responsibilities is perverse. We wonder about the sexually transmitted disease rate, unwed mothers, a cycle of poverty, drug use, underage drinking, and this is Hugh’s contribution to our society. You really think that these young women are ready to handle all this. The classic indestructible complex of teenager’s is – “none of this is going to happen to me…I will be the exception.” Yet Miss Spears apparently with all her good upbringing, couldn’t bring herself to require a condom be used. Now her life and that of her baby will be unalterably changed. Do you think she will ever miss her childhood…because it is now gone. She is directly responsible for another human being that will depend on her. These are the decisions you want young women in general to make. What about the sexually active males in their lives…seems they get the free pass. Certainly Miss Spear’s sperm donor won’t offer much in the way of a father. Not like the baby will ever respect him as a source of nutrition – physical, emotional or what have you. In a society that continues to dress young ladies as sexual objects and are bombarded by images of sex with no emotional or physical context or responsibilities, re-evaluating the sexual age of young women without addressing the emotional context and the life altering responsibilities that come with sexual activity is nuts!

I tend to agree that society is more accepting of teenage sexuality. However, older men’s attraction to underage girls is not a new phenomenon. In high school, I was routinely asked out by men old enough to be my father. What needs to happen is for parents to be involved in their children and teens lives, set age appropriate restrictions, teach their children and teens not necessarily to abstain at all costs but to value themselves and their bodies, and for society as a whole to stop obsessing and buying products associated with teenage sexuality. Allow our children to be children without completely sexualizing them.

Michael are you nuts?!?!!!

While I am not afraid of the debate and certainly this is an important issue, currently have you thought about emotional maturity at all. Girls may be physically fit for sexual activity at 12 but are you suggesting that they are emotionally fit. Get you mind out of the 18th century. The times didn’t necessitate 12 years of primary education and then 4 to 8 more for specialization. People could start out young…very young and with hard work get their farms prosperous in ten to 15 years. They were emotionally committed to each other. You compare that with what is required today to just survive in life. To suggest that a 15 or 16-year-old girl has the ability to emotionally untangle herself and express herself sexually says more about you than the issue. Seems like you would want to desensitize these young women at such a young age so they would fulfill you NSA fantasies. Yes sex is great; yes sex is fun!! Sex though doesn’t come without responsibility. Children should not be having sex until they can live with those responsibilities that come with it. That means babies. You can argue till your blue in the face but the stark realty is that these young women barely are able to get the concept of life without the next boy band or pop sensation much less protect themselves from life altering consequences such as sexually transmitted diseases, conception, abortion, and all that is required to understand for what would be deemed a healthy sex life. To think that these young women are ready emotionally for such responsibilities is perverse. We wonder about the sexually transmitted disease rate, unwed mothers, a cycle of poverty, drug use, underage drinking, and this is Hugh’s contribution to our society. You really think that these young women are ready to handle all this. The classic indestructible complex of teenager’s is – “none of this is going to happen to me…I will be the exception.” Yet Miss Spears apparently with all her good upbringing, couldn’t bring herself to require a condom be used. Now her life and that of her baby will be unalterably changed. Do you think she will ever miss her childhood…because it is now gone. She is directly responsible for another human being that will depend on her. These are the decisions you want young women in general to make. What about the sexually active males in their lives…seems they get the free pass. Certainly Miss Spear’s sperm donor won’t offer much in the way of a father. Not like the baby will ever respect him as a source of nutrition – physical, emotional or what have you. In a society that continues to dress young ladies as sexual objects and are bombarded by images of sex with no emotional or physical context or responsibilities, re-evaluating the sexual age of young women without addressing the emotional context and the life altering responsibilities that come with sexual activity is nuts!

As for the age, until you can pay for the consequences for sex you don’t get to express yourself that way unless you have parental consent. Isn’t it the parents (or tax payers) that usually have to pay the unintended consequences of sex.

The media is PARTLY to blame? You’re kidding right?

I think you’re being paranoid and hypervigilant. People made a big scandal over the Vanity Fair photos and Hef was probably asked for his opinion. What else do you think he’s going to say?

