Would US teens want a lower age of consent?

Because I seriously doubt, with HIV, herpes, Papilloma virus, and teenaged pregnancy, and all of the costs that go with such things, that any responsible, intelligent adult is advocating for such a measure.

Teenagers are smart. They understand that sex can be pleasurable and that it can enhance the intimacy of their relationships. Telling them otherwise -- by insisting, for example, that "sex is for adults only" -- defies their lived reality. We should instead be emphasizing safe sex practices, open communication, and gender equality. We should not tolerate, for example, any double standard that winks at teenage boys for having multiple partners but disparages girls who do so. We should take a warning from the old joke: What do you call teenagers who receive abstinence-only sex education? Anwers: Mothers and fathers. I look forward to the day when those adults who preach an anti-sex philosophy to teenagers become as unpopular as the teens who embrace it.

That is not to say that some teenagers won't choose to remain celibate. I cannot imagine why they would, by I respect their right to do so. However, those 16- and 17-year-olds who want to indulge in one of life's great pleasures should not have to worry about the long arm of the law coming after them or their partners. Even more important, our society needs an open debate on this question. For far too long, those progressive voices who would bring common sense to the issues of teenage sexuality have been afraid to speak out for fear of being branded sympathetic to pedophiles and sex predators. The reality is that a reasonably lower age of consent, and a frank national discussion of adolescent sexuality, would serve the interests of the very minors that current laws are supposedly trying to protect. Pro-sex is Pro-safety. Conservative parents are certainly entitled to encourage their teenage daughters to keep their legs crossed, much as they may tell their sons that masturbation causes blindness. What they do not have have a right to do is to lock the rest of our society in a chastity belt by fighting a war on sexuality under the specious guise of protecting teens from themselves.

I want an unending source of free salt and pepper calamari.

Now what?

William Thomas Stead (5 July 1849 – 15 April 1912) was an English newspaper editor who, as a pioneer of investigative journalism, became a controversial figure of the Victorian era. Stead published a series of hugely influential campaigns whilst editor of The Pall Mall Gazette, and he is best known for his 1885 series of articles, The Maiden Tribute of Modern Babylon, written in support of a bill to raise the age of consent from 13 to 16, dubbed the "Stead Act."

In 1885, Stead entered upon a crusade against child prostitution by publishing a series of four articles entitled The Maiden Tribute of Modern Babylon. In order to demonstrate the truth of his revelations, he arranged the "purchase" of Eliza Armstrong, the 13-year-old daughter of a chimney sweep. His first instalment was trailed with a warning guaranteed to make the Pall Mall Gazette sell out. Copies changed hands for 20 times their original value and the office was besieged by 10,000 members of the public. The popularity of the articles was so great the Gazette's supply of paper ran out and had to be replenished with supplies from the rival Globe.

Though his action is thought to have furthered the passing of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885, his successful demonstration of the trade's existence led to his conviction for abduction and a three-month term of imprisonment at Coldbath Fields and Holloway prisons. He was convicted on technical grounds that he had failed to first secure permission for the "purchase" from the girl's father.

. If that is the case, I doubt we are going to see any reduction in the age of consent below 16 where it is in most places.

Following up on Izzy's post though, between the ages of 13 and 16, you have a group of people who are ripe for exploitation and manipulation.

Saying that 13-15 year olds can have sex with people their own age but shielding them from adults fits in with this pattern.

Quote:

Because I seriously doubt, with HIV, herpes, Papilloma virus, and teenaged pregnancy, and all of the costs that go with such things, that any responsible, intelligent adult is advocating for such a measure.

I am one.

Sexual intercourse (see Definitions) with someone 16 or 17 years old is a Class A
misdemeanor, and carries the same penalty classification as fourth degree sexual
assault, Wis. Stats. sec. 940.225(3m) and 948.09. However, this behavior does not fall
under the mandated reporting requirement in Wis. Stat. sec. 48.981 if the school
professional feels, in his/her professional opinion, the sexual intercourse is voluntary. A
1983 Wisconsin Attorney General opinion states, “Sexual contact or intercourse with a
sixteen- or seventeen-year-old is not sexual assault unless it is nonconsensual.
Therefore, it should be reported as abuse only if there is reasonable cause to suspect
that the sixteen- or seventeen-year-old did not consent.” (Ref. 72 Atty. Gen. 93). This
legal interpretation was reestablished in a Department of Justice (DOJ) memorandum
dated 4/14/05.

Sexual contact or sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 16 years is a
felony, Wis. Stat. sec. 948.02(1) and (2). School professionals who have reasonable
cause to believe a student under the age of 16 years has had sexual contact or
intercourse with another person, where the student claims the sexual contact or
intercourse is consensual, must still report this behavior to the county CPS or local law
enforcement agency.
The only possible exception to this requirement is when the student is receiving or has
received health care services from a health care provider (see Definitions). The stated
purpose of this exception in state statute “is to allow children to obtain confidential
health care services,” Wis. Stat. sec. 48.981(2m)(a). Some health care services (as
defined in statute to include family planning services) may be within the scope of a
school nurse’s responsibilities (i.e., counseling, distribution of information, and referral).