I’m sure most people have heard by now of the 17 pregnant girls at Gloucester High School. Yes, that’s 17 soon-to- be-moms all under age 17!  Many of the expectant teenage moms confessed to making a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together.  One girl even fessed up that the father of her unborn child is a 24-year-old homeless guy! A homeless guy! Whatever happen to the days when teens avoided getting knocked up? Why are children purposefully having children?

School Superintendent Christopher Farmer told CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller the teens feel, “Motherhood gives them status.”

“It sort of gives you the impression of being an adult, an independent. It may give you an opportunity for unconditional love and attention from the baby and also that you give to the baby,” Dr. Elisabeth Guthrie, a pediatric psychiatrist, observed to Miller. [CBS News]

Of course there are those folks who argue that it’s the fault of the media for “glamourizing” pregnancy.

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New drugs and treatments for aging and the illnesses associated with it are right around the corner. “The general public has no idea what’s coming,” Harvard Medical School professor David Sinclair is quoted as saying in an article in the Atlanta Journal-Consitution, “It’s not an if, but a when.”

Sinclair’s comments were part of a discussion forum on aging and longevity that closed out the recent World Science Festival at New York University, a gathering of Nobel laureate scientists from all disciplines, business leaders and philosophers.

One of the most promising substances currently in clinical trial to promote longevity is resveratrol, a substance found in red wine (and often rumored to give the French and Italians that certain joie de vivre along with remarkably good looks in old age). Resveratrol has been very successful in extending the life of laboratory mice.

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Earlier this year I wrote about the Manhatan Storage anti-abortion ads that were around Manhatan. Well, Manhattan Storage is taking their support of choice even further as they are donating a total of $200,000 to 5 NYC charities one of which is Planned Parenthood of NYC.

 and visit http://www.plannedparenthood.org/nyc/ for ways you can help Planned Parenthood continue to provide the highest quality family planning and reproductive health care to women, men, and teens across the country.

As a stand-up comedian I’d like to think I have a good sense of humor and I’m fairly certain that WayOutTV’s Abortion Man video is not funny. It’s sick. It’s sad. It’s not however funny. It’s also on a site created by Damon Wayans. You know Damon Wayans? He had that lovely family oriented show called “My Wife and Kids”? Well now he has a site that embraces videos about attacking women and involuntarily killing their unborn kids. Classy.

I’d post the video here but I refuse to give it anymore face time. Essentially the hilarious sketch goes like this:

Basically, a young guy gets a call from his girlfriend, who reveals that she is pregnant. The guy mutters “Get rid of that sh*t,” but then tells the young woman in question he’s “enthused about the whole situation.” He hangs up the phone, and, Ã la Superman, runs to the window and yells “Help!” Enter Abortion Man, who wears a T-shirt displaying a fetus with a line through it. Abortion Man comes to the rescue by accosting the young woman in question, saying “Ah-hah! I have you now, fiend!” and then punching her. In the belly. When she falls to the ground, he stomps on her. And a bloody fetus flies out, into the bushes. [Salon.com]

The video is not even pro-choice or pro-life, it’s just disappointing and gross.

I first heard of this horse sh*t thanks to good ol’ Jezebel that shares this insight:

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The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Don’t miss some of our most popular articles of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites.

Katie:

Autism Awareness Day

Dolly Parton & American Idol: 9 to 5 and Women’s Rights

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Nicole:

Top 10 Garbloggers Talkin’ Trash

‘Garbage Warrior’ Turns Trash Into Green Homes

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Giulia:

Low US Grad Rates & ‘The First Year’

‘The Greatest Silence’ & More Ways to Take Action

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Gina:

Top 10 Dystopian Film Heros & Heroines

Empire Or Humanity? Howard Zinn & Viggo Mortensen Spread the Word On YouTube

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Kerry:

Eco-action blogger Kerry Trueman has moved onto greener pastures, but you can still find her at eatingliberally.com. Good luck, Kerry. We’ll miss you!

If cinema has anything to say about it the future is a scary scary place. Filled with oppressive governments and dark and dirty landscapes, dystopian cinema provides lessons of what might lie ahead if we don’t get our act together today. One of the ways we can work to make sure our future is bright, emotion filled and without oppression is to look at the examples the heroes and heroines of these films provide.

Below are the Top 10 Dystopian Film Heroes & Heroines. For some movies I’ve included not only the obvious male hero but also the woman that is often connected to him. It isn’t right that only the men should be honored for their efforts!

So take a look and let me know if I’ve missed your favorite.

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1. THX 1138 : THX 1138

The end of this film is why THX tops my list. The boldness and fearlessness he exhibits as he moves towards the unknown exemplifies what it means to be a hero. After his girlfriend is found pregnant and he is arrested THX doesn’t give in to authority. More than that he never gives up the search for his love and his freedom in the tightly controlled underground world he finds himself in. Plus, who doesn’t love Robert Duvall!?

and learn how THX could have avoided (and young girls can avoid ) pregnancy with Planned Parenthood.

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