After reading this book, my beliefs on abortion have changed and I have come to the conclusion that I am unsure about how I feel on the matter. Page makes many good points in the book about the pro-choice movement and how important it is for abortion to be legal for women. But also, I still have that part inside of me that feels irked about the, "killing of babies" inside the womb. The conflict of the two ideas has brought me to a stand still. Without reading this book I would not have realized though that I was not sure about how I felt and probably would have still considered myself pro-life. Until the time comes where abortion affects my own life, I don't suppose I will know how I truly feel on the issue. This issue is one that is important and one I will continue to ponder for years to come.
I feel that Page spent a little too much time bashing the pro-life side, and could have used more time explaining why the pro-life was favorable in her opinion. That is the main thing I would tell her if I ever met her, and I would ask her why she thought that making the other side look worse was a better technique. Page did a wonderful job though of presenting all the facts, and though some were staggering, they were needed to be known. Page has changed my thinking on abortions, and will have made an impact on how I feel on abortions from this point forward in my life.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
How the pro choice movement saved America, freedom, politics, and the war on sex: Entry #5
When talking of Plan B, Page goes on to say that, "The pro-life side, as everyone knows, professes no greater desire than to reduce the number of abortions. Yet when an innovation comes along with the potential to dramatically curb the number of abortions-by one third or even one half- the pro life side doesn't necessarily cheer the cause." What Page doesn't realize when making this point is that Plan B, emergency contraception, is considered as almost the same thing as getting an abortion. These two pills are taken after unprotected sex, and stops women from becoming pregnant. The use of this innovation is the use of another form of abortion. The baby is being aborted by the intake of this medicine and therefore, the baby is being aborted. Page, a pro-choice campaigner, is trying to make the pro-life campaign look bad by not fully telling the entire truth. She makes it seem as if the pro-life people are being unreasonable by not compromising to allowing Plan B, when Plan B is just another form of abortion and therefore, it is against the beliefs of the pro-life campaign. This misrepresentation of the pro-life campaign by Page is just another way to undermine the other side and help the pro-choice movement look as if they are better than the pro-life movement and that pro-choice is the best option. This bias is unneeded, and frankly is only hurting the pro-choice side, because it is able to be recognized as a bad form of education, and has no relevance to why pro-choice should be the answer. I am annoyed with Page after this mix up of words because I feel that it is the writers job to present the information and their opinion, but not change words around and make others look worse. Page has if anything hurt the pro-choice cause and given me another reason to believe that pro-life is the way to go.
How the pro choice movement saved America, freedom, politics, and the war on sex: Entry #4
When talking about the possibility of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Page refers to the idea that even if abortions became illegal someday, women would still find ways to have abortions, such as an underground system. Page goes on to talk about how even when abortions were illegal, people were still having them. This reminds me of the current situation with marijuana. Currently, and always marijuana has been illegal. Like abortions, there is no scientific facts that say that marijuana can lead to any serious medical condition, but it is illegal nonetheless. Even though it is illegal, you will always be able to find people who are currently smoking marijuana. This is because there are people who grow and sell marijuana because they think that it should be legal and don't have prejudice against it. Like marijuana, if abortions ever became illegal, Page refers to the idea that someway, women would find a way to still have abortions in emergency situations. Regardless of the law, people will always consider to do what they feel is right, and if that happens to be breaking the law, then those people say, so be it. Page talks in this passage of the importance of abortions to women and how no matter what they will never go away. This is intriguing to me because for me it is hard to picture an underground abortion going on. This seems like a stretch to me, but regardless it shows how important Page and other women alike feel abortion is, and that it should be legal. This what if, for if roe was ever overturned, made me ponder what our world would be like if abortions were illegal. This alternate society, seems unfathomable to me, and i wouldn't want to live in a society where in extreme cases such as rape, women do not have the choice to or not have the baby. I feel that I have to agree with Page on this, that no matter what, abortions will always go on, but I still don't support all abortions.
