How young is too young?

[DonDaddyD]

Without asking how old people were when they first 'did it'. This question stems from a query I had in another thread. Apparantly there are numerous ages of consent throughout the US what do you think it should be?

In England it is 16 and some wantto raise it, some want to lower it. Myself I think it should be kept at 16. I think that teaching children better sexual values will make them more responsible. But the hormones then are hard to deny and I don't think may teens can physically wait.

[ZorCrow]

I waited, and so can others . . .I think the age of consent should be the same age you are able to purchase cigarettes IN MOST (not all) state in America. I think it should be universally 18.

AGE OF
SEXUAL
STATE CONSENT
ALABAMA 16

ALASKA 16

ARIZONA 18

ARKANSAS 16

CALIFORNIA 18

COLORADO 17

CONNECTICUT 16

DELAWARE 18

The age of sexual consent is 16 for adults who are under 30 years of age,
or if the adult that is 30 years of age or older is married to the minor.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 16

FLORIDA 18

The age of sexual consent is 16 for adults who are under 24 years of age,
or if the adult that is 24 years of age or older is married to the minor.

GEORGIA 16

HAWAII 16

It is illegal for minors age 14 and 15 to have consensual sex with adults
at least five years older, this law does not apply to married couples.

IDAHO 18

ILLINOIS 17

Illinois law makes 18 the minimum age at which teachers and their students
may legally have sex. Age 17 does not apply to teachers or any other school
employee in a "position of authority" over the minor.

INDIANA 16

It is illegal for adults in a supervisory position of a minor aged 16 and 17
to have consensual sex with them. The crime called "felony child seduction"
, a Class D felony, carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a
$10,000 fine.

IOWA 16

KANSAS 16

Kansas law prohibits various sexual scenarios, and has a special category
for sex with a person between 14 and 16. Adults breaching this criminal sodomy
section face harsh penalties, but Kansas lawmakers carved out some breathing
space for youthful miscreants, provided they are 18 or under, and within four
years of age of their consensual partner. Called the "Romeo and Juliet" law,
the provision limits the penalty for teen sex to 15 months in jail, and does
not require the perpetrator to register as a sex offender. But the "Romeo and
Juliet" law only applies to heterosexual teen-agers.

KENTUCKY 16

LOUISIANA 17

MAINE 16

MARYLAND 16

MASSACHUSETTS 16

If a minor 16 or 17 years of age is a virgin, sex is illegal (Chapter 272:
Section 4. Inducing person under 18 to have sexual intercourse).

MICHIGAN 16

MINNESOTA 16

MISSISSIPPI 16

MISSOURI 17

MONTANA 16

The homosexual age of sexual consent is higher at 18.

NEBRASKA 17

NEVADA 16

The homosexual age of sexual consent is higher at 18.

NEW HAMPSHIRE 16

The age of sexual consent is higher at 18 if the adult is in a position of
authority over the person and uses this authority to coerce the person to
submit, except if between legally married spouses. Also the homosexual age
of consent may be higher at 18?

NEW JERSEY 16

NEW MEXICO 17

The age of sexual consent for homosexuals may be lower at 13?

NEW YORK 17

NORTH CAROLINA 16

NORTH DAKOTA 18

OHIO 16

OKLAHOMA 16

OREGON 18

PENNSYLVANIA 16

RHODE ISLAND 16

SOUTH CAROLINA 14*

SOUTH DAKOTA 16

TENNESSEE 18

TEXAS 17

UTAH 18

The age of sexual consent may be lower at 16 as long as it does not involve
force?

VERMONT 16

VIRGINIA 18

The age of sexual consent may be lower at 16 as long as it does not involve
force?

WASHINGTON 18

A person 16 or 17 may consent to sexual activity with a person not more than
59 months (4 years 11 months) older. For example it is illegal for a 21 year old
to have sex with a 16 year old; it is illegal for a 22 year old to have sex with
a 17 year old. Also it is illegal for any school employee to have consensual sexual
contact with a student between age 16 and high school graduation, so age 16 does
not apply to school employees.

