My-Body-My-Right

(Final Blog Post)

There are some very important topics that I find myself very drawn to recently. They are not new but not very well expressed, I feel, when it comes to deal with bodily rights. Most of the time when you hear about abortion, euthanasia, and sex work it is almost always in a negative, firmly enveloped in moral and religious thought. Yet, what do we really believe, and what are we really saying “No” too? Regardless of how we feel morally as an individual we must realize that imposing our own biases on others wrong socially, and realistically. In the following paragraph I will show how sex work, abortion, and euthanasia are just rights people have in deciding what to do with their own bodies as individuals.

To start with lets jump into the most promiscuous topic first, and that is sex work. Now, most people, when they think about sex workers they think filthy prostitutes that are forced into that sex driven situation that need saving. While some serious situations call for that and it is very honorable, mostly it is not true. Prostitutes or sex workers are not all forced into that life, 8 times out of 10, they choose it. Women and men alike give verbal consent because they want to, not because they are forced to. I feel that sex work should not be frowned upon nor cast in a bad light because we as a society want to pretend. We want to believe that we have holistic morals that everyone should follow regardless if we achieve it or not. It is illogical to portray sex as what we see on television or in movies, and it is even more illogical to force others to adhere to standards they cannot even achieve themselves. Each person has a right to do whatever they deem fit to their body. Some of the blatant and obvious misconceptions in regards to sex work is that if the sex worker is female she is instantly considered a slut, but if it were a man it would just be chalked up to manly urges. For the record, men and women both have bodily rights to themselves, and when I say that I imply the fact that they are consenting adults. Being of legal age and choosing that life is fully and whole heartedly up to the individual. Being seen as a sex worker may not appear to be the most sought after job but it is a job none-the-less that deserves some respect  and enables people to handle their body as they deem fit.

For my second topic I will address the ever controversial topic of abortion. This topic has been debated on time and time again, and is still a continuous issue for many today. Though, at the end of the day it all has to do with a women’s right to choose what happens to her body. People (meaning mostly men) feel that they should not only have a say, but be the determining decision in regards to pregnancy. No man, nor woman has the right to tell another individual what should and should not be growing inside them. Although, it is not just some certain individuals that want to take that away, it is the government as well. Both trying to to claim that it can be considered murder, and that “everyone” has a right to live; well that would be true if the fetus was considered a person, which it legally is not. In order for anyone to be legally considered “human/individual person” they must have first taken their (first) breathe of air. Thus determining that they were fully developed and born and thus had legal and sufficient rights to life. They would also have to determine what time during conception it is biologically considered a person, and based upon that  biological stand point there is no way of determining that. So basically the whole claim of murder and right to life does not hold water in regards to abortion. People/Society in general need to stop passing judgment on to other’s choices involving their own bodies and focus on more pression matters such as domestic and foreign issues. This is because I feel that the issue of one’s body is not a matter of another individual nor a matter of church and state.

The last but certainly not least topic is the severely determining factor of euthanasia. For the past two topics we have discussed rights that are in effect while people are still alive, well I feel we should continue to have that same right when we are deciding our own death. Deciding one’s own death should be no different since it stems from them choosing what they want done to their own body. Most would call this suicide and to others would call it sin, but is it really such a menacing threat?Is deciding for ourselves and our body really a threat to others? The right to take your life or have others benefit you with your choice on the matter is completely fair and just. I see it as a kindness rather than giving up on life, because the people who would be allowed to do this need to be terminally ill or severely in pain for it to even be brought up. When euthanasia is concerned it has everything to do with control  since it would and should only be implemented in severe cases.  It is about controlling how you are remembered, and how you leave your body when you decide it is time. Some would argue that there is no way of knowing if that person gets better how can anyone be sure and kill another. Well, based on the fact that time is never and would never be on that individual’s side, it seems only right to gran them the option/right to choose how their body should end. Denying someone their last rights is like saying that they had never had any rights to begin with.

