I read Ann Voskamp's link today and it made me clink on the Gloria Steinmen link. I really had no prior knowledge of her other than to equate her name with the word feminist. But reading her got my convictions flowing and boiling like hot lava out of a volcano. I sit dormant with a lot of these thoughts I have because they are controversial, because they offend some of my dearest friends, because I hate conflict. But enough is enough Gloria.
Women's rights, you want to talk about women's rights? I am always amazed that those who supposedly care so much about me (because I am woman), think that I need freeing because I am part of the "oppressive" conservative party called Republicans. I have no problem admitting the Republican party has some work to do which is evident by the last 2 elections. But my political convictions don't need freeing. I chose to be a conservative. I believe in those values. I believe in less government and letting the private sector grow uninhibited by government, and letting states be states and make their own decisions. Because states are made up of men and women who have opinions and who make choices and they can vote accordingly. So yay for women's rights, thank you that I can vote, but Gloria, will I only have "seen the light" if I vote exactly as you and your women's groups do?
Sidenote: I always wonder about people that fight for rights that so exclusively benefit them. There are a whole lot of oppressed, downtrodden people in the world and American females aren't real high on that list. There are some real victims out there being denied life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. You care about rights? Go fight for them and their lack of rights.
And then she rants about reproductive rights. What are those anyway? That is such a liberal Western term. The last time I checked, no one had the "right" to control reproduction. It isn't owed to me or due to me to be able to reproduce or stop my reproduction. It is a choice. From the richest to the poorest. Some things in life make that choice harder or easier to make, but it is still a choice. No one owes me sex without consequence, condoms, or birth control, or getting pregnant, or a uterus that will successfully carry a healthy baby if I want it to. If people would stop believing and demanding that they had so many rights, they might focus on their choices a little bit more. Here comes the conservative in me, call me crazy, but the only real rights I think I was given being born an American are the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. So guess what, if sex makes me happy, I can have it. No law against it. If I want to buy condoms or birth control because not being pregnant and having sex makes me happy, I can make the choice to buy it. If I want to have IVF and Chlomid available to me to increase my chances at having a baby if I am struggling, I can either work at making enough money to afford those things or I can work for company that covers that in my health insurance. But it isn't a right due to me.
America, we have got to get out of this mindset that we have so many rights, so many things being owed to us. It is such an immature way to live. We sound like toddlers yelling, "He got a new toy and I didn't, it's not fair!" Nobody likes whiners. So stop. Start making choices that get you closer to what you want, and live with the reality that life isn't fair. I voted for Romney. That was a choice that would get me closer to the America I wanted. But it didn't happen. I had to live with the reality that sometimes we don't get what we want. That was never promised to any of us.
