A few weeks ago I got really obsessed with the show Mad Men, which provides a pretty interesting snapshot of the advertising industry in the early 1960s. And because I think the creators wanted to depict the time period accurately, it’s incredibly sexist. I’ve caught myself muttering expletives at the male characters on my TV more than once in the past week.
That being said, I still like the show and find it pretty intriguing. I like to think that it illustrates how far we’ve come as a society.
Or does it?
Somewhere during the first season, Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss), who is arguably the most independent female on the show, opts to go on birth control. The doctor who prescribes the medication condescendingly addresses her and says that she better not think that being on birth control makes it okay for her to whore herself out. Peggy, who is still pretty timid and docile at this point, urges the doctor that she’s not that kind of girl.
So when this birth control debate exploded a few months ago, all I could think was “really? Is this really something people are still bickering about?”
In 2012, 50 plus years after the time period of Mad Men, some people still think that being on birth control inherently makes you sleazy (Rush Limbaugh, anyone?) and all that Planned Parenthood does is perform abortions. Or maybe they’re indifferent about birth control, but as an employer they sure as hell don’t want it covered on their female employee’s insurance.
Mad Men takes place in a time period that seems extremely outdated for the most part. Segregation ended a long time ago, homophobia is slowly diminishing, we can say with scientific certainty that cigarettes are harmful, and I like to think that being a chick in today’s society doesn’t disadvantage me in any of the ways it did for Peggy Olson.
But after hearing both sides of the birth control debate and then watching Mad Men nonstop, I see that we haven’t made as much progress as I had originally thought. Besides putting power in the hands of women, birth control can have a wide array of added benefits. It’s definitely not for all women, but I firmly believe that it should be a realistic option.
Our country has a plethora of other problems to tackle. Peddling backward and trying to argue against birth control is a poor use of time in my opinion, something continuous episodes of Mad Men made me realize.
This article appears in May 31 – Jun 6, 2012.
For most businesses and their healthcare bills, it is better to offer birth control. Higher worker productivity, no need to cover someone out on maternity leave, and most likely a happier less stressed worker when they arrive at work.
While most folks are against abortion. It always amazes me the same folks that say no birth control and no abortions on religious grounds, are also frequently those who say no to providing assistance for the health care of the unwanted pregnancy of the single mother, or even the pre-natal care for the very poor. Both which cost the society more in the log run. There is some kind of double standard in there.
Freak-a-nomics found a correlation to the advent of birth control, to the reduction of unwanted pregnancies by the poor, and actually a reduction in crime and drugs in poorer communities.
Our R state legislature seems hell bent on actually making things worst. Guess they want to insure a supply of bodies to populate those private prisons they voted funding for.
Long ago I quit the highest paying job I ever had because I found that the born again, evangelical owner of the company was prying into the medical business of his employees. I made a lot of money for that asshole and he essentially ran me off because of his religious beliefs and his thinking that they gave him some kind of right to find out who was taking what medications among his employees. I can only hope he gets all that he deserves in his hereafter.
But just think,
Without God or religion, what would people have to justify their hatred and intolerance?
OK Bob Regan,lets all become pagans and everyone will become brothers and no one will hate anymore……yeah right……
Re: “it’s incredibly sexist. I’ve caught myself muttering expletives at the male characters on my TV more than once in the past week.”
Yes, women’s anger at men’s behavior is what happens when sexism is cast as being one-way. “Mad Men” makes the mistake of trying to be realistic by looking at the ’60s through the lens of modern-day political correctness, the lens of “only men are sexist.”
For a comprehensive look at the sexes’ most destructive behavioral difference, in the sixties and in the current day, see: “The Sexual Harassment Quagmire” at http://malemattersusa.wordpress.com/2011/1…