Are you really pro-life?

In the wake of the Supreme Court Hobby Lobby decision much of the old bitterness, angers, rabid rhetoric and personal views have floated to the surface in a fresh outbreak of angry words and fresh accusations.  Let's face it, abortion, contraceptives and a woman's right to choose are touchy subjects that bring out the ugliest demons in people.  There has never been, unfortunately, any middle ground when it comes to these topics.

Even the very labels used are divisive and make it clear that there will never be a middle ground on this subject:  pro-life and pro-choice.  These labels are so inadequate and so misleading that it is almost criminal ignorance that we still use them.  Furthermore, it is yet another evidence that the mythical "liberal biased media" has allowed the decisively conservative side of the argument to control the conversation.  Pro-life as opposed to pro-death?  Pro-choice...as in women's right to choose...to choose what?  Choose a selfish choice of their body as opposed to a "baby's" life?  The entire conversation is one sided and those that are fighting for a woman's right to choose what is done with their body have made the mistake by allowing this one sided conversation to continue.

So let's talk about the "semantics" of the so-called "pro-life" national discussion.

First...let us make it very clear that the people that claim to be "pro-life" are anything but.  The idea would be that they are in favor of protecting and nurturing life.  It seems like a noble pursuit if it were not so completely misleading...

So let's make a new set of rules...

1.  You don't get to call yourself pro-life if you are against the social net programs that too often is the only thing that keeps these kids from starving and being homeless.

2.  You don't get to call yourself pro-life if you are in favor of baseless wars and extended combat in useless, pointless wars.

3.  You don't get to call yourself pro-life if you do not care about the dire results of rape and would instead choose to protect the rights of the rapist instead of the victim.

4.  You don't get to call yourself pro-life and be angry about children coming across the border and prefer to let them die in the desert than take them in and preserve their life.

5  You don't get to call yourself pro-life if you support the death penalty.

6.  You don't get to call yourself pro-life if your right to own guns without any sensible restrictions supersedes the value of our children's lives.  If you put a weapon in your child's hands and promote the gun culture in this country then you are not only an irresponsible parent but you are far from pro-life.

7.  You don't get to force me to use "baby" instead of "fetus" as long as you use "collateral damage" instead of "innocent victims."

8.  You don't get to call abortion "murder" as long as you refuse to acknowledge the "war crimes" and "genocide" we have participated in in Iraq.

9.  You don't get to call yourself pro-life and ignore the overwhelming scientific evidence that our planet is being destroyed by people that only care about their profits.  If you are a climate change denier, despite the overwhelming scientific evidence, then you are NOT pro-life.

10.  If you are against healthcare for the children after they are born, if you are against healthcare for the parents that support that child, nurture that child and provide for that child, regardless of their ability to pay, then you do not get to call yourself pro life.

11.  If you recklessly endanger the lives of those healthcare workers that provide services for women by publishing their names, their addresses and inviting violence and murder; if you cheer on this behavior and see the resulting deaths as justice instead of murder...then you do not get to call yourself pro life.

So let's call it what it is...You are pro birth.  Once that child is born you do not care what he or she does or if he or she lives.  As a matter of fact, you don't really care what happens in that individual's life until it is time for them to procreate and add more people to the pool for you to get to join your religious organizations and provide more money for your coffers.  You are a hypocrite.  You are a bigot.  You are using your religious views and religious freedom to force your views and your dogma on others.  You are a puppet.  A puppet in a war waged by religious leaders that are more interested in their wealth and influence then they are in the well being of their parishioners.