Reproductive Rant

I've been really busy, and I've not been updating. I guess you must have figured that out on your own. Duh.

It seems like all the news yesterday was about mifepristone, and like everyone else, I have my own strong opinions on abortion. First of all, I think abortion is wrong. By that I mean that it's wrong for me. I don't believe the government has any place in the whole argument. The FDA says the drug is safe for use, and that's the end of their involvement.

The Republican congrefs are actually claiming that we now need legislation to regulate the doling out of the drug. Oh, please. That's direct interference in people's private medical decisions, and this time, I think it's an obvious invasion of privacy[1]. They are actually suggesting that we need a list of doctors that will provide the drug. Why don't you just paint a target on their backs? That would make it even easier for the right-to-lifers to pick them out an execute them.

Is it really for them to judge who lives and who dies? Shouldn't that be left up to a vengeful God? How can they possibly say that the same God that caused that baby to be conceived didn't also cause that woman (or couple, just assume that I'm allowing for the man to be involved here and save me some parenthetical comments) to make what might be the hardest choice she'll ever make? Maybe that's exactly what had to happen for that woman to come to understand what's truly important in their short tenure here on earth?

What pisses me off even more, if that's possible at this point, is the fact that these are the same fuckers who think sex education (and condom distribution) doesn't belong in schools. These are the same peole that blockade clinics and thereby keep women from obtaining birth control. If you want to reduce the number of abortions performed, help people control their fertility! Empower teenagers to make informed choices because you will almost certainly not be a part of their decision to have or not to have sex. Folks seem to forget how powerful those hormones are, especially right after puberty. People don't like to accept their reptile brain, and the urge to procreate is one of the deepest insticts we have as humans.

My views on abortion are similar to my views on gun control. Once the genie is out of the bottle, you can't stuff it back in. As long as women know it's possible to terminate a pregnancy, they'll seek it out, no matter what they have to go through, even if they put their own life at risk. They've proven that pre-Roe v. Wade. Does anyone really want to go back to the bad old days of back alley abortions? Apparently, the Christian right does. If you try to abort a pregnancy, you deserve whatever you get, apparently.

Frankly, women don't even have to go to a doctor at all, if you know your body well enough, and the best way to learn is to practice Natural Family Planning for a while. If you ever want to get pregnant, you'll know how to do it. If you don't want to get pregnant, you'll know when not to have sex or when you need to use a barrier method[3]. If you are in a situation where it's imperative that you don't conceive, you can always go to a Planned Parenthood and get hormones that require almost no effort on your part. If you don't have access to that sort of thing, NFP is there for you. It's not just for catholics anymore!

[1]And if Bush wins it will be partially my fault. I'm not voting for Gore, Supreme Court appointments be damned. I'm voting for Harry Browne because his platform completely matches my views.[2] I think that having a non-surgical abortion option will change the whole argument, regardless of the FDA guidelines for prescribing, and I greatly admire Clinton for shoving this through in his administration. It's a tiny bit of insurance against the possibility of three Supreme Court appointments by that bastard, Dubya.

[2]I also like the idea of sending a message with my vote -- two parties is simply not enough choice. They are entrenched, corrupt and arrogant and they need to go. We need representation from people who really live in our communities. Have I mentioned that the congress is way too small and that our representation is a mere fraction of what was written into the constitution? Uh, I could go on about this forever, so I'll quit now.

[3]And in my experience, that's the absolute hardest time to abstain. That's mammilian engineering, I know, so I make damn sure I have some barrier available. Your, uh, baser instincts will override logic if they possibly can, and the opposite sex will find you even more irresistable then too. This all goes on way beneath the surface veneer of logic. Don't feel bad about this -- it really is beyond your control. Just like depression, those chemicals are real, and your feelings are real. Be like a boy scout and Be Prepared.

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