My Republican is showing..

Nobody told me how complicated it would be to raise a pre-pubescent girl. I never imagined it would be easy, but this business isn't for the faint of heart! I discovered recently that my sweet girl has an interest in a particular boy at her school. We've tried to emphasize that for an 11 year old, things that are important are school, family, fun, and friends. Boys and dating are something she will have plenty of time for in the future when she is mature enough to handle those kinds of relationships. It's not easy to instill these values when SO much of society is fighting against you. While we live in a pretty overwhelmingly conservative area, girls will be girls! All you have to do is watch TV for an hour or listen to the radio on the way to school to find that we're living in a very liberated generation when it comes to "romantic relations"! We're working VERY hard to fight the stigma that victims "ask" to be assaulted by dressing a certain way or acting a certain way. We're working harder to hold predators accountable. This is GREAT! However, in doing so, we're encouraging girls to dress and act however they please because it's the male species who needs to get their act together! The fact that the male species is flawed and needs to get it together is undeniable! ;) HOWEVER, I still don't really understand what is really wrong with teaching females that it's ok to respect themselves, to make romantic (or meaningless) relations less of a priority than work/school, to defend themselves, and to differentiate themselves in appearance from the stereotypical prostitutes of the 90's! There is a great movement in our country today celebrating and empowering females and I'm ALL for it! I'm ALL for females believing in themselves! I'm ALL for females receiving wages and treatment equal to men. I'm ALL for females being outspoken enough to defend themselves from males who think they are in a subordinate position to them. We as a nation are teaching ALL of this, but we're contradicting ourselves by teaching that it's entirely ok and furthermore admirable to be careless. I'm NOT going to encourage my sweet pre-adolescent girl to dress like an adult. I'm not going to encourage her to distract herself from priorities to have a relationship with a boy (OR a girl!)! I'm going to spend every day modeling a POSITIVE adult relationship. I'm going to help her with her homework. I'm going to keep her busy, and loved, and supported so she knows she doesn't have to seek this elsewhere! I'm not going to shame her for succumbing to needs, but I'm going to teach her how to be responsible with those needs! I'm going to teach her that modest really IS hottest! That doesn't mean she has to dress like a Quaker and be a quiet, subordinate female. Just means she doesn't have to beg for attention. She can draw it with her intelligence, her natural beauty, and her thoughtful personality! Wish me luck! ;)