This country would be a whole lot better off if people bought into the concept of individual accountability. Somewhere along the line, we’ve become a nation that blames things for the actions of the people using them, instead of blaming the people for their actions.
Before we get started, I want to admit that I have a bias. I think that rape is a horrendous crime and should carry the same penalty as murder. I don’t know why I feel this so strongly. As far as I know I don’t know anyone who has been raped. I just consider rape to be just about the worst thing you can do to a woman. It’s a close second to murder.
Now, before we get back to what I just interrupted, I want to mention something. I’m going to use the terms “woman” and “her” when talking about people being raped or having an abortion. Because most victims of rape, and EVERYONE having an abortion are women. I’m also going to use “man” and “him” when talking about the rapist or insemination, because most rapists are men and ONLY a man can impregnate a woman.
So, if you’re looking for any woke they/them-a-man-can-get-pregnant bullshit, look somewhere else.
I don’t believe that a woman should be forced to deliver a child that is the result of a rape. For some women, that would essentially be a life-long punishment for being a victim in the first place. I do believe that if a woman becomes pregnant during a rape, she should have the option of terminating the pregnancy. And she should have the option of taking a gun and putting a bullet in the back of the head of the man that raped her.
But this isn’t about that.
This is about two of the most divisive issues facing our country today. I’m talking about abortion and gun control. Sure, there are other issues we should be keeping our eyes on, but nearly everyone has a very strong opinion about these two.
This is about how the approach taken by proponents of both issues is essentially the same. And each one blames the other for using it.
If someone shoots a bunch of people, the Left will say that the problem is that there are too many guns. So, they do whatever they can to reduce the number of guns available. They’ll even go so far as to go after the companies and people selling guns.
But the problem isn’t that it’s too easy to get a gun. The problem is that there are too many people using guns in a bad way.
On the other hand, if someone has an abortion, the Right will say that the problem is that there are too many abortion clinics. So, they do whatever they can to reduce the number of places to get an abortion. They’ll even to so far as to go after the individual doctors selling abortions.
But the problem isn’t that it’s too easy to get an abortion. The problem is that there are too many people having abortions.
Proponents of both causes use the same tactics to bring about the change they want to see. There is no difference between saying that under no circumstances may a pregnancy be terminated and saying that there are no circumstances when the use of a gun is a viable alternative.
Both causes are taking issue with a decision being made by an individual, so both causes work to remove the ability for an individual to make that decision. Each cause bitches at the other cause for doing the exact same thing they’re doing.
I want to say that there are several scenarios where I have no problem with someone terminating a pregnancy. And, whether they’ll admit it or not, there are a lot of people “against” abortion who agree with me. When a rape is involved is one. When the mother’s life is at risk is another. The third is if the child would be born with a defect that would give it a poor quality of life. Where I do have an issue is when people use abortion as their primary form of birth control or simply because having a baby would be an inconvenience.
And that brings me back to personal accountability. If people were making better decisions, both problems would go away. So, why not just hold the person accountable for doing the thing you don’t want them to do?
I’ve said this before, we don’t need to ban guns, we need better people. The same thing applies to abortion. We don’t need to ban abortions, we need better people.
Now at this point, I will use “they/them”, but I will use it to correctly refer to more than one person. Because unless basic biology has changed recently, it still takes both a woman and a man to conceive.
Outside of the aforementioned rape scenario, the woman and the man are both responsible for the pregnancy. And if the pregnancy is unwanted, both are equally to blame. So, when I say, “better people”, I’m talking about both men and women. Because if either one of them had made better decisions, the pregnancy would never have happened.
With that said, let’s take a look at some more similarities between guns and abortions.
- People should be able to use both guns and abortions for self-defense. If someone threatens your life, you should be able to defend yourself. Similarly, if the mother’s life is in danger, she should have the choice to save her own life.
- One of the basic rules of gun safety is this: Do NOT point the gun at anything you’re not willing to destroy. There should be a similar rule that goes like this: Don’t put your dick into someone you’re not willing to impregnate.
- Accidental shootings are 100% preventable. Just like “accidental” pregnancies. The lame excuse of “I was cleaning it and it just went off” doesn’t work for either.
- If we’re going to have “red flag” laws to head off gun violence, then shouldn’t we have something similar for abortions? We could call it a “scarlet flag” law. It would apply to anyone who has shown a propensity for using abortion as their primary form of birth control. And yes, that would apply to both men and women.
- There is no consensus on when a fetus is considered a child, just like there is no consensus on when a gun is considered an “assault weapon”.
Those are just a few of the many similarities between the two issues. But allow me to point out one big difference.
Gun violence is only one type of violence. There are nearly an infinite number of ways someone could kill me. If someone clubs me to death instead of using a gun, I’m still the same amount of dead. Focusing solely on gun violence is like saying that Black Lives Matter when you really mean only Some Black Lives Matter.
My personal decisions have little to do with my personal safety. It’s the actions of someone else that determines if I’m a victim of violence. So, to ensure my safety, the behavior of everyone else on the planet would have to change. Everyone would have to be better.
But there is only one way a woman can get pregnant. Everyone has the power to completely mitigate the risk that they might give birth. The decision is entirely in your hands. If you want to eliminate the chance of pregnancy, all you have to do is not do the ONE thing that causes it. The only person who has to be better is you.
“Reproductive rights” are the rights of individuals to decide whether to reproduce. Unless it falls under the heading of “pursuit of happiness”, there is no “right” to have sex. It’s a choice. No one is taking away anyone’s reproductive rights. And, other than a scenario where rape is involved, no one CAN take away anyone’s ability to decide whether to reproduce. There aren’t many absolutes in this world and there are even fewer certainties. But I can tell you with absolute certainty that if you don’t have sex, you won’t get pregnant.
It really is that simple.
If you want to argue that easy access to guns is responsible for gun violence, then you also must admit that doctors and clinics are responsible for people having abortions.
But neither is true.
Gun violence isn’t caused by having too many guns. And abortions aren’t caused by having too many abortion clinics. Both are caused by people making bad decisions.
Readily accessible abortions merely make it easy for people to avoid the consequences of bad decisions they’ve already made. So, they make the same bad decision next time. And there’s always a next time.
Couples shouldn’t be deciding whether to deliver a baby, they should be deciding whether or not to conceive in the first place. The time to realize you can’t afford, or don’t want, a child is before you’ve started creating one. Making it more difficult to have an abortion simply moves the couple’s decision of whether or not to risk having a baby to where it should be. Earlier in the process. Before anyone cares what they decide.
Which, hopefully, will force them to become better people.
