Start here
Where are you in your journey?
Choose the path that fits today. We’ll take you to the most useful discussions.
- GLP-1 medication Zepbound, Wegovy, access, side effects, progress, and support.
- Before surgery Compare procedures, plan ahead, and get honest pre-op answers.
- Post-op Recovery, food stages, symptoms, and support.
- Long-term Regain, labs, habits, and life after the honeymoon.
- Revision Explore revision options, complications, and next steps.
Everything posted by BJean
-
who supports right to choose
This is a refreshing article. Thought you all might find it interesting. Katha Pollitt Katha Pollitt – Wed Jun 3, 7:23 am ET The Nation -- There were lots of young people in the crowd, and at the microphone, for Monday evening's spirited rally in Union Square to honor Dr. George Tiller. It was quite a contrast with the last gathering occasioned by the murder of an abortion provider, the candlelight vigil at Columbus Circle in l998, after the murder of Dr. Barnett Slepian. Back then, the crowd was small and middle-aged and rather dispirited. This time, people were awake and angry. It's about time. Time to demand federal legal protection for abortion rights. Time to demand that law enforcement take seriously the violent anti-abortion underground. Time for doctors to show some spine, defend their colleagues who perform this necessary service to women and reintegrate abortion into normal medical practice. Time for women to come out of the closet and talk about their abortions, so that people will realize that the woman who terminates a pregnancy is their wife, their mother, their sister, their friend. It's time, too, to stop the pretense that the "debate " over abortion consists of two equally extreme positions, and that wisdom resides in the mushy middle, where everybody disapproves of abortion except when they want one for themselves or someone they care about. There's only one set of extremists here, the one that uses language like "babykiller," " Nazi," "murderer," and "death mill," kidnaps and murders providers and clinic workers,burns and bombs clinics and drives cars into them, posts pictures of clinic workers and their families on the internet, and harrasses patients on their way to get care. Only one side writes like this about the murder of Dr. Tiller: "But I also know joy. Not the shallow type of joy but a deep resonating joy. I feel joy that no longer will this wicked man slay the judicially innocent. I feel joy because justice, albeit of a rough variety, was visited on someone who so thoroughly opposed a culture of life and who worked so assiduously to spread the culture of death. I know joy because the truth of Scripture that those who take up the sword shall die by the sword is seen as authoritative. I know joy because I know that no longer will Dr. Tiller be sucking out the brains of people, or torturing people with saline or dismembering people in utero. How could a sane person not feel joy at the death of a mass murderer and a terrorist?" backwaterreport/Covenant News That's Bret MacAtee, Michigan pastor and Constitution Party activist. People mock the word "choice" --it's consumerist, euphemistic, wimpy, calculated. But one thing you can say for it: It honors the individual conscience. If a desperately ill pregnant woman wants to risk her life to give birth, if she wants to carry an anencephalic fetus to term so it can die in her arms, or have her rapist's baby, or become a mother at 14, or produce octuplets, pro-choicers are not going to compel her to abort. Pro-choicers don't go around lecturing girls and women that they will blame themselves forever if they have a baby they may not be equipped to raise well. They don't paint gory pictures of the horrors and dangers of childbirth to scare pregnant girls and women into ending their pregnancies with a quick and safe termination. They don't tell women Jesus is going to send them to Hell if they sacrifice their futures to the whims of a wayward sperm -- although they might mention from time to time that the Bible nowhere mentions abortion. Pro-choicers don't blow up churches or assassinate the leaders of Operation Rescue. Only one side wants to force women to live by its so-called morality, and only one side murders and bombs to make its point. Only one side has a terrorist wing. In the days to come, let the public discussion acknowledge that.
-
who supports right to choose
These huge disagreements about what the Bible says and what God wants are the reason that we need to ensure the separation of church and state. I know that born again Christians are certain that they have all the answers. But they do not. They just have the answers that make sense to THEM. And when they tread on our toes with their beliefs regarding the laws of the land, it is just the thing that reeks of discrimination and intolerance and the exact thing that causes religious wars, suicide bombs and aircraft being flown into the sides of buildings. Yes, we're back to that. 'nuff said.
-
who supports right to choose
patty although I don't agree with you, I appreciate your softer tone. I have a feeling that you are more like that with your Catholic friend too, which is good because it will allow you to both be more open to sharing thoughts and beliefs with each other. I believe that is a very good thing. Carrie: "There's the Bible lesson for today!!" Oh Carrie, if only it were true.
