I have a little rule which I find useful in all fields of life: if someone feels the need to lie to prove a point, it's probably not much of a point. Points which are worth making can stand on their own merits and don't need the support of lies.

Conservative Christians lie, and lie, and lie again... about evolution, about abortion, about homosexuality. What does that tell you about the merits of their positions on these subjects?

It's always fascinated me that America acts, in the matter of teen sexual behavior, as if it were alone in the world. No one ever says, "Hey, the neighbors have a slightly different take on life, and they seem not to have the same problems we have." How about the many countries in Europe in which teen sex is legal, sexuality is openly encouraged, and unwanted teen babies almost never happen? Why are they never mentioned?

I'm not in with the pro-abstinence crowd. I had some of the best sex of my life when I was 15 years old. I don't regret one moment of it; far from devaluing me, a good sexual relationship raised my self-esteem immeasurably. I didn't get pregnant. I didn't catch any diseases. It didn't "spoil me for marriage," I have a great marriage now, thanks. The only negative thing my teen sex life taught me is that the overwhelming majority of adults are idiots when it comes to deciding what teenagers should be doing. And, well... even that is useful information, in a way.

I can't speak with any authority about Colorado, but here in Memphis, my friend who is an obstetrical nurse at a public hospital tells me that many teen girls have babies in order to become emancipated, not just legally but also socially. Having a baby is regarded, in some communities, as a passage into adulthood. Imagine being 13 years old; your mom is nagging you about coming in late. Your best friend, who has a baby, doesn't get nagged, because she's a mom too. See how this works?

Our local paper recently ran a story about a woman who, on finding that she had cancer, decided she wanted to adopt a baby before she died. This was presented as a "feel good narrative," but it didn't make me feel good - it made me feel that the adoptive mother was a sick bitch, and not because of the cancer. She got two years out of the situation, and is now dying. Her child will most likely be four years old when she dies, just old enough to remember and grieve her.

Why would anyone choose this? Is it pure selfishness? Is it that these people steadfastly refuse to face the reality of their own mortality?

I dunno, seems like buying someone a house and a car is thinking of someone other than yourself... like Cary, I'm fresh out of empathy for this letter writer.

LW: leave Bill alone. Or if you must move to be with him, do it on your own dime. You have every reason to feel guilty.

Post one when you post a podcast, please.

Why are health-food stores and organic groceries always filled with people who look like extras who wandered off the set of a zombie movie? Oh, that's right - those are the vegans.

It may be possible to put together a healthy vegan diet, but it's clearly beyond the abilities of the typical American of average intelligence. Those vegans who are successful are those who read a lot. It also helps to have community support.

It's funny that none of the letter writers criticizing the article have mentioned that the recent death of Crown Shakur was the THIRD such death by neglect by people calling themselves vegans in four years. The standard vegan response seems to be, "Those aren't vegans, those are idiots." Well... folks... looks like a lot of idiots are deciding to become vegans these days. Becoming a vegan is clearly not foolproof; when attempted by idiots, it can result in the death of a baby.

Okay, so now the story is, "My original letter profoundly misrepresented my actual circumstances. I figured this out about the time an entire forum full of people decided I was a jerk."

Letter Writer - people can only judge you and your situation based on the information YOU give. That's how the internet works. If you don't want to be misunderstood, don't misrepresent yourself. And remember, you are the one who asked to be judged by writing about yourself for an entire newspaper reading audience. The people criticizing you here did not walk up to you at random on the street and insult you; you wrote to a column which you know has a very active letters forum.