PREGNANCY A PROBLEM
I joined the US Navy shortly after Sept. 11th and nearly every day, my immediate superiors, and occasionally the entire chain of command does stuff that makes me wonder if I am the only sane person here.
A big example...
The big thing now is that my squadron, VFA-41, an F/A 18F Super Hornet squadron is a few months from deploying on our regular 6 month cruise. For a guy, the only way to avoid this long period at sea is to seriously injure yourself. But for a female it can be as simple as getting pregnant. Pregnant women can't be deployed for several obvious reasons, not the least of which is the lack of proper medical care for someone in their position. That being said, in a squadron, we typically have about 350 people, so every worker counts. So, it would stand to reason that with the maning problems that result in such a small group, the Navy should do everything in its power to curb pregnancy in single females on a "deployable" status. BUT NOOOOO! In the past 3 months, 4 women in this squadron alone have gotten pregnant; only one of them married.
Now, I'd be the last person to bitch about unwedded pregnancy; my daughter was conceived out of wedlock, and I personally feel that marriage is a dumb idea. However, in an enclosed society like the Navy, and especially in a suqadron where we are reminded every day that every worker is important, safety is paramount, and that we could be deployed at any minute, steps should be taken to ensure that every person, male and female is ready and able to go to sea. I proposed the following ...
Single females in a sea duty status should be put on mandatory birth control unless their religious beliefs specifically state otherwise. Married females on a sea duty status should also be on mandatory birth control and only be allowed to conceive if their Commanding Officer allows it based on scheduling.
Now to some this may seem extreme, fascist, or even dictatorial, but keep in mind, these are females in the military. First off, from the beginning we are reminded that we are defending freedom, but have very little of our own. And second, it's a very difficult thing to defend freedom when you are 8 months pregnant. Logic would seem to prevail here.
The Navy's response?
"We apreciate your ideas regarding birth control in the military. Unfortunatly, due to cost and religious issues, this plan has never been concidered a viable idea."
So instead of saving millions by NOT having to provide childcare and medical attention to pregnant women and their children (possibly upwards of $2,000 a month), the Navy decides not to spend a mere $10 a month for Ortho Tri-Cycline for all sea duty females!
For your submission, your tax dollars at work! Congrats, you help the Military spend well over 50 million dollars a month to pregnant and new mothers, when you could only be paying 5 million for Birth Control.