A few weeks ago, I posted a story about nearly losing my bird Ollie. It turns out that in response to the post, I received the following comment:
Screaming in horror with a tear streaked face over a bird - from a guy who wants to be a doctor who will rip, pull, tear and cut little children out of their mother's [sic] wombs. Is there any disconnect here, folks? Not in his mind. Don't bother posting this one Niki.
-- Anonymous
…I say “it turns out” because for some reason, the e-mail notification that I had received a comment went directly into my junk mail folder and I only recently discovered it. So firstly, I hope anonymous will accept my apologies – not posting the comment was an act not of censorship but of oversight. Secondly, I encourage comments from all my readers, including those who believe me to be heartless and misguided. However, the anonymous posting option is intended for those not wanting to register with blogger.com – not those too cowardly to identify authorship. I hope you will consider introducing yourself next time.
Of course, I am well aware that the comment was never meant for disclosure or to spur debate but rather as an emotional slap at someone you must perceive to be horribly misguided. However, all dialogue, even when initiated by petty insults, can be educational. So, I hope you will allow me to paraphrase what I think you meant to say in, shall we say, a slightly more eloquent way – and then respond.
I am guessing you find it unbelievable that someone who would approve of aborting a pregnancy could be anything but a heartless shell of a person capable of loving anything, much less a 50g bird. However, I am guessing you are also aware of the fact that I and others like me do not consider abortion to be homicide. Now, we could discuss this central issue for days and never change each others’ opinions, but rather than waste time and energy, let’s use this as an opportunity to discuss something on which we agree – namely that a world in which abortions are never desired or performed would be ideal.
Given that you know I am applying to medical school and that you know enough information about me to find my blog, I am assuming you are a prayer warrior from the Houston Coalition for Life. Believe it or not, although I am not religious in any form or fashion, I am a person of great faith. I admire the simple act of praying outside of the Planned Parenthood clinic in the hopes that your God might reduce the number of abortions. During my twelve years of parochial school, our Bible teacher, Ms. A, used to remind us often that God doesn’t always answer your prayers in the way we intended – he sometimes finds better ways. Now, this in mind, with no condescension intended, I wonder if you might consider the possibility that God is answering your prayers for fewer abortions by helping Planned Parenthood to thrive.
You see friend, although we disagree on more things than I can name, there is one thing on which we would find ourselves in violent agreement - namely, that the best way to reduce abortions is to reduce unwanted pregnancies. Your method of accomplishing this involves people having less sex – and although that sounds good and fun, you would be hard-pressed to argue that Planned Parenthood’s method involving distribution of condoms and various forms of birth control at affordable prices is more effective. Of course, many of your fellow prayer warriors consider the use of these to be a sin – particularly birth control which, through secondary effects, ensures a great many fertilized eggs are flushed from the body each year. However, while you would have us believe that as of conception, the life that exists is as valuable as yours and mine, I have a feeling you would quickly see the absurdity of this belief were someone to hold a gun to a person’s head and a teaspoon of bleach over a zygote and ask you to choose which lived.
You are probably seeing the conclusion towards which I am driving – believe it or not, Planned Parenthood reduces the number of abortions more than all your protesting, pleading and harassment combined. I understand that having done this for as long as you have, it will be difficult to swallow the idea that the very organization you protest does more to further your cause than you do, but pride is a sin and has no place when it stands in the way of progress.
Imagine a world in which all pregnancies were desired and abortion was used only in those rarest of cases of medical necessity. We at Planned Parenthood imagine this every day. In fact, though you tell each woman who walks into our clinic that she is supporting abortion by entering our doors, I have a feeling you know this isn’t true. Planned Parenthood and Planned Parenthood Surgical Services (PPSS) are two separate entities who share the same building. PPSS is a self-sustaining entity which doesn’t receive a penny from Planned Parenthood, your taxes or mine. In fact, contrary to what you might hope, should abortion become illegal, Planned Parenthood’s bottom line will be unaffected. Entering our doors doesn’t support abortion – it supports the providing of affordable health care and helping women to take the preventative steps necessary to reduce abortions in a logical fashion.
So anonymous – while I understand that this might represent the unraveling of a set of truths you have held to be true for decades, the evaporation of unfounded beliefs represents the beginning of wisdom and open mindedness. Should you read this, my sincere hope is that, in addition to realizing that pro-choice people are not heartless bastards, you spend some time thinking about who is doing more to reduce abortions. Do the math, then swallow your pride and come join us as a volunteer escort some Saturday. I promise we will welcome you with open arms and best of all, you’ll know all the people on the other side of the fence!
