The Secret Life of the American Teenager Vol. 6 Peddles 'A New Kind of Family' to American Teens

The Secret Life of the American Teenager
Volume 6 of the overly-promiscuous "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" kicks off with Amy Juergens (Shailene Woodley - 19) telling Ricky Underwood (Daren Kagasoff - 23) that she is ready to have sex with him and they should both go get tested. Note to self: This is why you skipped Secret Life Volumes 4 and 5.

Secret Life Deja Vu
Deja vu! Ben Boykewich, (Kenny Baumann - 21) is expecting a baby -- AND -- he is thinking about marrying the pregnant girl! If this sounds familiar, it's because in season one he went through the same process with Amy Juergens, who got pregnant at 15 when she had sex with Ricky Underwood. Then Ben had sex with Ricky's on-and-off again slutty girlfriend, Adrian Lee (Francia Raisa - 22) who seduced him out of revenge. (It may not be politically correct to call a girl who sleeps around indiscriminately and seduces boys out of revenge a "slut" these days, but if the slutty lifestyle fits, wear it.) Anyway, this clueless little group of sexed-obsessed teens (and their insipid parents) is trading partners, talking about their sexual exploits with their way-too-lenient parents, getting tested, having sex -- same sex, opposite sex -- having babies in high school, and selling this insane, immoral and dangerous lifestyle to American teenagers compliments of ABC's anti-family programming.

A New Kind of Family
The ABC Family logo has the text "a new kind of family" beneath the logo, and they are apparently trying to sell their definition of "a new kind of family" to teens and presumably, to their parents. In spite of the fact that in February 2011, Federal officials reported that births to American teenagers had hit a historic low, two out of the four lead teen females from season one have now become pregnant. In the real world, the current rate of teen births is 39.1 births per 1,000 teenagers from ages 15 to 19 -- under 4%. (www.mlive.com/) On "The Secret Life of the American Teenager," the birth rate among female lead characters is a whopping 50%.

Sex-Partner Musical Chairs
Yet, this fiction continues to represent ABC's definition of "a new kind of family" -- sex-partner musical chairs, marriage partner musical chairs, baby-daddy musical chairs, and all before these teens are 18. Instead of showing the normal teen life at school, studying in class, reading in the library, playing sports, studying at home, going to normal school events, ABC's high schoolers spend all their time talking about sex, having sex, or dealing with the results of their sex. "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" has sunk to the lowest level of the middle class barrel where there is no such thing as teen abstinence, and teen pregnancy is the norm. This is "Sex and the City" for teens where 20-something actors disguised as high-school teens hop into bed with each other with reckless abandon... much like their irresponsible and amoral parents do.

Uber-Cool Parents
These uber-cool parents hang out with their teens, discussing their children's sex lives as well as the parents' sex lives, and encouraging the kids to do the "right thing." No, the "right thing" isn't to wait until they are married to have sex -- Heaven forbid ABC Family allow any morality to sneak into the television series! On "Secret Life," the "right thing" is to get tested and use a condom. These parent/buddies allow their teenage sons and daughters go off to spend the night with their boyfriends and girlfriends; let their teens have sexual sleep-overs at home; are willing to let their teens move in with each other; and even give their kids advice on how to get someone to sleep with them -- kids who are not even of age.

What Happened to Strong Parents & Family Values?
What do these networks have against strong parents and family values since the majority of American families are not part of such "a new kind of family?" Even Amy's father (Mark Derwin), who occasionally tries to instill some parental discipline, is depicted as buffoonish when he tries to put his foot down on Amy's sexual escapades. The only redeeming value in "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" Volumes 1 - 6, besides a few fluffy "forgive and make up scenes" and some lame attempts to depict the ramifications of teen sex, is that perhaps teens will get as tired of seeing these kids talk about sex and having sex as I did.

Stars Shailene Woodley, Kenny Baumann, Molly Ringwald, Francia Raisa & Daren Kagasoff
"The Secret Life of the American Teenager" stars Shailene Woodley ("Crossing Jordan," "The O.C."), Kenny Baumann ("Castle"), Molly Ringwald ("Pretty in Pink"), Francia Raisa ("Bring It On:" "All or Nothing"), Greg Finley ("Cold Case"), Josie Bissett ("Melrose Place"), Mark Derwin ("Life with Bonnie") India Eisley ("Underworld," "New Dawn") and Daren Kagasoff.

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