Maggie C. writes that:>>I'm not sure about what technology shock is, but I do think the increase in teen pregnancy is over stated. I believe I've said this before, the method of reporting the statistics has more to do with the increase than actually increasing teen births.<< this point seemed to me to be part of the Akerlof/Yellen theory. They point to the decline in "shot-gun marriages" which had hidden the out-of-wedlock preganancies and births in the past. "Technology shock" to A & Y simply refers to the sudden rise of the availability of contraception and abortion (which, as I said, seems more than technological in nature, more sociological) and how social mores did not adapt well to the change. Arvind Jaggi wrote: >>Maybe Akerlof and Yellen should get together with Gary Becker and go bowling.<< that's not helpful. Are you saying that relations between the sexes and issues of pregnancy are not subject to political-economic analysis given the absurdity of Gary Becker's theories? BTW, I am not advocating the Akerlof/Yellen theory. I want to know what people think. in pen-l solidarity, Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Econ. Dept., Loyola Marymount Univ. 7900 Loyola Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90045-8410 USA 310/338-2948 (daytime, during workweek); FAX: 310/338-1950 "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- K. Marx, paraphrasing Dante A.
