Should age of consent laws be made more liberal?

I'm wondering what others think about the age of consent laws. Each state has its own, but 18 is the age of consent in most. Do you think it should be lowered? I think the freedom of ual exploration is one's absolute right. Young people have , that is just the way it is. I agree that young children should be protected from , but what about teens? I think age of conscent laws are dangerous because they force teens away from birth control. Some countries even have a different age of consent for males and females! What do you think about this? Do you think the age of consent should be more liberal, or just left alone?