-
who supports right to choose
rodiguez, your points are well taken. It is impossible to follow the Bible word for word. And it is impossible to interpret it word for word. Particularly since the words have been translated and diciphered so many times over thousands of years. I have no doubt that the men who did the translations had good intentions, for the most part, and of course translations were absolutely necessary. But it is important that we understand everything about the Bible today that we can. To embrace the Bible with blinders on is naive and serves to confuse more than enlighten.
-
who supports right to choose
First of all, I do not interpret the Bible as literally as you do. And as for those particular passages that you quoted, there are other passages in the Bible that call some of those into question. I know you won't agree with that, but it is what I believe that drives me, not what you believe. The fact that we believe so differently about spiritual things is quite obvious in all of the exchanges that we've had. It is also obvious that because you disagree with me so vehemently, you at some point decided that I have no relationship with God. Although you find this curious, and you should, it is something that He wants you to understand and explore further on your own. You may think that you understand how other people believe and I know you think that you are the one who has a true understanding of the Bible and God and the route to heaven, but He wants you to know that you do not fully understand. And that is a barrier between you and goodness.
-
who supports right to choose
Of course. I read the Bible everyday. I am not unfamiliar with the passages you've quoted. I will re-read them, however.
-
who supports right to choose
patty, thank you. And praised be to God in the highest.
-
Octuplets and SIX other children??!!!
I still feel very sad for the children. I don't know how involved the grandparents are going to be in their lives because they sounded a little estranged at one point, but maybe that was just more drama to try and get a show. I do hope that those little beings have someone wonderful in their lives that they can count on who isn't so eaten up with their own celebrity.
-
who supports right to choose
All I ask is that you consider my words to you - just as I have considered yours. I have a feeling that you are still very resistant to opening your heart to what I am telling you that God wants for you and from you. I hope for your own sake that you open your mind and your heart. I honestly believe that I am being moved to tell you these things. I have nothing to gain, but you have so much to learn and to gain. If only you will listen and consider it to be very heartfelt and very much inspired by God. God knows that you have been an avid student of the Bible and that you have studied as much as you are capable. You have said to Him that you have turned over your life to Him, however God is troubled that you are still holding back, still mired in the devil's sin, still not fully trusting in Him. Dig deep patty. Stop thinking in terms of the sins of this life and rise up before Him, not holding back any portion of your mind and soul to Christ. You can be a better person, even now. God is counting on you to let go of the things that are keeping you from what He has planned for you.
-
who supports right to choose
There is one thing I would like for you to think about and all I'm asking is that you just think about it: stop saying bad things about and to people and then refusing to admit that you are the person who is saying those words. Stop saying that God said them and that you are only the messenger. God doesn't like it. He wants you to bring lost souls into his fold and you are causing people to question Him and His potent message. You should be a good witness, not one who casts out others for their sins. He wants to have the opportunity to show them His love. He wants the opportunity to win souls over and to save them. You are putting yourself between God and those people who need Him. You are not doing God's work the way He tells you to in the Bible. For some reason you have become derailed in the mission that he has charged you with. You may need to take some time out. Do some serious soul searching. God will reveal the truth to you, I am just sure of it.
-
who supports right to choose
As far as the Battygreen moniker is concerned, I didn't start it. Someone else did. The first time I read it, I thought it was insensitive. But then I began to understand why she called you that. And no it wasn't used out of anger. Just observation. And let me tell you that I did not say the things I did out of anger. I am not mad at you. I am simply telling you and others what I observe to be the truth. You continue to duck the responsibility for the BAD things that you say to and about people. God is not the inspiration for that. You've come up with it all on your own. But you'll never be big enough to admit it, that is obvious. I suppose that pompous attitude is what is goading you and others into doing the things that you do to people even though you are frightfully wrong. You should know that I do not need you to be any kind of link between God and me. We have a relationship just between us. He guides me in everything that I say and do. He has asked me to lead you out of your darkness. I have to admit at this point that I am not equipped to get that task done. I will continue to try to show you the light. I wish I had the words that God wants me to share with you. Perhaps in time, he will reveal them more specifically to me.
-
who supports right to choose
Lydia: I believe this bears repeating: "To quote Voltaire: Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities." I appreciate your posts, btw. Some fresh insight to this thread that is much needed, thanks!
