Fear Tactics!!!

Fear Tactics, scare tactics, fear-mongering, etc etc etc. More and more we see fear tactics being used in public health to educate, motivate, guide, and shape fill-in-the blank behavior change. Living in New York City I am quite familiar with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's constant assault on innocent subway riders with their love of smokers using talking machines, legless diabetics, HIV-infected individuals who also have anal cancer, soda pop that turns into mounds of fat, and the list goes on and on (but read here for a quick overview).

In the abortioneering world, I have seen many fear-based campaigns regarding sex, and specifically on avoiding teen pregnancy and HIV/STIs. How many of you have seen the ad with the crying baby? Or the billboard that tabulates how much a baby costs in their first year alone? Or the genitalia laden with sores? I think just about every high school or college sex ed course shows those squicky STI slides. What about images/videos of the penis swab testing that used to be standard for male STI testing? Any of this sound appealing?

Ok, so then lets say you either ignored those messages or were not scared by them...and you wind up with an unwanted pregnancy. Where do I even begin to list all the scare things we are told about abortion? Breast cancer anyone? Perforated uterus? Lifelong infertility? Depression? Suicide? Our family/friends/lovers/clergy will be disgusted with us? Have you heard these?

So, the million dollar question is, do these fear-based campaigns work? Well, the research is mixed, and it generally depends on the health issue and the duration and saturation of ads. In the field of sexual and reproductive it ultimately does not matter, because until there is universal access to family planning and safe sex, all the scare tactics in the world do not matter. Same goes for abortion. And then there are the large numbers of people who are raped, so once again a fear tactic about an itchy crotch won't change things.

What fear tactics have you heard of or seen (or used yourself to persuade others)???

Susan G. Komen Idiots

Seriously, this Susan G. Komen stuff is offensive and crazy. So many of us have dealt with breast cancer first hand. My grandmother died from breast cancer. Even had a double mastectomy, but that ugly cancer spread to her lungs. A friend from high school, in her 20's, died from breast cancer. I'm sure most of you can relate.

Why the fuck Susan G. Komen would ever try to defund any organization that helps detect breast cancer, is beyond me. Beyond all of us. And we all know there is no correlation between breast cancer risk and abortion. Even the CDC and WHO...oh, and the National Cancer Institute have said so. RH Reality Check's Editor-in-Chief, Jodi Jacobson, wrote a great piece here. What's uber scary about this, is that she points out that they've hired individuals who are blatantly anti-abortion and politicize abortion themselves. Like their new VP who was quoted writing on her campaign blog (oh, and she was endorsed by fucking Sarah fucking Palin), "I will be a pro-life governor who will work tirelessly to promote a culture of life in Georgia.... I believe that each and every unborn child has inherent dignity, that every abortion is a tragedy, and that government has a role, along with the faith community, in encouraging women to choose life in even the most difficult of circumstances.... since I am pro-life, I do not support the mission of Planned Parenthood." Her name is Karen Handel and is the former pro-life gubernatorial candidate for Georgia. Seriously? Read more here.

I'm so frustrated by all this fucked-up bullshit, that I can hardly write straight about it. There will be better articles than mine. And Vegan Vagina wrote a very good one yesterday. I used to feel good when I'd buy products that went to support the Susan G. Komen foundation. Fuck that shit now. I will refuse to support them in any way.

Screw 'em.