His answer was completely obvious and predictable. He wants every famous attractive woman in Playboy. But they have to be 18.

He’s offered to put all kinds of women in Playboy — and the offers always come the minute the women become extra-famous through some kind of scandal.

Big scandal plus moderately attractive = Playboy offer. It’s a very simple and predictable equation and it even happens for women in the fifties.

Maybe you have some secondary trauma from listening to too many sexual abuse survivors and now you’re showing post-traumatic hypervigilance over this business.

If Hef really was some kind of closet child molestor like you’re implying here, then we’d have heard some REAL child porn scandals coming from Playboy by now that would make this non-scandal pale in comparison.

Get a grip, dude. See your own therapist and talk it over.

By the way Michael, saying no has ALWAYS worked. No worries about STD’s, unplanned parenthood, and a life of poverty. My wife and I said no and none of these were worries for us in our teenage years. To other’s that have not said no, a great majority have heavy worries in their teenage years.

Strange, we are willing to dress our seven-year-old girls in adult-appearing clothing, make them up to appear as miniature adults, and then put them on public display, but we are unwilling to understand that this very early sexualization of children is going to lead those same children, when they get older, to start thinking of adult activities.

I’ve seen thirteen and fourteen-year-old girls who were, emotionally and mentally, far more mature than some women I know in their twenties and thirties. Fortunately, these young women (at their maturity level, it’s insulting to call them “girls” although they are children) are mature enough to understand all the risks and responsibilities that go with being sexually active.

One of the keys to the problem is education. Ideally, that education should be in the home. However, far too many parents won’t talk to either their sons or daughters about sex. I am a firm advocate of a comprehensive sex education class in the school system. Yes, teach abstinence, but also realize that, so far, the “teach abstinence” thing is a pretty dismal failure.

In all of these discussions, I have seen no mention of Brooke Shields posing for Penthouse magazine – at 12 (IIRC).

The media goes only where their respective publics want them to go. Women are the main buyers of sexual pop culture. Men will spend on explicit sex, but women are students of sexual power: that area which precedes and follows explicit sex. The Hefners of the world capitalize on our innate sexuality just as do the preachers of hells fire and damnation. The collapsing of family values is the catalyst for most of their success. Family is historically where cultures are protected and passed on to our young. Culture’s function of preserving knowledge which channels youthful sexuality in constructive ways is being eroded. Government has failed to protect family structures and favors media’s power to control populations. Lower the age of consent absent a family’s influence, and we’re back in the stone age with television cameras rolling.

I’m sorry, but I just cannot agree that the legal age of consent should be much lower. Regardless of the biologicial age of maturity getting lower, it does not seem to me the mental age of maturity is getting any lower.

We all can think back to our teen years and say we knew exactly what we wanted, and I think most of us will say with hindsight that we were stupid about most of it. The life experience to understand and deal with the potential consequences of sexual activity just doesn’t seem to me to be there in teenagers of my time or today.

Teenagers are malleable, despite their reputations for being rebellious. Peer pressure is real, and many succumb to it. The compass of what is right and wrong, legally and morally, can and does have a profound effect on how people deal with pressure from others trying to manipulate their behavior. Does that mean that teens with a sex education and strong moral compass don’t get pressured into sex? Of course not. Does that mean that they don’t choose to have sex on their own? Of course not. But imagine how much easier it would be for teens to be pushed in that direction by a ‘cool’ college kid, or twenty something, or even older, wiser, more experienced manipulator. Young people are used to learning what’s right and wrong from older people, its how we pass down many of life’s lessons. So what do you want their boyfriend/girlfriend telling them? What are their motivations? Its too easy in my mind for adult partners to manipulate teens.

I certainly don’t consider myself a puritain. I’m far from the model christian, and I didn’t wait until I was married to have sex. But I do feel there is an innocence associated with young people that should be protected. After highschool, the world is foricng those people to take care of themselves, either by going to college, getting a job, joining the military, whatever. Until then, it is still the job of parents and family to give them the tools they need to make good decisions. Since not everyone matures at the same rate, any point of legal consent will always be a bit arbitrary. But that transition from college to the real world seems as good a point as any to me.