WEST VIRGINIA 16

The age of sexual consent for homosexuals may be higher at 18?

WISCONSIN 18

WYOMING 16*

The age of sexual consent may be higher at 18 (14-3-105 Immoral or Indecent
Liberties with a Child)?


NOTE: In the AGE OF SEXUAL CONSENT column is the age of a person an adult
18 and over may legally have sexual contact with in that state.

* Indicates I have conflicting ages on this (Unconfirmed).

[DonDaddyD]

Oh my god if I ever go to America again and somehow (never happen) get lucky I'm making sure she's at least 30 so I know I'm safe! These laws are (no offence) fucked up! Over here it is simply, 'once your 16 you can have sex with whoever, buy ciggarettes have homosexual relations etc'.

I'm baffled how do you know what is right or wrong when travelling around America?

Also some laws are I find are just controversial:

If a minor 16 or 17 years of age is a virgin, sex is illegal (Chapter 272:
Section 4. Inducing person under 18 to have sexual intercourse).

How you gonna know the person is a virgin?

Illinois law makes 18 the minimum age at which teachers and their students
may legally have sex. Age 17 does not apply to teachers or any other school
employee in a "position of authority" over the minor.

Surely there is a conflict of interest if teachers are sleeping with their students. It's cool but just not professional

I'm also curious why you link having sex to buying cigarettes?

[Jill Monroe]

some laws are outdated for the times in which we live...and statistics of course do not always represent a truly diverse cross section of society....BUT in my mind,

a person should at LEAST be age 16 to even remotely grasp the concept of "love" and "relationships"...much less have sex.

obviously that isnt the case...i know with the men i grew up with in my neighborhood and school, the average age for losing their virginity was 13!! with the girls...it was usually 13 but in ONE case that i remember well this girl (who lived in my neighborhood AND went to school with me) lost her's at age 9!! she developed EARLY and was already in a bra by then so of course her looks lent to her appearing to being older than she was and she USED THAT to her advantage.

I was a rarity...i waited till i was 19 and that was because i honestly didnt find anyone remotely appealing or WORTHY to me until that time...I never felt pressured by my peers and most people in my highschool assumed i was sexually active because i was in the "popular circles" and because i liked to dress fashion forward (typical male thinking that if you dress "sexy", then you MUST be "easy" :rolleyes: ). I chose to do things my own way and in my own time and I've seen how wise i was to handle it that way , rather than "give in" the way so many of my peers did at such early ages.

[Osiris]

I think its all in the mentality of the person and what are the cultural norms. Personally I like Saudi Arabia's consent law, there is none, it illegal to have sex unless your married.

Of course, as a Muslim I would agree to that, but it doesnt mean I wouldnt be guilty of breaking the law every now and then either.

[DonDaddyD]

I'm always skeptical when someone says yeah I lost it at 13! Kids can lie notoriously and I just assume they are lying when they say that.

[Oblivion]

I'm always skeptical when someone says yeah I lost it at 13! Kids can lie notoriously and I just assume they are lying when they say that.

Believe it or not, but where I grew up, and am still growing up - its not uncommon for someone to lose their virginity during 7th or 8th grade, most kids do it because they think its 'cool', and that they'll be popular once they do it...which isn't true at all. It's sad that today, so many people (not just teenagers), crumble and give into peer pressure. I myself am only 14 (15 on saturday!;)), and haven't had sex - both me and my girlfriend have told each other that we're going to wait until the time is RIGHT, and not rush into things just because people will look at us in a differrent way, that isn't always a GOOD way.

Now I don't have an actual age number that I think should be the age of consent, considering my parents had me during the time they were 16/17 years old, I think that its more a mentality and MATURITY that comes with the responsibility to have sex, of any kind. Although personally I think someone should wait until their 16; I believe that if you really LOVE your partner, and your ready (in both a mentally and physical way) to have sex, then I say go for it. Just make sure each of you are both mature, and ready to handle the responsibility.

