www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Marriage, Science, and Birth Control

The unintended (intended??) consequences of the Culture of Death. A good analysis.

http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/can_contraception_make_america_better/

Carson,
Thank you for posting this; it is extremely well done and to the point.
The amazing thing is that this Administration which claims to abhor discrimination of blacks, homosexuals, and women has discriminated against men; for there is no mention of men's health. It is also extraordinary because, unlike any other benefit, there is no co-pay. What a hypocritical action!

Moli za nas!

We attended the Will County Fair today. The Health Department was handing out condoms. I offered to take them all and distribute them to the 10-12 year old children in my neighborhood. I guess this is health program designed to make every little girl into a prostitute and every little boy convinced that love means taking advantage of women. What a world.

Paul,

Actually, the author addressed this very issue, albeit in passing:This is it, right here: the whole point of contraception is for women to "enjoy" the same "freedom" that "men have always had" with regard to sex. From this perspective, you cannot complain about "discrimination" against men, since they "already have it all."

Needless to say, the author here is being a bit sloppy in how he addresses this issue, since by conceding that "men have the upper hand in sex," he is actually allowing that women have a right to seek equality in this regard (or perhaps, that women don't deserve to be equal).

Clearly, the point he is trying to make is that women by nature desire a stable relationship, which is why they used to be so successful in "holding out for a ring." Men, while not necessarily averse to stable relationships, simply do not share this natural inclination, and are easily subject to societal pressure that says a "real man" cherishes his freedom. Enter "the pill," and suddenly the woman is deprived of her "excuse" for holding out--not to mention the fact that she is now under extreme societal pressure to be "equal" to men.


Peace,
Deacon Richard

That's true enough Deacon Richard. It isn't the best written article I've ever read and I frankly don't know why the author did not explain his position on men's rights better but his main point that contraceptives are destroying families is well put, don't you think?

Did they give them to you?

I didn't take them but they seemed willing enough to give them to me. I suggested that they may wish to hand out syringes with heroine or poison in them and give them to children. I don't think they appreciated my suggestion.

Well, she certainly has some good insights to offer, but like a typical "fringe" writer, she seems to be insensitive to mainstream thinking and how every little rhetorical statement she makes will be received by the average reader.

It's easy to write for a "fringe" audience, which ultimately serves to build a wall between them and the mainstream, each convinced that the other is crazy. It's harder to build bridges and write in such a way that mainstream readers will actually stop and think.

I see no reason why they should, given that the prevailing wisdom is that "abstinence doesn't work," and that condoms are a very good thing because they help to prevent diseases and pregnancy. From that perspective, we look like a bunch of crackpots. It's our obligation to demonstrate that we are not.


Peace,
Deacon Richard

I don't understand how a piece of rubber can have an effect on a family.

Deacon, What is the fringe group to which you refer?

JJP, I don't understand your question. Have you read the linked article?

Yes, but I was referring to the .

To me it seems like a firearm. The gun does not kill people, the person pulling the trigger does.

While I agree that nobody should be forced to pay for things that they do not condone (including contraceptives), I think that people ruin families, not contraception.

JJP, I don't understand the disingenuousness of your comment. What you write seems like word games based upon the article.

Sorry if that's how I made it seem, it wasn't my intention.

What I am saying is that I can't understand the notion that contraception ruins families. To me, it seems like saying "Guns kill people."

Condoms, or guns, are inanimate objects, and cannot be held culpable of any moral transgressions. The existence of condoms does not destroy families.

People, and people's actions, destroy families. Reframing the conversation in this manner places the onus not on the abstract notion of contraception itself, but on people who are capable of making moral decisions, and on how they employ that morality, in this case, vis-a-vis contraception.

In short, I think that unless you articulate more clearly what you mean, it sounds a lot like hyperbole which makes meaningful conversation difficult.

A "fringe" group is any group whose thinking sets them apart from the mainstream, even if only on one issue.

With regard to the matter of contraception, the Catholic Church--or at least the minority of Catholics who actually accept the Church's teaching on this issue--is *way* outside the mainstream.

Not that being outside the mainstream is a bad thing, but I believe a writer has a responsibility always to approach a controversial subject from a mainstream perspective, so as to draw in as many critical thinkers as possible.

As one commenter on Mercator states,

Peace,
Deacon Richard

Aside from the English teachers here what do you think of this position paper?