Poking Mama Grizzly

Editor, The Times:

In her column of March 22, “A relentless attack on women,” Joni Balter writes, “Talk about poking Mama Grizzlies.”

I am one of the Mama Grizzlies. In a time when the economy and jobs should be their major concerns, when women make up a significant part of the work force, the conservatives would like us to be barefoot, illiterate and confined to kitchen and bedroom — except when we vote for them.

The debate brings into clear focus three scenarios. In the first, the conservatives are totally out of touch with the real world outside the realm of the presidential campaign. How much of the rhetoric is something they truly believe and how much of it a cynical appeal to conservative voters? How much of the rhetoric is to distract voters from the fact that they have no concrete plans for creating jobs? In any case, it makes for a scary situation.

Second, banning contraception or not requiring insurance coverage shows a lack of long-term thinking. Who is going to raise, feed, educate and love all the children conceived and born?

Third, conservatives use moral and religious grounds as carved-in-stone reasons for not covering female contraception, but there are no moral or religious grounds against using Viagra and Cialis. Paying for women to have sex is immoral, but paying for men to have sex is not? Run that by me again!

But, on second thought, perhaps conservatives see insurance coverage for erectile dysfunction drugs as consistent with keeping women in their place.

— JoDee Creighton, Seattle

Access to free contraception

In Joni Balter’s column March 22, Balter states that “Suddenly, we are debating whether women deserve access to contraception.”

In all I have heard and read, that is not the debate. The debate is, rather, whether women deserve access to free contraception. Having access to contraception is not the same as having access to free contraception.

— Edith A. Keenan, Lake Stevens

Religion and health care

If the Catholic church can have its way with contraception, should not Christian Scientist organizations be able to exclude health care coverage entirely?

— Martin Walters, Renton