Of Abortion and Women

Just imagine that those cuffs are made of coat-hangers and fear

 I have recently come to the assertion that one of the key aspects of fundamental Christian behavior (and often all patriarchal religions in general) is an inherent dislike for females; so much so that it has become a cultural facet of Christina life. Women are not to be trusted, or given power, especially over their own bodies. This belief is taken to the extreme in fundamental Islam, but that's another post. Women in Christian societies are not equal citizens, as indicated by their position in that society, and can be easily illustrated in American society. Women still earn only about 82% (granted, it's a significant increase from what it used to be, but only because of legislation) of what men do, and often because they are relegated to low-paying jobs in the service industry. This is well-known and has been discussed for decades, and is getting better. However, there are still several strong indicators for the supposed inferiority of women in our (mostly) Christian American culture.

The big one is the recent spate of legislation concerning the reproductive rights of females. Despite the complete lack of anything in the Bible regarding the immorality of abortion (though apologist do work hard at nit-picking verses to show that God theoretically disproves of abortions), Christians have gone to great lengths to make it as difficult as possible for women to control their pregnancies, even through rape. Some of these laws require invasive (and unnecessary)  procedures before an abortion will even be considered, and even banning before a women might even know she's pregnant. Not only is this a ridiculous and unconstitutional invasion of a woman's vagina rights, it's it's hypocritical and a huge double standard.
The Bible DOES specifically look down on men "wasting their seed" either through pulling-out or masturbation, but when is the last time you heard of a law that bans or restricts either one of those activities in America? Of course there have been things said about masturbation over the years, and a few sickening contraptions aimed to keep the penis at bay, but much of that thinking went away with the Victorian era. Men have been freed to do with their sexual organs as they please, as long as it's with a woman and she (mostly) consents, and no one can say anything as long as no one sees you. My Penis, My Decision.

The Christian capacity for denying women rights is not constricted to Catholicism and Evangelicalism, I see plenty of it right here in Utah, the center of Mormonism and the Mormon population. At BYU, women are constantly shamed, confronted, and turned in to the Honor Code office for dressing inappropriately, i.e. creating the potential for enthralling the male imagination. This is blatant sexual harassment. I have read and heard countless complaints from people who have seen or women who have been treated like scum for filling out a pair of pants a little too well, or wearing a skirt so disturbingly high that it reveals that salacious "dark hollow" at the--back of the knee. I suppose that these things are bound to happen when you put 30,000 sexually repressed students on the same campus, no matter their level of religious commitment. But the problems are much worse than simple sexual harassment. Rape has been a notorious problem near and on the campus, a problem that is often quietly swept under the rug; Honor Code violations are routinely ignored for male athletes unless it is made public, and women are generally treated as second-class citizens within the church structure as a whole. The wearing pants by women in church has caused scandal enough, but if you start talking about women having the priesthood, the rhetoric gets prickly.
The position of women in the LDS religion is somewhere below men and somewhere above eternal brood mare, granted that woman actually gets into A #1 heaven, the only place you can still be married and have eternal life with your husband--and all his other wives, while he can go off and make planets for you to populate with his other wives' children. Sounds like a good deal to me, but I'm male. Being male in the Mormon church means wielding the power and authority of the priesthood, the control of the organization, and eternal polygamy. Being a woman in the church means getting the right to marry a man in the church and have his children. Yippee.

Now, I wouldn't consider myself a women's-rights activist, but I do believe that a lot of lines have been crossed by the Christian philosophy concerning a woman's body. It seems to me that via the Christian world view, a woman's body is not their own, but rather an object or device for creating children to further God's glory, especially if that woman is poor, ethnic, or conservative. It appears that anything regarding sex is int he hands of a group of old white men and a couple bitter old biddies that don't want people to enjoy the freedom of sexuality, it's expression or ramifications. This is utterly wrong in every way I can imagine, and will eventually cause social stagnation or upheaval. Women need to be treated as equal citizens, and I don't care how much these pasty old misogynists don't like it.
 As for my own views on the subject of abortion: I do not advocate taking lightly such a difficult decision; however, it is not my body, therefore not my decision to make. It's that simple to me.

You're tearing me apart, love!

In lieu of a better title, I'm choosing this altered quote from an infamously bad movie, not just because it's funny, but I'll probably get more hits that way. Sorry for the subterfuge.

So I've been considering what have been the biggest problems facing the social fabric of our wonderful country for as long as I have politically interested in it (about ten years, give or take), and I have come to some sort of conclusion. It isn't the evolution of the modern family, changing (and defying) gender roles, or the acceptance of lifestyles other than that of white republicans that are tearing apart this country. Amazingly, it's the opposite. Attempts at institutionalized discrimination, hatred, fear, are what have been pulling at the frayed seams. Two consenting (see: over 18 and of sound mind) adults of the same gender loving each other hardly merit the downfall of Western civilization, neither do kids growing up in the home of said consenting adults.
The backlash and vitriol concerning the conservative stranglehold on  morality, disguised as a fight for "traditional values," has only increased in tempo and volume recently; this is due, in my opinion anyway, to the decreasing appeal of the Republican party in general. The newest attack on living an alternative lifestyle, which apparently is going to rend this country apart, is the reversal of gender roles in the home. Working mothers, stay-at-home dads, and even (gasp!) single parent households are further destroying the conservative notion of the "traditional" family. As if marriage equality wasn't bad enough, these shuttered-minded pundits declare that no good comes from women bringing home the majority (or all) of the bacon. Fox's own Megyn Kelly had a few things to say about her colleagues comments.
Not all the news about our social welfare (in the sense that it concerns us as a society) has been negative. A few more states have gone the way of more inclusive equality standards, Rhode Island, Delaware and Minnesota have all passed successful legislation, and Illinois is close. In my own discriminatory state, I attended the very popular Pride Festival, and saw no outward forms of protest all weekend (not that they didn't exist, they just weren't noticeable). On the radio, I've been hearing Macklemore's marriage equality ballad "Same Love" quite regularly.
No matter how much hate and fear is spread on the internet, I believe that equality (in marriage, anyway) will win out, as it is supported by love. All I can think about when I hear the tired arguments about how gay marriage will destroy straight "traditional" marriage, is that they are the same arguments used to support slavery, segregation, and miscegenation. Not to mention keeping down women, other races, religions, etc. Hate just doesn't work in bringing people together forever.