In general, what I had hoped to demonstrate is that each and every individual is, and should be responsible and have rights to his/her own body. We as society should really consider the fact that if one person cannot determine or is even prevented to do something to their own body what is that really portraying  What are we showing our future generations? That it is okay for you to have some rights to your bosy but that in other ways you have none? Well if that is the case then what is to stop others from deciding how you should live? How you should communicate or speak? Or better yet who you are as a person and what interest you? In my own personal opinion sex work, abortion, and euthanasia are merely huge stepping stones to a larger issue. That issue being the rights to one’s own body as a whole. So often society and even the government try and step in and out dictating how we should be. They try and dictate what our bodies should and should not do, but that is not their place. If there is so much concern towards our bodies on certain issues than all our bodily issues should be a concern. The right to pick and choose what is important and what is not should not be in the hands of others period. Each individual person has a right to choose for themselves what they want for their body, leaving the opinions of others as nothing more than background noise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Resources:

Karakoulaki, M. (n.d.). Abortion and Women’s Rights in the USA | Marianna Karakoulaki – Academia.edu.Academia.edu – Share research. Retrieved May 26, 2013, from http://www.academia.edu/1237734/Abortion_and_Womens_Rights_in_the_USA

Dame, B. (n.d.). My Body, My Rights…Right?. Borderless News and Views —. Retrieved May 26, 2013, from http://borderlessnewsandviews.com/2012/02/my-body-my-rights-right/

Ethical Rights – The Right to Die with Dignity – Euthanasia. (n.d.). Ethical Rights – Home. Retrieved May 26, 2013, from http://www.ethicalrights.com/submissions/human-rights/83-the-right-to-die-with-dignity-euthanasia.html

Staerk, B. (2013, April 13). What Sex Workers Want. medium.com. Retrieved May 25, 2013, from https://medium.com/gender-justice-feminism/1ddc5ccdc94c

Ruggiero, V. R. (2011). Thinking critically about ethical issues (8th ed.). Dubuque: McGraw-Hill.

Cavender, N., & Kahane, H. (2010). Logic and contemporary rhetoric: the use of reason in everyday life (11th ed.). Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth Pub. Co..

 

Die For Me…Or…Live For You

Jack Kervorkian a.k.a. THE DEATH DOCTOR

There have been many views on the process and thought of “euthanasia“; from people feeling that they are providing a civil justice and benevolent right, to thinking that its viewed as sympathetic murder. Though, one thing is certain about this process , people die, either by their own hands or by the hands of another. To me I feel people have a right to choose when they wish to end their lives, as long as hey do not intend to take others with them or force some type of burden upon others as a result. Since we are masters of our own bodies why are we allowing others to dictate what I may or may not do to it? The answer is simple society hates to have a lack of control, and euthanasia is one way that people take their own freedom into their own hands.

One man felt like he was compeled to help others. He talked with them and discussed their views on life and how his clients believed they fit in it. He even gave them a solution that would ease their worries and provide lasting peace. How did he do such things? He gave them DEATH. His name was Jack Kevorkian and he was later named “The Death Doctor“. The reason he became so famous was because he was a firm believer in euthanasia  and the fact that he gave his clients the means to take their own life into their own hands by killing themselves. Although, his intentions where derived from a moralistically humble, caring, understanding place the manner in which he did his job raised eyebrows and shocked people from all around. No one had ever heard or seen someone give people a means to kill themselves all while fully aware of their own actions and who were “considered” mentally stable. I feel that what Dr. Kevorkian was right in the mind set that people should take more control of their lives and should be in control of their own bodies, he should have taken steps towards getting other to understand as well. Everyone has a right to choose how they live their life regardless of what others think or say, so why can’t death be the same way?

Murder Me?

She was found to be charged with 1st degree murder

When it comes to the death penalty it is a very tough and fine line to touch upon. Most of the time the decision is 50/50. Either you feel that particular person deserves to be punished for the heinous crime or crimes they committed or that they should just get life. Though, as a society who are we to put people to death on regards to either prominent or fictitious evidence? Do we always catch the bad guys in the end and have happily ever afters? Well sorry to say, but nine times out of ten most people that we actually think deserve the death penalty really should be tried better. Our court systems are too flawed to come up with any means of justifying putting someone else to death. To me it is like saying that I am above you and I am a better human being than you are so therefore, I have the right to take your life away.

As a society that is the image that is being portrayed and most of the time, NOW, verdicts of the death penalty are seen as a game rather than an actual ruling that affects someone’s life. It has become some type of reality show for people to watch on new broadcastings and shown almost as inhumanely as possible. No one realizes that once you sentence someone to death and it is carried out, there is no going back. There are no do overs or whoops! All there there is in this world is life and death and I feel neither should be decided or at the hands of other people no more moral or just than me. To use the death penalty is to enforce power over an individual that can not be revoked. No one should fea having to worry about being killed not by murders and not even by out judicial court systems.