-
who supports right to choose
battygreen: "If only there weren't those extreme christians who desire to eliminate all of the 'goodness'(sinfulness)in the world, we would all get along just fine." By your 'goodness', I speak of abortions which doesn't kill babies, but in fact gives women a 'right' to their own bodies, gay marriages because it's not a sin to have sex with the same sex, their just people in love, and prostitution as a legal profession because anyone should be able to 'choose' what they want to do.(sarcasm added).They will say that we "HATE"... Do not presume that I am not a Christian. Do not presume that you have the the sole proper interpretation of the Bible. And do not misquote me. At least do not do that if you want to be taken seriously by others. You have insinuated that I wrote these words: "If only there weren't those extreme christians who desire to eliminate all of the 'goodness'(sinfulness)in the world, we would all get along just fine." and I did not. You also insinuated that I used the word "hate" and I did not use the word "hate" or "hateful" in the context that your post did. You are exactly the kind of person who is so extreme, so intolerant, so quick to toss out the words God and the Bible, that you are the type of person who does inspire wackos to do your bidding. And you know it. And I do not doubt that you are among those who applaud the death of Dr. Tiller because you consider him a mass murderer. You don't get by with the cop out that this is indicative of the second coming. You don't get to blame everybody else for the distain they have for your words. You have no excuse. You are being irresponsible, ugly, judgemental, intolerant and self-serving. You hide behind the Bible and refuse to take responsiblity for your tirades. It is never you who calls someone a murderer, it's God. It's never you who spews hate, it's God. God hates. God hates the sin. God hates, hates, hates. But you don't. You only tell us that God does. YOU are the kind of person who will bring on the second coming. YOU are the kind of person who Jesus spoke to about love and forgiveness, no matter what the sin. YOU are not fooling anyone. It is YOU who is spewing the hate and inciting people to feel they are holier than everyone else and that they are merely God's instrument when they kill someone they disagree with. People like you are feeding a malignant cancer in this country. And by God, if you and your ilk don't straighten up, learn to respect others, learn to tolerate different beliefs, learn how to love people, learn how to help people, in spite of the fact that they smoke or drink or commit other heinous sins that YOU HATE, then we're all definitely in for a lot more killing and grief. Please, please, please, for the love of God look inward for a change. Stop telling everyone else how wrong they are. Take responsibility for your hate. Stop blaming God for your own personal feelings. Understand and take responsibility for how your words affect people. No one is knocking Christianity here. No one is knocking the Bible or God or Jesus or Christians. People are criticizing the ones who are talking the talk that says that they are the only ones who know what is right and wrong. People are being criticized for intolerance and dislike of their fellow countrymen, not God! People are being criticized for using low-down tactics to make their case. You are and people like you are the ones who are using God and who are likely to bring on the second coming; not everybody else in the world who are trying to love and get along. It hangs on the shoulders of those who believe that murdering a murderer is fine as long as they get to choose who gets murdered. And if I haven't been perfectly clear: no one is blaming God or the Bible or Christianity for the ills of the world; they are blaming the people who are out to harm others with their words and their deeds.
-
Should prostitution be legal?
Praise the Lord!
-
who supports right to choose
I just watched a man speak who is a former anti-abortion activist who sat in counsel with people like Pat Robertson and they advised people like Bush on the abortion issue. He is apologizing tonight for all the things he did and said that he feels are responsible for inciting the fringe idiots to do the things they have done like marching on abortion clinics, intimidating women outside those clinics and the murders of Tiller and others. He believes that the irrational talk that the Republicans are doing to discredit President Obama and the claims that they make like "he's a muslim" and "he doesn't love this country" and "he's a socialist" and "he isn't really a natural born citizen" and on and on, are intentionally inciting the crazies to come out of the woodwork. He believes that people like Bill O'Reilly, who claims that although he may have been very extreme and hateful about abortion, he didn't really intend for someone to go murder Tiller, they actually do like the fact that someone killed him and that they won't be disappointed if someone kills Obama. He said he knows this because he used to be an integral part of it. He knows what they used to say in public and also what they said in private. And what they said in private was so extreme, so full of venom, that they knew they were pushing people to commit atrocities. This is a country that is so completely divided right now because of the extremists and far right wing, who will say anything to further their hateful agenda, that it has reached the point where a brain-washed maniac has killed a Christian doctor on the floor of his church. The political climate of this country is even reflected in this thread. So completely divided. One side comparing an abortion to slavery in order to try to influence people into believing that abortion is wrong. People saying that anyone who gets an abortion, for any reason, is a murderer. And if not a "murderer" at least they are killing a fully complete human being. And on and on and on. I am glad that at least one person who has been a large part of this ugly, hate-filled anti-choice rethoric has finally come forward, written a book, and is stating in the media that he knows what he did was wrong and is apologizing and taking responsibility for the murder of Tiller and others.
