Ezra Klein: Culture of Life Indeed

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April 30, 2005

Culture of Life Indeed

In one of the sicker incarnations of the Christian Right's myopia, they're gearing up to oppose a new vaccine that could protect women from HPV, the virus that causes most instances of cervical cancer. HPV, of course, is often spread through sex, so the God Squad is worried that giving children a vaccination will, years later, be interpreted as a divine "alrighty-then" to lead a life packed with penises. This appears to be what Christ's legacy has come to: the prioritization of abstinence over life.

That's what should be taken away from these comments. Bush likes to conceal his stance on abortion through the inegnious "culture of life" formulation. But these people don't really want a culture of life. Their overriding objective is not protecting women from AIDS and HPV and cervical cancer and potentially deadly childbirth (as in partial-birth abortions) and other potential killers, it's stopping them for having premarital sex. And if a few -- hell, if a lot! -- have to die to make that future manifest, then so be it. So next time you hear someone spout off about the "culture of life", don't be fooled -- this is a culture of puritanism and subjugation, nothing more, nothing less. A culture of life, you can tell them, doesn't kill.

April 30, 2005 | Permalink

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Comments

Oh Ezra, you just don't understand. They are protecting life - the life of the poor human papilloma virus which is much more worthy of protection than some slut's is, don't you think?

Posted by: Ol Cranky | Apr 30, 2005 3:45:38 PM

Well Sir,
I read the article and it had many facets that you chose not to highlight. For instance:

"Vaccinating men could be the best way to prevent the spread of the cancer-causing virus among women"

One would think if you were really interested in this vaccine's ability to save lives, you would have mentioned this iimportant point.

OR this:
"Meanwhile in developing countries, where 80 percent of the deaths from cervical cancer occur, social taboos may be even more powerful."

You do, indeed, have a point. However, I thought is was equally important to highlight your perceived war against the religious right by showing the more minor issues you choose to rail against, and yet, ignore the more effective points in the article that could save lives such as vaccinating men or the stupidity of foreign cultures where the vast majority of deaths actually occur.

Posted by: Robert Zimmerman | Apr 30, 2005 5:08:36 PM

You're right Robert, I do pick and choose what I write about. That's because there are certain things I'm qualified to speak on, and certain things I'm not. Men should undoutedly be vaccinated and taboos evaded, but not much I can do about that. Helping to point out the theocrat's hypocrisy is a whole 'nother story.

Posted by: Ezra | Apr 30, 2005 6:54:23 PM

"Vaccinating men could be the best way to prevent the spread of the cancer-causing virus among women"

Yes, indeed! But they are a substantial and prevalent danger to men as well.

Internal and external anal and genital warts are very common in men, and are rarely surgically excised, frozen with nitrogen, or killed with acid to remove them.

The warts can spread to the face quite easily and shaving just spreads them around on the face. Treatment on the face requires giving up shaving until all traces of the warts are gone.

It takes persistence to clear the warts but removing them is nearly painless (unless internal). Removing the warts does not remove the HPV from the human body however, and any assault on the immune system can lead to their reoccurance. They cannot be 'cured'.

These HPV warts spread very easily with any skin to skin contact and therefore migrate on and between persons. If the warts migrate into the anal tract they can lead to anal cancer, which often leads to colestectomies which require the patient to use an external bag for elimination for the rest of their lives.

I've seen estimates that 70% of all US adults harbor HPV warts in their many varients - there are like 14 different kinds of HPV.

Amazingly, men seem to be completely ignorant of the danger, and just dismiss these warts from their minds until truly awful consequences occur. Since men think that PAP testing is just a female thing, they ignorantly pass HPV to their sexual partners, male and female.

I understand that the new vaccine brings immunity to something like a half dozen of the most common HPV variants.

Once available, the vaccine should be given to all children at the earliest age that the FDA will allow - this is probably a function of the testing among younger children. No testing, no labelled use.

Posted by: JimPortlandOR | Apr 30, 2005 6:59:08 PM

"Vaccinating men could be the best way to prevent the spread of the cancer-causing virus among women"

One would think if you were really interested in this vaccine's ability to save lives, you would have mentioned this iimportant point.

Do you suggest making it available to males and females having to trust men as vaccinated? The religious right has spoken against females getting vaccinated:

Bridget Maher of the Family Research Council, a leading Christian lobby group says, “Giving the HPV vaccine to young women could be potentially harmful, because they may see it as a licence to engage in premarital sex.”

Unless there's a significant medical reason to abstain from vaccination it should be made available to all, regardless of sex as described by Jim above.

Posted by: Ol Cranky | Apr 30, 2005 7:19:20 PM

I remember when I got a tetanus vaccination. I went out and stepped on every rusty nail I could find!!

Posted by: Grumpy | Apr 30, 2005 8:48:28 PM

Grumpy -- Nice.

Posted by: Ezra | Apr 30, 2005 9:02:47 PM

What I hate most about these people is that they regard misfortunes that befall sexually active single women as just punishment. To them, STDs aren't really so awful if it's only sluts getting infected -- they deserve it. Cruel vengeance gets directed against girls who were just trying to have a good time. Any man with a sense of chivalry should be driven to fury by this.

Posted by: Ethical Werewolf | Apr 30, 2005 11:45:55 PM

Ever read Margaret Atwood's book "A Handmaid's Tale"? We're headed that direction.

Posted by: Nora L. Ingram | May 1, 2005 8:22:25 AM

I guess it's common for the left to regard cultures other than their own "off limits" to criticism unless it is the American South or the American religious. Almost anything can be tolerated as long as they are a foreign culture. I would just like to see some fairness in this area, that's all. If you think the Southern religious culture deserves some criticism in this area, then so do the foreign cultures for the same reasons and not simply hand them a pass.

Posted by: Robert Zimmerman | May 1, 2005 1:54:00 PM

Well, RZ, when religion and medicine was mixed up in Nigeria, I don't recall any liberals or lefties taking the side of the indigenous religious leaders who prevented children from getting immunized for polio.

So, got any other straw men to get knocked down?

Posted by: The Dark Avenger | May 1, 2005 11:35:04 PM

Nor were any lefties railing on them either (as they do the American religious leaders).

Posted by: Robert Zimmerman | May 2, 2005 9:20:20 AM

This thing with the abstenatation is really silly.It's important the girls to have some sexual culture to know how to prevent them from cervical cancer not to have sex after marriage or never.

Posted by: Cara Fletcher | Mar 18, 2007 6:31:49 AM

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