I am not only outraged, but I'm terrified that the general trend for this country has been that white, middle-aged, Christian, upper-middle to upper class men have started to try and determine what a woman can do with her body. I know that these men do have followers who agree with their standpoints and that they represent a portion of the American people, however they do not speak for all Americans. 98% of American women use some form of birth control, so who are they to think that they can alienate the many to serve the few?
Take for instance Rick Santorum's stance against contraception. Not only abortion, contraception too. Am I the only one who thinks that this sounds irresponsible? And then there was Mitt Romney's mishap when he didn't understand hormonal birth control. It was so bad that a television host took it on herself to educate him. I think some people, my self included, feel that should at least know all the facts if they are going to oppose something outright.
The issue with reproductive rights that I see is that the people (men) who are so anti-abortion and anti-contraception is that they are unable to see the real world consequences. They seem to believe that America will turn into the old school Norman Rockwell painting where every man and woman having sex is married and they have as many children as possible by having bland and non-kinky sex and abstaining when they do not wish to have children (ignoring the male gender role that also comes along with this mindset in that men are animals who cannot control themselves when it comes to sex and that women are supposed to capitulate, or else not tempt them at all). What about us people who don't prescribe to this mindset? What about the married couple who own nipple clamps? What about the couple who want kids but are unable to support them? What about the people in a committed relationship but are unable to get married or those who simply do not want to get married at all. We can't just flip a switch and turn off our sexual urges, and it's not just men who think about sex constantly.
Western society has tried ignoring sex. In the Victorian era, women were thought to be pure, asexual beings while men were still the dogs that they are thought of as today. In order to maintain their wives' purity, men were not supposed to press their wives to have sex constantly. Instead, they were expected to discretely purge their urges by visiting prostitutes. Meanwhile, women would become agitated and become "hysteric", so they would have to visit a doctor who would administer a "pelvic massage" until the woman experienced a "hysterical paroxysm". Translation: the women were sexually frustrated so they went to the doctor who would then masturbate them until they had an orgasm. In fact, it's because of this sexual repression that the vibrator was invented so that women could "relieve" themselves at home without being at the doctors for literally hours. The vibrator was the fifth electrical device approved for home use.
So sex happens. And despite people's best attempts to be upstanding and abstinent citizens, it doesn't always work. Just look at Herman Cain and his sex scandals. And just think of us poor sods who aren't trying to be upstanding citizens. If sex does happen, everyone, not just women, deserve to have it safely and with minimal risk of disease or unwanted pregnancy. Sure, contraceptives don't work as well as flat out abstinence (a success rate of 99.99...%, counting the Virgin Mary), but at least it decreases the risk.
And what about if a woman does end up pregnant unexpectedly. What if the contraceptives fail, or if she is sexually assaulted because she was dressed "like a slut" (clothing doesn't cause rape, rapists do)? What if she can't support a child and giving it up for adoption would already add one more mouth to already crowded foster homes? It would make sense that she should be able to make the choice to have an abortion in a safe and controlled environment preformed by trained professionals who would minimize the risk of her having any complications. However, I feel like the majority of people who claim to represent the majority don't see it that way. I'm afraid that if it is harder to find a place that preforms abortions under professional care, there will be an increase of back-alley abortions that will result in hundreds if not thousands of women dying because of complications. Baby's father from Dirty Dancing isn't always going to be there to make sure the woman makes it out alright. And like it or not, contraception and abortion has been a part of our culture for centuries. The Classical world used the Silphium plant as a contraceptive, and this practice was so popular that the plant became extinct. In fact, it is speculated that the seeds of this plant are the reason for the Valentine "heart" shape.
Politicians need to look at the real consequences for their decisions of public health. They are focusing too much on the ideal and not enough on how people actually act. If I say "people are going to have sex, like it or not", the counter argument should not be "well they shouldn't!" Not everyone prescribes to a man's way of thinking, and if they are going to make decisions on what is and what is not allowed to happen in a uterus they should at least get the input of someone who has one
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