Rant #2,925: My Prerogative

Late last week, a monumental decision was made by the Supreme Court, that being that the classic Roe v. Wade case—which made abortion legal in the United States—was unconstitutional.
 
It was the law of the land for nearly 50 years, and because of the Supreme Court’s decision, many of the country’s states followed suit, with trigger laws making abortion illegal in their respective states immediately after the ruling.
 
Some states actually went even further, stating that no abortion could be performed in their states under any circumstances—including in cases of rape, incest or possible harm to the mother.
 
Some states even said that if one of its citizens got an abortion elsewhere, she would be subject to criminal prosecution when she returned to her home state.
 
Other states, in reaction to what had happened, ramped up their own abortion laws, trying to appeal to those from out of state to have the procedure done in their state.
 
Many major companies announced that they will give leave and pay for the abortions of their female workers who decided to have this procedure.
 
Many claim that we, as a nation, have gone back 50 years, to when women used coat hangers to perform abortions on themselves.
 
I am going to try to put this in my own perspective in this Rant, and you can agree or disagree with me if you like … but at least just hear me out.
 
I, personally, would have preferred if the then-current laws remained the same as had been for the past nearly 50 years.
 
But being that those laws have now changed, I at least wish that women who decide to have this procedure were able to have it, in another state, without criminal persecution.
 
And certainly, in cases or rape, or incest or the possibility of harm to the mother, an abortion should be legal. Period.
 
However, that being not the case in some areas, this whole decision has led to a quagmire of problems, and while some claim that their personal choice has been taken away, what has actually happened is that women have been given back their own personal responsibility to manage their bodies—and their lives—in a better way.
 
With so many people getting hysterical about this subject on both sides of the ledger, women must take some responsibility for how they handle themselves in certain situations.
 
And men, for that matter, are also part of this, as it take two to tango, so they bear just as much responsibility for this act as the women do.
 
Abortion can no longer be used as a contraceptive tool, the rectifying of an “oops” moment between them and their male partners.
 
While I support abortion, I feel that abortion should only be used when absolutely necessary, not to lick a problem like taking an aspirin to remedy a headache.
 
Women should be cognizant of how their bodies should be treated like palaces, the men should be aware of this fact too about their own bodies.
 
Maybe the new ruling will force people to think twice about doing such things, because let’s face it, the act itself is done, presumably, produce a child, even if it is done recreationally.
 
That is the possible end result; it is not just for self gratification, and men and women must understand this fact.
 
Yes, mistakes are made even by the most responsible of couples, but look, if you participate in the act, you must know its possible consequences.
 
And as far as people railing at the three justices who spearheaded this change of law … what are you complaining about?
 
During President Trump’s four years in office, he had the opportunity to name not one, not two, but three new justices to the court, which is highly unusual.
 
So he went with justices who would follow his beliefs, political or otherwise.
 
That is what presidents do when tasked to name new Supreme Court justices.
 
You didn’t expect him to name one, two or three liberal justices, did you?
 
President Biden has had the opportunity to name one justice, and he did the exact same thing as Trump did, so the demonizing of Trump—at least in this area—is ridiculous.
 
However, I do believe that this thing where Supreme Court justices serve for life is absurd, and is a law that needs to be changed.
 
Three is no reason why justices in obvious ill health—like Ruth Bader Ginsburg was—should serve until their dying breath.
 
That might ultimately be the bigger, long-range problem than the abortion ruling is, based on future rulings.
 
But the bottom line to me here is that while I do believe the original Roe vs. Wade ruling was just and fair, I do believe that this latest ruling gives even more power to women, because the responsibility is now theirs to keep themselves out of such situations.
 
I do not agree with some states about who and who cannot get an abortion, however, so I am kind of one foot in and one foot out on this subject.
 
But remember two things: actually how many women does this impact each year—I would say a small percentage of womanhood to begin with, and as I brought up in another, earlier Rant, in her later years, the woman known as “Roe” became virulently anti-abortion, a point that is never brought up in the current narrative.
 
So women—and men—you are now fully empowered to take on this responsibility. You have been given the personal right to say “no.”
 
You have been fully empowered.
 
Don’t look at this as a negative. Make it into a positive.
 
And stop blaming the federal government, stop believing that the federal government is responsible for your situation and that you are not.
 
I don’t like the ruling as much as many of us don’t, but it has made personal responsibility the key in all of this.
 
Why was that taken away from us in the first place?
 
To me, with this ruling, that is the current $64,000 question that needs to be answered, and it is the question that must be heeded now that the act, and its possible consequences, have been fully placed in the participants’ laps.
 
Personal responsibility … what a concept!