Morality is stupid - a long, rambling nonsensical diddy on Plan B.

I hate politics.

I need to get that out of the way first so that nobody thinks I have an agenda of some sort. If I'm asked if I'm a Democrat or a Republican, I typically respond by saying, "No. Hell, no."

I hate politics because it winds up being a contest of double-speak between two large groups of people whom believe their arbitrary beliefs are intrinsically ethically and morally superior and that the other "side" is basically the ultimate manifestation of evil. And what do I mean by this? Take the Republicans. Why the hell is their basic belief one of Christianity, domestic "free-market" economics, states' rights, and the use of military hegemony to help perpetuate an international economy that borders feudalism towards third world labor? What the hell do they all have in common? Jesus was a freakin' Marxist that wouldn't have said one bad word to Iraq, let alone blown the whole country to hell.

Anyway, so what am I getting at?

Well, there has been this struggle for some time between the leftists and the rightists in the US over pharmacists' right to refuse doling out certain prescriptions, namely Plan B. Recently in Washington, something has come up the pike about this very issue. Here is an excerpt from a news article:
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Board requires pharmacies to fill all orders

Objections by druggists centered on Plan B drug

TUMWATER -- After years of debate, the state has made it official: Patients must get prescriptions filled even if pharmacists are opposed to the drugs for religious or moral reasons.

The Washington State Board of Pharmacy voted unanimously Thursday to adopt a policy that applies to all kinds of medications, although it clearly was aimed at Plan B, a birth control measure that critics say is tantamount to abortion. Most health experts refute that claim.

Druggists with personal objections to a drug still could have a limited escape by getting a co-worker to fill an order. But that would apply only if the patient is able to get the prescription in the same pharmacy visit.

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So, yeah, I want to tell the world my unique spin on the issue. And kinda like those journals you read in pharmacy school, I'm just revealing all of my affiliations....k?

Ok, so. Affiliations. I have no political party because, as illustrated above, I think they are counterintuitive towards independent and critical thought. Sometimes religion is talked about. So, yeah, I have no religion. I don't really care about it. I'm gonna be a pharmacist here pretty soon, so I guess that might affect my opinion. So no political party, no religion, profession in question. That's only a little tad bit of bias.

That's a lot of rambling up there. To my point, I hate that there are people in the country that try to legislate morality. Morality is an interesting subject because it is one of those abstract ideals that can't be quantified. Is an abortion wrong? Is gay marriage wrong? Is Marijuana use wrong? Is polygamy wrong? Is operating a sweat shop wrong? Some would say they are all wrong, some would say they are all ok, some would have mixed feelings. And guess what - that's ok - it all depends on your own personal morals. My problem with the system is that people are getting pissed off over the morality of other people. So what if Don and John down the streen get married? So what if Harry down the street has 43 wives? So what if Timmy down the street lights up a doobie at while resting alone at home? How the hell does any of that affect you? Yet we have laws against polygamy and gays getting married and using marijuana - even though these acts have zero negative effect on others in society. My personal opinion is that it is absolutely retarded to legislate morality. It destroys the freedom of one person and does nothing to the collective freedom of society.

Ah, but the question of dispensing Plan B is more complex than that. It is a unique problem that has no solution that doesn't royally fuck over the autonomy of one person or the other. It's quite simple actually. You have a girl that had unprotected sex. Was she irresponsible? Was she raped? Who knows. You are a pharmacist. She comes to you with a script for Plan B - a drug that inhibits the progression of the result of a fun night in the back of a Buick into a full-on pregnancy. You are a Buddhist pharmacist and you believe in killing no living thing, nor in participating in anything linked to the act. Ever see Kill Bill? You know the guy that refused to sell his world-class swords because they are used to kill? Same concept.

But - what do you do? Do you violate your internal beliefs and concepts or do you just go ahead and do it because it's your job?

I'm actually one empathetic mofo. I can really see how the religious would get in a hizzy when confronted with the possibility of violating their religion.

On the flip side. Say you are a girl. You just got raped. Not pleasant. You slowly drag yourself to the ER. You feel like crap. You feel used, embarrassed, and weak. They examine you and give you a script for emergency contraception. You walk down to CVS and the guy behind the counter tells you he can't fill it because he thinks it's unethical. Talk about being kicked while you are down. You are angry, maybe sad.

So whose ethical cuisine reigns supreme? No matter the solution, it's wrong. Force the pharmacist to dispense? Wrong. Block a patient from receiving urgent meds? Wrong. So what do you do? Well, you try to figure out who is the least wrong. So what's the least wrong? If you are in a large city, going to a different pharmacy isn't that big of a deal, so the pharmacist would be more wronged if he/she was forced to dispense when a solution suiting both parties is available. However, if you are in Wyoming and the pharmacist mans the only pharmacy in a 200 mile radius and the patient is 15 with no transportation, it is the patient who would be more wronged if the pharmacist refused to dispense.

So what's the answer? Fuck if I know, that's what. And any logical human being would come to the same conclusion. Yet we have leftists claiming the other side is completely idiotic and unethical, and the rightists vice-versa. Guess what douchebags, you're both being idiotic and unethical. As usual. But it clearly shows my biggest beef with politics - the insistence that every damn issue be taken with such a black vs. white tilt. That's how it always is - us vs. them, good vs. evil. Guess what. There is no us or them. There is no such thing as good or evil. They are just societal constructs that fuck with objectivity.

God I hate politics.....I need a drink....fuck it, I'm gonna go draw some more stick figure cartoons. I'll let some other poor putz figure it out.