I get uncomfortable when I hear someone say that there are too many abortions. Too many for whom? Implied is the answer, “All the immoral, slutty teen moms who were too irresponsible to use birth control”; in other words, “Any abortion whose cause I disapprove of is one too many”. I agree with this response:
“…it’s better to prevent an unwanted pregnancy than to end one in abortion. I've never met a woman in an…abortion clinic who wanted to be there. No woman aspires to have an abortion.
"…abortion is not in itself the problem. The problem is…unwanted pregnancy, and abortion can be the solution to that for many women. There's no right or wrong number; we need as many abortions as are necessary to solve the problem pregnancies that women face."
Here’s where I disagree:
“Lord Steel wants improved sex education in schools covering both sexual ethics and the use of contraception.”
I don’t think sexual ethics can be taught, just as I don’t think *ezrachut pe’ilah* אזרחות פעילה [“active citizenship”] classes can create active citizens. You’re either mature enough to be having sex, or you’re not, and we have to face the following: 1) Teens are having sex; and 2) Teens are not mature enough to be having sex.
That leaves us with reproductive education -- solid reproductive education, complete with hands-on cucumbers-and-condom demos -- which having had it, teens are more likely to take it from there responsibly. It’s the school’s job to dispense information, not values. Leave the ethics to the kid’s church and / or parents, but by God, let’s give them information.
I read a stat that said that teenage girls who have visited a gynecologist are 50% less likely to get pregnant. I’m a proponent of taking them before they’re sexually active: Simply seeing the posters of pregnant women and the relevant informational notices in the waiting room is an eye-opener for them.
And hey, why not take the guys? Schools should make it a field trip, either to a Planned Parenthood or a private ob-gyn. Make their heads spin too. Can’t hurt.
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My favorite bumper sticker: AGAINST ABORTION? DON'T HAVE ONE.
ReplyDeleteIf there were room on that bumper sticker, I'd also like it to say: Pro-lifers, please leave the rest of us alone. Republican ideas don't appeal to all of us.
Pro-lifers are, generally speaking, pro-life only when the life concerned is somewhere between conception and birth; after that, they don't seem to care: Parents who don't want the baby? Put him/her in a foster home; I hear they're lovely places to grow up . . . with people who are paid to watch over you. Additional social services to provide for these children? Uh-oh, that's for Democrats. Politically, Republicans are pro-gun. What about the lives that are taken in shootings? Pro-lifers are (again, generally speaking) in favor of the death penalty. So they're pro-life . . . and pro-death? *Draykup*!
How about firebombing the home or car of a physician who performs abortions? Oh, but s/he's a fully-formed, sentient human being. How come the pro-lifers aren't demonstrating outside liquor stores and hassling the patrons? 'cause drunk driving causes death, you know. How come they're not demonstrating outside the DMV? 'cause automobiles cause death, you might've noticed.
ReplyDeleteMy favortie bumper sticker: "Just Say No to Sex with Pro-Lifers" (I call them forced birthers or fetus huggers/humpers but most people wouldn't get it.)Totally agree about including boys in all this. The onus is always placed on girls and I'm sick of it. Given them as much information and birth control as they need without shame or apology. LMAO: I remember a skit from a comedy show:The Chappelle show: at a high school assembly, the school did a sex ed. presentation. The principle and one of the teachers had sex in front of the school. That'll teach 'em!
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