Isn’t it refreshing to see an institution that can stick to tradition for so long? After all, how many organizations can still pretend its 1322 AD and get taken seriously?

That anybody takes these dipsticks seriously is… well, one of the best demonstrations of how religion harms people.

“When we are talking about girls between the ages of 14 and 18, parental consent is important,” said Senator Soledad Alvear, president of the Christian Democrats and Ms. Bachelet’s main rival for the alliance’s presidential nomination last year. “They can’t vote or drive a car or even buy cigarettes until they are 18,” she added.

You know, they also can’t sign contracts, but clearly they should be entitled to make binding commitments for the next 18 years.

“When we are talking about girls between the ages of 14 and 18, parental consent is important,” said Senator Soledad Alvear, president of the Christian Democrats and Ms. Bachelet’s main rival for the alliance’s presidential nomination last year. “They can’t vote or drive a car or even buy cigarettes until they are 18,” she added.

One would think that this argues the need for parental consent to have a baby much better than it argues the need for parental consent to take a pill.

The influential Roman Catholic Church, however, has condemned distribution of the pill as a form of abortion that encourages promiscuity and intrudes on personal freedoms. In a statement, the national conference of bishops said the government’s actions are “reminiscent of public policies established in totalitarian regimes, by which the state aimed to regulate the intimate lives of its citizens.”

What. Are. They. Smoking? The availability of something is somehow more intrusive to personal freedoms than the coersion caused by denial of it?

*headdesk*

The concern about parental consent and totalitarian regimes seems a little misplaced in a country with an extremely high teen birth rate and laws which criminalize women for terminating pregnancies. One hallmark of totalitarian regimes is taking away freedom — not promoting reproductive rights. We’ve seen it everywhere from China to Rumania to Germany, and it’s the height of hypocrisy for the Church to shake its head at totalitarianism, and then support the exact policies that such regimes depend on.

We’ve seen it in Chile, too.

Methinks the average Chilean who lived through the Pinochet years has a pretty good idea of what a totalitarian regime is like. And it’s got nothing to do with making EC available.

Considering that Michelle Bachelet was herself tortured by the Pinochet totalitarian regime, that statement just gets scummier and scummier the more I look at it.

Sarah, you have to understand that the theological definition of “personal freedoms” has very little to do with personal freedoms and everything to do with what Catholics see as ‘fulfilling,’ namely praying and pumping out children. Because they think that unprotected sex is the zenith of bodily love, they also think that contraception is somehow limiting, and so they try to convince people that when they use protection, they’re actually hurting themselves and impinging on their own freedoms.

Like I said, it’s pretty tortured logic.

Surely no one is being forced to take the pill if they prefer not to?

Why yes, every female with a uterus has Plan B stuffed down her throat and her mouth held shut until she swallows. It’s a lot like pilling a cat or dog.

he influential Roman Catholic Church, however, has condemned distribution of the pill as a form of abortion that encourages promiscuity and intrudes on personal freedoms. In a statement, the national conference of bishops said the government’s actions are “reminiscent of public policies established in totalitarian regimes, by which the state aimed to regulate the intimate lives of its citizens.”

I don’t get this at all. Surely no one is being forced to take the pill if they prefer not to? How is just making it available taking away anyone’s freedom or regulating their lives?

Of course, spreading scientific misinformation to its African parishioners in the face of the AIDS epidemic is forgivable, but preventing a Holy Spirit-infused sperm from reaching its intended destination is gravely disturbing.