To Feed……or……..Not To Feed

Logical or Moral Responsibility

As I went through the first readings by Peter Singer I found him to be very on edge about people in Western societies respons to the underprivileged. He seemed to find them very cold hearted and slightly narcissistic in comparison to other countries that have devoted more time to other countries in times of dier need. Singer even went so far as to try and simplify the essential act of saving a drowning child in the pond by simply sacrificing your clothing and time to do so.

Well as honorable as his words are they are simply just that when it comes to getting people to really step outside themselves and devoting time towards a cause that they feel is worth the risks. People like to feel generous and they like to be considered a good person *human being*, yet when it comes right down to it people need to sacrifice in order to make changes. This notion that you will not lose anything by preforming an action is really falsely disclaiming reality. Nothing is gained without the necessary sacrifice in return. I’m not saying that it has to be a big sacrifice but telling others that is nothing to give up in order to help the less fortunate is lying to get the action started.

Knowledge of those that are oppressed and deprived will bring about change, but first it has to start within the society that is originates. Otherwise, you will start more problems for those you are trying to help rather than eliminate them. I do feel that as a Western Nation we should help out those that cry out for it and desire to be more than what they are, but it must not be forced upon us and have those that refuse to be branded as unmorally cold and selfish. I feel like we must take in our own problems first anf for most and assess if we are capable at the moment to really lend aid. If so then use the media to get your message across and hype up individuals to lend a helping hand to people that need them the most. Although, if we are not in the right financial or situation circumstance than those suffering will need to wait til we have the funds and abundant recourses to truly help them out so that they will not be needing aid afterwards. That then would be true aid to the unfortunate and thus in a sense providing service without sacrifice.

Sexually Advise Me….Please!!

There are so many advertisements out there that solicit women and even men as sexual objects to get or receive views and push merchandise. Yet, is this really sending the right messages to people out there about what they are actually buying? In one of the commercials I have above it shows a pig in a club of some sorts and he takes interest in this gorgeous woman, though she only sees him as a disgusting, hideous pig. That is until he goes into the men’s restroom and purchases a Trogen  condom and as soon as it drops from the dispensary he turns into an attractive man. Now it makes him suddenly appealing and instantly she wants to have sex with him, and completely bypassing the fact that this scenario  as fictitious as it may be, is completely absurd. How come most of these well trained and educated marketers, cannot just deliver the facts and give it to people straight.

One reason being is the simple phrase that everyone knows, “SEX SELLS“…………and it sells very well. Most of the time people are so distracted by the beautiful models or famous actors and actresses that they pay no attention to the messages  be subliminal or underling, that is being portrayed. All its showing is that if you are attractive then people (men/women) will fall to your feet, or bend over backwards to make you happy, or go after you period. So anyone that does not look like them or is even remotely attractive then you do not matter. As long as they are getting the message across that attractive people buy our product people do not care about what it is to be honest. In fact most of the time people dont even remember what tech actual advertisement is really about or what they were trying to market.

I feel like when it comes to advertising sure it is great to be creative and imaginative and make something eye catching for people to be drawn too, but lets expand our thought process here a bit. We are as humans sexual beings but that is not all we are! I know for a fact that marketers can be more creative than to portray to the stereotypes that have been going on for years. People need to open their eyes fully and see what it is that is being presented to them and the decide based on the information provided, and information obtained elsewhere that the particular item is right for them. Otherwise you’ll fall for anything and still have nothing.

The Position Of Power

The Position Of Power

When I was reading the article on prostitution not being just a free service and that it is a basic human need, I found that it was rather logical in the sense that it brought prostitution to “light” as a service than necessity. I could not agree more with the author on that point. If a woman or man is providing a servie since neither sex is above the other in doing so, why is it that they should not be compensated for the service that is being provided. No pun intended but, given the hard work that prostitues put in throughout the night or mid-day it should be obvious that their hours on the job are not considered paid and that most of their money comes from the clients that they have.

The author makes a great point in saying that comparing our sexual desires as a basic need that prostitution should be incorporated with is ridiculous. Even though being a “sexual service” worker is not considered a respectable job and one that is frowned upon it is still a service that should be looked at as business. So with any business there is compensation for the product (which in this case is pleasure), based upon any satisfaction of the client. Its just good business.

