Contraception

Overview

Contraception (also known as: birth control, reproductive choice) is an issue because of (on the one side) the significant number of (mainly religious) groups who seem out to restrict or prevent it, and (on the other side) the bad effects of not using it when needed.

Conclusions

Many groups apparently are both against abortion and against contraception or even sex education, usually favoring a policy of promoting abstinence until marriage. This is highly irrational and irresponsible, as it essentially "wishes away" a number of realities:

• as a contraceptive tool, "abstinence" is actually planned abstinence, which is notoriously unreliable
• the reality that teenagers and young adults will be interested in sex whether or not they are educated about it (humanity was around long before sex education)
• the reality of the large number of unwanted births which would result if "pro-life", anti-contraception, and "abstinence-based education"/anti-sex-education policies were enacted in any combination, in the absence of a significant and widespread cultural change or some as-yet-unknown but more acceptable means of contraception
• the reality that in any case, a large portion of people do not wish for such a culture change, and would not abide by it
• the reality that many married people do not wish to reproduce every time they have sex while fertile

If these groups are aiming to prevent unwanted conception solely by somehow significantly changing our culture so that most people only have sex when procreation is desired, they do not seem to be putting their efforts in that direction; if anything, they seem to want to maximize procreation at any cost.

Related Pages

• Contraception is a reproductive issue.
• Some (generally anti-contraception) groups seek to make it a sexuality issue by stating or implying that sexual abstinence is the only acceptable form of birth control.
• Many groups, especially certain religious organizations, are against the use of contraceptives to varying degrees.
• Forms of contraception include:
  • planned abstinence

Links

Reference

• Wikipedia
• The Emergency Contraception site at princeton.edu
• Media Matters: media items related to reproductive choice

Projects

• The Church of Euthanasia appears to be a borderline-extremist organization in favor of essentially any measure which prevents procreation (...or are they a parody?)

Opinion

• 2006-05-18
  • The War on Sex by Cristina Page on TomPaine.com
    • Claims that all pro-life groups in the United States are also against contraception – is this true?
    • Claims that anti-choice groups are claiming that many contraceptives (including the birth control pill, the patch, the IUD, and the Depo-Provera shot) are actually abortifacients, i.e. that they induce abortions – is it true that they are claiming this?
  • Will we choke on the pill? blog entry by Jill Stanek: a pro-life Biblically-based argument against contraception, with much discussion (on both sides) afterwards
    • commentary by PZ Myers at Pharyngula

Discussion

• 2006-05-25 That great and arbitrary abortionist in the sky by PZ Myers (Pharyngula)

Related

• 2014/07/11 [L..T] What We Don't Talk About When We Don't Talk About Abortion "I had an abortion four years ago. I just recently decided to start talking about it."
• 2014/07/01 [L..T] 3/4 of Hobby Lobby's investment funds include contraception, abortion services "Hobby Lobby is so offended by the idea of contributing to its employees' birth control expenses that it fought all the way to the Supreme Court over the issue. But its retirement plan has over $73M sunk into funds that include companies that make contraception."
• 2014/05/07 [L..T] U.S. Women Saved $483 Million On Their Birth Control Pills Last Year "Compared to the data from 2012, about 24 million more birth control pill prescriptions were filled without a co-pay in 2013. That means each of the women filling those prescriptions ended up saving an average of $269."
• 2014/03/26 [L..T] Hobby Lobby's Hypocrisy "How can the arts and crafts chain espouse Christian values when it imports products from China?"
• 2014/03/25 [L..T] Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
• 2013/04/15 [L..T] Eden Foods doubles down in birth control flap
• 2013/01/02 [L..T] Hypocrisy? Hobby Lobby fights government mandate to give employees access to birth control coverage on religious grounds, yet makes millions on products primarily from China where 7 million abortions and forced contraceptive surgeries a year take place "...one company stands out in its perceived civil disobedience lawsuit fighting the government mandate to give employees access to birth control coverage. Citing violation of religious beliefs, the owners of Hobby Lobby, the David Green family, doesn't want to provide access to birth control they think will induce abortion, although according to Tulsa World they have covered other forms of birth control in the past."