Do you even know what you're up in arms over?

I'm extra rant-y today, so I apologize in advance. I thought I could just go about and ignore all the stupid posts I'm seeing on Facebook about the SCOTUS decision on the Hobby Lobby case or all the "feminists" in my feed declaring that we are somehow setting women back a hundred years and are on a "slippery slope" to allowing all kinds of ridiculous religious freedoms to affect our medical access by allowing this private business to "mandate" their religion on their employees. Just reading that back makes my brain hurt. On the flip side, seeing the conservative posts where people are interrupting or shaming or in some cases shouting at the opposition isn't really doing anything to help the conversation. So I decided to post about it-even if it only makes me feel better by getting it all out.

First of all, I feel like I need to preface this post with a few overshares from me, so you know where I am. I want to include this so that you have an idea on where I stand on the issue of contraception, not to validate my opinion.

• I am currently pregnant with an "oops". Let no one tell you that ANY contraception is 100% accurate, because the more I share how I thought I was the elusive 1% of a 99% effective birth control, the more I hear that this is more common than people think.
• Prior to my pregnancy, I was planning on getting a birth control implant placed in my arm as a convenience factor. The implant (with insurance) was going to cost me a total of $365. I am trying to see in what case any implant would be considered a right or necessity. I have read about a few cases of it being used to treat endometrial hyperplasia, but I would be interested to see what the statistics are on convenience vs. medical need, as well as any homeopathic or natural medicines (none of which are covered by insurance) are used to treat that condition. (Side note: I don't know how many people have seen D.O.s, but NONE of that stuff is covered by insurance, despite its effectiveness. ALL out of pocket) Many companies, other than Hobby Lobby have not covered IUDs in the past. Some only cover them partially now. 
• I have purchased Plan B a handful of times in my adult life- both from the time when you could only get it if you went to a doctor to get a prescription for it, to when it became available behind the counter. I've never had it covered by my insurance- possibly because I must be the only person on the planet that didn't know that with the Obamacare changes, it WAS even covered by my insurance. I believe it to be a great back up option and not to be an evil abortifacient. Accidents do happen, and part of purchasing a product like this is having to own that piece of yourself that decided to engage in the activity in the first place and to know that there are consequences to your actions.

For your edification, here's what Plan B is/does:

• Plan B is an EMERGENCY contraception. It is intended to be used if your birth control fails. From the site: directly, Plan B One-Step^® is emergency contraception that helps prevent pregnancy after birth control failure or unprotected sex. It is a backup method of preventing pregnancy and should not be used as regular birth control. Use as directed.
• It's about $46 at Target/Walmart/CVS/Walgreens and about $30 (plus visit coinsurance cost) at Planned Parenthood
• It works very similarly to birth control. Also directly from the site: Plan B One-Step^® is one tablet with levonorgestrel, a hormone that has been used in many birth control pills for several decades. Plan B One-Step^® contains a higher dose of levonorgestrel than birth control pills, but works in a similar way to prevent pregnancy. It works mainly by stopping the release of an egg from the ovary. It is possible that Plan B One-Step^® may also work by preventing fertilization of an egg (the uniting of sperm with the egg) or by preventing attachment (implantation) to the uterus (womb)

Here's what Plan B is NOT/doesn't do:

Plan B One-Step^® should not be used:

• As a regular birth control method, because it's not as effective as regular birth control. Because it is the equivalent of taking about 8-10 regular birth control pills, it is absolutely not safe to use as a means of birth control. Unless you like blood clots. Or strokes.
• If you are already pregnant, because it will not work. Please note that this means it will not terminate an existing pregnancy.
• If Plan B One-Step® is taken as directed, it can significantly decrease the chance that you will get pregnant. About 7 out of every 8 women who would have gotten pregnant will not become pregnant. Meaning this is not 100% effective.

Now that that's out of the way, I want to talk about some of the statements I'm seeing on Facebook that I take issue with.

You have to be careful about the positioning and wording of pictures like this. Did I miss the part where Hobby Lobby is refusing birth control coverage of any kind? There were four types of birth control at the center of Hobby Lobby’s contentions: Plan B and Ella- both emergency contraceptives, Copper Intrauterine Device and IUD with progestin — forms of birth control that some believe can cause or are akin to abortion.

I don't agree with either position on the contraception method, but I totally agree with their decision to not cover it if it goes against their beliefs. ESPECIALLY since they are still covering some form of birth control.
National Review has provided a list of all of the drugs and procedures that Hobby Lobby employees can still take advantage of free of charge — including oral birth control:

• Female condoms
• Male condoms
• Diaphragms with spermicide
• Sponges with spermicide
• Cervical caps with spermicide
• Spermicide alone
• Birth-control pills with estrogen and progestin (“Combined Pill)
• Birth-control pills with progestin alone (“The Mini Pill)
• Birth control pills (extended/continuous use)
• Contraceptive patches
• Contraceptive rings
• Progestin injections
• Implantable rods Dude! That's what I wanted to get!
• Vasectomies
• Female sterilization surgeries
• Female sterilization implants

That still sounds like Hobby Lobby will cover conventional birth control, which makes these next two common catchphrases seem very irrelevant:

"Well I hope they have a good maternity plan then, since this will result in unwanted pregnancies!" 