In all I do not see the point in arguing about prostitution because it is just about relinquishing power. The person agrees to let the client do what pleases them for an agreed amount of money, so in reality its a simple transaction. Prostitutes go to work everyday knowing that what they do is dangerous and that they are more or less violating the social moral code of most, but do so because they are getting paid for it. They already know that by the end of the night they will make enough to tied themselves over until they need more, its just that their line of work is not a nine to five, or working in a cubical. Sex for money is a tricky game to play and a difficult business to get in or out. At the end of the day though, its just good business.

 

The Difference….

Hate Makes No Exceptions

When it comes to the article one on affermative action it paints this picture of the poor overly subjective view that “whites” are in some great way being viewed as victims of an unfair society. Well, let’s just look at that for one moment. White people in general make more than the average minority would in a week due to the fact that most jobs require not just education, but experience in the task that they are going to be providing. So the fact that most minorities do not have the funds to either obtain that education nor skill makes them less likely to be able to get the jobs. Thus, results would help sufficiently better their lives and the lives of their family. To say that we are  looking too much at color on regards to just hiring and not skill itself is preposterous. This article in itself was just a means to invoke sympathy for a race that has done more then well for itself, slightly due to the suffering and hard work of others.

I just cannot see how placing the blame back onto those that are already oppressed on a daily basis will lead to a better future. From what I have read it spoke on the ability foe people to be (color-blind), well as lovely as that sounds is it truly possible for people to achieve within the type of societies we have? I saw how the article supported it’s basis by using the refutation to counterarguments as a way to make the point that comparison wise we are being equally racist and equally as bad. In that sense I feel that they are correct, but I feel that with out people being aware of their own thoughts they tend to resort back to racist thoughts. I know for a fact that there are tons of people out there looking for jobs and trying to feed their families only to be stopped by the color of their skin or the fact that the company would think a “white” individual would be more appealing and less threatening to the eye. If we truly want to get rid of the feeling of be segregated upon then I do feel that invoking the (color-blind) mentality needs to start for other thoughts to cease. It’s the only way to make a change…start with the mind and the rest will follow.

 

From Tradition….To Mutilation

(Warning This Video Contains Disturbing and Graphic Images)

For some time now it has been common within certain cultures and religious practices that females must and will be circumcised. These young girls are told that they must go through an important right of passage and have their clitoris cut off. For most of us this sounds completely barbaric and borderline malpractice. Yet for these girls it is something that they are to look forward too, regardless of the after affects of the procedure. Most of the mothers even trick their daughters into going over to a different country with the mindset of FGM (Female Gentile Mutilation). They would tell their daughters that they are to go visit relatives when really they are to be held down and have their legs spread open and cut without the use of any anesthesia or morphine.

One of the girls in the video even mentioned how disappointed the mothers would be if the daughter showed any signs of pain or yelled out or cried. It seemed to be seen as some kind of weakness when really I do not know anyone who could go through an extremely dangerous procedure and not yell out in pain. Most of these girls go through with the procedure to just please there parents and or mothers, not knowing the dangers that their own parent has placed them in.

I can only speak for myself but having this brutality continue to go on and have these girls subjected to this type of crude action is beyond acceptable. I truly feel as though this mutilation should be band everywhere. Not just on the basis or irrationality but on the health aspect of it as well. Most of these girls experience some type of infection and have serious complications down there in their genitals afterwards. Since there is an open wound where there should not be the girls have an extremely high chance of infection setting in quickly and diseases creeping in. On top of all that risk there is the after emotional effect of being a victim of FGM. Girls are feeling alien-like, depressed, embarrassed  awkward, abnormal, etc. There must be people to stand up for these young woman who are not aware of the circumstances that are forced upon them and be their voice in order to stop the degrading in order to have them be uplifted and encouraged to know the difference from tradition to mutilation.

 

Everyone Pretend To Be Normal!!!!

Little Miss Sunshine

This movie is center around a dysfunctional family that is trying to deal with each other and function in their daily lives. There is the mother named Sheryl, The father named Richard, the brother named Dwayne, the uncle named Uncle Frank, and the grandfather they call grandpa. When little Olive gets a callback from a Little Miss Sunshine Pageant that she attended during her past summer she is beyond ecstatic and begs and pleads to go. So the whole family attends and make it a family trip, with some coerced, head to California for the official pageant. On the way there this family runs into several obstacles and trails that test them as individuals and ultimately brings them together as a family.

