What I Haven't Heard....

So the Republican "presidential candidates", pretending they care, have been arguing about whether 6th grade girls should be forced to be vaccinated against the human papillomavirus (HPV).  Yes, HPV is a real threat, as exposure to it can lead to cervical cancer (and a host of other health issues); keep in mind HPV is spread through sexual contact.   I do not dispute this. 

I've read about the political debate; read the asinine rhetoric of Michele Bachmann and the real (and suspect) reasons that Rick Perry gives for supposedly caring about 6th grade girls.  I've wondered how this is flying with Tea Party folks and Libertarians--how they feel about government intrusion of this nature, and then I remember that the Tea Party and nationally known Libertarians don't give a shit about government intrusion in the lives of anyone who is female.  Or gay.  Or an immigrant.

But I would like to share some thoughts on the subject--thoughts I've had that I haven't seen anywhere else.  [Maybe there's a reason for that.]

First of all, I'm sad that young girls have to be vaccinated.  At a time when their bodies are changing so quickly, when their emotions are all over the place, and when they are having sexual feelings that can be overwhelming, they are being told they have to go to the doctor to get a shot.  Do you remember getting shots as a kid?  They hurt, and they were no fun at all.  Sometimes, it was scary to see that needle.  So imagine how you would have felt, as a girl-on-the-verge-of-womanhood, being told it was time to go to the doctor for another shot involving a big needle?  You probably would, logically, ask what the stupid shot was for.  So, you're a parent, being asked this question by said girl--how do you explain HPV???  You probably stammer, stutter, and say something intelligent like, "It's for your own good.  Because....er.....you're becoming a woman!"

Think about that statement.  Really think about what you've said to this young girl. 

You've just told her that she's being hurt for her own good.  Because of sex. 

Damn, that's a really great thing for a soon-to-be-woman to hear.  Because if I were her, I'd be hearing that I had to get a shot because of sex.  And from now on, I'd experience sex with a mixture of pleasure and a wee bit of fear, because I had to get a shot for it all those years ago. 

Which all brings me to one last question:  if HPV is spread by sexual contact, and can cause health problems for all humans, why aren't 6th grade BOYS getting the vaccine too?

I Pledge Allegiance

A friend got me thinking about the "Pledge of Allegiance"--you know, the one we used to recite as kids.  The original Pledge was written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, and recited by schoolchildren that year on Columbus Day.  In those days, it was much shorter, and kids probably didn't mis-hear it and subsequently mangle it as much as kids did in my school in the 1960's.
Something important that people have forgotten, or perhaps never knew--the Pledge did not include the words, "Under God", until 1954.  Remember, these were the days of Senator Joseph McCarthy, when people were afraid that God-hating Communists were hiding under their beds.  Thus, if you could get everyone to pledge allegiance to "one nation, under God", you could easily root out those scary Communists--they would be the ones who refused to say that line!  [As a side note, it makes me wonder what we will have to pledge allegiance to if some of those Republicans are elected.]
Yes indeed friends--you could easily make the case that ADDING the words, "Under God" led to the demise of our public schools.  But I digress.

Schoolchildren in the early-to-mid 20th century got used to standing up every morning, saluting the flag, and reciting the Pledge.  I don't know about you, but I thought as much about the words I was saying every morning as I did about the small print on the box of Corn Flakes--that is, not at all.  In the 1970's, reciting the Pledge fell by the wayside in my school district, and I can assume that the ritual was done less and less in the 1980's and 1990's.
Then the events of September 11, 2001 happened, and American patriotism was revived.  Suddenly, people began discussing the lack of Pledge-saying in our schools.  For suddenly, we were all red-blooded patriots, and therefore, our kids needed to be saying that Pledge, EVERY MORNING, dammit!  That was the first thing that astounded me--adults weren't declaring that every American needed to be starting their day with show of patriotic fervor--oh no!  Just the kids--you know, the humans we can still control--you know, the ones we are are stronger than--the ones we can safely order around.  The ones who have no voice in the matter.  Oh no, we adults weren't going to set an example by standing up and facing a flag every morning--no, we were going to force our kids to say something every morning--something they didn't really understand--just to make us feel more like.....well, more like "real" Americans!  There, don't you feel better now?  Our kids are saying the Pledge of Allegiance every day, and all's right with greatest country in the world.  I was on the local School Board just after 9/11, and I gave this issue a lot of thought back then, because we were being approached by parents who wanted us to mandate Pledge-saying every morning in our local schools.   I did ask a couple of them if they would be doing the same thing in their workplace, and they looked at me as if I was crazy.
There was another thing that was bothering me about this Pledge-saying frenzy.  Times have changed; we are not the same country that we were in 1940, 1950, 1960, or 1970.  For good or for bad, we are different.  We humans travel more--in just a matter of hours, we can be halfway across the planet.  We communicate, via telephones and computers, with people all over the world--sometimes as quickly as the blink of a cursor.  We do not live within 10 miles of our entire extended family, and think nothing of moving to another country for education or job opportunities.  Like it or not, we are a global society.  Yes, we can be proud to be Americans, we can raise our children to be proud of their country, we can support our troops, we can put a flag on a pole every day of the year.  But we live in a free country--this means each of us is free to define patriotism for ourselves.  What we do not have the right to do, in the United States of America, is to define patriotism for another person.  Especially not a child who isn't your child.
Let me describe it for you a different way:  Imagine you have moved to a new country--South Blahblahistan.  You have a great new job, and are able to have your family with you.  However, you cannot afford a private tutor, AND you want your kids to make friends with other children, so you send them to the very fine local schools.  These local schools are wonderful, and your kids are thriving.  However, one day, your 7-year-old comes home and says you need to help them learn the words they will be reciting every morning from now on.  As you question your kid, you find out that the whole class stands up, faces the flag of South Blahblahistan, and pledges ALLEGIANCE to said flag and country.  How can this be?  Your little American, standing up and doing this?!  Why, you're going to go to that school right now and demand that your kid be allowed to sit during this exercise every morning!  As you fume and stomp around, you look down and see your 7-year-old.  Their face is red, and they are crying.  "You can't do that!  Those are my friends!  They will hate me!  I HAVE to say those words!"
And that, my fellow Americans, are what we are demanding our schoolchildren do in this country, every day. We are demanding that EVERY kid get up and recite those words, no matter what.  Land of the free?  Not in American schools. Are we raising "true" Americans by forcing them to do this?  No, we're raising sheep (no offense to sheep).
Years ago, I read this version of a pledge.  I wonder what our world would look like in generations to come if  every family read this to each other once in a while, and all political and religious leaders talked about its' meaning once a year?
"I pledge allegiance to the Earth and all the life which it supports.  One planet, in our care, irreplaceable, with sustenance and respect for all."