Often, when I think about being self-centered or naive, I think what it is to be an American - like there's no suffering or controversy within these borders. With new stations, bloggers, and news papers tailoring to an audience, if you aren't careful, you only get one side of the story. Look at the national debate right now on birth control and more specifically on the showdown between Sandra Fluke and Rush Limbaugh.
To skip all the political jargon and risk this blog spiraling out of control, I want you to stop and think about what is behind the story. Get past the brass "slut" comments and the claims that birth control should be free and you see two sides who refuse to hear each other. Sandra Fluke is a Georgetown student who choose to go there though its insurance plan does not cover birth control based on its Catholic morals. It should have the right to do so just as she had the right to choose to go there or not.
Fluke testified on behalf of a friend who had to have ovarian surgery due to cysts, saying if she had had access to free birth control the surgery would have been preventable. Rush Limbaugh has stole the stage with his "slut" comments about us having to pay for her lifestyle choices. Hence the ensuing drama around birth control, life style choices, and the s-word.
Both exercising their freedom of speech, but have either of them really address the greater issue behind the debate? And what has the national conversation focused on -- the use of the "slut" or the real issue behind lifestyle choice and government funding?
Let's not be so niave here in America to think that it's our way or the highway. It's not getting us anywhere in Congress or internationally. Just like we need to be aware of international issues, so do we need to be aware AND INFORMED about domestic issues -- so what news station will you listen to tonight??
To skip all the political jargon and risk this blog spiraling out of control, I want you to stop and think about what is behind the story. Get past the brass "slut" comments and the claims that birth control should be free and you see two sides who refuse to hear each other. Sandra Fluke is a Georgetown student who choose to go there though its insurance plan does not cover birth control based on its Catholic morals. It should have the right to do so just as she had the right to choose to go there or not.
But that is neither what she testified about nor what Rush Limbaugh targeted her about.
Both exercising their freedom of speech, but have either of them really address the greater issue behind the debate? And what has the national conversation focused on -- the use of the "slut" or the real issue behind lifestyle choice and government funding?
Let's not be so niave here in America to think that it's our way or the highway. It's not getting us anywhere in Congress or internationally. Just like we need to be aware of international issues, so do we need to be aware AND INFORMED about domestic issues -- so what news station will you listen to tonight??
“In our vibrant and diverse society, there always are important differences that need to be debated, with strong and legitimate beliefs held on all sides of challenging issues,” DeGioia wrote. “The greatest contribution of the American project is the recognition that together, we can rely on civil discourse to engage the tensions that characterize these difficult issues, and work towards resolutions that balance deeply held and different perspectives. We have learned through painful experience that we must respect one another and we acknowledge that the best way to confront our differences is through constructive public debate. At times, the exercise of one person’s freedom may conflict with another’s. As Americans, we accept that the only answer to our differences is further engagement.”
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