Don't bother reading this unless you are going to read the ENTIRE post.
I am pro life. I'm anti abortion with all the sad, but necessary, exceptions: rape, incest, when the pregnancy endangers the life of the mother, or when the baby so morbidly deformed it would only know a life of endless physical pain if born. Yeah, it happens. More than you think.
If one makes the decision to have sex, the natural consequence is pregnancy. If one makes the decision to have sex and responsibly uses the best birth control available, pregnancy is still a risk. Compare it to driving a car. I know, there are HUGE differences, but stay with me here. The only way emotional issues are ever intelligently debated/discussed is with logic.
When you turned sixteen, after months of supervised instruction, you probably went to the Department of Motor Vehicles. You took an eye exam, a driving test and completed a written exam. At that point, the State deemed you intelligent and competent to get behind the wheel of a multi-ton vehicle capable of high speeds. Driving is the most dangerous activity most of us ever engage in. Society trusts you to make good decisions in an inherently dangerous situation daily.
So, lets say you are driving home one very dark night on an isolated road. You have both hands on the wheel. You haven't had a single alcoholic beverage. You are not speeding. You are not sleepy. You are not talking on a freaking cell phone. You are not distracted by turning the dial on your radio, picking your nose, scratching your butt, or even sipping a latte. You are the Felix Unger of safe driving.
A pedestrian steps into the path of your car. Some air head jogger, complete with a MP3 player blaring rap music in her ears, wearing all black, who didn't bother to look both ways before crossing the street. You couldn't see her. You couldn't stop in time. You collide right into her.
The jogger, bleeding heavily, likely mortally wounded and in great pain, moans for help. You are scared. You might be charged with vehicular homicide. Involuntary manslaughter. You weren't doing anything wrong, but hell, you know lawyers now days. You could go to prison and the jogger's family could sue you in civil court. You could lose absolutely everything. Again, you did nothing wrong. In fact, you did everything right. You took every precaution. You're a good person.
Do you have to stop and give aid?
Yes. Of course. Such an accident is a daily risk of driving. Despite the best intentions and precautions, such tragedies happen. As a society, we trust you to manage the risk and behave humanely should such a horrific event occur. Society and the State trusted you with a license and a car, you should trust us (society and the State) to sort it all out. You have to trust the police to measure the skid marks correctly. You have to trust the District Attorney not to charge or prosecute. You have to trust the Judge to throw out a frivolous law suit.
Because driving carries such enormous risks, it is limited to those people who theoretically have the maturity and education to behave appropriately.*
Too bad we can't license sex.
*Yes. I know. There are a lot of idiots on the road.
If your mind is too open, your brain will fall out. Warning: Names, identities, descriptions, and pictures have been changed and/or used to protect the innocent as well as the guilty. PollyPeoria should not be used or quoted as a source for your senior college thesis.
Saturday, September 24
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12 comments:
what an inane comparison! there is no biological imperative to drive a car. there is one to reproduce. birth control methods don't change that. take a biology course.
I always love how lippy people get when they post anonomously, don't you?
My first thought was, how cool would those simulators be? Every teenage boy's dream come true. Then I remembered I have a daughter who'll be driving in a couple of years. My smile faded...
Lippy indeed! I have had biology, anon, as a responsible person I studied and did well in the course, thank you. I also choose to be responsible when having sex and driving a car. Take an ethics course.
Besides, ask any teenager. There IS a biological need to drive.
Okay, I was lippy. Sorry and you're right. My statement about taking a bio course was uncalled for. (You know, I've noticed that local bloggers are WAY more sensitive about the comments they receive than the big time bloggers. I was banned from commenting on a prominent local blog for really nothing more than disagreeing with the blogger. Please, Polly, grow some thick skin if you want your blog to grow.)
So, you weren't being entirely serious about licensing sex. It would be impossible, of course, but perfectly in line with the views of the Taliban wing of the republican party. Please, God, save us from the Taliban wing of the republican party! I still think your comparison of driving and sex is comparing watermelons with grapes. Humans engage in a lot of dangerous activities. Do republicans like you think we should regulate all of them? Just askin'...
(yes, I am the same Anonymous as above -- Anon)
Oh, Anon, my feelings weren't hurt. You can be lippy on my blog anytime! The crunchier the comments left, the more I enjoy them.
The Taliban wing of the Republican Party? Haven't met that contingent yet. Do they have anything to do with the Log Cabin Republicans?
Really, being Republican doesn't have much to do with the issue, other than Supreme Court picks (the only good thing to come out of the Bush Administration thus far, IMHO).
It's knowing right and wrong. It's behaving as an adult, after engaging in an act that should be limited to adults. Is requiring people to take responsibilty for their actions Talibanesque?
You can whine "biology" all you like, but the truth of the matter is - sex is never an emergency. No one has died due to celibacy. Although there are more than a few teenage boys who don't believe that. (See PeoriaDad)
I'm all for this idea IF one could purchase the rights to someone else for sex. For example, let's say that I had a license for sex (a scary thought, I admit), and I wanted to have sex with, say, PollyPeoria. Well, she obviously would refuse to do that with me, BUT if I could purchase her rights for, say, $1,000.00, of which she would get 1/2 and the state would get the other 1/2, then think about how quickly money would change hands in Illinois, and how quickly Illinois would be in the black.
Okay, I understand that Polly might charge a good deal more than $1,000.00 (and she might very well be worth it), but there would need to be a cap. Say, about $10,000.00. And, in order to HAVE a license, one would have to be willing to partake in this scenario. Okay, maybe you could have 10 "nays" for the year. But, after your 10 are used up, you'd have to give in and partake in the sex act with the requester.
People would have to submit to sexual disease testing routinely, and immediately prior to the sexual act occurring. Everyone's activities would have to be documented. The only deterrent is if you are married or engaged, and the state would have to monitor that to make certain that it's true and real. So, the divorce rate would likely grind to a halt. Or, maybe not. Perhaps divorces would increase if one had the opportunity to have sex with anyone they wanted. Obviously, homosexual sex could only be between those two or more willing to engage in it.
If such a scenario can occur, I am all for licensing sex. I am also in favor of locating the Messmore girl who was once married to Mark Grace, and bringing her back into Illinois. Thank You.
Prego Man, you are one sick ticket. Love, Polly
Sex Licenses already exist in at least one state...
Doesn't the law require that we overcome our biological drives all the time? Those laws are essential for civilization to be, well, civilized. If you go home tonight and find your spouse/love of your life having a roll in the hay with someone else your biological drive (anger) may tell you to get a gun and start shooting. The law says, "better not, or you'll be sorry." You're really late for work and biological drives want you to drive a 100 mph and run slow morons off the road. The law says, "don' think about it, there will consequences." Your hubby leaves you for that someone else, your biology leaves you very depressed, wanting to stay in bed all day and let the kids forage for themselves. The law says, "Get off your ass or we'll take your kids."
Using Anonymous' logic, biology would be a good defense for rape. "I had to your Honor, my biological drive made me do it."
Load 'o malarcky, that.
We're in the age of the alibi, when it's everybody's fault but mine.
Flip Wilson said the "Devil made him do it." But today, we've got all kinds of handy culprits. Drunk drivers blame the "disease" of addiction. Child molesters blame violent parents or pornography. City councilmen blame "just giving somebody a ride." (Okay, I was kidding on that last one.)
Anyway, it's an epidemic. But teenage boys have been blaming biology in order to guilt their girlfriends into going all the way for decades...maybe even forever.
Eventually, though, most of them grow out of it.
When I spoke to a high school class in 2000, the boys were more in favor of abortion than the girls.
Figures.
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