[DonDaddyD]

You sure your 14?

Forgive me I don't underestimate the young minds of today sheesh I'm only 23 not some old, old man. I look back at my life and I remember the whole having sex thing as being cool. The problem is that it is glorified and where some will have sex young to be 'cool' equally other's will lie simply to fit in with all those 'cool' people that claim to have had sex at a young age.

[Oblivion]

lmao, sorry if I sounded rude, I just meant I think most people underestimate teenagers and young kids today, just because the majority are immature and obnoxious;). And yup, got the birth certificate to prove it, 14 year old freshmen in high school ^_^ I'm just a very gifted young man:hehe:. LOL

And thats exactly what I was saying, its a shame that so many people today fall under the pressure to be like everybody else, whether it be to look thinner/'sexier', or in this case to have sex as soon as you can. It's all for popularity, and to be accepted by the majority of your peers, and its ridiculous that kids my age, and YOUNGER are in such a hurry to grow up and be 'adults', when the majority of them are going to be an absolute mess when they ARE adults, and be running back home to their moms and dads pleading for help. People just need to realize that having sex won't make you cooler in any way shape or form, and your just ruining yourself by stressing out and trying to be like everybody else.

[DonDaddyD]

I'm just curious as to why sex is this big thing? People spend so much time building it up to be a life defining acheivement and then you finally do it and it is the ultimate anti-climax. It gets better with practice but it is just a thing and isn't all that important. (I'd never give it up though).

[Jessica Hamby]

I think its such a big deal because its part of our human NATURE to engage in sexual relations... but in THIS country at least, most of us are raised to deny the impulse.... and so it becomes this forbidden act that is talked about in whispers... and naturally, anything forbidden must be wonderful... so everyone is in a rush to 'grow up' and do it.


I was a few days from 17 when I lost mine [texas age of consent is 17]... of course, by THAT time, I was already a freshman in college, and interacting with 19 year olds on THEIR level of maturity... so I dont want to say 16 is an age at which most teenagers are of sound enough mind to decide.... I was always more mature than my age suggested... even though most of my friends were losing theirs a couple of months and even a year before me... I never got wrapped up in the teenage dating craze and found boys my age to be immature.... so i never really bothered with it.

I personally think 14 year olds shouldnt be having sex... theres no way they can fully grasp anything about the act itself.

I think the age of consent should be around 17 or 18... its about there that MOST teenagers are mature enough to give consent.... and i say this because I think part of being responsible enough to consent involves knowing ALL the RISKS that come with sexual activity of any kind, and so on and so forth.

[Foxfire]

Growing up, my parents have instilled that I should be married to be intimate with someone I love. Well, at age 20 I broke that rule, lol, I found it highly difficult to wait anymore plus I myself was ready and the moment was perfect. I was perfectly happy waiting later on rather then rushing into it or not fully developed at 10! LOL!

I'm sorry but I feel its gross for 13 year olds to be having sex. They are not fully developed and even if they are, the thought is repulsive to me. And I know quite a lot of people who experienced this and have regretted it. Its the rush of the moment sort of thing rather then taking the time to wait.

I believe the right age to consent is 16, if you can get your permit then why not have sex? What's amusing to me is in some states you can be 17 or 18 to be intimate but 21 to drink?! So many teenagers are having sex and then becoming pregnant later on or the increase in abortions. I think its wrong, but I'm getting off topic lol.

I think at age 16, most teenagers have a firm grasp of life and certain intimate situations. What I detest though is people who were "peer pressured" into it because there friends did it.

I was always much more mature then my peers and a lot of them were already having sex. But I never was "pressured" into having sex. I guess I was far too headstrong and passionate, I often lead rather then followed.

However, who are we to really judge? We really aren't but to offer our own opinions. ;) I say 16.

[Angels baby101]

I think it should be 16 no younger ... By the age of 16 the people should be responsible enough for their actions