I think it’s sick, perverted and wrong for either a grown man or woman to find a CHILD sexually attractive!

The media is a sick monster trying to push their agenda on the general public. You see it with the elections, women’s rights, etc. 7 times out of 10 they ae dead wrong.

Change the age of consent my arse! That just gives license to every pedophile in the Country to go out and get themselves a kid.

Isn’t it odd that the press views the Miley Cyrus situation as a liberating view of modern sexuality, yet view the Texas Polygamy case as abhorrent behavior.

M. Kent and Michael, you are both right, and you are both wrong. While it is correct that at the age of 16 you can or even should consider them to be young women they are still very nieve in terms of life and what they need to know and learn in order to survive. M. Kent you said it yourself, “young woman” you have already admitted that in your mind you have accepted the practice that at that age they are “woman” not “little girls” You tell Michael to get his mind out of the 18th century? Where does that come into play? being attracted to one so young is a built in trait, human males have been attracted to such young ages for hundreds of thousands of years, even going as far and including it into their own religion. The desire for men as well as woman to be attracted to that age will never faulter, will always be there and there is absolutely nothing any one or any law can do about it. Just watch the history channel sometime, look at civilization though out the ages, you will see that young woman have been married off, pregnant and raising families at the age of 12. Now I do agree that a girl so young should have nothing to do with sex but it is very wrong to assume that it is out of the ordinary. We as a people in the last 200 years have imposed laws to curb what certain few considered to be wrong, now we live in an age that makes it very wrong but deep down it still exists,will never go away. If you want a religious stand point, tell me where in the bible that it states a 17 year old is the right age to marry, or have sex or to have offspring. You will never see it because at the time the bible was written the underage infulence was rampant, was everywhere and was even encouraged because of the male dominated society, it was a requierment for a girl who went through puberty to stop any education and start thinking in terms of family, the womans job was to raise offspring, take care of the dwelling and feed the family, it was the mans job to bring home the bacon. You can disagree all you want but you cannot argue fact nomatter how much you hate it. I will clear the air, I do not find young woman atractive because they are still developing mentally, as in experience with life in general, they really have no clue what life really is or how hard and mean it can be. Im not saying go out and bang a 16 year old either, but pull your head out of your butt and see whats around you, it has existed for hundreds of thousands of years and will continue for another hundred thousand years. Do a little research on indiginous tribes in south america, or africa you will see what I am talking about.

Oh and pagen you are so wrong. Do you honestly think that because of the age of consent that there are more peodfiles out? They have always been there, when you grew up to now they have always been there, same number, diferent times, the only diference is now they are getting caught because it is so much easier to go and do those things with the internet, same number of pedofiles as a 100 years ago, now its just easier to catch them.

i think this whole website didn’t have anything to write about and try to make something out of nothing. Hugh did say when she turned 18. He didn’t say, he thinks that she is sexually attractive at 15. This column is a joke.

So this is what the Roman Empire must have looked like just before it caved in to both internal and external pressure. The code of behavior is being defined down to suit those who have little or no standards. Sex, violance, bread and circuses. Our country is in a state of moral decline. There are consequences to one’s behavior. Disease, social upheaval, drugs and crime is what you reap in an amoral society.

While I believe that the age of consent is arbitrary, I think that maturity should be measured in other ways besides physical. For example, I don’t think anyone has the right to the act of procreation, who cannot (and/or will not) support the product, pure and simple. No sex if you don’t have a job and pay taxes. Also, no sex if you can’t balance a checkbook, buy and cook your own food, put a roof over your head and keep it clean, wash your own clothes, and drive a car. There should be no issues of dependency. Consent is more than saying “yes” in the heat of the moment. It is the mental ability to weigh the consequences, consider the options, and accept the responsibility for the outcome. I don’t know any 15 year olds who can do all of that. Other generations were different. They even looked older. This one has been allowed to loiter in never-never land too long. And, yes the media has done its part, but our society is so hedonistic, we can’t discern lust from love or beauty from sexual exploitation. No wonder our kids are confused.

