Things That Piss Me Off #3288732

I take pride in the fact that as a citizen, I can make my voice heard in several ways, such as voting or serving on a jury. It utterly astounds and, frankly, infuriates me when I hear people talking about how they want to get out of jury duty, especially women. Less than 100 years ago in the state of Oregon, women could not vote, serve on juries, or even own property. They were effectively nothing more than property of their fathers, and after marriage, their husbands. We scoff at hardline fundamentalist countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, or Afghanistan for the barbaric and backwards way women are treated, and yet in our own country, people sit around and think of ways to get out of a duty that is our goddamn birthright. Abigail Scott Duniway and Dr. Marie Equi (among countless others) did NOT fuck around with getting the right to vote or serve on juries in this state just so we can slap them in their dead faces by trying to weasel out of our civic duty.

Happy fucking 150th birthday, Oregon.

A Case for Voluntary Extinction

Port Angeles teen charged in infant's death.

Where is the self-righteous outrage over the fact that this 16-year-old girl was pregnant in the first place?

Do people honestly think that just because a woman becomes pregnant, regardless of her age, mental capacity, or financial status, it automatically imbues her with all the wisdom, compassion, and money required to raise a child?

We desperately need parenting classes taught in school from an early age, that focus on what an enormous responsibility it is to have a child, any support obligations to said child and/or its custodial parent, and how one can truly prepare for it emotionally, mentally, and physically. Comprehensive, fact-based education makes people much more likely to fully consider the consequences of their actions.