Birth Control

I was just wondering what exactly those who oppose birth control would like to see happen. Maybe every woman should just keep on poping out kids until she is 50. Or maybe we should expand the abstinence programs for teens to include everyboby. Yeah, I think people should just stop having sex altogether. That would solve the problem of birth control, STDs etc. Divorce rate might hit the roof though(cos everyone would be grumpy and all), but hey who wants to be married if you can't have sex anyway. All that work and no reward:-).
OH I get it we just use the calender method if you are married. Now I get it, we can basically "do it" a couple of days a month (still no garantee you won't end with 10 kids you can't afford) and then pray to God(cos only he can help you) that your spouse does not "by mistake" (cos it's never intentional of course; you love each other) sleep with some else..(usually the case in African countries)
Don't get me wrong I am all for religion, but unless we overnight turn into the late Pope or Mother Theresa, then the no condom, no birth control theory is just unrealistic. I know most people in America would see this as common sense and this post as pointless but there is a trend to move backwards and forget what things used to be like.

You have the right to.........(What? we do.. WOW this has potential)

Nothing that applies to any other business should apply to the medical field. A pharmacy is not just a business so that we can just take our business elsewhere. What if next your doctor became a Jehovah witness and refused to give you a transfusion; “sorry but you have to find someone else!” (You could bleed to death, but… hey, it’s my right we’re talking about here).
Religion and Medicine do not mix-AT ALL,which is not to say you can't be a religious practitioner.
What if it starts with birth control pills and then goes on to include other drugs: what if Pharmacies team up with manufacturers and choose the medication they fill out accordingly. At a first glance it might seem harmless to let a few pharmacists get off with refusing to fill out birth-control prescriptions but these laws do not even specify Birth-control it's anything that goes against their convictions. So watch out, maybe next it will be anti-acids then pain medication etc!! Then we will have to do a "google search" just to find a pharmacy that will fill out all your prescription!

It is much like being a Public defender; you get to defend the guilty and the innocent regardless....of course you could decide not to be a public defender!


The only Instance a Medical Doctor can refuse to treat a patient is in case of an abortion request. That means that if Bin-Laden were injured and came to me, I CAN'T refuse to treat him...(I can still call the cops though!)
"Someone who is 'against' birth control for religious reasons is not by nature practicing discrimination. He is exercising religious freedom."

I agree, it is not discrimination to refuse to fill out a prescription; it is not exercising religious freedom either! Exercising religious freedom would be not taking birth-control pills themselves- not filling out prescriptions is not doing their job! Back to the Jehovah witness Doctor; not accepting a transfusion would be my right, not giving one to my patient (big difference!) Everyone has the right to practice their religion so long as they don't adversely affect others. As the saying goes "your right to swing your fist ends where my nose begins"!

A civilized political ad.; Is that possible?!

As I roamed TV channels last night, the British presidential campaign Ads on c-span caught my attention. There was one word for it CIVILIZED. Instead of bad-mouthing each other, both the Conservative party and the labour party had ads that focused on what they would do. Blair mentioned some things he HAD done. Ultimately they both had the same message each stressing on what they would do in areas that had been traditionally ingnored by the other party(subtle critic). I was amazed at how constructive their aproaches both were. If I were British I would vote for BOTH parties; that's how well they came across. This of course means that which ever won I would not be quite so anti-government. Far be it from me to suggest Americans learn a thing or two from our allies(we are far to arrogant for that),but I must mention that after centuries of battle and turmoil the British are actually doing it right! They can come away from elections and say-" hey,I didn't agree with that guy on a few issues but he's not so bad."
American politics has become so polar because we focus so much on throwing mud at each other to gain votes we completely entrench our opposition in its extreme stance. BOTH the right and left are guilty of doing this. Of-course after elections we look for "Bi-partisan" support for bills etc. Anyone else see a problem with this senario?
Personal beliefs aside, the majority of politicians fought to get into office for nobel reasons rather than an agenda to destroy the country. And for every mistake any politician makes, they also make some good calls. It is very similar to the half empty, half full theory. Are we going to focus on the Good an individual can do or will we undermine all his efforts by focusing on the negative. I am not saying critic has no place in the system. I am saying that some how all we hear is critic, critic, critic. Once in a while both sides should stand back and commend oponents for achievements.
Then again, what do I know?

I'm so BLUE

I really like this comic depiction by Mark Fiore. It leans to the Left but I think the essence of the message is quite in line with what Culturepeace is about- People in the "Red Zone" are not quite that fundamently Different from the BLUE.

Depressed

Just Another Circus or NOT?!

I read something that bugged me today about how Europeans are down the path of self-destruction. This was in response to a post on a forum made by an European that the MJ trail is a circus. Personally, I don't really care to debate the issue of his guilt or innocence(perhaps that's cos I don't have any kids). It is a criminal case and I would leave it to the justice system to deal with it. On the other hand I think that without knowing the facts, it is better to be just and afford the man the presumption of innocence(even if we seriously doubt it). Botttom Line; Is that we do not know the facts either way! We are simply bombarded with information from the media with their spin on it(even THEY don't have all the details). The greatest illusion is that of knowledge! So in defense of Europeans sometimes a more pragmatic approach to certain issues will yield less violatile debates that are essentially pointless.