Please! Miley is okay looking, but she’s no playboy bunny. My point is Hugh isn’t trying to bed her, he’s just trying to get a VERY popular person into his magazine so he can make MONEY. My friend got me a PB subscription and I’ve been reading more than looking at the photos. However, I noticed that most models are 18 to 21, but they look older than most 30-somethings I know. Playboy is obviously not about pedophilia or they could be photographing more youthful looking models like other magazines do.

I had sex when I was 15. I’m sure the average “starting age” is even lower now. And as long as that’s among their own age group, fine. Let the parents deal with it. However if you have some 50 year old trying to get a 14 year old, there’s an issue there. Short of having the parents’ consent, it should be illegal. Perhaps the law should be changed to “anyone under 18 can only legally have sex with someone within a 4 year age difference.” Remember that 16 year old who went to jail for receiving non-coerced oral from a 14 year old? Seems rediculous.

Some men I think go after young girls finding many young and nieve. They want to be adults and are easily flattered by the attention of an older man. The same can be said about women and young boys as well. It speaks poorly of an adult too socially secure to have relationships with another adult. Many of these men do not consider themselves pedophiles, wrongly believing that term to be reserved for those that prey on pre-puberty children. Still these adults seeking relations with underage (but teenage) girls are just as much a predator. As they seek their own gratification they care little for the damage they do tho these young people. I think the age of consent is just fine where it is but should only be (on a case by case basis) less rigid where both are near the same age. I cannot see an 18 year old man is as much a jerk for a relationship with a 15 year old girl, probably in the same social circle as a man in his 30’s or 40’s.

Michael, the Grapes of Wrath was written by Steinbeck, not Hemmingway. Even a 15 year old knows that- Just as a 15 year old knows, if they’re taught, what the consequences of sex are. Let Miley do what she wants and let her father deal with it.

The problem is not just Hugh Hefner and dirty old men. The whole gamut of the loosening sexual mores is part and parcel of this trend. The fact that we think that it is acceptable for teenagers to play around at being adults before becoming adults is more to the point.

If it is okay for teenagers to have sexual intercourse with each other, then it naturally follows: “Why can’t they have sex with anyone that they choose?”

Not everyone champions the “right” of teenagers to have sex. What happened to teaching them discipline and responsibility? Just because I can do something doesn’t mean that it is wise that I should do it. Just because teenagers CAN have sex doesn’t mean that they SHOULD!

I TOTALLY AGREE WITH DR. ABLOW.

Welcome to the conversation Chris.

The point of bringing out the 18th century was a counter to the Paul Revere thing by Michael. You are absolutely correct that there are viable societies where the marring age is more to do with physical ability to produce kids than to develop mentally, physically, and emotionally. However, WE DO NOT LIVE IN SUCH A SOCIETY unless you want to keep the cycle of poverty going than I guess. But think of life spans in the agricultural world versus the industrial. Marrying early was pretty much a necessity for the perpetuation of the race. In this modern age, when society requires so much education in order to make it, how can you suggest that sexual activity without the means to fulfill the responsibilities that come with it is OK. Of course you don’t see an age in the Bible. You see where society set the bounds and MARRIAGE was required and where children were looked to as blessings from above. But as a practical issue, unless you want to go back to subsisted living and not much more that I guess that would be a choice. It is true that the same age group in a not so distant past were probably able to adapt emotionally and mentally to the pressures that were required to survive as a race. Keep in mind a shorter mortality rate, primitive medical care, and worrying more about if the drought will let up so we can eat versus longer educational requirements, advanced medical care, wii, teen beat, and what is the next big style change. I think comparing these two concepts are crazy. We are too far removed from that society.

