Lynne Spears, what were you thinking? Or not thinking and not doing? Did you never sit down with either of your daughters—Britney, now just turned 26, and the divorced mother of two toddlers or Jamie Lynn, 16 and now three months pregnant—and give them The Talk?
You know the one, where mothers warn their daughters about the dangers of unprotected sex: as in, you can get pregnant if you don't use contraception and you can contract any one of a number of dangerous sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS. Or were you too busy pushing their careers to ever have this heart-to-heart with them? Were you too tied up lining up meetings with record company executives, TV networks, publicists and tour managers to check on whether you were instilling personal values and self-esteem in your daughters?
And what kind of mother upon hearing the news that her 16-year-old daughter is knocked up, reacts by picking up the phone and negotiating to get her daughter's photo plastered on the cover of a magazine with a tell-all interview by the daughter and herself inside?
I mean, she's 12 weeks pregnant—that's all—and not even showing—and you are very possibly already making big bucks off of your minor daughter's pregnancy! I say "possibly" since the magazine concerned hasn't announced that they paid for this deal, but since they have been very public about paying for other big cover scoops, there's a good chance they paid for this one. And of course, Jamie Lynn could be getting all that possible money herself. Maybe you aren't getting a cut? But there you are clearly mentioned as a participant, on the cover for millions to see. Still, I wonder, is that all your daughters are to you? A gravy train? And the world is well-aware of how daughter #1 Brit turned out—she's arguably one of the saddest, most messed-up young women in this country and a mother who's lost custody of her kids due to her hard partying and questionable parenting.
A source told Star magazine that ""She picks up guys all over the place. She never keeps condoms in the house and I wouldn't be surprised if she had unprotected sex." Lynne, have you still not had The Talk with her, after her two little surprises?
Then of course, there is the even bigger question—why do Jamie Lynn and Britney choose men who have so little respect for them that they're not careful about preventing a pregnancy? Do Jamie Lynn and Britney feel insecure and unloved? Lynne, what is that about?
And is Jamie Lynn's 19-year-old football-playing boyfriend who she apparently met in church in the Spears hometown of Kentwood, La. just an irresponsible ne'er do well? I mean, it takes two people having unprotected sex—in his case, with a 16 year old—to make a baby!
Apparently Lynn has had to postpone her book deal with publisher Thomas Nelson, who publishes inspirational books and bibles. She was supposed to publish a tome about raising her daughters in Spring 2008. Oops! I guess it's just not the right time for that.
And oops, maybe Jamie Lynn won't be deemed an appropriate role model to continue starring in Nickelodeon's teen hit show, Zoey 101. Her character on that show, after all, is smart and savvy and since I've watched it a lot, I can say that I doubt her character would be careless enough to get pregnant at 16.
Both my daughters—the 17-year-old and the 10-year-old—think it's terribly sad that Jamie Lynn is pregnant and they wonder why that family is so messed up. They can't imagine how she can do a good job of raising a baby when she's just a baby herself.
But on the other hand, she and Lynne can think of the publicity and the potential opportunities to potentially make more money if they decide to go that route. There are the "We're So Happy" cover photos taken with 19-year-old dad Casey, the potential engagement photos, the potential wedding photos, the photos of the baby's beautiful nursery, the first pics of the baby after it's born and the "How I Got My Figure Back" photos and exercise routine feature.
After all, Jamie Lynn's already pregnant, why not cash in?
As a mother, I just have to make the plea to other mothers of teenage daughters: You've got to talk to your daughters about being responsible.
What do you think readers?