Hello, all!
After another extended absence, I am back. What a year it has been so far! There's a lot to talk about, so let's just get to it.
Recent current events have led me to write again, not to satisfy my own insatiable need to be heard, but more so to inform everyone that I now find myself unable to sit on the sidelines and watch, while society is eroding, moral fiber is disappearing, family values are becoming harder and harder to find, and most importantly, my faith is being undermined, attacked and targeted for extinction. I used to be okay with watching it all unfold from afar and shake my head, but not any longer. I've grown very tired of having to defend my beliefs on a daily basis, only to be called a hypocrite, misogynist, homophobe and my favorite one, Evangelical nut job.
Some recent facebook posts about the Hobby Lobby ruling by the Supreme Court have set me off a bit. I guess I was a ticking time bomb, already, and the clock finally ran out. Post after post, people are disappointed with the ruling, saying it is a setback for women's rights. I'm, of course paraphrasing, because the actual language used in most of them is not suitable to use in this blog, another trend that's becoming all too popular, as well. But we'll get to that part later. Most seem to be upset that the Christian owned company is willing to supply men with Viagra and vasectomies, while denying women intrauterine devices and the Plan B drug. To this first claim, I say, "apples and oranges". Firstly, Viagra, while it is certainly often over prescribed and misused, is a medication for a medical condition, and has nothing to do with the birth control issue of this debate. It should not even be a part of the conversation. Secondly, a vasectomy is a medical procedure that could be necessary for any number of medical conditions, not just as a means of birth control. I'll also gladly point out, that it's female equivalent, tubal ligation, is also still covered under the health care plans in question. So much for those arguments. Now we'll move on to the treatments that Hobby Lobby did not want to provide. Let's begin with intrauterine devices. Hobby Lobby's Christian ownership took a stand, that this form of birth control went against their beliefs. Agree or disagree with them, they have that right to those beliefs. The intrauterine device's ONLY function is birth control. Some Christians believe that all birth control is wrong. I personally don't feel that way, but others, in this case, the owners of Hobby Lobby, do. The other one in question, was the plan B drug. Again, this drug's ONLY function is birth control. Hobby Lobby did not want to provide these services because their ONLY function is birth control. For the same reason, they will not be providing condoms to the men that work for them, even though condoms actually have the dual purpose of disease prevention, but that's just semantics. The majority of the posts by those outraged by these decisions are using words like Misogynist, Hypocrites, Haters, and the always disparaging Right Wing Evangelical Idiot. And, it even gets worse. There are reports that there are groups who are staging a SEX-IN at Hobby Lobby locations. For those of you who aren't quite sure what that means, they will pick a date and time and go to Hobby Lobby locations and perform sexual acts in public at these stores, in protest of the Supreme Court's decision. Way to keep it classy, ladies! Openly defiling a persons private business, property......all class. So, I thought I'd discuss some of the possibilities of why some are so outraged in the first place. Here goes.....
In my humblest of personal opinions, I see two main issues causing this school of thought. First, and foremost is the lack of personal responsibility in today's society. Unfortunately for us all, it all comes down to choices. Every choice we make has consequences. If you are not willing to take responsibility for your own actions and choices, why should the government or the company you work for take up your slack? Essentially, what those opposed to this decision are saying, is that they want Hobby Lobby to pay for their contraception, so they can be free to have sex whenever and with whomever they want, with no consequences. Sorry, ladies, it doesn't work that way. What you want to do with your own personal life is certainly your own business....until you are asking me as a taxpayer or me as an employer to pay for your indiscretion. Then it becomes my business. Sexual promiscuity and the universal acceptance thereof is the culprit in all of this. Society has deemed promiscuity as the norm. While you are arguing against the violation of women's rights, and the exploitation of women in this country, you may want to take a look at the cause of it all. Which brings me to the second issue at hand.
Everywhere you look, be it television, film, billboards, magazines, etc., women are exploited sexually for profit. Apparently, we can no longer sell a hamburger or even a bottle of drain cleaner without sexual innuendo or scantily clad women in the ads. Hollywood perpetuates the image of sex everywhere, and it's all being marketed to our children. The key demographic being targeted are young girls aged 12-20. What they wear, the music they listen to, the movies they watch, the people the associate with, the food they eat or in some cases, don't eat, is all geared towards their sexuality. Everything revolves around them being "hot" enough. Sexuality is their currency in the free market of acceptance. Girls at the lower end of that spectrum are at their most impressionable period in their lives. Everywhere they look, they are told they're not "hot" enough, or they're overweight, or their skin isn't tan enough, their hair isn't the right color or style, and so on. They come away from their middle school years with low self esteem and poor self worth issues. So, what do they do? Anything they can to gain acceptance. Anything they can to feel wanted and loved. Anything they have to do to get attention from the boys. And in todays' warped society, that means sex, and lots of it. The pressure for them to be sexually active, promiscuous and to dress like it, is incredibly high. So, choices are made to do things to fit in. Society is telling 11 and 12 year old girls that in order to fit in, they have to be sexual beings. Age 12! The pressure is high for the boys, too, but nowhere near the level of the girls. They're the ones who have to be "sexy". They're the ones who have to ask their parents for birth control. Oh wait, sorry. I forgot the laws changed under the current administration. young girls no longer need their parents permission for birth control or abortion services. So they don't have to ask mom and dad anymore. Which is good, because mom and dad don't really want to deal with any real issues anyway. They'd rather the schools raise their kids so they have time to purport their own sexually deviant behavior without being disturbed by those pesky kids! Is everyone paying attention, yet? And when all else fails, and they just can't seem to gain acceptance through sexuality, they cut themselves, or commit suicide, or start using heroin. Eventually, you have an entire society that bases it's self worth on sexuality. Add to that the entitlement complex that has arisen in the last 15-20 years, and the recipe becomes what we are seeing today. The average twenty-something woman believing that it's the taxpayer's, government's or her employers responsibility to provide her with the ammunition she needs to fight off the consequences of her chosen lifestyle. Oh, if it were only that simple..... What does this all have to do with the dirty word "Christian"? Find out in Part Two......to be continued.......
Thanks for reading,
Very well said!!
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