Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Pregnancy as a punishment for sex?

One argument against prolifers which always seems to mystify me is the assertion that prolifers think women should be punished for having out-of-wedlock sex and that this punishment is staying pregnant and/or rearing children. Examples here, here, here and here.

While I'm guessing there are some individuals who think women should be punished for having out-of-wedlock intercourse and that pregnancy and childrearing should be the "punishment" for this action, I can't imagine a sizeable percentage of prolife people feel this way. Yet I see this charge leveled time and again, usually by pro-choicers who are very adamant about their position and who like to take digs at prolifers.

But I think this assertion shows how badly informed some pro-choicers are about prolifers and their motives. Here's why:

Prolife people, at least for the most part, don't view pregnancy/childrearing as a punishment. Quite the contrary, they often view pregnancy/childrearing as a blessing. While prolifers understand that experiencing an unplanned pregnancy isn't a walk in the park, they'd probably point to the joys of raising children before telling a woman "this is what she deserves" as if bearing children was God's judgement upon here.

So why does it seem like I hear this argument over and over again? Do some pro-choicers really see all or at least the majority or a high percentage of prolifers as people who want to punish women for having sex?

Is it easier to see prolifers as evil sadists who want to punish sexually active women as opposed to seeing prolifers as people who are truly concerned about both the woman and the child?

If we want to punish women for having sex then why is it that prolifers are the ones who work to provide free services and assistance to women in unplanned pregnancies who don't have abortions? Is giving women baby clothes, car seats, strollers, etc., etc., and helping them find medical care another way to punish them?

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