Blogs I like

I was surfing blogs today and come across some blogs with different opinions. I have listed a few of them here. In the spirit of culture peace some have a conservative agenda and the others are more liberal. I honestly think they all make valid points in their own way.

A unifying power: in Life as in Death

Just a small footnote ( or rather overhead note!) to my tribute to the pope. It was so wonderful to watch his funeral and see that even in death he brings together people of every nationality and creed. Although I am sure most of the crowd that gathered at st. Peter's square to witness his funeral were for the most part catholics, in the front row seats, I saw some very non-catholic looking faces. Leaders of so many different religions not only paid their respects to the Pope but also actively participated in his funeral rites, turning it into one of the most global events in recent history. Indeed the turnout of National leaders made me constantly remind myself that I was watching the pope's funeral not a ceremony at a UN summit. And of course I loved the way the media zeroed in on the offering of peace during the mass when the presidents of Isreal, Iran and Syria shook hands! All in all a majestic end to a royal life.

A portrait of Hope and Love! 

CultUre Peace mourns Peace Advocate

I believe the greatest legacy of Pope John Paul the second is that of tolerance and understanding, the seeds that bear fruit in time to be peace and justice. It is because of this legacy that I decided to pay homage to this great man on this blog.
While many did not agree with him on his more conservative stances, there was a light his presence brought and universal truth resonated in his words breaking all conventional boundaries of religion, class and geography.
What I have found most fascinating was his ability to touch the hearts of men, who not being Catholics were not necessarily inclined to listen to his message much less accept it. This was primarily because addressed issues that were inherently important to all mankind. He was an advocate for Peace, he denounced all forms of oppression, and he was an activist for the poor, the weak and the helpless.
One of his strongest convictions is the dignity of human life. From this steams a variety of principles some of which are very controversial. The Pope was very much against the death penalty. Despite the fact that he had witnessed firsthand the cruelty of man’s inhumanity, he believed no soul was beyond redemption and that God’s mercy was boundless. This Pope did not just preach forgiveness, he practiced it. He visited in jail the man who had attempted and very nearly succeeded to kill him. He forgave him and refused to disclose the details of that conversation. There-in lies one of the most compelling characteristics of this Pope, he did as he preached.
I cannot help but wonder if perhaps in his commitment to life, he should have taken a more liberal stance on contraception. AIDS is a very big killer in Africa and lots of lives are lost everyday, as not using condoms is justified on a moral/religious ground. It is hypocrisy to engage in sexual promiscuity and then claim moral high ground on the use of condoms but that is reality. It would be wonderful if everyone had the moral integrity of the Pope, but they do not, and as such we have the moral obligation to protect the life not of the potential egg or sperm but of the wives and children who die everyday of AIDS. Then again, what do I know?
I completely agree with his anti-abortion stance; however I unlike most with similar views do not seek to impose these views on others. I find it hilarious that anti-abortion activists come from a social class that are least likely to ever face the reality of an abortion. I believe the final choice is up to the individual because so are the consequences. My convictions have never been tested in this matter and so they are not even convictions they are “what I would like to do”. I think only those who have actually had to make this choice in face of great adversity can truly have a conviction. For everyone else our opinions are nothing more than what we have been programmed to believe is morally or socially correct.
Premarital sex: another big issue. I agree with the Pope that sex is taken too lightly but unless we all start getting married before the age of 20, premarital chastity is never going to be a reality except for a very few cases. This is of course something I would hardly expect a man with decades of celibacy under his belt to understand. I also believe one of the roots of most of modern society’s problems is the breakdown of the family unit and that marriage is taken too lightly. However if marriage becomes the young persons license to morally acceptable sex it would only compound the problem. Then again, what do I know?
Gay people will always have my unfaltering sympathy. I cannot even begin to imagine what it most be like to live such a persecuted life. Every openly gay person displays great courage, integrity and resolution to defy the odds, all traits that I admire in any individual. This is a long debate that many will disagree with me on but, in the spirit of tolerance one has to accept every person, for we were all created in God’s image (even the Gay person). I also sometimes wonder how being gay is any more “un-natural” than life long celibacy. Then again, what do I know?
As a woman the Pope’s adamant position on female clergy saddens me the most. Then I remember that 1000 years ago we were said to not have souls. 100 years ago American women could not vote. Things will eventually change, perhaps slowly but certainly. The biggest mistake we can make is adopting the false delusion that women are no longer second class citizens. The dream of gender equality is yet to be reality. We have to keep the wheels of change oiled and in motion. If head of a prestigious academic institution in the US can say “women are innately deficient…….. “(Never mind the context) and be defended by other Americans in the name of academic dialogue, I personally become very concerned for the fragile equality that women in some countries in the western world now enjoy.
I didn’t mean to touch on so many hot issues all at once. I will revisit all these issues at a later time with more in-depth analysis to try and understand the reality of the various issues. Here I have mostly given my own simple opinions and of course I am no authority nor do I claim to be.
To conclude, I join the millions of Christians, Muslims, Jews and atheists in regretting the passing of a philanthropist whose vision of the world so universal it brought hope to people of every faith. We all look to the future and hope that his legacy will live on not just in the Catholic Church but in the hearts of men