-
who supports right to choose
rodriguez that has always been one of the sore points for me about capital punishment. I do not believe that you can have it both ways. If you believe that any sinner can be forgiven and go to heaven, and that all they have to do is accept Jesus Christ as their personal savior, then how can any man/woman pull the switch on them and take away that God given right? Even a killer should have his entire life to be able to experience being born again and none of us should have the right to take that from him. What I am hearing from patty is that it is up to her (and people who believe as she does) to decide who gets to live and die and not only through state mandated executions, but also when an abortion might save a woman's life it is immaterial because to them there are no allowable circumstances that will have a bearing on the decision. They and only they, know when killing someone is permissible and acceptable to God.
-
who supports right to choose
:smile::w00t::wink:
-
who supports right to choose
Brace yourselves. I'm not sure where she's been, traveling probably. But as soon as gadget reads what's been going on here, she will come back at us with a number of links and quotes that will knock your socks off. We will hardly have the opportunity to counter her comments because she'll beat us all into submission with such a volume of material we will feel beaten down - or at least she will try, if past history is any indication. Most people who've been involved here get so grossed out by the graphic propaganda she posts, they are unwilling to hang in long enough to keep her from being the only voice here. I am very proud of those of you who give a voice to the pro-choice, pro-women folks. Just remember, the majority of Americans do support women's right to choose. If they are asked only "do you believe in abortion?" they might say, "no" but when asked if the government should make the decision versus the woman making it, they overwhelmingly support women's rights to make their own choices. I hope everyone will read the real truth about what President Obama believes regarding this issue and they do not believe the misrepresentations and downright lies that the anti-choice people have put forth about him. If you truly understand what and why he believes what he does, it is very clear and straightforward and it is very hard to argue against. That is, if you believe in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
-
Should prostitution be legal?
Lydia, you may be uniquely qualified to state that legalizing prostitution won't solve any of the real problems with human trafficking and various kinds of abuse. And you may certainly be right, but I believe that if we were more honest with outselves and dealt with sex more openly and with the understanding that it is a human biological urge that everyone (basically) has, instead of dealing with it in the prudish, bigoted, crazy way that we do, a whole lot of our sex-related acting out would be curbed. So if we were honest and made prostitution legal, it might be a step in that direction. In European countries and Canada, where nudity on television is normal, where human sexual activity is considered a normal function, and the naked human anatomy is not considered dirty or shocking, they seem to have much healthier sex lives. We make having missionary position sex with our married partners the only kind of sexual activity that is acceptable in the U.S. But of course, that's just the acceptable theory and behavior - not reality! Which I believe is kind of what you were also trying to point out. The way the fundamentalists fight sex education in our schools is actually fundamental in keeping Americans in the dark and thinking of sex as the forbidden fruit.
-
who supports right to choose
Here's a API release today on this very topic: WICHITA, Kan. – A man suspected of fatally shooting abortion doctor George Tiller in church was in jail Monday while investigators sought to learn more about his background, including his possible connections to anti-abortion groups. Tiller, 67, was serving as an usher during morning services Sunday when he was shot in the foyer of Reformation Lutheran Church, police said. The gunman fired one shot at Tiller and threatened two other people who tried to stop him. The suspect, identified by one law enforcement agency as Scott Roeder, was taken into custody some 170 miles away in a Kansas City suburb about three hours after the shooting. Tiller had been a lightning rod for abortion opponents for decades. The women's clinic he ran is one of three in the nation where abortions are performed after the 21st week of pregnancy, when the fetus is considered viable, and has been the site of repeated protests for about two decades. A protester shot Tiller in both arms in 1993, and his clinic was bombed in 1985. Roeder, 51, was returned to Wichita and was being held without bail on one count of first-degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault. Formal charges were expected to be filed Monday. Outside the clinic Monday morning, flowers were placed along a fence, and the anti-abortion group Kansas Coalition for Life left a sign saying members had prayed for Tiller's change of heart, "not his murder." In Washington, the U.S. Marshals Service said that as a result of Tiller's shooting, Attorney General Eric Holder had ordered it to "increase security for a number of individuals and facilities." It gave no details. Tiller himself last had protection from the U.S. Marshals