Young women yes. Sex objects…you can decide. If one thinks of what modern living has provided, it is the liberation of the woman and elevating her higher than a sex object…or not I guess. With the wonderful opportunities afforded to women for really the first time in human history to be Doctors, Scientists, and even President, we have mainstream media and apparently more of the public than I thought willing to say ….you are a sex item for the pleasure of who ever will manipulate you to being so. To that I say no. You are a wonderful creature, full of wonder, imagination, and ability. Are we sexually creatures? Yes, but not only sexual creatures. We are so much more! In the society we live in there are such great opportunities for all; I see the sexualization of young women as a perverse way to entrap and devalue the self worth of young women. In the society we live in, it is naive to think that sexually liberating young women (below the age of 18) is going to have a positive effect on their lives. Sure there may be exceptions. But what I sense are predatory older men who are ready to use, abuse and move on. Would it not be the perfect age for it? Naïve to believe the unfulfilled promises until they are emotionally spent and damaged, finding it difficult to emotionally attach to someone sexually now that they have been used and abused.

My point is that sexual activity has an emotional component that when abused becomes desensitized. I am not trying to impose my morality on the masses, but at least let the young women have a chance to get to 18, where they hopefully can make a better-informed decision about who to share their intimacy with than the generally emotionally immature 12 to 16 year olds. Let them finish high school at least. Let them have the chance to explore career opportunities rather than be dealing with STD’s and unplanned pregnancies. How any man can justify the sexualization of a young woman and think that it should be acceptable is beyond me. Society will not be served by it. Just because I want the big house with the nice cars doesn’t give me a license to rob a bank. Society has generally frowned upon theft. By extension, just because a young women is attractive does not give anyone license to strip her of her HONOR before she is emotionally and mentally able to comprehend the effect that such activity will have on her life.

Things would be different if I could look at the landscape of our society and not see unwed mothers trapped in poverty because they have been found sexually mature enough be someone older and wiser. It would be different it STD’s didn’t effect over half of our society’s teenagers. So until you can show me that the misery of early sexual activity has been brought under control I think you are fooling yourself. And if society concludes otherwise before the aforementioned issues are resolved then our society will crumble. Sexual activity requires the maturity to accept the consequences of those actions. I don’t see how logically anyone can argue otherwise.

So Chris, in short if indigenous life is for you than so be it. Just remember that necessity is more the cause than choice. Western civilization has moved past the ‘you Jane me Tarzan’ stage of human existence. Just please don’t bring up marriage of children to goats. I just don’t think that will work in our society either.

To Michael (comment # 3). Steinbeck wrote Grapes of Wrath, not Hemmingway.

What is behind the “let the parents deal with it”? I call that dumping.

I never could understand what the big fuss was about regarding Miley picture there was no nudity shown my gosh you pick up a womans magazine and there is a hell of a lot more skin shown! Yes I know she is a 15 year old girl but I am postive she has hormones like any other woman so give her a break! In large part we can thank the interent to blame for the issue of men wanting under age girls and under age girls wanting older men! It kind of like lettng the genie out of the bottle our society is past putting it back in. First same sex marriage is now widely accepted next it will be older men having sexual realations with under age girls and it does not seem to matter if they are 12 to 18. Personally i think old Hugh Hefner always has been a bit of a pervert and I am shocked he is still alive as I thought by now he would have got aids or some other type of “medical conditon”!

I doubt that Hugh H. finds Miley all that attractive.

Media attention, yet. Blogs lighting up with his name, yes. Selling millions of magazines, yes.

Dealing with a teenage girl? Not attractive for an older man.

Why 18 as the age of consent? How about to encourage young women to complete a basic high school education, so they have a chance of contributing to society rather than be a burden to it. The single income family is a thing of the past, and without at least a high school education the only legal way to survive is on welfare. Finally, bodies may hit puberty younger, but the mind exists in a culture that requires increasing levels of maturity and sophistication to get by. If you want to look at teenage girls, look. Just curb the lust and settle for bikini shots until they have the education and experience to support themselves in this world.

What a load of crap. Just where is Mike Baker when you need him. Some people are pretty. Some are young. We all enjoy looking at pretty people. Enjoying looking at pretty people doesnt make you a pervert. It makes you a person. Pretending that a 15 year old isnt pretty isnt going to have one bit of effect on how many children get molested. As humans we will always rejoice in beautiful people of all ages.

