In an effort to dance around the a-word a little (rhymes with shmashmortion) President Obama has pledged $25 million dollars to the Federal Pregnancy Assistant Fund, whose goal is to, "assist women who have decided to carry their pregnancies to term and those who are parenting."
[The money] will be used to will provide pregnant and parenting teens and women a seamless network of supportive services to help them complete high school or post-secondary degrees and gain access to health care, child care, family housing, and other critical support. In addition, States can use the funds to combat violence against pregnant women.
Is today my birthday?! This is fabulous news! Right-to-lifers go on and on about carrying a baby to term and then giving it to a loving (heterosexual) couple when it's time to pop, but they seldom pay any never-mind to the fact that being pregnant is expensive. Let's set aside the fact that having a baby is not only going to affect your life but your wallet too; the gestation period is filled with price tags from sonograms to checkups, from pre-natal drugs to late night trips to the 7-11 for a Big Gulp Blue Raspberry Fanta Slurpee (hey, she needs it man.) Hopefully now those women, who choose to carry their fetuses to term, will get the assistance they need.
Who knows, maybe we might even get some well-needed sex education. (iEscandalo!)
Via Jezebel
Read full article at CNN
Well they'll do anything to keep a sista down these days. Jezebel posted a very interesting little article about MDs who are dosing their pregnant patients with a new hormone, dexamenthasone, to prevent ambiguous genitalia, but more importantly, homosexuality in baby girls.
Some scientists think the hormone dexamethasone, if administered prenatally, might prevent ambiguous genitalia in babies. But according to a report by Alice Dreger and colleagues at Bioethics Forum (via Strollerderby and Slog), says pediatric endocrinologist Maria New is "suggesting that prenatal dex also might prevent affected girls from turning out to be homosexual or bisexual."
The debate on when and where sexual preference is developed is still raging; in utero or out and in the DNA or through a personal preference developed with maturity. However tampering too much with genetics in utero by dosing pregnant women with strong-ass hormones is well regarded as not the smartest or safest idea. Call me crazy but why do we have to continuously try to genetically tamper with our babies? Having a baby is like opening a Kinder Surprise; you buy one knowing that you're getting chocolate with possibly a sweet-ass or shitty surprise inside, you don't get to pick and choose, it takes all the fun out of it!
This is just one step close to the World being a little New and a little Brave. If we as parents and future parents are able to genetically define our children's' traits and characteristics, where does it end? Variety is the spice of life, I certainly don't want to see beautiful blonde, blue-eyed drones walking around like it's the norm... then I won't be special anymore... and let's face it, it's all about me and my beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes!
Via Jezebel
Utah proposed a law to criminalize miscarriage. SRSLY?!
State Rep. Carl Wimmer, says he'll take out the provision making a woman's "reckless act" inducing miscarriage eligible for homicide prosecution. This is the part of the bill that could've sentenced women to life in prison for falling down the stairs, drinking alcohol, or staying in an abusive relationship.
Unfortunately, Wimmer plans to leave in language that criminalizes a woman's "intentional" act to induce miscarriage — meaning some miscarriages and/or illegal abortions could still open up a woman to homicide charges. All this is in response to a 17-year-old girl who paid someone to beat her into miscarrying — the solution to which, clearly, is to throw her in jail. It apparently hasn't crossed the legislators' minds that improving access to safe, legal abortions — by, for instance, removing Utah's parental-notification law — might prevent girls and women from resorting to such horrific tactics. Or, more likely, Utah still cares more about controlling women than about helping them.
I concur with Jezebel. This is just poor lawmaking. Maybe instead of adding useless laws, these so-called lawmakers should enforce/revise currents laws. How many times can I saw law? LAW, LAW, LAW! Apparently a lot.
I get that fetal alcohol syndrome does exist but the conspiracy theorist inside of me makes me wonder if it's really all just a little bit of bullshit? I mean, come one, our grandmothers drank and smoked during their pregnancies and the Baby Boomers are like the best generation ever.
I'm not saying all us ladies should drink and smoke when we get preggers, but we live in a world of hypochondriacs and disease mongers. With that said, when I am with child, I will lay in bed, not move and have my husband bring me everything I want, for fear of harming my precious spawn. And honestly, I can probably give up my vices for the better part of a year, I just don't know how I'm going to give up sushi. That shit is addictive and packed with protein... and yummy, yummy mercury!
Besides, Nova Schin makes non-alcoholic beer for pregnant women. Because, let's face it, there's nothing more satisfying, then coming home after a long day of carrying your giant ass belly around, with creepy ass people touching you, kicking your feet up and opening up a brewski. SRSLY though, I would never fucking drink non-alcoholic beer, that's just plain blasphemy!
On a slightly related note, and to take some of the, you're-an-evil-baby-killer heat off me, here's my future baby-daddy, Stephen Lynch, singing a wonderful little diddy. This one goes out to the ladies!
In an effort to dance around the a-word a little (rhymes with shmashmortion) President Obama has pledged $25 million dollars to the Federal Pregnancy Assistant Fund, whose goal is to, "assist women who have decided to carry their pregnancies to term and those who are parenting."
