It was addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Garret Marotta. Taking a leap of faith, I grabbed it, not very worried that Garret will miss this particular piece of mail. Sure enough, the politicos are at it again, this letter being such a delightful example of outrageous schemes, transparent maneuvering, and heartless idiocy. And of course to get the facts, I went to Wikipedia to look up The Global Gag Rule, which is the specific policy under debate here. According to our folks at Population Connection, the policy is under advisement, and the Reds are going to reinstate it. The Blues are rallying around Free Choice and Women's Rights. But what exactly IS the Global Gag Rule?
The first Gag Rule in the US government prevented all the legislators from discussing anti-slavery bills. That was in 1830, about 35 years before slavery was finally abolished. What motivated that gag rule? People who couldn't afford to lose money in the stocks and bonds that depended on slave trade. By then it was more of an issue in US holdings overseas, enormous plantations that provided billions of dollars in revenue every year. So the gag rule was imposed by the people who didn't want to lose their steady income or to look at where it came from.
The Global Gag Rule is different. It prevents foreign-based, US-subsidized clinics and doctors from giving out information about abortions. My correspondent from Population Connection, the one with the low-tech font and the slightly hysterical tone, oversteps the facts by suggesting that all access to birth control will be revoked by the Reds. Our petitioner pleads with us to sign this petition and send it to our representatives to vote against the reinstatement of the Global Gag Rule and ensure that "birth control" will be not be outlawed.
The last time I worried about access to birth control as a legal issue was back in the 1970s. Surely, the right had been won long ago? As I suspected, our faithful correspondent was exaggerating.
Wikipedia tells me that the Global Gag Rule was thought up by the Reagan administration! Seems the co-star of Bedtime for Bonzo had the brilliant idea of winning friends in the Red team even though he was AN ACTOR, and he was from CALIFORNIA! (I wondered how he managed
to win that election.) The eye-catching issue of "abortion" had a law, and a name. Later, when Bill Clinton rescinded it, it became the Red's rallying point. It contains volatile words like "abortion" and "government-funded." It is easy to pronounce. The Global Gag Rule was reinstated by GW Bush. Rescinded by Obama. Get the picture?
A political football that has all the deadly potential of an armed warhead. And this one is a ticking time bomb. The issues that are represented and implied in the Global Gag Rule are far-reaching -- far into the future.
When we campaigned for legal access to contraception and abortion in the 70s, my friends and I were facing life decisions. My decision to go to college met with my parents' approval. My decision to take "The Pill" however, was considered a Sin. I had to make the awful decision that so disappointed my parents. Some of my classmates made other choices. But we had choices. I graduated college and had a professional career before I married. I had a child when I was ready to give her everything I thought a child should have. Meanwhile, I was a productive employee at a good American company.
My difficult choice allowed me to have a full, loving relationship with my husband, while building up our assets so we could give our daughter the best education we could provide. Isn't that what every parent wants for their children?
I weep for the single mother who works two jobs, whose children do not get all the education they need, and who has never really had a chance to plan her life. This is the norm for most of the women in the world today. Without that small sense of control, a woman becomes a doormat, the father is reduced to a bacon-bringer, and the dreams of the children wither and die.
No, children need sunlight and room to grow. They need to learn something they love and to do it, learn from masters, travel, take risks, fail and succeed. Each child deserves the support and recognition of their family, their needs and interests noted, their attempts appreciated, no matter the results.
Girls in particular, have more choices than boys. Boys cannot have children. A girl of fourteen who feels lonely can have a child. Children that age are married in some cultures, sponsored and nurtured by their families. But the system can be cruel. The girl can be cast out, blamed, shamed, even physically marked. Yet, many girls make this decision.
Let all men and women everywhere remember:
- Strong women make strong children.
- Educated women make smart children.
- Confident women make confident children.
Do you want the children of tomorrow to be strong, smart, and confident? The answer is to put the choice for childbirth into the hands of the women making that choice. The political football that is The Global Gag Rule has long-term, moral implications. It is not about abortions. It is not about government funding. It is about our interest in the future of mankind.
I have no doubt that the percentage of women who understand and make these life choices is increasing with each generation. The political football that is called "The Global Gag Rule" is losing air already.
The strange old-fashioned letter from Population Connection is going into the recycling bin, but, as my grandmother used to say "A Word to the Wise is Sufficient."
