Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn

These ending words from Rhett to Scarlet in the film classic Gone With the Wind fittingly summarizes the attitude of most males to the Reproductive Health, or RH bill Congress is deliberating on.

Why so? Because in this Battle of the Sexes, we men will (as always) end up on top.

Consider some of the main arguments the bill’s proponents are highlighting and anyone with common sense would easily see the tremendous advantages these would give to us men.

First, a woman would have greater control over her reproductive power, choosing when to be fertile.

What man would refuse such a gift? More power to us! We can screw as many as we want, without fear of getting women pregnant. Of course, women RH proponents claim they can enjoy the “power” this would give them, but anyone who knows Anatomy (or Biology) 101 can see that men have the copulation advantage.

Second, the RH bill would allow a woman to “seek her new identity,” and be equal to men in many respects, by freeing themselves from the “old-fashioned” roles of wife and mother, managing the household and child-bearing. What man in his right mind would refuse this? With more women becoming co-providers, men don’t have to work as hard. Heck, I know “housebands” who enjoy their days golfing and watching DVDs. Of course, wifey’s reproductive power (see point 1 above) means we men can do other things while the wifey finds her identity in the office . . . wink-wink . . .

Third, having fewer children, RHers say, is a sign of responsible parenthood, good for the mother’s health, good for the economy, and more humane. Again, like most other men, who could disagree with such logic? Of course, fewer children means the woman can spend more time working, in or outside the home (her choice) or in an office, so she can spend more on the child or herself and for her partner (male or female, if she has one), who doesn’t have to work as hard.

Fourth, by opening the door to abortion, divorce and same-sex marriage, the RH bill will be good for our country’s economic development because a lower population would mean fewer of us dividing the economic pot. Of course, I agree, because in the Philippines the real cause of poverty is a growing population, the bad influence of religion, and the women who all these years have been abused by male chauvinists.

Unfortunately, these arguments are (“stupid” is such a strong word, so I’ll use instead another) “counterintuitive,” which is probably why legislators, survey groups, and a few more people are supporting the RH bill. The silent majority who oppose the RH bill are too busy earning a living because they do not have financial support from foreign governments, pharmaceutical firms and pro-choice NGOs.

Open your eyes, look around, and what do you see? The RH bill is a ploy to fool woman under the guise of giving her greater control over her reproductive capacity, her economic potential, her identity. The RH bill makes of us a nation of male rapists who abuse our women, chauvinists who refuse women the capability to be equal to men, an archipelago of fools who overproduce babies because of a blind hope for their future potential.

The RH bill makes rules out of exceptions. For countless generations in my family, the women have ruled the home (stated confidently with my wife’s permission), controlled their reproductive rights (ask any normal Filipino husband), and welcomed babies as signs of love. The RH bill wants to make women think “to be like God.”

We know what happened the first time. Unless we act, it will happen again.

Contributor Manoling de Leon can be reached at De Leon Pinoy Pilgrim Global Foundation Inc., 16 Polk Street North Greenhills, San Juan City 1500, Metro Manila Philippines.

www.pinoypilgrim.org, Tel. No. 722-2205, Fax No. 722-2190. info@pinoypilgrim.org This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. –Manoling de Leon Senior Citizen Republic of the Philippines, Manila Times