Sister Wives (Not the TV Show)

A friend of ours, more a friend of my significant other, has a certain personality that invites contention wherever she may be. Nothing is safe from her scorn, ridicule, or excoriating sermons. She never seems to tire of having something to complain about, someone to be angry with, or a cause to support, especially if it is controversial. And what is worse than this, is that she often fishes for arguments, dropping little lures of layered meaning into conversation just to snag the unsuspecting. Most of our circle of friends are aware of this habit, and generally avoid it. Sometimes this may not be enough, and she will explode on some topic, usually mundane or of no interest to her, and verbally destroy a conversation. She exhibits what I see as a childish denial of others to have a differing opinion: you either agree with her, or you're wrong. Usually to the tune of something like, "NO, you f*cking idiot."

No matter how much we try to support her causes, it is never quite enough. She has a stable of high-horses that include: circumcision (wrong), public breast-feeding (right), body-image (it's easy to say fat is beautiful when you're less than ninety pounds), and her favorite--the prominence of rape culture. So I have recently been tempted to fall victim to her preying, as I have taken issue with a new term she has been using. Set-up: she has a group of mother friends, some form of support-group or whatever. She occasionally references these women, with some phrase like "from my mommie-activist group." Admittedly long, it is, however, accurate. But her new term of endearment, as can be guessed, is: "sister wives." I understand the implication of such a term, the sisterhood aspect of motherhood, and take no issue with that.

But--and it's a big but--there is a very specific connotation connected to the term "sister wives" that directly contradict her other prominent beliefs. "Sister wives" is the term women living within polygynous relationships use to refer to each other. Polygamy, as it exists in our Utah culture, has a long and storied history of benefiting the male gender, supporting a patriarchal hierarchy that promotes and sustains rape culture, the very thing she despises with so much vehemency. Invoking a term used under such communal knowledge is bound to cause questions, which is exactly what she wants. But her use of this term offends even me, as she seems completely unopposed to trivializing a term that is thick with so much pain and humiliation for women. This is a culture that considers a teenager being raped by a much older, often senior, man to be marriage. Women have no choice in these kinds of polygamous marriages, and have few rights in the household, if any.

I must not be the only person that feels this way, disgusted by her use of terminology that directly contradicts her own beliefs, in what seems an intentional manner. I don't even know what else to say.

Too Many Puppies

See their demon eyes?

Sing to the tune of "Winnie the Pooh"

Rolling in poo,
Playing in poo,
Scruffy little puppies all covered in filth.
They're sleeping in poo,
Eating near poo,
And really really need to go.

Do you know what puppies smell like? Cthulhu's balls. No matter how adorable they are, they reek, they're messy, and no one wants to take care of them. This is the part of owning a puppy that many people forget when they see those fluffy little pups. They're horrible. However, this isn't their fault. Not the mother of the puppies either. Because an ignorant, careless dog owner never got his female dog fixed, she had a litter of nine puppies. Nine. NINE. And they're all in my house, so they didn't die in an animal shelter. This was her third litter of unwanted puppies, and the mother of the owner had had enough, and wanted her and the puppies gone. So we saved them, and now my house smells like puppy filth, no matter how much or often we clean.

For the sake of whatever God you do or do not believe in, please get your pets fixed, so I don't ever have to live with the smell of puppies again. Ever. Nine puppies!!

World of Unemployment: Part II

About three years ago exactly, I was laid off from my job of five years, during the worst of the recession here in Utah. Despite what seems to be a recovering economy, coupled with the massive expenditure of money in this state in the past three years on infrastructure and construction, especially in the Provo area, growth is still sluggish in many areas. There are two foreclosed houses in my neighborhood, and another three for sale--destroying any chance of selling our own in the near future. And what's worse, for the second time in three years, I have been laid off from my job in what is normally a predictable, cyclical industry.
This is probably the worst possible time for me to lose my job, not that there is a 'good' time for that to happen. I'm on the very cusp of finally graduating with my BS in English, down to a few weeks of final papers, assignments, readings, etc. I have day classes, which my employer had thankfully worked around, allowing me to come and go as necessary to attend class. Any possible new employer would likely take a look at my class schedule and balk at hiring someone we needs to leave constantly. Unemployment compensation will barely cover the bills, now that I have a mortgage and the impending end of my student loan deferment. My options are few; I either wait it out for a few weeks while I finish school, hoping that I start getting my unemployment, or find some kind of temporary employment situation that can work around my schedule, and might pay my bills. Another anxiety-intensifying aspect is the probability of jumping into the world that I have educating myself for, far sooner than I expected. I had planned on transitioning into a new line of work during the slow summer months, a more gradual and effective method for me. Being laid off again may force my hand, and I'll have to drop all my cards on the table now, without even an official degree on my wall and nothing to fall back on. The idea is a little frightening, to be honest. But, I'm an American; I'm expected to pick myself up and move on, and find gratifying, lifestyle-supporting work in one of the trickiest job markets in history. God Bless America.

P.S. The bright side, of course, is that I'll have much more time to blog--so there's that.