Acknowlaging that someone is beautiful is not akin to trying (or even wanting) to have sex with them.

So knock off the drama queen nonsense.

I don’t think Hugh Hefner is expressing a personal interest in this popular young lady. I view his comments as being based on a commercial venture. He makes his money by publishing photographs of women in the nude. It is that simple! Miley Cyrus is a very popular young lady, who’s parents don’t feel to concerned about her image since her dad was at the photo shoot that made the headlines. Mr. Hefner has too much to loose be by coming on as a pervert. He simply made a statement that when Miley becomes of legal age and she wishes to show off her assets to the public that he would like to be the publication that does that. Think of the revenues that he would generate. There would be so many young men buying up the issues that it would probably have to go into a second print. Come on…cut Mr. Hefner some slack. He has too many very fine adult ladies around him all the time to make him think of a young lady in that way. He is a business man, first and foremost. His personal interest in the opposit sex is his business and no one elses.

Mr. Heffner is only interested in exploiting women for money. I think our kids are pushed into sexuality too early. Let them be kids, get and education and grow up.

Wise words from the Pervert in Pajamas

Well for one I think that we treat our children like little girls and little boys until they turn 18. When I was growing up I had chores to do, taking out the trash, washing dishes (by hand, not a dishwasher!), feeding the dog and cats. Things like that. Today we dress our young girls in skimpy clothes and then when a man (older then 20) eyes a teenager, regardless of age, we think that he is a pervert. Makes no sense to me. Back in the older days a 12 year old girl would be married off to someone much older then her and treated like crap by that person. If we want to have our kids grow up and start acting like adults then we need to treat them like adults. Period. If we as a society don’t want our kids to act like adults then treaat them like children and dress them every morning. Dress them appropriately. If there is no problem have a young girl 14-18 years old wearing short skirts, tank tops, and bikini’s then there should be no reason that they pose for pictures as well, either dressed or not. If we as a society think that thats wrong then we need to start changing our attitudes towards how they dress. I think that if a girl or boy can start driving at the age of 16 then they should be able to choose who they sleep with and when they sleep with them.

So John…driving a car is equal to the ability to procreate and gives a licence to do so. Yea…that’s going to help the unwed parent rate, the STD rate, etc. Why don’t we just get rid of the drinking age and voting age…hey they’re Americans too.

I will have to say that I agree with Pagan . And Chris , if the age would happen to be lowered you’d see a lot of closet perverts on the prowl . I bet that there are a lot more pedophiles and that most are just too afraid of jail time and never act out their gross fantasies or even tell anyone about them . You all can think what you like , but allowing young children whether male or female to make such weighty decisions will cost in the long run , and it won’t cost you or me , it will be cost them . All this will do is open a younger group of kids to being used by adults who could care less about them , or how it will effect their future . They need to be protected . Period .

As for Jamie Lynn Spears, would you have rather seen her have an abortion? Even though she is young (by today’s standards), her keeping her child said so much more than Hugh Hefner ever will.

Dr. Albow seems to believe that such interest in young women is a particularly modern activity, which has been advancing steadily with some sort of degradation of society. Perhaps he should take a deeper look into the history of America to see that, in fact, this activity is decreasing, per capita. It was not until the early 20th century that laws concerning minimum age (initially involved in the progressive movement’s efforts at child labor) were created. It was common from the 17th to the early 20th century for young girls to marry (often as young as 12) and frequently to much older men. Why not remark at the striking lack of 10 year olds in houses of prostitution in America today – as was practiced in many large towns and cities of 19th century San Francisco, New York, and Chicago, as well as in many western mining towns? It would seem that today palls at the visage of earlier times in this question.

This activity, however, did not end with the progressives, but continues to this day. North Carolina had laws allowing girls of 12 to marry at least up until the early ’40s. My own mother (no we are not in North Carolina) was married at 15 and I was born before she reached 16. Two of my sisters were married before they were 18, and my son just married his wife on her 18th birthday. To somehow equate this with pedophilia is to minimize that crime.

