From: kgatling@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Keith E Gatling)
Subject: Re: Remote (Taxpayer) Wallets
Organization: Manlius Pebble Hill School; Dewitt, NY
Date: Mon, 7 Sep 92 02:16:38 EDT

In article <1992Sep6.002053.11254@rotag.mi.org> kevin@rotag.mi.org (Kevin
Darcy) writes:

   > What if she said she was on the pill, and that SHE didn't "like
   > the feel of condoms", and it turned out she just wanted someone
   > to subsidize her solo parenthood? Once the rabbit dies, it's
   > "Bye bye, hon. Just make the checks out to 'supermom', okay?".
   > Would you reward such fraud and duplicity? Would you encourage
   > the next woman to pull the same stunt?

And what about those guys who say, "Not to worry, I'm sterile"?  I'm sorry,
but I have to say this:

     If you are going to have sex, you have to accept the possibility
     that you will have a kid.  Condoms break, spermicides fail,
     tetracycline has been known to nullify the effects of the pill.
     If you don't want to run the risk of having a kid, keep it in
     your pants.

In addition, and this goes for BOTH parties, men and women:  

     EACH person is ultimately responsible for taking care of birth
     control.  This means that if a woman doesn't want to get
     pregnant, she needs to take care of it herself and not assume
     the guy will.  If the guy doesn't want to get anyone pregant, he
     needs to take care of it himself and not assume the woman will.
     If you don't want it to look like you don't trust the other
     person, just remember what I said above, "Condoms break,
     spermicides fail, tetracycline has been known to nullify the
     effects of the pill."  Consider taking care of your end of the
     equation a safeguard in case the other person's end fails.

You were tricked into having a kid, so why should you have to support it?

     Very simple...because it's yours.  Think for a moment, you're
     not hurting the mother by running out.  You're hurting the kid.
     While the court may well agree that it was a sleazy move on the
     part of the mother to trick you like that, the simple fact of
     the matter is that no one put a gun to your head and told you to
     have sex, and their concern is that the *child* is taken care
     of.  Or, as Super Chicken said to Fred, "You knew the job was
     dangerous when you took it."

In reading this to my wife before sending it out, she added another thing to
think about on this whole issue...

     We sure have gotten spoiled since birth control.

And unfortunately, she's right.  We forget that modern contraceptive methods
only reduce the odds of pregnancy, but with the exception of sterilization
they never totally eliminate it.  And so we get upset when despite our best
precautions pregnancy occurs.

Like I said before...if you really want to be sure that you don't get
(someone) pregnant, play Monopoly instead.

Hmm...I think that this is about the closest to a flame I've ever come to
writing.  Let's just say that the heating pad was on.



--
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* Keith E Gatling                                  kgatling@mailbox.syr.edu *
*          Opinions?  I've got plenty of them.  Just ask my wife!           *
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