Surely you jest

Some people have been telling feminists to shut up, that they're being hysterical in their depictions of the right-wing agenda as aiming to start with abortion, continue by attacking birth control, and eventually end up at complete dictatorial control over the lives and wombs (reduced to the same thing) of women. Well, the alarmists are being proven accurate:

New federal guidelines ask all females capable of conceiving a baby to treat themselves -- and to be treated by the health care system -- as pre-pregnant, regardless of whether they plan to get pregnant anytime soon.

Among other things, this means all women between first menstrual period and menopause should take folic acid supplements, refrain from smoking, maintain a healthy weight and keep chronic conditions such as asthma and diabetes under control.

Surely you jest. Surely the lives and health of women are concerns for their own sakes, and not just to preserve the health of lives that don't even exist? But no! As a dailyKos poster put it,

Those imaginary babies are important members of society!

Don't miss the part/link about the woman being deprived of anti-eplilepsy medication because she's of childbearing age (even though she has NO plans to become pregnant).

My neurologist does not trust me to not get pregnant. My neurologist puts a potential fetus's potential health over my health.

And now the government wants to officially sanction that.

I find this in no way funny. Doctors are patronizing enough, without being encouraged to discount their actual patients in service of future possibilities. Women need the right to make their own family planning decisions as well as to keep control of their own current health. Appalling!

(via Medley)