Greetings and Salutations humans! Here we are on the
ante-election day. DW here with a tidbit of information that some may deem propaganda-esque in nature! I’m going to discuss my view on the pulled
funding for Planned Parenthood (PP) in Texas.
I believe it was a decidedly bad decision based on the ideological stance
of a particular political party.
In summary, the Governor of the Glorious Empire of Tex- I
MEAN of the State of Texas, decided not to accept federal funds for PP. This is a real kidney-punch for PP. According to Planned Parenthood's website almost 50% of their funding is from Government Contracts. The withholding of funds is nothing if not a clear attempt to severely undermine and damage PP’s ability to operate in Texas. What is the reason for all of this fighting
and gnashing of teeth you ask? It’s a
matter ideology. Those of us in Dr.
Seago’s class know how riveting and adventurous an ideological battle can be.
I can’t argue the morality behind abortion, the notion of
conception, or ensoulment because I can’t bring myself to advance capricious, arbitrary
arguments based solely on my beliefs. What I can do, however, is
point out that PP is not the fetus-vacuuming factory it is made out to be. In fact, only 3% of the total services they provide
are abortion related (FUN FACT: Some abortions are necessitated by health risks
to the mother – The More You Know!) PP’s
primary function is to provide health care and prevention services to women. Often these women are low-income women. To provide some hard facts to support my
argument I direct your permeating gaze to Planned Parenthood At a Glance. Now I know y’all don’t want to actually READ
the information so I’ll summarize: 770,000 Pap tests (that’s to check for cervical
cancer people) provided each year; 750,000 breast exams per year (unlike the ones I perform in concert crowds, these exams ACTUALLY check for cancer); they also provide over 4
million tests for sexually transmitted infections; additionally they provide sexual health care, education,
and information to close to five million people each year. Abortion, the intended target of the attacks,
is a tiny piece of the pie - A REALLY TINY piece. Many hospitals also provide abortion
services and I hear no public outcry to remove federal funding (or state funding for that matter) from their
pockets! The mere idea is
laughable. Why, then, does PP have this
negative stigma attached to it? Alas,
this is a question I cannot answer.
What Texas has done, in effect, is make a play to remove the
primary family planning and education resource for people (cough cough low-income
women and families cough cough). And, for me, it is difficult not to see that act as anything but unethical. The arguments
to support PP are more focused on the services they provide whereas the arguments
against PP are ideological in nature, focus on a single aspect of PP's services and overlook similar ideological breaches
in other institutions.
Much like Pi, this argument is never-ending, I’m uncertain
that we will come to a conclusion even in the near future; however, for now I respectfully
step down off of my piney soapbox and bid you all adieux!
DW Signing off.
I find that this article is argued well and has great references overall informative and resourceful. I like seeing a mans perspective and voice about a topic concerning women it shows your ability to see more than what concerns you on a individual level.I must agree with your statement overall that abortion is a small portion of what Planned Parenthood is about. It has a negative connotation due to this but what some don’t realize is that there are women that are victim to violent crimes and placed in a situation that no matter the choice it will be one you’re haunted by forever. I think that society is dumb found in just how much young women have used these resources and you take it away and I believe that we would be worse off. We preach safety and consequence of sexual acts but reality is human nature is emotional and physical it is inevitable that sex is going to occur so why not provide testing to ensure life. Take away these options and sickness will go untreated. Low income families will have no place to turn. I agree this topic is endless in discussion and views. My voice is but one and I will speak out for what I believe and I believe that ending funding for Planned Parenthood will be a huge mistake.
ReplyDeleteSo, Texas does it again huh? We should adopt the slogan "The Anti-Funding State." This makes you wonder where all the money goes. This was a great article and very informative. I wasn't aware that planned parenthood depended on the state for half its funding. I'm sure you weren't surprised, like myself, to find that this over conservative state would reject such funding, but that's the simple way out. Let me state that I am for Planned Parenthood funding. Problem is, I understand the opposition to this subject. First and foremost, Planned Parenthood is finding it hard to separate from the social politics that were made popular by founder Margaret Sanger. Sanger believed in eugenics. Eugenics is the process of eliminating those who are found unfit by denying access to reproduce. This was her way of social cleansing. This multiplied by the 3 percent abortion service is enough to spark controversy and "conspiracies." Does Texas believe in this connection? I'd say maybe, that and the 3 percent abortion service is enough to set off the Jesus freaks. It's sad seeing a program that benefits so many women be hit like this. As long as they offer that 3 percent service they will always be under scrutiny by the Christian Republicans in any state.
ReplyDeleteIn the article I read from http://earsoftexas.blogspot.com I believe that the author got to the direct point with their opinion and based facts from sources to present their opinions. This author speaks about the pulled funding from Planned Parenthood here in Texas. I agree with the author that this is a poor decision made, but after reading this post, I stand behind my decision based on the solid facts that were mentioned. I am pro choice when it comes to abortions, however the facility for Planned Parenthood isn't just that of giving abortions and actually is just 3% of that total services that they do provide. The primary functions of the organization is there for overall women's health. I learned a lot from this post with accurate numbers, but I already knew that women receive help at Planned Parenthood to get pap smears, breast examinations, testing and treatment for sexual transmitted diseases, and most of all the importance of education, that schools and parents fall short of telling these young women. Most of the girls that go to Planned Parenthood are not educated by their parents and feel this is the only place they can go to get answers for themselves. I do not feel that there should be a cut in the funding because people see against this facility ONLY for their purpose on terminating pregnancies. I think this author did justice to this argument and had very good factual information to base her theories on. BRAVO
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