Letter Writing Week: Letter #4

This late into the week I was staring to run out of ideas to where I wanted to write my next letter. I don’t keep a list and just write them whenever they come to mind. The latest letter was inspired by my son Ethan. I was speaking to him about something that happened as school, he had an arguement with a classmate last week and he shouted at him because they disagreed about it. What the issue was is irrelavent, because I told him that you don’t have to agree with everyone to get along. Sometimes it takes more courage and maturity to get along with someone you don’t agree with than fight with them all the time.

So there was the challenge, Ethan asked me for an example where I have reached out to someone who I don’t like and never agree with. Rather than just dictate to that person how wrong they are in my views, make a geniune effort to get along and find common ground. So with that in mind, I composed a letter to a person who for the last several months I have been trashing on this very diary right, left and center.

Rather than just point a finger at this person and lecture them and talk down to them, I decided to make the example and send a nice letter to this person and offer a helpful suggestion that will allow both of us to find common ground regardless of our differences.

So with that said, here is my fourth letter which was emailed out to this persons office earlier today.

Letter #4: The Governor of Texas, Rick Perry

Governor Perry,

I write to you today as a concerned citizen. We differ on many issues, but rather than just point a finger at you and declare that you’re wrong and I’m right (regardless if that is true or not) I think it would be more beneficial if I would offer a sound suggestion rather than just gripe about your policies and my opposition of them.

The second biggest subject we differ on is a very sensitive subject: abortion. During your recent attempt to run for the Republican nomination, you made it painfully clear that women should only be granted an abortion if the live of the mother is at stake. A very controversial position on the issue, but I am not writing to dispute that. In our nation we have a right to express such opinions and I would like to let you know I am not emailing you just to argue about that.

Earlier this year, a woman I thought had cared about me told me something that shocked me a great deal: she had an abortion. I also learned during that same time that it was my child. I was never informed of the situation as it happened and was heartbroken to hear of it. I’ve been pro-choice all my life so this was a true test of my resolve, but rather than become angry at her for making a decision regarding her own body I chose to look at the issue from a different angle. Why did she feel this was the only necessary course of action?

Upon looking further into this I discovered that many women who go through with abortions likely don’t want to but feel they have to. Many women who go through with the procedure feel unready to tackle motherhood which is a very tiring and lifelong commitment. According to polls take, many women feel unready to support a child financially or are alone as the father deserts them. Basically what this means Governor, is that many women go through with it because they feel they have little or no other viable options.

If you want to lower the amount of abortions that occur in any state, Governor, banning it outright will never accomplish that. They’ll always be another state, another country waiting in the wings to offer the service to anyone who wants it. Are we going to start making women pee onto a stick before we allow them to board planes? I don’t think either of us would like to see that happen.

Rather that try to overturn anything, the solution is to offer women what they truly want: options. If a single woman is afraid that she can’t keep a job and raise a child at the same time, if the state would offer a program that would assist or cover childcare costs or resolve daycare issues, then many women would have a viable option to consider besides abortion.

If Moms & Dads are afraid that adding one more child will cripple the family budget, then the state should offer assistance to larger families so they don’t feel the need to make that trip to planned parenthood. Some women are afraid that a child will interfere in the advancement of their education and their careers. Offering accessible education funding and assistance with daycare would offer them an option, something that will give them the impression that the state isn’t trying to control them, but give them more than just one gruesome place to turn to.

When reading several online polls, more than half of all the women surveyed stated that they didn’t want to have an abortion, but felt like they had little or no choice. My suggestion to you Governor if you would like to see a significant decrease in abortions is to use your power and your state’s resources to offer these women a better choice. While some of them will not likely take you up on it, based on the numbers I’ve seen there is a good chance many just might.

If you are just half as pro-choice as you seem Governor, then this is the way to go. This idea gives you what you want without having to step on people’s rights or even overturn any case laws already in the books. Women out there need help from their government, not a lecture from the pulpit. Give them that option and I assure you Sir, you will see results.

This is merely a modest suggestion from a concerned citizen. You can take it or leave it but I hope if anything this will inspire a little thought, some consideration to approach an ongoing issue with a new angle that might produce the outcome you are looking for.

Sincerely,

Peter