I’d like to hear Tania Fiolleau speak about her life as a former madam. I think her story would be really interesting. How she got into prostitution, how she got out, what she thinks of the madams currently clamouring for legalization.
If you are in North Bay on June 22, the REAL Women chapter up there is hosting her for lunch. They’d like you to buy tickets in advance. More info can be found here.
Linda Gibbons protests inside the bubble zones outside Toronto abortion clinics. She paces quietly and hands out pamphlets. For this she has spent many years in jail, and on Tuesday this past week, she was arrested again. This is her life’s work and I’m grateful to her for it.
In moments, I wonder what would happen if more of us joined her in a concerted effort with media advisories going out ahead of time. Ie. many young women being thrown in prison might cause more of a stir than one elderly one, who to be frank, we’ve gotten used to. It’s more a question of when Linda Gibbons is going back to jail, not if. I muse about this kind of idea regularly, if you’d like to know about the inner workings of my mind.
Then I muse about building a house with space for young girls who are unexpectedly pregnant to live in, but now I’m digressing.
CBC reports on 23 young women who have died taking the Pill.
The lawyer on the class action suit explains:
Merchant said the number of deaths potentially associated with Yasmin or Yaz may be largely underreported because doctors may not realize there is a link between the cause of death and the risks of the pills.
Doctors prescribe the Pill at the drop of the hat. So yes, I’ll agree that they don’t realize the link. A good book to read is Barbara Seaman’s The Greatest Experiment Ever Performed on Women if you are interested in understanding why the Pill is not terribly good for women’s health.
I can see from the other posts that Faye is in the business of providing some serious content for this blog. Thank you, Faye.
Enter Andrea for the fluff.
Let me just say that I no longer blast Pink in my car–it’s all Serena Ryder now. And in a rare, rare moment of pop culture, the lyrics are kosher. Really, this song is an adult version of “If you are happy and you know it, clappa your hands… stompa your feet.”
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz7jCY1cpHk]
Planned Parenthood used to have a slogan: “When she gets pregnant, so do you.” I appreciate that message and it seems to me this campaign is saying something similar.
Of course, Planned Parenthood said that before they made pregnancy a choice, sweeping responsibility quite off the table for both sexes.
If she can walk away from her pregnancy at any time, why shouldn’t he? It’s an irony entirely lost on feminists, who firmly believe that once a woman makes up her mind, the man ought to toe the line.
Then there’s the fact that “taking responsibility” used to mean the man would marry the woman and make a life of it, where now we awkwardly ask men to sort of stand by. Be involved. But not too involved. Because we are very, very busy pretending that marriage doesn’t matter.
Finally, the advice to avoid this situation of “pregnant men” is likely to amount to “use protection,” and/or “get on the Pill,” which is bad advice. And doesn’t work, furthermore, since all these kids have access and know how it use it and don’t, or use it improperly.
I’ll readily acknowledge this isn’t exactly amounting to standing ovation for this ad campaign. Yet, I support the idea of driving home that men are actors, not bystanders, alongside women in any pregnancy. “It’s her choice, I wouldn’t say anything,” was the recent comment of a cameraman filming one of my TV news hits about abortion. I cheerily replied that women don’t get pregnant on their own before leaving the studio, to which he nodded in agreement. (It was that easy, people. Just shake the tree and pick up the fruit.)
Another positive about this ad is that it serves to remind that men and women are different. Because men with pregnant bellies remain an impossibility and rather odd-looking, too. I think I’m still allowed to say that much out loud, right?
A half-hearted, thin cheer then; a one thumb up for this campaign.
Ladies and Gentlemen: It has been the best morning ever. Now I am given to both drama and hyperbole, it’s true, but this morning does rank right up there. If you will look closely at the picture below, it’s me and one Eric Metaxas, here in Ottawa to speak at the National Prayer Breakfast. Mr. Metaxas signed my well-read copy of Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and was just generally tremendously inspiring and encouraging. Not to mention very, very funny. A good time was had by all, but especially me. (Some of what he spoke about can be read here.)
I may be getting old. I may be considered “mature.” I may be the Executive Director of a Public Policy Think Tank. I may be all those things.
But yes, that was me you saw singing along super loud to this Pink song in my car. Oh. The. Drama. Karaoke, here I come.
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88LYsfnYQdA]
I appreciate Brian’s thoughts on Morgentaler’s death. I particularly find it interesting to hear how Brian felt when he met Morgentaler. Even Morgentaler’s allies say he was “difficult,” something people have not discussed at the time of his passing (for obvious reasons).
I do love The Onion, America’s Finest News Source. Unfortunately, this article is not one of theirs:
Samantha Fraser calls herself a poly advocate. That’s short form for promoter of polyamory – an emerging trend of multi-partner relationships, or as Fraser likes to call it, “ethical non-monogamy.” But she doesn’t pretend it’s easy. The question is put to the 33-year-old – are there issues with jealousy? “Absolutely!” she says without a moment’s hesitation. “Being non-monogamous requires a lot of work. There are people who want to try it out without doing the work, and people end up getting hurt.”
Thank goodness for her solid Protestant work ethic. Cuz it’s not easy to be “ethically non-monogamous,” no! I think we can all agree on that point.
