Birth Control Pill Makes You Ugly And Less Able To Mate With Orlando Bloom

A study in this month’s issue of the journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution on birth control pills found that women on the pill are less likely to "seek out macho men" (like Orlando Bloom?) with whom to mate, and may "lower a woman’s attractiveness." I’m not joking. This requires a much longer post, honestly, but according to Newsweek, the reasoning may be related to how the pill inhibits ovulation:

Over the course of a menstrual cycle,
hormonal fluctuation slightly alters woman’s facial appearance, her
vocal pitch, even body odor. And during ovulation, those changes
increase a woman’s attractiveness because they indicate fertility.
While such cues are admittedly subtle, they do get noticed: a study
investigating tip earnings by lap dancers showed that earnings varied
across menstrual cycles, with ovulating women as the highest earners.
Less subtle cues may also be at play, since studies have found women
tend to dress more provocatively during ovulation.

Researchers apparently found that women who are not on the pill are "particularly attracted to men showing dominance and male-male
competitiveness and prefer partners who are genetically dissimilar to
themselves." Really? 

So, if you’re a lap dancer you shouldn’t take the pill and women who don’t take the pill are attracted to dominating men?  Can we put some parameters on what actually gets researched in this country? Please? 

Health Care Reform Is A Bargain

Health care reform legislation got a boost today from a Congressional Budget Office analysis that shows that the Senate Finance bill, according to the New York Times, "would reduce deficits by a total of $81 billion in the decade starting next year."

And while some Democrats and one Republican (Sen. Olympia Snowe) who were on the fence about the bill said that this new report has influenced them, on the whole, "Republicans, who are overwhelmingly opposed to the legislation, minimized the significance of the cost analysis."

Millions of Babies and Mothers Are Dying

Sound like a "pro-life" headline? Sure it does. But this is an issue about which the big players in the anti-choice movement focus on not one iota. It’s worth a vigorous "why?!" though. The issue at hand is not abortion but maternal and newborn deaths resulting from childbirth around the world.  The Associated Press reports,

More than 2 million babies and mothers die worldwide each year from
childbirth complications, outnumbering child deaths from malaria and
HIV/AIDS, according to a study.

The worst part? These deaths can be easily avoided. 

"The world will continue to miss the unheard cry of the 230 babies who
die every hour from childbirth complications," unless there is better
planning and implementation of policies, according to the study.

Not only that but almost half of all maternal deaths happen during childbirth. It’s a crisis of immense proportions that is addressed by one of the Millennium Development Goals but it seems that everytime new research findings are released people are shocked at the magnitude of the crisis. Read more. 

 

October 8
Reuters India: Birth control pill could put women off macho men
Feministing: The Female Condom 2: Cheaper, Thinner, and a Lot Less Squeaky
PhilStar: Pregnant women in evacuation centers get reproductive health kits
Catholic Exchange: Boston College Health Plan Covers ‘Family Planning’ Services
Chicago Tribune: Abortion protest limits: How Chicago aldermen voted
Canton Rep: (Letter) ‘Pro-choice’ sounds innocent until you see what one option is
LifeSiteNews: Planned Parenthood Conducts Birth Control Clinical Trials on Underage Girls

October 7
NYTimes: Group Resists Korean Stigma for Unwed Mothers
Catholic News Agency: Spanish pro-lifers organizing march against new abortion bill
HuffPo: Anti-Abortion Activists Required To Keep Distance From Clinics, People Under New Ordinance
FBomb: Giant, Pro-Choice Mountains
LifeSiteNews: Hospital Counselor Leaves Abortion Unit during 40 Days for Life
About Lawsuits: Lawsuit Says Yasmin and Yaz Problems Were Concealed to Boost Sales
Newsweek: Birth-Control Bummer? The Pill May Affect Attractiveness, but Don’t Give Up on Oral Contraceptives Yet
LifeNews: Polls Show Support Rising for Pro-Abortion Health Care Reform Plans in Congress
LifeNews: Supreme Court Allows Pro-Life Illinois Citizens to be Muzzled on Choose Life Plates
Wichita Eagle: No justifying Tiller’s murder
NBC Miami: Critics Demand Murder Charge in Botched Abortion
OneNewsNow: Pro-lifers want Calif. abortion mill investigated
Daily Evergreen: Finding sex education policies that work

October 6
Feminists for Choice: New Oklahoma abortion law being challenged
McGill Tribune: Protestors disrupt Choose Life event; two fined for mischief
Sonoma State Star: New free speech policy to be drafted
NBC Green Bay: Pro-Life Ad Pulled