This article is cliche and creepy, and I'm surprised and ashamed to see it in a left-leaning publication.

Why do we need another argument by another man shifting blame onto victims, and as he specifies, young girls? Young girls are eroticized enough in pop culture - Slate shouldn't be adding to it.

The laws that are currently in place are to place blame and repercussions squarely where it belongs, the ADULT.

Do I think that teen sex, where both parties are under 18 should be criminalized? No. In California, a 19 year girl won't get in trouble for having sex with her 17 year old boyfriend. Should a 17 year old be penalized for having sex (of any kind) with a 13 year old? Yes.

Be original Slate, and don't feed into the status - quo.

California facts about statutory rape:

Men over 25 account for twice as many teen births as boys under 18 years old.

The Average Age difference between the teen victim and the adult defendant in cases filed by the District
Attorney is 7years 9months.

Men over 20 are responsible for 5 times as many births among junior high school girls.

In California almost 70% of teen births are fathered by adult men.

On an average California day 76 teenage girls, 17 & younger, will give birth.

In 1993 1,572 births in California were to mothers 14 years or younger.

The rate of sexually transmitted disease among teenage girls is twice that of teenage boys.