In what was, amazingly for Fox's "Outnumbered," an almost bias free, reasonable discussion about sex education, Andrea Tantaros said, not so amazingly, something both biased and stupid!
Wednesday's discussion began with the "clueless" Stacey Dash reporting that two 13 year old Canadian girls are pushing their school to teach the concept of "clear, affirmative, and enthusiastic consent" within the sex education curriculum. The on set video screen showed a visual which summarized the girls' contention that in order to "end rape," a "consent culture" should be created. Dash quoted a local politician who supports the idea because, he believes, kids are getting the right information at home. Given the Christian right's opposition to sex-ed, I was expecting a full court press against this idea; but the subsequent discussion was moderate until, uh, Tantaros opened her mouth.
Kennedy said that although she takes responsibility for all aspects of her daughters' education, she understands that teaching consent can help empower kids and thus help them avoid sexual assault. But lest that the viewers think that Fox is selling out to the liberal agenda, she validated the Christian right view that sex-ed promotes promiscuity with her comment that "we don't need to rev up the power party in 8th grade."
Dash said that it's good to discuss enthusiastic consent but "there is no enthusiastic consent at 14." She did acknowledge that some parents don't address this. Harris Faulkner said that she will teach her daughters about sex because she "doesn't trust" anybody else. She questioned teaching of consent, even if it's empowering, because "they really don't understand what that means at that age, they just don't."
Fox's favorite right wing veteran, Pete Hegseth articulated a parent's dilemma: "It reinforces the idea that they should be thinking about it. You walk that fine line because consent is critically important and shouldn't be glossed over at any level." He questioned whether we should be empowering kids or "confronting them with these issues front ant center that early."
Tantaros didn't have a problem with teaching consent as long as the parents give their consent. She also said that the curriculum should include how to say no to sex. And that's when Tantaros treated us to her patented brand of stupid, trash talking which, in her alternative version of reality, makes her sound so smart.
Making sure to work in the requisite liberal bashing she joked that this couldn't be called a "say no to sex course, the left would go crazy and say 'women should always say yes." Dash guffawed.
In the whacky world of the right wing, liberals are seen as sexual libertines who just can't control their raging libidos. So I don't know if Tantaros was trying to inject some agitprop into what was really not a propaganda session or if she was just pulling her usual crap from her intellectual nether regions!?
Really, Andrea? Then, why are rightwingnuts the only ones I hear talking about “legitimate rape”?
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