7 Men Smile and Laugh As They Take Control Of Your Uterus
i hate having to write these "my country is sucking again" entries. especially just after election day, when i'm still basking in the knowledge that i did my part for democracy and everything. unfortunately, people in my country are busy sucking again, so it appears inevitable.
first off, let me reiterate that there is no medical procedure called partial birth abortion. it is purely a political term; it has no medical standing. the procedures that this particular bill named are some of the most common, and safest. the law makes no distinction between early trimester and late-trimester procedures; it also makes no exceptions to preserve the health of the mother.
it is a scary thing to me when suddenly a chunk of my freedom disappears. one that i've been fighting for for the last year or so, ever since it went to congress. i've sent letters, i've faxed, i've emailed. i signed petitions, i sent annoying forwards to my entire network of family and friends in the continental u.s. and these men laugh and smile as bush takes us back in time (oh, orrin hatch, your day will come. someday utah is going to vote democrat.) i actually walk around thinking, i am less free than i was yesterday. if something, god forbid, happens to me, i will no longer be able to make the best decision for myself. there are laws governing my body.
i don't know if i can explain this in a way that makes sense to a man. there aren't laws covering his body, and there aren't likely to be. but let's say that laws stated you should only have sex for procreative reasons. let's say birth control was too expensive and insurance wouldn't cover it, and no one ever taught you about it anyway. and then let's say that when your girlfriend inevitably gets pregnant, you are forced to raise the baby while she leaves, or becomes the primary breadwinner. would it make a difference to you then?
it's all hypothetical for you, though. for women, birth control often is an issue. the pill isn't covered by most insurance carriers, although viagara is. most schools really are forbidden from teaching about birth control.
people think they're saving babies, but really, they're hurting women. because i am pro-choice, people often assume that i am pro-abortion. this isn't true. if i got pregnant now, this very second (which would be rather difficult, considering that i'm here typing to you), i would have the baby, and i would raise him or her. i'd probably even mostly enjoy it. i hope that a day comes when abortion is unnecessary. when rape and incest no longer exist, birth control is easily and widely accessible, and children are taught about their sexuality and responsible sex early on (if they're losing their virginity at thirteen, and you're not teaching them about condoms until 17, who exactly is the loser?). i hope the time comes when every single child is a loved and wanted child.
but in the meantime. women have painful choices to make, and no one makes them lightly. someone who's name momentarily escapes me likens a woman having an abortion to an animal in a trap chewing its own leg off. i think that's pretty accurate. women have abortions because they are, for wahtever reason, unable to have and care for a child. children born to mothers who cannot take care of them are the real tragedy. victims of abuse and neglect are the ones you need to be helping; instead of standing out in front of a clinic shouting, try taking in a foster child.
there's still work to do, people. look at the national pro-choice network, or the aclu. write to your congresspeople, your senators. hell, write to bush, although i doubt he'll listen. and next year, make damn sure you get to the voting booth.
beatpoetgrrl
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