Keep Your Root Square, Kids.

I'm referring to the chakra associated with sexual energy. If I were ever in a position of political power, I would make sex illegal for all people under 18. I'd also make it illegal to profit from sexual activity as a minor (under 21) as in pornography, exotic dancing and prostitution.

I realize that it's typical for teens to have sex and arguably "just the way it's always been" but it's still wrong. We should do everything in our power to discourage underage sex. Only then can we fully put a stop to atrocities like sex trafficking and child pornography. Guess what? If you're under 18, you are legally a child. I don't give a rat's ass if your culture or religion thinks you're a man or woman at 12 or even 15. Keep that root square til you're an actual adult.

Think of all the problems we could solve if our energies weren't muddled up with all the bullshit wrought by the contradictory shenanigans we're faced with just trying to make it out of grade school. If the social pressure were not so heavy, a four year degree would not seem so daunting after the ritualized feeling of finality we're practically hazed with upon completing high school. There would be fewer burnouts and dropouts. Most people drop out for social reasons anyway.

Counselors and teachers would be able to discern more easily the students who have real problems at home. We all go around feeling abused, which takes a real toll on even a professional's ability to empathize.

If a teacher ever texted sexually explicit messages to a student, they'd go to jail. The student, if said student participated, would be punished too.

I don't want to hear bullshit from trashy people saying, "You can't stop the beat there," because you really can. We can help keep future generations from a wild of hurt. The game of "no sex under our roof/you're kicked out/but we love you/but Timmy's mom doesn't care if we do it" is sick, put simply. You can't call this a "United States" if we can't even unify to agree upon laws of this nature.

Nothing will ever actually change unless we change our collective behavior. Guess where we all get our start. To do so, we have to unite with a firm attitude that encourages young people to be okay with childhood. It's not supposed to "ouch" at all. "Childish" is the worst insult, especially coming from the Jesus crowd. So much guilt there. Thing is, adulthood shouldn't have to mean a lack of innocence (which classically pertains to experience, but we tend to associate the loss of innocence with the "loss" of virginity, which is all kinds of problematic) . Sex is not supposed to make anyone feel guilty and if we were all collectively aware that it only happens in adulthood, I wouldn't have to explain that. I wouldn't have to feel like I should just "join em" since I was too insecure to beat em. Imagine: insecure teenagers a thing of the past we can all laugh about together when we see it in the movies.

Instead of making underage sex a relatable, normal, even *ugh, ergo...* a taboo, commoditized thing, we need to make it a crime. We are all doomed to be incredible hypocrites until the day we make that happen.

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While my experience/disposition rendered me less capable of the mental focus necessary for continued academic excellence after "going live" aka having sex on a regular basis as a teenager, I don't believe it's fair to enforce some law against a natural thing.

The last stat I heard on average age to become intentionally sexually active is around 14. While I find that icky to think about as a 28-year-old, I've been there. I gave it a couple more years myself.

I have more of a problem with the way we are viewed and treated as sexually active teens (namely by our parents). The stress of defending our primal urges reinforced by media, music, etc to older people we know and our own peers who disapprove is just as harmful, if not more, to our potential for success as our own darker natures (the typical jealous "high school drama" scenarios); at any rate, that added stress intensifies said dark sides.

I think the biggest hindrance to teen sex in general happening without oppression is self-respecting adults not wanting to happen upon graphic images of that. So if you're doing the deed underage, kindly do not provide anyone with photographic evidence. It ain't right--I still firmly believe pornstars (including internet amateurs) should be at least 21. Make the drinking age 18. If you can serve the alcohol or serve in the military, why shouldn't you be able to purchase and drink it in public?

If I were in a position of political power, and as a citizen, I am--I would move to lower the legal age of adulthood to 16.

I say lower the legal age of adulthood because I know too many people whom I respect and admire enough to see their point of view. It isn't uncommon for 16-year-olds to gain early entrance to college. I met one as a freshman at SU. He said, "Don't worry, my girlfriend's 21." I could have been an underage college student myself. If I'd had legal ownership of my person at that age, I would have been a student at UNT. I never would have had room to resent so deeply. I would have owned my maturity at an earlier age instead of acting like a stereotypical fuck up out of frustration.

#foodforthought #dontkillmeteens