As for taking pictures of young girls in the nude, just look at some of the most famous figure photographers from around the world, who commonly used young models for figure studies. Again, this is nothing new, as some of the great painters also engaged in this sort of activity. I don’t believe anyone called Monet a pervert.

This brings us to the remark as to the desires of Hugh Heffner. Apart from not having any idea as to the thoughts of Heffner, Albow seems to also have no idea as to how marketing works. Heffner most likely has no particular interest in Miley, but rather on the profit margine of Playboy magazines, as notariety sells magazines.

I think that far from Heffner having a problem, it is rather Albow who has the problem. He seems to be afflicted with a long gone ferver of the Puritans (who, incidentally arrainged marriages of their 11-12 year old daughters to older men) which demands that he castigate anyone who holds ideals and morals contrary to his own.

In conclusion, America is no worse, and by many standards much better today that at any pother time in history. Please, no more uninformed and unsubstantiated complaints as to the state of human sexuality in the 21st century.

Well YEE HAW!!! It’s attack of the Maury Povich Show writers!! While not all of you feel the same, I hope that folks like Willow, Michael and John are not parents or teachers, and never are.

You know what’s really sad? the fact that we are even having this discussion. It shows that we live in a world that thrives on sensationalism, and trashy “reality” TV shows. Hmm yep, that’s sad. We need to remember that we are the teachers of our children. We are responsible for their actions due to our piss poor parenting skills. Moms, don’t like your little 13 y/o girl dressing like a street whore? Don’t just give her money without supervision and don’t buy her those types of clothes. Instill some MORALS in your child. Take them to church and read the Bible with them.

I think that we should all stay young forever!!!!!! and that all you people should come to Neverland with me rememeber its the second star on the right and straight on until morning:)

Why isn’t Hugh being arrsted for something? I don’t know what but something! This guy is sick. Pervert!!! Grow up Hugh, you are an old, ugly fart!!! Social services and the local PD need to get involved to check this guy’s house for child porn. He is obviously thinking about something here if he is asking a 15 year old to strip for him when she turns 18. Something is just not right here. Come on people, WAKE UP!!

When I see what goes on in this world today with approval in alot of cases all I can say “It is time for the Lord to come back” and clean up this mess. How disgusting the thought a 100 year old man lusting after a 15 year old young girl. Here’s the problem: stories like this are published and alot of predators and pervert’s convince themeselves that it is OK or normal to lust after or even stalk young girls. All you have to do is pick up a newspaper or turn the TV on and all you hear about is another young girl is missing or another young girl’s body was found. Can anyone not see the big problem we have in society? When young girls are looked at like this all this does is make matters even worse! Nothing suprises me anymore!

Re/Comment by Michael: Hemingway might wish that he had written The Grapes of Wrath, and perhaps Steinbeck might have wished he had written For Whom the Bell Tolls. But we’ll never know. What school you went?

The whole issue here is rediculous. I have children and they are under my care till they reach 18years of age. I want my children to go to college and have a successful life. Having sex with anyone before they are married should be out of the question. If you are trying to get an education, having children has a negative effect on that. Ask me how I know, my wife is a teacher and she see on a daily basis what the teen pregnancy epidemic is doing to kids. Not to mention STD’s, emotional/relationship problems. Is the 15 minutes of fun these guys think they will have worth it? NO! Is bringing another life into play that must be cared for, loved and helped grow..without saying “mom i need help…nevermind the work you must do to put food on the table”. The whole issue about teen sex goes back to responsiblilty. And most teens, even though they look mature, are not ready to deal with everything that comes with it.
I ask my kid and other teens: Do you respect yourself? Would you be ready to take care of another child? Some say yes, but the statistics show that parterners very seldom take care of the child involved. So much so now adays that you don’t hear “who’s you husband”…it’s more of like “is this your babies daddy?” I had a young girl ask my wife that in front of me…I stoped her and explained that my wife and I had been married for 15 years. She was almost awe struck. “15 years, thats a long time..” They don’t see relationships anymore as important…only sex. Very sad.
And YES, I think it is absurd that Hugh Heffner would even think about talking about a 15 year old posing when she turns 18…..If it was my daughter I would slap him. If she was 15 and he touched her….I might do jail time.

