ment’s chief of statistics] said.nDanforth noted the historical andnnecessary legal limitations of minors:nBecause he may not foresee thenconsequence of his decisions, anminor may not make annenforceable bargain. He maynnot lawfully work or travelnwhere he pleases. . . . Personsnbelow a certain age may notnmarry without parental consentnand they may not vote. . . . Butneven if it is the most importantnkind of decision a young personnmay ever make, that assumptionnmerely enhances the quality ofnthe State’s interest in maximizingnthe probability that the decisionnbe made correctly and withnfull understanding of the consequencesnof either alternative.nOpponents say the decision to abortnshould be left to minors. But a 1989nLos Angeles Times poll of women whonhave undergone abortions indicatesnthat one out of every four women (26npercent) “mostly regrets” her abortion.nSuch women subsequently experiencenprofound griefnAdolescents in particular manifestnconfusion about an abortion decision,nchanging their minds frequently.nAbortion involves a severe double lossnfor some adolescents: fully 17 percentnof minors who have abortions compensatenfor a first abortion by becomingnpregnant again within one year.nOpponents of parental involvementnlaws wrongly argue that minors alreadynnotify parents. One study confirmednthat 71 percent informed a best friend,nwhile only 37 percent informed mothersnand 26 percent informed fathers. InnHodgson V. Minnesota (1988), thenEighth Circuit noted the testimony ofna clinic co-director: “Prior to the [parentalnnotification] statute, approximatelyn25 percent of the pregnantnwomen she counseled told one or bothnparents of their pregnancy and intendednabortion.”nIn Pierce v. Society of the Sisters,nthe Court upheld the rights, authority,nand responsibilities of parents overntheir minor children: “[T]he child isnnot the mere creature of the state;nthose who nurture him and direct hisndestiny have the right, coupled with thenhigh duty, to recognize and preparen56/CHRONICLESnhim for additional obligations.” Othernprecedents concur, such as Prince v.nMassachusetts in 1944: [P]arents . . .nwho have the primary responsibility fornchildren’s well-being are entitled to thensupport of law designed to aid dischargenof that responsibility.”nOpponents of parental consultationndismiss the significant issue of familynintegrity. Yet the parent-child relationshipnis a permanent bond, unlike thatnbetween an abortionist and his client,nor between two teenage best friends.nResearch by Dr. Everett Worthingtonnof Virginia Commonwealth Universitynreveals that the anxiety and burden ofnsecrecy in a teenager cause alienation,nisolation, guilt, fear, depression, and annincrease in family estrangement. Inndissenting from invalidation of Minnesota’sntwo-parent notice provision. JusticenAnthony Kennedy agreed: “[T]ondeny parents this knowledge is to risk,nor perpetuate, estrangement or alienationnfrom the child when she is inngreatest need of parental guidance andnsupport.”nCritics also claim that parents willn”beat, abuse, and even kill” their pregnantndaughters, but there is no verifyingnevidence from states with suchnlaws. Instead, there is substantial evidencenthat most parents support theirndaughter during an adolescent pregnancy.nWorthington also found thatnafter an initial period of disequilibrium,nthere emerges a more stable period ofnproblem solving in which both mothernand daughter take steps to resolve thenpregnancy’s difficulties.nIn addition, a parental consultationnstatute usually contains a bypass permittingna doctor to proceed with abortionnsurgery without parental notice ifnthe child is in an abusive home (includingnincest). Indeed, the abuse reporhngnrequirement is an added safeguard fornthe minor to trigger remedial statenintervention she otherwise may notnhave received in chronically abusivensituations. As Justice Stevens wrote inn1981 in a concurring opinion for H.L.nV. Matheson:nA state legislature may rationallynconclude that most parents willnbe primarily interested in thenwelfare of their children. . . .n[A]n assumption that parentalnreaction will be hostile, disparagingnor violent, no doubtnnnpersuades many childrennsimply to bypass parentalncounsel which would in fact benloving, supportive and indeed,nfor some, indispensable.nAbortion tragedies rarely are reportednhonestly. Media attention instead focusesnon the myth of abortion as thenhallowed panacea for women. If thenstate legislatures explore the substantialnevidence that has emerged, they willndiscover that the High Court’s originalnconcerns in Bellotti were right on target—nand pass sensible laws restoringnparental protection to pregnant minorsnin their time of critical need.nAnne Marie Morgan writes fromnRichmond, Virginia.nFILMnDick Tracy and thenBad Guysnby David R. SlavittnIwanted to check out Dick Tracynmostly because the Disney stocknhad gone down four points and anfraction on the Monday after its firstnweekend’s disappointing grosses ofnonly $22.5 million. That news was notnencouraging to investors, but I saw it asnan indication that perhaps some ofnthose enthusiastic reviews I’d seennmight not have been altogether crazy.nEven at these stratospheric levels —nand we’re talking about $25 million fornthe film and another $25 million or son