This really annoys me, but should it?
I was browsing the news online today and ran across a list of the new laws that went into effect today. I always like to keep up with the nonsense of the great state of Oklahoma.
It made me grind my teeth when I read this:
"Also starting on Tuesday, expectant mothers in Oklahoma are required to take prenatal classes with warnings against using alcohol and drugs during pregnancy."
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm totally about educating the uneducated. But, unless this is going to be some kind of scare tactic, do you really thing that the drug and alcohol abusers are going to benefit from this? Probably not, but, hey, if it saves one baby from a birth defect, then its a good thing.
So why am I upset?
Well, lets stop and look at this for a minute. Lets say that I'm pregnant for the first time. I'm a 34 year old intelligent woman. I am a business professional, I have always had a job. I rarely drink, and I've never, ever, ever used any kind of illegal drug. EVER. I go to get prenatal care and I'm forced to sit in a class about using alcohol and drugs during pregnancy?
Since when is it ok to say, "Well, the majority of you are stupid, so I guess that means that we're going to make ALL of you take this class because we're too lazy to screen people to determine who is high risk and who isn't."
Most of you know that I have a nursing degree. It doesn't take a medical professional to deduce that most of your drug and alcohol abusers who get pregnant most likely don't get prenatal care until they are in to the 2nd trimester of pregnancy. They'll go for the first visit, get confirmed and then they run straight to DHS to get on medicaid so they can get signed up for wic and other hand outs then the DR won't see them again until they are pretty close to having the turkey timer pop.
So who does this really benefit? It would inconvenience me to have to take another day off from work to go to some class thats potentially full of people who should have had counseling FAR before now, to hear a lecture on why we shouldn't do drugs and alcohol while pregnant. What happens after the pregnancy? Is it okay to fire up the meth lab after the baby's born? Why not target the problem BEFORE it happens, A) Don't do drugs... B) drink responsibly, if your legally able to drink and c) don't get knocked up until you're responsible enough to take care of A & B.
Why should those of us who are intelligent enough to know these dangers without someone holding our hand be forced by LAW to submit to this?
It just pisses me off.
It made me grind my teeth when I read this:
"Also starting on Tuesday, expectant mothers in Oklahoma are required to take prenatal classes with warnings against using alcohol and drugs during pregnancy."
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm totally about educating the uneducated. But, unless this is going to be some kind of scare tactic, do you really thing that the drug and alcohol abusers are going to benefit from this? Probably not, but, hey, if it saves one baby from a birth defect, then its a good thing.
So why am I upset?
Well, lets stop and look at this for a minute. Lets say that I'm pregnant for the first time. I'm a 34 year old intelligent woman. I am a business professional, I have always had a job. I rarely drink, and I've never, ever, ever used any kind of illegal drug. EVER. I go to get prenatal care and I'm forced to sit in a class about using alcohol and drugs during pregnancy?
Since when is it ok to say, "Well, the majority of you are stupid, so I guess that means that we're going to make ALL of you take this class because we're too lazy to screen people to determine who is high risk and who isn't."
Most of you know that I have a nursing degree. It doesn't take a medical professional to deduce that most of your drug and alcohol abusers who get pregnant most likely don't get prenatal care until they are in to the 2nd trimester of pregnancy. They'll go for the first visit, get confirmed and then they run straight to DHS to get on medicaid so they can get signed up for wic and other hand outs then the DR won't see them again until they are pretty close to having the turkey timer pop.
So who does this really benefit? It would inconvenience me to have to take another day off from work to go to some class thats potentially full of people who should have had counseling FAR before now, to hear a lecture on why we shouldn't do drugs and alcohol while pregnant. What happens after the pregnancy? Is it okay to fire up the meth lab after the baby's born? Why not target the problem BEFORE it happens, A) Don't do drugs... B) drink responsibly, if your legally able to drink and c) don't get knocked up until you're responsible enough to take care of A & B.
Why should those of us who are intelligent enough to know these dangers without someone holding our hand be forced by LAW to submit to this?
It just pisses me off.