How old is old enough? What should the age of consent be?

[cestpaspossible]

Poll question: How old is old enough? What should the age of consent be?

The age of consent varies from country to country and state to state... what do you think it should be?

[Rowdyboy]

1. Only lost my virginity at 19, but I think 16 is appropriate....

JMO...

[lenidog]

3. I lost mine at 15 but I think that 16 is the age it should

Because at the age you shoudl have enough maturity, commonsense and knowledge to be able to make the decision

[cestpaspossible]

7. Hey Im 44 and I still don't have

enough maturity, commonsense and knowledge... but that just me...

[lenidog]

15. But I put the proviso of "should"

;-)

[eyepaddle]

2. C'mon who said 14?!?

x(

[lenidog]

4. Who the hell said 13 is what I want to know

If you voted come on out and tell us why you think it should be so low.

[Withywindle]

5. I think 16's about right...

...I was actually a little younger than that and I don't think it did me any harm.


Maturity and readiness varies a lot from person to person of course, but that seems to be about the age when it starts to really become none of the STATE'S business.


I believe that's the age it is in the UK and they seem to do alright.

[Wapsie B]

6. Wow I honestly had no idea it was 16 in a lot of places.

I thought it would be 18. But then again I've been out of the loop sexually for a long time. Suffice it to say I was well about the age of consent when I lost my virginity. But we won't go into that crappy story.

[Droopy]

8. I think 18

I didn't start developing physically until I was 15.

[shawn703]

9. Do you think the age should differ for boys and girls?

I think it does in some states... should it?

[shawn703]

10. 18, unless it's my daughter

For her the age of consent will be somewhere in her 30's.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

12. I've asked that my daughter refrain from sexual activity...

until sometime after I'm dead.

On a more serious note, I'm conflicted on the whole notion of statutory rape when applied to two consenting minors. I would basically prefer that any kid refrain from sex until after they're eighteen -- but I'm not Pollyanna-ish enough to think that will happen. And I certainly don't want to see teenaged poor judgement in this regard be criminalized.

[bobthedrummer]

11. I lost my virginity at 15. She was 16 and experienced.

Today's kids are sophisticated enough to give consent at 14 imo.

[Droopy]

14. Damn

Some people don't start puberty until they are 13 or 14. I didn't start squirting out sperm until I was almost 14 and I didn't start looking like a man until I was 15.

[Turn CO Blue]

13. Gotta go with 16.

I was 16. Most 16-year-olds are quite capable of having deep feelings of love and sexual awareness. The adolescent body is certainly ready, even if the heart may not be quite ready enough. Ahh, heartbreak at 16 or 17 ir certainly real enough.

Of course, my stipulation is that it be consentual with another teen (not an adult over 21).

Of course, it pains me that my daughter just turned 15. Aaaaiiiieee! I'm getting old.

[Wapsie B]

16. Now does this mean that it's 16 between consenting teens

or does it mean even between a 16 year old girl and a 35 year old guy too? Sorry for the ignorance.

[Turn CO Blue]

17. I don't really know what the OP meant.

I think that statutory laws apply for anybody over 21 having sex with anybody under 18 in most places -- whether it's "consentual" or not. Of the laws vary from place to place, the age of consent also varies.

I will note that one time I heard (not sure if it's true) that in Colorado statutory rape could be charged for consentual non-violent rape for girls only up to age 16, but that statutory rape could be charged against older women for having consentual sex with boys up to 18.

Why the two-year gap to get to the age of consent for the boys?

[Left Is Write]

18. That's interesting.

It's also interesting to note that when my parents got married - they were both 20 - my father had to get permission from his parents to marry, while my mother did not. The age for girls to get married without permission was 18, but for boys it was 21.

[Turn CO Blue]

19. Yep. I'm not sure what the thinking is on that.

At first, the disparity was really raising my feminist hackles, but then I was thinking, from experience raising both a teen boy and a teen girl, that boys tend to mature more slowly when it comes to relationship skills. (Not a knock against men, I just mean that perhaps they need those extra years of guidance from their parents or something).