So I very rarely enter the political realm of discussion because they often say that the two things you shouldn’t discuss with people are religion and politics. And since I spend my life speaking about religion (at least that is how some define it) I often try to refrain from political discussions. But a tweet* caught my eye this morning and I felt it was worth re-posting. Jeannie Gaffigan, who is the wife of a famous comedian said, “Let me get this straight, in San Francisco you can get an abortion but you can’t get a Happy Meal?” and then followed it up with, “You can kill it, but you can’t give it a toy with its McNuggets”. This is a rather humorous take on how backwards our society has become. I think the ultimate issue comes down to the fact that children are viewed as a liability (from conception to graduation) versus a responsibility. We see them as a liability if we get pregnant when we don’t want to. We see them as a liability when they drive our cost of living up. We see them as a liability when their health and our medical insurance aren’t in line. We see them as a liability when their driving career costs us a small fortune…the list goes on and on.

Maybe the issue really begins with the role of parenthood and what that role calls for. The ability to have kid’s does not make one a parent. Maybe as a society we need to re-examine our definitions and ultimately come to terms with the fact that we have it all backwards. Maybe we need to be a little more responsible for what our children eat. Or maybe we need to be a bit more responsible in the idea of family we have to begin with. And you know what…I like a good happy meal every once in a while :).

*for those of you not familiar with this term, this is what an individual twitter post is called