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Back in October of 1957 a Health Fair was held at Fullerton Union High School. If you were enrolled in any Science Class, it was required to spend about an hour taking a peek at all the various exhibits. The topics regarding Science seemed endless, including Astrophysics, Chemistry, Nuclear Energy and all the Health Sciences. The Russians had just launched “Sputnik”. The exhibits were fascinating. Various volunteers from the community, that included local Surgeons, General Practicioner Doctors, Nurses, Scientists from then Huges Aircraft and Science Division, Chemists from Hunts Ketchup, Aircraft Controllers from Fullerton Airport, Sign ups for the Ground Observer Corps and various teachers that taught High School and Junior College Chemistry, Math Teachers and most importantly Health Science. Biology exhibits included dissection of Frogs and other creatures…..in various stages – placed on wooded boards.
As at 15 year old, going through the motions of “raging hormones”, which entailed a variety of frustrations there was one particular exhibit which so shocked and so influenced anyone that saw it – that it became the talk of the entire Science Fair. Glass Cylinders had been aligned and arranged so that the clear liquid could clearly expose the contents. There were over 30 of these glass cylinders. Starting at two weeks, the embryos contained therein continued to get bigger and bigger and bigger until the full body of a 7lb baby floated in the clear liquid with the eyes and hands and feet and genitalia completely visable. These were the days before “the pill”! This visual literally could scare almost anyone into a total state of abstinence!
In those days, there was no birth control except the BPA Diaphram, BPA Trojans – which every boy carried in his wallet, until the aluminum foil broke and leaked out the dried up contents. Then it was back to the Drug Store to have one of your brave friends buy two or three for all the guys that needed them. In these days, there was no Planned Parenthood. There were backroom “Quacks” that performed coat hanger surgery with dirty scalpels and sometime abusive techniques which included putting the patient under and sexually abusing them before doing the surgery. There were Doctors however that would do the procedure for the rich girls with parents that wanted the procedure done – for a price. There were doctors in Mexico, in Tiajuana who made a lot of money doing the procedures for young caucasian girls from San Diego and elsewhere. These doctors had lots of training, because of the protistute population, which required these procedures on a regular basis. Many women in the United States who were from the upper classes were able to go to Europe or Asian Countries for their work. The first sex change operation of course of Christine Jorgenson set the world a stir. But Christine was not the first…..back in 1030, a German boy renamed Lili Elbe became the first one for “Sex Reassignment Surgery” and became a girl. Today, we have Caitlin Jenner…..but this has been going on for almost a 100 years…soon.
As the 60’s moved our country forward: “The Times they are a changin!” said Bob Dylan in 1964. “The Pill” had changed our world and our country. “Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young and Leave a Beautiful Memory!” became the maxim – in a world seemingly always at war, where American youth were drafted to fight wars in Asia at 18-25 years of age, defend the world from the Russian Bear and die in the hands of bad military and elected leaders. If the fast cars, war or fast girls didn’t kill everyone – perhaps the new wars would perhaps. Soon, the less opulent in our society, saw that Abortion was only for the rich. The poor girls in South Chicago, or South Central Los Angeles – had to settle for back room; sometimes self inflicted procedures to not feed another unwanted mouth, because they couldn’t even afford Birth Control Pills. The Catholic Church at that time said “Any birth control – except rhythm is a mortal sin!”. In addition to the Catholics, the Jewish and Fundamental Christian populations didn’t want their kids to stop having kids because they were deathly afraid that the profligate Blacks, Hispanics and Asians would soon oblique the white population base and soon take their property, their women and their fortunes. The deaths of Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, RFK and JFK…..inspired bi-racial dating, marriage and social consciousness that included lots of riots, bigotry and deaths of activists.
Planned Parenthood has been around since about 1916, founded by a lady named Margaret Sanger. The Back Street, Back Alley abortions were going on even then and before. There was also another reason: Eugenics. Sanger had to find funds in addition to her husband’s riches which sustained her efforts. Many believed that there were mental, physical and moral defectives in all societies. In those days, was also another seed of destruction….it was called “the School of Eugenics” which believed much as Hitler did later, that the unfit should be weeded out of the society. Hydro-cephalic babies and worse were being born, because our society was polluting the life stream with bad food, bad whiskey, industrial pollution and commercial poisons of all types. This complex issue however verged after World War II, toward preventing poverty, saving the lives of pregnant mothers with serious issues, babies with autism, crack babies, meth babies, aids babies or simply because of sex discrimination of one type or another. The mid 1960’s brought the LBJ Great Society which included Federal funding for Planned Parenthood. Venereal Disease was a major concern, Syphilis, Gonorrhea and 18 more were prevalent in both the poor and opulent areas of our country where many could either not afford or were too embarrassed to go to the doctor. The list was long and getting longer and the first Herpes Virus, Anal warts and other raised many serious societal issues. Planned Parenthood could treat these issues along with unwanted pregnancy!
What gets confusing is that during World War II, many Black men were sterilized in scientific testing. In the 1970’s Native American’s were routinely sterilized for a time. Sterilization and Eugenics however are not part of Planned Parenthood. Are there believers of Eugenics and Forced Sterilization with the Planned Parenthood Community? Difficult to quantify or assess that. Victims of Incest, victims of Rape, victims of Religious prosecution are all areas that have been treated by Planned Parenthood. Is the indictment then clear that the missing body parts of aborted fetus tissue are being sold for profits? If so, who finally benefits? The Doctor’s that perform the procedures, the various Facilities involved or solely Planned Parenthood the Corporation? If a father rapes his 12 year old daughter, or a 11 year old gets pregnant from having sex with her 40 year old Uncle…..should those pregnancies be terminated? A moral decision that should be decided by the legal guardian – unless they are culpable – wherein it should be determined in and by a court of law.
The current Republican majority in Congress wants to “shut down our entire government over the argument on Planned Parenthood funding”. We find this muddled thinking to be sure. There is no direct connecting of dots from shutting down the Federal Government over who bought dinner at the Four Seasons Hotel in 1966 to Fund Planned Parenthood! Should the Republican led Congress hold Congressional Hearing about the selling of fetal material and a inquiry into what Planned Parenthood is up to? Of course – as long as that doesn’t interfere with their various investigations into Benghazi, the State Dept. under Hillary Clinton, Lois Lerner of the IRS or who Hillary Clinton personally wrote e-mails to on an unsecured computer server! We should start listening to the Republican Leadership, when they get some. Now that John Boehner is on his way out, where is Bob Livingston now that we need him? Thank goodness Boehner has shot himself in the foot for the last time…….however, his last day is October 31st – Halloween…….which is a Saturday this year…so anything can still happen! Who is going to replace him? Eric Cantor, Kevin McCarthy or Donald Trump?
We can hardly wait for the results: Planned Parenthood and Solid Republican Advice! But what would the Pope say? Divorce and Abortion are no longer Deep Mortal Sins…..which had required “Indulgences”….now, you can just send in a letter of apology…..which is nice! Thanks Pope Francis for a wonderful week of uplift. Now, if we can only keep that going!
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