in 2001, and he and other doctors received such protection at different times in the 1990s. A man with the same name as the suspect has a criminal record and a background of anti-abortion postings on sympathetic Web sites. In one post written in 2007 on the Web site for the militant anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, a man identifying himself as Scott Roeder asked if anyone had thought of attending Tiller's church to ask the doctor and other worshippers about his work. "Doesn't seem like it would hurt anything but bring more attention to Tiller," the post said. But police said Sunday that all early indications showed the shooter acted alone. Operation Rescue condemned the killing as vigilantism and "a cowardly act," and the group's president, Troy Newman, said Roeder "has never been a member, contributor or volunteer." He may have posted to the organization's open Internet blog, Newman said, but so have thousands of nonmembers. But Operation Rescue founder Randall Terry, whose protests have often targeted Tiller, called the slain doctor "a mass murderer," adding: "He was an evil man — his hands were covered with blood." In 1996, a 38-year-old man named Scott Roeder was charged in Topeka with criminal use of explosives for having bomb components in his car trunk and sentenced to 24 months of probation. However, his conviction was overturned on appeal the next year after a higher court said evidence against Roeder was seized by law enforcement officers during an illegal search of his car. At the time, police said the FBI had identified Roeder as a member of the anti-government Freemen group, an organization that kept the FBI at bay in Jordan, Mont., for almost three months in 1995-96. Authorities on Sunday night would not immediately confirm if their suspect was the same man. Morris Wilson, a commander of the Kansas Unorganized Citizens Militia in the mid-1990s, told The Kansas City Star he knew Roeder fairly well. "I'd say he's a good ol' boy, except he was just so fanatic about abortion," Wilson said. "He was always talking about how awful abortion was. But there's a lot of people who think abortion is awful." The slaying quickly brought condemnation from both anti-abortion and pro-choice groups, as well as President Barack Obama. "However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as abortion, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence," Obama said in a statement. Wichita Deputy Police Chief Tom Stolz said that Tiller apparently did not have a bodyguard with him in church, although the doctor was routinely accompanied by one. An attorney for Tiller, Dan Monnat, said the doctor's wife, Jeanne, was in the choir at the time of the shooting. Monnat said in early May that Tiller had asked federal prosecutors to step up investigations of vandalism and other threats against the clinic out of fear that the incidents were increasing and that Tiller's safety was in jeopardy. However, Stolz said authorities knew of no threats connected to the shooting. Adam Watkins, a 20-year-old who said he has attended the church his entire life, said he was sitting in the middle of the congregation when he heard a small pop at the start of the service. "We just thought a child had come in with a balloon and it had popped, had gone up and hit the ceiling and popped," Watkins said. Church members said anti-abortion protesters have shown up outside the church on Sundays regularly. "They've been out here for quite a few years. We've just become accustomed to it. Just like an everyday thing, you just looked over and see them and say, 'Yup they're back again.'" The last killing of an abortion doctor was in October 1998 when Dr. Barnett Slepian was fatally shot in his home in a suburb of Buffalo, N.Y. A militant abortion opponent was convicted of the murder. One of Tiller's lawyers and friends, Dan Monnat, told ABC's "Good Morning America" that Tiller had been supported by his wife and children in his decision to continue providing abortion services. "If Dr Tiller is not going to service a woman's right to chose, who will do it?" Monnat said. "Many of those have been terrorized and run off by protesters," he said about other abortion providers. ___ Associated Press writer John Hanna contributed to this report. What anti-choice people must come to grips with is that no matter how many doctors they kill, or how many potests they make, or how many women they threaten by their very presence, doctors will understand the need for them under certain circumstances and will help those women in need. The killer in this case certainly deserves to die if anyone ever did - he marched himself into a church and killed a good Christian doctor. But I hope that instead, he is made an example of how many in the anti-choice movement think and what they believe is an acceptible remedy to a law they disagree with. We need to keep these people away from mainstream Americans, separate them from reasonable people, putting them in jails or whatever is needed to keep the public safe. This man's insane paradoxical thinking is like any assassin's or terrorist's. This man is no better than the men who brought down the World Trade Center, and he calls himself an American and probably calls himself a Christian and hides his hate behind a philosophy of anti-abortion, but he is sadly revealed to be nothing more than a common terrorist/murderer. Perhaps we really do need to keep Guantanamo prison open and throw the likes of this dude in with the rest of the so-called terrorists.
