Well, I Guess You Didn’t Plan for That
While walking down Michigan Ave., I was passing through a choke point manned by Planned Parenthood. Most people just walked on by but oh not me. Despite my differences with this organization, I was genuinely interested in what they had to say. My hunch was that it probably had something to do with the Health Care bill passed by the House. I was sorta right. They did lead in with the complaint that public funds could be withheld from those seeking to get abortions. I stopped her and asked her if I needed to be a resident. She was stuttered, probably wondering why I would ask that question. Well she was holding a clipboard and I thought she was trying to get people to sign a petition.
As I said above, I do have my differences with Planned Parenthood and for the most part, the policies that they advocate are too far over the line that I draw. Some big examples are their acceptance of partial birth abortions and opposition parental notifications laws for minors. What I anticipated them bringing up in the context of the health care debate is the withholding of public funds for those who want abortions and that is something I am in agreement with them (although I feel dirty admitting that). It’s not that I approve of abortion but I think that the denial of public funds for people who want to have a legal procedure should not be based on the moral barometer of the public in general. There are many things that the government funds that I view as immoral and other people do not and vice versa. Planned Parenthood’s opposition to abstinence-only education is something I fully support. To me it is sheer lunacy to sum up a sex-ed curriculum in “just say no.”
I looked at her clipboard which had information on the organization. It wasn’t a petition. What they wanted me to do was to sign up as a member and give a “monthly contribution.” Ha. I took a bit of advice from good ol’ Nancy and just said no. While I may have signed a petition (depending on the issue) or even listened to a spiel on some issues, I wasn’t going to hand over a donation. I definitely wasn’t going to do it over and over again each month. I’ve got hands from three levels of government, two credit card companies, five financial accounts, a bank, a credit union, two doctors, one hospital, three insurance companies, and a cellular service provider (did I miss anyone), all going into my pocket. I don’t need another one.
As I said above, I do have my differences with Planned Parenthood and for the most part, the policies that they advocate are too far over the line that I draw. Some big examples are their acceptance of partial birth abortions and opposition parental notifications laws for minors. What I anticipated them bringing up in the context of the health care debate is the withholding of public funds for those who want abortions and that is something I am in agreement with them (although I feel dirty admitting that). It’s not that I approve of abortion but I think that the denial of public funds for people who want to have a legal procedure should not be based on the moral barometer of the public in general. There are many things that the government funds that I view as immoral and other people do not and vice versa. Planned Parenthood’s opposition to abstinence-only education is something I fully support. To me it is sheer lunacy to sum up a sex-ed curriculum in “just say no.”
I looked at her clipboard which had information on the organization. It wasn’t a petition. What they wanted me to do was to sign up as a member and give a “monthly contribution.” Ha. I took a bit of advice from good ol’ Nancy and just said no. While I may have signed a petition (depending on the issue) or even listened to a spiel on some issues, I wasn’t going to hand over a donation. I definitely wasn’t going to do it over and over again each month. I’ve got hands from three levels of government, two credit card companies, five financial accounts, a bank, a credit union, two doctors, one hospital, three insurance companies, and a cellular service provider (did I miss anyone), all going into my pocket. I don’t need another one.
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