Rush's insane and reality-challenged rush off the cliff caught the attention of many of us, and the fact that he focused on sluttishness and too much sex for naughty women made it easy to focus on the reality of Sandra Fluke's testimony, the need for some women to have hormone therapy regardless of whether or not they're sexually active.
I agree with Dante Atkin's front page post that there's a certain danger in going too far to that side.
I wrote an open letter to Rush Limbaugh early on in the controversy, and it was largely focused on my right to have sex when I want, with whom I want, and to not have to be "punished" by an unintended or unwanted pregnancy. (which is a whole 'nother can of worms. If you love the babies so much, how can you also consider them a punishment for slutty womanish behavior? Is there anyone out there in RW land with (possibly) a measurable IQ who can answer that?)
I also challenged their love of the babies, and their commitment to Holy Matrimony. Not that that really needed to be said, it's clear as can be.
I joined the Sluts Group on Kos with glee and with a sense that for the first time in my life I was free of the baggage of that wretched word. If enjoying sex with a number of partners makes me a Slut, God bless me! I'm old enough and experienced enough to be able to discard the Rush types before we ever get to the lip-lock stage, so sex tends to be fun, enjoyable, and a lovely way to make a deeper connection with a man I care about. I may even be able to love him somewhere down the line! I may not. That's no longer the point for me.
My children were born in 1971 and 1974, the first 13 months after the wedding, the second when the first was old enough to be prepared for a sibling. It took birth control to pull off that timing (and youth, and a DNA slanted toward fecundity). There were 2 children because my husband and I were strong believers in ZPG. We felt comfortable replacing ourselves. Anything more seemed wrong to us given the problems the world faced with food distribution, reliable medical care globally, and the stress on the biome.
That's a strong belief for me. If I have any religious leanings anymore they tend to be the things that struck me hard as a child and that continue to resonate into my adulthood. I took the Stewards and Caretakers admonition from the Creation story seriously, probably because my parents made sure we saw every natural wonder in the US, camped in almost every National Park, and learned to revere nature. If I have any thoughts about a Creator, they would be along the lines of revering the Creation as much as the Creator - the least we can do to show our gratitude for this amazing, incredibly rich planet is to care for it. It's painful to watch the devastation of those natural gifts and wonders, particularly because it seems primarily driven by greed and selfishness. It's also painful to think about all our fellow creatures being destroyed because we have no respect for their Life. We're superior because of opposable thumbs or something equally questionable, so we have the right to decimate all other populations? I am owned by two parrots, I have ample evidence of their intelligence, their emotions, their sense of fun, their delight in life. Pudgie has been my companion for 28 years. I can't think about loss of habitat without swinging between rage and grief.
The ZPG movement died out, for the most part, because the Religious zealots fought it so hard. The idea that my religious convictions could impinge on their dogma was so infuriating to them they succeeded in ending the conversation. And I guess I can understand that. I made my choice about how many children to have, and I have no tolerance for anyone telling me I'm wrong, or forcing me to have more, so I probably shouldn't be telling them to control their reproductive choices. I would like to see the conversation open up again, however. I'd like to hear from people who share my convictions, and who stand up for sticking to them. I'd like to hear from religious people who take Stewardship seriously. I'd like to hear some discussion about the rights of all our relations.
Mostly, though, I'd like to hear from other women who don't give a shit what Rush or Mitt or Rick or Eric think about our sexual choices. I'd like to hear from women who just plain like sex, and "have so much of it" they need birth control because abstinence and rhythm methods don't cut it.
I'd like to hear from women who, like me, have learned to avoid the men who don't like or appreciate women's bodies, who don't really like women much at all, who are grossed out by our sex organs.
I'd like to hear women tell Rush that he'll never have so much sex his partner(s) needs birth control because women have learned to respect themselves enough to avoid men like him.
I'd like to hear women tell all men that exact thing - if you have Slut issues, if you suffer from Madonna/ Whore syndrome, if you're threatened by women who enjoy sex and want a partner who enjoys it equally - buy an inflatable doll. I'm far too interesting to be nothing more than a receptacle for the Holy Semen.