How so? If you can choose from those other 16 options or pay for one of the other 4 on your own, if you turn up pregnant, I have to wonder how they are at fault.

"This is totally unfair for those women who cannot afford birth control or need it for other reasons. News flash- birth control is used for the treatment of other medical conditions such as acne, hormonal imbalance, and endometriosis"

News flash- you can still get the kind of birth control that treats this. Last I read, Plan B and Ella were not used to treat any of these conditions and I would love to see the statistics on the number of IUDs (referencing my thought above) prescribed as the sole option for any of these conditions. Additionally, as I mentioned before, natural treatments (like the progesterone cream and other homeopathic treatments I was taking for my own hormonal imbalance) are not covered by insurance either.

On the note of purchasing Plan B or Ella ($40-$50), since when is an emergency contraception treatment a woman's sole responsibility? If you can't afford to purchase that on your own, then why in the world are you not asking the other culpable party (the man) to help you with the cost of preventing an unwanted pregnancy? If you think it is somehow feminist and liberating to do it on your own, then you are missing the empowerment of being able to have a grown up discussion with someone who should be equally responsible in the contraception conversation. Just as protection is no one party's responsibility (i.e. women should also keep condoms on hand to take charge of their protection), any emergency situation should be discussed between the two.

If you'll read the small print, you'll see the other major concern that this is a "slippery slope" to the liberties that will be taken on religious freedoms and that a corporation is not a person and is not protected by the First Amendment. Matt Walsh wrote a far more involved piece on this than I did, but I would add that even within the Christian Scientists spectrum, the thoughts on medical care are varied. As this article from the Denver Post quotes:

"Our church does not require us to use prayer only," Van Vleck said. "Our church does not punish us for getting a bone set or receiving any kind of medical treatment. It's the individual's choice. Such treatment could be a temporary means, a step, that enables someone to take the next step to complete reliance on God."

I had no idea that everyone was an expert on how these different religions would choose to run a business or what they are even willing to push back to the supreme court about. I can't seem to locate the media attention around a Jehovah's Witness owned business who is also going  to the Supreme Court to fight against covering blood transfusions- which I ALSO didn't even know was an a-la-carte option in health coverage! Crazy. Knowing this now, I'll be sure to schedule my weekly blood transfusion since it's covered by insurance...for now.

I also saw this SomeeCard that was amended from the famous Birth Control: Not my Boss' Business signs that protesters held:

Mostly because I think the implication is one that says Hobby Lobby- who is apparently employing half of Facebook these days- is trying to regulate their use of birth control. Which they aren't. And I hate to point out the obvious, but when you go to work for a company- you accept their benefits package, PTO policies, employee hand books and any other conditions that they have because (in full contradiction to this slogan) IT IS THEIR BUSINESS and they can run it how they see fit. If you don't like it, you don't have to work there. I doubt Hobby Lobbys are the "food desert" of employment. If there's only one establishment to work in town, I doubt it's an arts and crafts store. I would probably think that their decision to go into market is based on the population base and would really never be the only place people could work. But people are working for them, probably in part because their starting pay is 190% of minimum wage. But you don't get to have it both ways- if you want to work for a great company who offers great pay, you get what comes with that company. If this polarizing birth control alternative coverage is THAT important to you, you are free to choose an employer who covers the plan, or go part time and enroll in Obamacare. I doubt any management in Hobby Lobby is checking to make sure you aren't taking any birth control. They are simply saying they don't want to cover these 4. And why shouldn't they be allowed to make that compromise?!

When I was in college, my parents didn't want me to work. And they provided me a monthly salary to live off of. I didn't like that it wasn't as much as I wanted and I didn't like that they got to weigh in on my activities, but as they explained, "If you are under our financial umbrella, we get to make the rules. If you don't want to be under those rules, you need to be under your own financial umbrella." So that's what I did- no way, man- I want to do what I want to do! So I got a job and started living how I wanted to live. This is exactly the case with Hobby Lobby. You want Plan B or an IUD? Pay for it. What the heck is so hard to understand about that?

I am most amused at the fact that people can't actually articulate what it is they are protesting. I think the funniest example of this was on this video from the madworld blog.

I realize that this is conservative, but it's a good example of why it's important to know what you are arguing before you do it. Same for the right- dear Lawd, let the woman talk so you can have a rational discussion that may force someone to think! Do you realize how dumb this makes you seem- even if you're right?

I think ultimately, I really wish both sides understood what they were opposing and how to do that in a logical way. I think part of the way to effectively get your point across is to at the very least LISTEN to what the other side is saying, and then counter it with your thoughts/possible support. Blindly yelling talking points...on either side...is asinine.

Trust me- I'm more than willing to have a calm and rational conversation about it and say, "You know what? I haven't thought about that from that point." Having said that, I don't want someone coming at me telling me that any thought is trash just because it comes from a certain news source. I don't do that when I look at debates- there can be valuable information from any source. Just know your stuff! Make rational points! It's not difficult.