Plan B

Yes, that's what they're calling the over-the-counter version of the emergency contraceptive, which, if taken within 72 hours of 'a sexual accident', prevents the embryo from attaching to the uterine lining, and growin' into a big bundle of headaches and diapers.

I think the name is kinda catchy, myself. But apparently, this is highly offensive to many a Right-Winger. In fact, this is just making it that much easier to kill babies. This woman's story? Just another tale of a harlot who uses abortion as birth control--and would have had an easier time of it with an OTC pill! Well, in good Puritan fashion, thank goodness we're making this difficult decision as painful as possible--if only whipping were still legal...

I'll tell you why this whole saga pisses me off. First, I think a lot of 'opinion' becomes fact when these arguments flare up. I've heard the "life starts at conception", um, "argument", and while this may be a legitimate opinion, it ain't fact! But, when these opinions about 'when life starts' appear, there's so much conviction attached to the belief that "every embryo is a life" and further, "every life has value." {I'll leave the incompatability of "every life has value" and "let's kill serial murderers" (which is so often the winning campaign platform of Conservative Coalition folk) aside, and proceed with our discussion of Plan B.}

Bring up the question of traumatic pregnancies (rape, incest, etc)? The response is generally two-fold: a) they're selling Plan B to harlots, not rape victims and b) even that rape-baby's life has value.

I try to work this around in my brain to make sense, but I just can't. If every life has equal value, then the woman's and 'baby's' life are of equal value. Therefore, every woman who wants Plan B (or Plan C, for that matter), should get the option of flipping a coin when she enters a pharmacy. If she gets a heads, she gets Plan B. If she gets tails, it's off to another pharmacy, fingers crossed for a better flip. Seem silly? Well, it's just as silly as forcing a woman to weave her way through a bureaucracy guilded with false morals and irrational sentiment, all the while hoping to find a doctor or pharmacist who values her life as much as the bundle of cells in her uterus.

Finally, the Conservative Coalition/pro-lifers generally stop the argument at birth. So, they'd like to meddle in the 'baby's' life as long as the baby doesn't have its hands reaching into their wallets...Where are these people when the baby needs diapers, food, or someone to cradle it in the middle of the night? Where are they to protect that child's value then? These people who are protesting at abortion clinics would better serve their public, their God and even their cause if they were to picket the White House Lawn to provide better support services for pregnant women, free health coverage for all mothers and children, and better childcare options for working mothers.

Yes, I am aware that many pro-life groups actively encourage adoption. But that gives me nightmarish flashes from The Handmaid's Tale...