Naiveté not restricted to Alaska’s girls

In response to the letter written by Vance Barrett headlined “State shouldn’t parent” (Letters to the Editor, Nov. 16), we are appalled by the mindless comments and inflammatory statements of the writer.

As “underage women,” we are women nonetheless and feel we should have the right to decide what happens to our bodies. Therefore, our decisions about what we do to our bodies should take precedence over that of a given adult male. The suggestion that the availability of abortion services will increase the promiscuity of our age group is outrageous. The simple accessibility of the service does not guarantee its use. Perhaps Barrett feels the availability of guns will ensure everyone dies of gunshot wounds; however, in reality, that doesn’t happen.

While the Supreme Court is the final legal authority within the state, it is unlikely its decisions will automatically change the behavior and values of Alaskans. We would like to think parents influence their children’s decisions more so than the Supreme Court.

Perhaps there should be a law against naiveté and bad parenting.

Beth Fitzgerald and

Kristina Richardson

Palmer