Just watched “The Duchess,” set in the 1780s, about the duchess of Devonshire. The woman, trapped in an unhappy marriage is prevented by her rich and powerful husband from having a fulfilling relationship with a man she loves.
Apparently, the duke only married her to obtain a male heir. Beyond that, she had no real rights or purpose. She was forced by her husband to end her romantic relationship or lose her children forever.
Things have improved for women in the last 200 plus years, but there is still the underlying assumption that a woman is primarily a vehicle for producing a man’s children. Case in point is the health care debate and abortion as a sticking point that could derail the vote.
Many have cloaked this issue in religious terms, but I find that religion is often used to slip a sugar coating over a bitter social pill. This isn’t about anyone’s god; it’s about control and who has or hasn’t it.
We all have our views on abortion, from those who would deny any abortion to any woman at any time, to my view: mandatory abortion unless the parents could prove they have parental skill, emotionally maturity and sufficient financial resources to raise a child.
As much as I think I’m right, I wouldn’t want to impose my position on everyone else. I’m egocentric, but not that egocentric. If I would deny my right, based on massive wisdom, to make the rules, I certainly would balk at other, less enlightened, people making rules for everyone, everywhere.
It’s time to live and let live. A fetus is just a fetus, your religion is just one of many world views and, in case you don’t read the news, life isn’t all that precious these days.
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