How the pro choice movement saved America, freedom, politics, and the war on sex: Entry #3
In chapter 3, Page brings up the pro-life story of parents in Texas trying to keep their kids from having sex, by telling them that condoms don't work and don't keep you safe from diseases and pregnancies. Because of this, instead of refraining from having sex, as the parents thought the kids would, they just have sex without condoms thinking that, "they didn't need them because they don't work. This is one of the ways that pro-lifers are unintentionally steering kids in the wrong way. They think that this is going to stop kids from having sex because they will think that there is no way to protect themselves from diseases, but in actuality, the kids have sex anyways and expect the worst thinking that there is no way to stop themselves from getting diseases because items such as condoms are told to them to be ineffective. This is just one the many ways that pro-life people are steering people they care about in the wrong direction with their extremist points of views. For the pro-life campaign to be more successful in showing the way the feel about abortions to teens and young people, they need to correctly educate them and tell them their point of view and then allow them to make the decision that they feel is best for them. The world is the way it is because not everyone agrees with each other. As long as the pro-life people continue to try and force their ideas upon the younger generations, their ideas and lifestyle choices and going to be hard to appreciate. I feel that there are plenty of other ways to approach trying to make your kids understand the risks of sex, and why in the case of pregnancy they should feel a certain way. Until the pro-life campaign realizes that, they are going to turn away a lot of people with the same beliefs as themselves.
How the pro choice movement saved America, freedom, politics, and the war on sex: Entry #2
Page brings up a whopping fact in the second chapter. "A sweeping poll down by ABC news revealed that the average american has sex once a week, and that's any adult married or single. If you're in a relationship then 85 percent of you have sex every week." This fact that Page brings out is almost unfathomable. It is hard to believe that it can be true, but it does explain why there are so many abortions every single year. Page goes on to say after the previous quote, "to understand the competing agendas of the pro-choice and pro-life movements; its essential to consider the central role of sex in our lives." Thinking about this, I completely agree. to be able to have any argument for or against abortions, you have to consider who big of a role sex is in our daily culture. According to the statistics, the average American adult has sex once a week. Which means that 52 times a year, the average american adult even if using protection such as a condom or birth control, has a chance of getting pregnant. Leaving about 52 chances a year of unwanted pregnancies is absurd. Either the American people need to start to realize that their actions if not taking extreme precaution could lead to a drastic change in their lives, or they need to stop having as much sex as their is going on right now, because apparently the American people cannot handle having sexual relations and being careful. "Sex to pro-lifers is considered a means to an end. This end is a baby." Page says this when arguing that people need to figure out what the sex is for. This perception by pro-life people is what should be more common, but because of the role sex plays in our society, it is hard to perceive sex in that manner. I agree with the pro-life movement here because many Americans can't handle casual sex, and protecting themselves correctly.
How the pro choice movement saved America, freedom, politics, and the war on sex: Entry #1
In the beginning of this book, stories are told of people who were not able to receive birth control due to the beliefs of certain pharmacists. A story which intrigued me was of a rape victim. After being raped, the women went to her doctor and was prescribed (EC), emergency contraception, which is a birth control pill that works up to 72 hours after conception. While at the pharmacy trying to get her medication, all three pharmacists refuse to give the women her prescription because of their beliefs on abortion. While reading this, i was shocked that for one, pharmacists are allowed to refuse to fill a prescription, and also that because of their beliefs they would not let a rape victim receive the medicine she needed to stop the rapist from making her pregnant. It is not fair to the women who was raped, to not allow her to abort this child. Parenthood should not be forced on a woman, and the choice to abort or keep the baby is in no way the pharmacists decision. Trying to understand the opposing side, i tried to think about this issue from a very religious point, in which people do not condone abortion. Trying to put myself in the shoes of the pharmacist, I can't find myself able to force a child upon a woman who was raped. Birth is a sacred thing, and because of that, birth should not given to an unwanted baby. This text that was at the beginning of the book really puts you in the shoes of the woman who was raped, and makes you feel awful that she would be refused service. For this woman to be refused service is wrong, and even being pro-life myself, and can't find a reason that would make me agree with the pharmacists. This opening to the book has helped me broaden my horizons on abortion and is allowing me to see the picture from all sides. My Viewpoint has not changed from this, but it has made me rethink my viewpoint and get a clearer picture of the entire situation.
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