what were these people thinking?

i did not know until today that yesterday was pregnancy and infant loss awareness day. but now that i do know, i am doubly offended by what was happening in our neighborhood yesterday.

the local anti-abortion, crisis pregnancy center sponsored a big 'ol "fun walk" aka "walk for life". please understand - i appreciate that there are people who, if they are opposed to abortion, at least walk their talk and provide support to women without other good options. this center is about to open a prenatal clinic, and they do offer other forms of support to women with unwanted pregnancies.

if you've read this blog for any time, you will understand that i think our neighborhood would be better served by better birth control education and by maintaining access to safe and affordable abortions. in fact, i was surprised the walk was being held in our very liberal neighborhood. but i forget how diverse our neighborhood is; whites in our neighborhood are overwhelmingly liberal, but there are also older white catholics as well as hispanic catholics and evangelicals, and evangelical blacks. however, the people walking in this event yesterday were all white. i can tell you, they weren't from this neck of the woods.

to have their prominent annual fundraiser on pregnancy and infant loss awareness day seems heartless. i think i'm going to have to write a letter. if, like me, they didn't know about the loss awareness day, they should be made aware so they don't do it again next year. i'm trying to give them the benefit of the doubt.

while i'm getting riled up about anti-abortion people, let me say a few uncharitable things about jim bob and michelle duggar, the arkansas couple with 16 kids:

1. according to jim bob duggar, if you take birth control pills, you can still get pregnant but the pill may cause a miscarriage. when you start out with that perception, where else can you go but dumber?
2. the duggars took their pill-induced miscarriage as a sign from god that they were to accept the gifts (aka children) god gave them, and that's when 2-16 started rolling out. i know we all have to find a way to deal with our losses, but if you believe your loss is god's punishment on you for using birth control - well, why would you want to worship a god like that???
3. and what gives you the right to lecture other people about using birth control???
4. for jim bob duggar's part, the whole freakishly-large family thing seems to me to be a ploy for more publicity to get him elected senator. i don't feel so bad for saying that now that i've seen his campaign materials pimping out his kids.
5. michelle duggar has the same hairstyle today that she did when their first family portrait was taken. in 1988, that hair would have been passable at best. today it's pretty appalling. based on their brand of religion and my personal experience, i'm guessing that the hair thing is supposed to bring glory to god and/or her husband, but it's pretty damn unattractive.

i must say, ripping on these people could become a habit. at least it's not as self-destructive a habit as drinking. speaking of which, i wish justin would hurry up and get home, because i'm trying to maintain a no-drinking-alone rule to keep the habit in check, but i could really use a drink.