For each main character there were many things that affected each and each of them carries a different but ultimately same fallacy. When watching this movie I see that there were some unethical situations that had contradicted what the character had actually stood for. Such as in the movie a lot of the time they use the phrase “We are a family and family sticks together”, well their actions do not really display that type of thought process. The character Dwayne has taken a vow of silence in order to display his determination to get into the Air Force to become a Fighter Piolet. His simple but propionate display of separation through silence is his way of trying to distance himself from his family members and to not be associated with them. Even though they claim that they are a united family they do not truly believe this til the very end when they had a tragedy show them how much they needed each other. Another situation that did not seem ethical was all through out the movie the father Richard was obsessed with winning and made it seem like the only people who are successful, happy, gifted, talented, educated, and willing to to preserver were the people who won all the time. Anyone else was just a loser that was lazy, stupid, uneducated, angry, and unsuccessful individual that really was just a waste of space on this planet. He had told his young daughter that people (women to be specific) who ate ice cream were fat, ugly, and unattractive. He had explained to her that nobody wanted to be them and that people (women) in pageants never ate ice cream so that they stay perfect and pretty. I don’t know about anyone else but that is a complete load of crap, and in the movie near the end he was prove wrong when little Olive asked Miss California if she ate ice cream and if so what was her favorite, Miss America responds by saying she love ice cream and her favorite is Rocky Road. This right here shows that the father Richard was seriously wrong in his thought process and that he did not grasp the fact that even though you lose at some things you win at others.

The fallacy that is present all throughout this movie is THE STRAWMAN FALLACY. Most of the time people in this movie present themselves a certain way when in fact they all are something completely different. The character Grandpa in this movie had portrayed himself as this funny, dirty, and sarcastic old man that was helping his granddaughter with her pageant routine. When in fact he may have been some of those things, yet he was also a constant heroin addict. As everyone was either occupied with other things he wold “use” and then go back and join the family. This happened continuously up until he was sleeping in the motel they were staying in and died during the night. No one knew he was still using since he had gotten kicked out of his nursing home for doing this particular thing. So when the family had to deal with his death they all were shocked and completely heartbroken due to his lose. If he had been more upfront about his drug use they would have taken more drastic measures and gotten him help. So this just goes to show how this movie may has tons of people displaying themselves in a certain light or way but that is not what they are nor what they truly believe nor want. It does not make them bad people it just simply makes them human. At the end of it all, they do end up being the family they did not want to be in the beginning.

 

To Give The Right…Or To Take It Away

Abortion Procedures

Whenever the subject of Abortion comes in to play I feel like there are a lot of negative and very judgmental views on the subject. People usually say that you are killing an innocent life and that you are right there next to murderers. Certain people, would then paint this image of you as a selfish individual solely because of the fact that you do not wish to either go full term then give the baby up or keep the baby. Well then here is the question…What gives them the right to choose your fate? It is not against the law to have an Abortion, so why are so many people trying to stick their noses into a situation that has nothing to do with them.

If you were to ask people why they felt so strongly about Abortions their response would either tell you that their religious views hold their decisions or that they just feel that it is wrong regardless of the scientific facts or situation that the woman may be in. From the reading it says that this is called the Herd Instinct. Things usually are easier when they are more socially accepted. Well, far be it from me to tell them that they are wrong, but the fact that as a Nation we are deciding for women what goes on within their bodies seems like we are taking away their voices . People who get abortions are not all uneducated teenagers, they are woman who have been through a lot and that want the option that does not require them to give birth based upon other people’s values.

I personally know people who have gone and gotten Abortions; so based upon what certain people in society believe  I should look at them differently and judge them. Not because they committed some crime but for their decision that I feel is rightfully theirs to begin with. I feel that taking away women’s right to make this choice is just going to lead to other steps in which other people or other rights will be taken away based upon religious views or ignorance on the situation. The thing that people need to realize about this whole abortion thing is that we are not giving the (OKAY) for all women all over the world to get an Abortion once they find out their pregnant, it is merely giving women another option that they may choose from and consider.