-
who supports right to choose
patty: "ALL humans are born sinners. That's what that means. When I say a baby is innocent, I mean he didn't do anything deserving of death. He's innocent of any crime. Not that he will never be a sinner in his life. We're all sinners. That's like a person who gets convicted of a crime and gets the death penalty. He's deserving of death. He did something wrong. (he's also a sinner) But a baby (even though he is born a sinner also) didn't do anything wrong , yet he gets killed." Logically that makes no sense. How can a clump of fetal matter commit sin? patty: "After thinking about it, I believe a "murderer" is someone who had an evil intent to get rid of another persons life. I think that 'most' pregnant women are not guilty of evil intent. I think they just don't contemplate that another human beings life is ending when they make that decision to abort. They are probably thinking about what they will endure if they continue with the pregnancy and don't think about the baby, because the baby isn't in the eyes view. So, they may not have the "intent" to murder, but that's what the end result of their decision was. A dead person." In many cases, the baby is exactly what the woman is thinking about when she makes her decisions. Yes, she must consider the impact it will have on her life if she chooses to have a child, but most women are also thinking about what the consequences will be for a child that may possibly be handicapped or malformed in some way, or even just because of the dim future it is promised because it is so unwanted. The end result of an early abortion isn't the "murder" of a person, it is the termination of a possibly developing fertilized egg. I emphasize possibly because there are no guarantees with any pregnancy. If you believe that taking another's life is murder, then don't you believe that those persons in the government who are charged with pulling the switch on a convicted killer, should be called murderers? When we condemn a person to death we do it as retribution for a person's crime. But we are not always absolutely certain that a mistake wasn't made in the process of his conviction. Yet even though those mistakes are made, our government still continues to put people to death. How can you approve of that process - when the convicted person could be innocent - and disapprove of the abortion process where you say that the baby is innocent?
-
who supports right to choose
You've made some excellent points rodriguez. How can an unborn baby be innocent and yet a sinner? It is one of the puzzlements of certain religious orders who believe that a baby who hasn't been christened is destined for hell because the act of christening washes away the sin they are born with. They don't use those words to explain it, of course.
-
who supports right to choose
patty, I'm afraid I don't understand your question: What's his name? I thought you knew all about HIM and that you certainly shouldn't need me to post HIS various monikers. Whether I believe in God or I believe in the rocks, the trees, the sky, the sun and the moon is quite beside the point here. It isn't important for me to publicize my spiritual beliefs, especially to one who is so judgemental, one who is so positive that she has the only real truth to the meaning of life. I will tell you only those things about myself that I want you to know. I only tell as much as I want to in order to make my points. For you to decide that anything I've said is proof of whether I believe in God or not, just shows me how very single-minded and shut off from some very good people you are. And the reason you are shut off from some very good people is because you close the door right in their faces. You are continually working with very limited information because you choose to work that way. If you truly cared about people, you would open your mind, listen to the dialogue, digest its' meaning, ask for clarafication if you do not fully understand, and respond with kind words. You do not work that way. I'm not guessing here. I'm observing.
-
Should prostitution be legal?
Lydia: "If it were flat out legal (as opposed to decriminalized for those selling it (not pimps, btw)), that coupled with the dehumanizing attitude held towards sex workers, would only increase the apathy towards them, and do little to decrease the hostility focused on them (and amazingly enough, not the men whose demand creates the damn problem)." Do you believe that this is true for those who work in the industry where it has been legalized? From everything I've read or seen in documentaries, hostility doesn't seem to be prevalent toward the prostitutes where it is a legal profession. The dehumanizing attitude isn't at all the same as it is where prostitution is illegal. The only times the police would even come in contact with a prostitute are when an officer would avail him/herself of those services, or when the prostitute broke some other law. I understand why the sex workers themselves would believe that decriminalization is the first step toward making it legal, and that may be true. But decriminalizing it doesn't at all solve the problems that are currently in play where it is absolutely illegal. All decriminalization accomplishes is that they would not be routinely harrassed by the police and they would not have to go through the humility of being arrested on a regular basis. And they will certainly still be treated with distain and hostility. Only if it is legalized and controlled under a specific set of rules and guidelines will the attitudes toward prostitutes become less apathetic and more accepting as well as there being less hostility toward the sex workers in general. And a very important factor in legalizing prostitution is what I said earlier, that it would create a far safer environment for both the sex workers and the general public.
-
who supports right to choose
rodriguez, you have been a trooper. I have been very impressed with your posts and anytime you want to speak with me, about anything, I will be here for you. PM me if you like.