Stupak Was Right
Comments (6)
Frankly, I'm having a hard time understanding all the hoopla over the generally reviled Stupak amendment.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a healthcare bill Saturday by a paltry five votes. To help push the bill through in the face of conservative resistance, Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mi) introduced an amendment that blocks the public option from covering abortions, except in cases of rape or incest or to save the mother's life.
The amendment also prevents private insurance plans purchased with government subsidies from paying for abortions not deemed medically necessary.
Publications from the Los Angeles Daily News to the Detroit Free Press to Neon Tommy have run editorials bemoaning the amendment as a setback to women's rights. Blogger Shannyn Moore of the Huffington Post even makes the argument that if insurance covers treatment for erectile dysfunction, elective abortion should also be covered.
Huh?
So, let me get this straight, not only does abortion have to remain legal, but tax payers have a moral obligation to fund it, too?
In the three and a half decades since Roe vs. Wade, pro-choice advocates have gone from "if you don't like abortion, don't have one, but shut up about it and keep the procedure safe and legal for me," to "pay for my abortion, regardless of how you feel about it."
Whatever happened to personal responsibility?
Now, I'm a die-hard feminist who believes women should have unlimited access to higher education and earn equal pay for equal work. I view the defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment as an affront to womenkind, not just in America, but across the globe. However, I don't believe in the so-called "right" to abortion.
Women have a right to autonomy over their own bodies, but they don't have the right to decide whether someone else lives or dies. Both women and men need to understand that, along with the pleasure of sex comes real risks and responsibilities.
Even the most conscientious or least promiscuous among us can become pregnant.
Should that situation arise, women must be prepared to deal with it in a sound moral and ethical fashion, which means either keeping the baby or giving it up for adoption.
In short, I find abortion morally repugnant, and don't want even a single penny of my tax dollars to fund one.
Contrary to what some pundits are saying, the Stupak amendment won't lead to a public health crisis or a rush of poor women getting back-alley abortions.
Poor women have plenty of access to abortions, even with the Hyde Amendment, an addendum to the bill that created Medicaid that bars public funds from being used to pay for abortions.
In fact, poor women are over-represented when it comes to abortions. According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, the rate of abortion among women living below the federal poverty level is more than four times that of women living 300 percent above the poverty level.
So let's make a deal. I'll keep my hands off your uterus if you quit trying to reach into my pockets to pay for your abortion.