The author overlooks the fact that the person who took the Vanity Fair photos is a well-known homosexual who proved herself to also be a pedophile. Allowing Annie to photograph young girls is as irresponsible as allowing Robert Mapplethorpe to photograph young boys. Stupid.

In case some of you are unaware, the child or children young girls almost inevitable produce becomes the responsibility of the girls’ parents. The young man and his parents are not usually trapped! Why don’t some give more thought about the problem of young, unmarried sexual relationships — grandchildren without their mother and father are no blessing to older grandparents, nor are the children blessed by their parent’s animal instinct. Money is another factor of the our youth’s sexual acts: Tax payers all too often incur the “freight” for their children.

I once wondered why our culture is so despised by some countries, but I am now beginning to understand their disdain for what has become so pronounced in the USA: Immoral behavior!

No, I am not a religious nut case — I simply have common sense which is sorely lacking by too many folks. Most of all, I deeply care about children that come into this world without proper care by loving, married parents — I believe any psychiatrist can tell you that all to often these children have great psychological problems that may culminate in criminal behavior, which is another drain on society.

“The time that was once allowed teenaged girls to slowly grow into being sensual, to play at adulthood without being treated by older men as adults, is under assault.”

When did this time exist? It sure didn’t exist before 50-60 years ago, and I don’t think it has existed within that time frame.

>What is behind the “let the parents deal with it”? I call that dumping.

I call it taking responsibility for your role as a parent. I hate parents who bring a kid into this world and then dump them on society- relying on school sex ed classes and other social welfare programs to do their jobs for them.

Religion aside, teach them basic morals and values. Perhaps then they won’t be opt to shed their clothes for a 45 year old smooth-talker with candy and a promise. Perhaps the child is just looking for an older role-model to identify with since you’ve failed to be that for them.

Either lower the age of consent and admit that children are mature and independent; or keep it as is and realize that they still need parental guidance and take responsibility for them and their actions.

Why is everyone on Hugh’s case about all this ? He didn’t say he wanted to see her strip right now just when she turns 18. In my opinion I don’t think she will even think about doing something like that because she seems to have a good head on her shoulders and even if she didn’t why is it so wrong to show your body? Be proud of what you have. The girls that are doing it now, have done it, or are thinking about it are just proud to show what God gave them and they are just making a living ( a very rich one ) but hey who are we to say how people need to make their money. Either way it’s all up to this girl. She still has three more years to think about it so stop acting like someone did something wrong here. Wow Hugh made a comment about a 15 year old . Big Deal! Leave the old, rich f*@%er alone.

This is all ridiculous. The amount of hypocrites in our society is staggering. How many adult men out there can honestly say that they do not find a teenage girl attractive? Anyone who says that they do not should be openly and publicly ridiculed for being the hypocrites they are. Whether or not Mr. Hefner’s job is the most savory doesn’t matter. He is a male, and men happen to find females who are attractive, well….attractive. So, for this, don’t jump Hefner.

Besides this, I believe that we need to quit treating children (teenagers) as if they are stupid and cannot take any responsibility for themselves. The reason some kids act stupid and irresponsible is because we treat them that way. I work as a supervisor in a setting where I work with teenagers, and I have found that when you treat them intelligently, they act intelligently. If you treat them as an adult, then most of the time they will behave that way. There are probably an equal proportion of adults out there who act like “stupid kids”.

In conclusion, I would like to say that I find young women/teenage girls quite fetching. Not just in appearance, but in the fact that they do not play many of the “childish” mind games that many “adult” women play with you. I believe that society will come to its senses one day and we will all learn how to get along with each other and treat each other with equal respect and dignity regardless of situation, age or anything.

I blame her father for this as well as all the others who allegedly “encouraged” this young girl to display herself like that and Hef is a pig, plain and simple. He disgusts me and as for Miley, she disgusts me as well, as does her father.