Pope Benedict XVI was in Africa this week, thrilling some people by his very presence and infuriating others with a constant litany of theological convictions that seemed to not make much sense when taken as a whole.
First, he said:
"[AIDS] is a tragedy that cannot be overcome by money alone, and that cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which even aggravates the problems."
Wtf does that even mean? This baffling statement now must be debunked by groups/activists worldwide, including the United Nation AIDS Agency, all of whom want to strangle someone.
But we're not done. Next comes:
"Particularly disturbing is the crushing yoke of discrimination that women and girls so often endure, not to mention the unspeakable practice of sexual violence and exploitation which causes such humiliation and trauma."
Okay, so that part was pretty good. But then he follows it up by taking issue with the "irony of those who promote abortion as a form of 'maternal' health care."
And... he loses me again. First of all, it's so great when male leaders (or journalists) put words like women's health care in scare quotes. And second, he's referring to a specific agreement signed by 45 countries in the African Union to allow abortion in cases of rape, incest... and to save the mother's life. Yeah, it's so "ironic" to want to save "women's lives" and call it "health care." What were all these women thinking, that their lives might actually be worth something. Thanks for the lesson in the patriarchy, Benedict, as if it's even possible I could have forgotten.
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Oh my! You are so great a bringing up tough stuff. On a slightly related note - not AIDS but reproductive health- I heard on the news this morning (love Scott Robert Shaw on 95.7 the Rock) they were talking about this new epidemic in the Midwest. High School age girls are now taking animal medications to terminate pregnancy b/c they want to do this without their parents knowledge. The hormone that producers use on their critters to make them ovulate simultaneously will evidently cause a human to abort a fetus. My brother uses this drug on his cattle b/c they can then inseminate the herd all at one time - instead of trying to predict estrus.
ReplyDeleteNow I'll be the last person to advocate having an abortion - personally this isn't something I could do. That being said I also don't think it should be illegal for this very reason. It seems to me making the procedure more difficult/impossible to obtain only encourages damaging health practices.
Anyway - my $0.02
Yes, exactly. Rural populations are often the ones where choices are very limited... it's scary to think, for example, that the entire state of South Dakota has one abortion provider! I think Wyoming maybe has two. And any time that's the case, people will take extreme measures, and more lives will be at risk than if full access to certain services were allowed and provided. I guess I always thought similar to you, that my own personal choice/feelings on the matter was exactly that -- my choice. But that doesn't mean I'd want to impose it on someone else with different circumstances (which could easily include situations I can barely imagine and might never be in).
ReplyDeleteIn related news, I heard maybe two days ago that the FDA is going to be re-thinking the rules about the Plan B pill (loosening age restrictions), which means teenage girls like the ones you mentioned might soon be getting a safer option that is more easily accessible than it has been lately.
That is an excellent thing. I think, at least after growing up the way I did, these kids are in terror - not only of their parents (who have failed to educate them) but are being failed by the system. The system who won't let them protect themselves without parental persmission. Parents want to rely soley on schools for sexual education and just assume they can sit back and that will be good enough: HORSESHIT I SAY!
ReplyDeleteMy parents, wonderful people that they are, failed miserably in this area. Seriously the only time my mom actually had a "sex talk" with me - aside from DO NO HAVE PRE-MARITAL SEX - was when I was pregnant. Needless to say I was floored - too little, too late. These are all difficult converstations but seriously - raising kids is one freakin' difficult conversation after another.
I am still the daughter of a pair of conservatives so I can't say there shouldn't be any kind of control at all for under 18 birth control options but for heavens sake these kids feel like their driven to take an animal hormone before talking to their parents/teachers/doctors about the problem! What are we saying to our kids!
Yeah, even my parents, who probably tend a bit more liberal, never had real sex talks with us kids either. I think my parents were pretty good in general, and we certainly talked about other health issues all the time, so when I think about that missing link, it sort of blows my mind! So yeah, I totally agree, sex education is so important... it seems like so often teenagers don't even really know what options they have. I know I didn't have a clue when I was in high school!
ReplyDeleteAnd oh, I didn't mean to imply up above that Plan B causes abortion. It doesn't. But if Plan B was more readily accessible to teenagers, I think it could *prevent* at least some kids from getting to that point of doing something desperate/risky, like taking the animal hormones to abort.
Just piggybacking a little more off what you said, :) it drives me nuts when the Pope (or whoever) basically says that sex education equals preaching abstinence. I have nothing against abstinence, as long as it's presented as one option in a range of options. I think it certainly should be a BIG part of the message to young people. Just not the only message. But what the Pope said last week about avoiding condoms, to me, is dangerous. He's basically telling people, of all ages, to abstain from sex -- and that would include adult married couples. Yeah, right! That is just NOT realistic and it distracts from the real issue of helping people (in Africa & elsewhere) protect themselves against AIDS.
ReplyDeleteYah - the condom thing is a huge hot button issue with me too. It is all so personal - which, of course, is why it is hard as hell to talk openly about it (esp. when you're Norwegian/from the Midwest -heh) but all the more reason to be dealing with it directly. For anyone - the Pope or whoever - to say you shouldn't use this or that seems a little ridiculous - esp. when in the condom case it could make such a huge difference in things like the AIDS epidemic.
ReplyDeleteIMO it comes down to having that choice - it isn't just women - but men too need to be proactive about this - not only so they don't end up with disease but "unplanned" kids can be an unbelievable challenge (trust me on this one!!) - that is how i plan pitching birth control at my Peanut - do you want to be stuck dealing with someone you hate simply b/c you had sex and got pregnant! good grief! be careful!
Yeah, I get that... there are consequences to everything and it can affect your whole life!... and so like you said, being proactive is everything, and even small precautions can make the difference. All the knowledge you can bring will help, which is one more reason that abstinence-only advocates who shut their eyes to real life human behavior make me want to tear my hair out. :)
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