Which statement best describes your view on chemical castration?

[prolesunited]

Poll question: Which statement best describes your view on chemical castration?

Since it has become abundantly clear that women cannot make decisions regarding their own bodies and reproductive rights, would you be in favor of chemical castration for males until they are married or produce a contract indicating they will care for and financially support any child that their semen helps produce.

In other words, no sex until they are willing take responsibility and bear the consequences of their actions.

(Based on an idea another poster suggested this week.)

[FloridaPat]

1. It's a joke. They give some pervert drug to stop him from enjoying

sex. Why bother. He can sneak off his meds anytime and when they take him off the drugs, he's still the same pervert. I'm for real castration. Forget the fake crap. Guy plays with kids or rapes women - give him a real punishment.

[prolesunited]

3. I guess I didn't make the proposal clear

This isn't about perverts. It's about men in general, most of which are NOT perverts or rapists.

The rationale is that since abortion is such an important issue and women have clearly failed by having them, let's put the power back in men's hands.

If they have no ability to make us pregnant, it won't be an issue. Perhaps then they will understand how it feels to have society and government regulate their bodies and sexual freedom.

[FloridaPat]

8. No, you did fine. I just didn't read the whole thing or really understand

it the first pass through.

Interesting idea. I will have to ponder that one.

[mattclearing]

2. I voted no, mainly because I don't really like mandatory interference.

Having a government-mandated castration seems way beyond the scope of any non-totalitarian government.

Also, would this affect male hormones? Doesn't that change behavior and body chemistry?

I'm not sure exactly what injustice this is meant to point out. Women are free to have or not have babies at this point.

If this is a stab at pro-lifers, pointing out that government intrusion into the female body is all well and good until someone tries to do it to males, then yeah, right on.

[leesa]

4. Well, that would help the overpopulation problem. Funny.

[DIKB]

5. No to both.

I support a woman's right to choose. However much I disagree, MY morals shouldn't run someone else's life. Neither should someone else's run mine.

[Lars39]

6. This is an excellent argument

for those(men usually) that periodically come here spouting that women should just
stop having recreational sex, that every act of sex should be for procreation only.

[Wabbajack]

7. Smells like fascism

vile fascism.

[prolesunited]

9. What is your position on

women and abortion?

[Wabbajack]

17. Pro-Choice

without reservations.

[MAlibdem]

10. Sounds like a story from a Vonnegut collection

Hey, if they made the pill for guys - basically make us shoot blanks until we went off of it - id be all over that.

[prolesunited]

11. Hopefully, it will have fewer side effects than the pill

The vast majority of women have only minor, transient side effects. Some of these side effects are: light bleeding between menstrual periods, skipped periods, nausea, weight change, bloating, increase in vaginal infections.
<snip>

The most serious side effect associated with the birth-control pill is a greater chance of blood clots, stroke and heart attack. These problems occur in only a small number of women who take the pill. Women who have the most risk of developing these problems are women who smoke, are over thirty-five and women with other health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart or vascular disease or blood cholesterol and triglyceride abnormalities. Other serious side effects are worsening of migraine headaches, gall bladder disease, increase in blood pressure and an extremely rare liver tumor.

http://www.unm.edu/~shc1/pill-side-effects.html

Personally, I'm in a category of woman who can't take the pill because of my risk factors. So, I'm using a less effective means of BC. I guess if I get pregnant, some around here would just love to condemn me as an irresponsible whore.

[MAlibdem]

13. but wait, under your scheme, can men still have sex?

[prolesunited]

14. Nah, but neither should women

unless they are willing to "suffer the consequences," according to some. They say, if you don't want to get pregnant, just don't have sex.

[MAlibdem]

15. mmm, i see

Any reason why there isn't a pill for men? Why isn't Pfizer working on it?

[prolesunited]

16. Still working on it

http://www.detnews.com/2004/fitness/0412/29/h02-44278.htm

According to a recent report from the U.S. Institute of Medicine, those efforts include:

* Testosterone undecanoate (TU).
This is the hormone-based research in China that has already shown good results in human trials. Like other hormonal therapies under development, TU halts sperm production in the testes, in this case by suppressing the gonadotropin-releasing hormone. One drawback with hormonal approaches: The complete shutdown of sperm production can take months.

* Lonidamine.
This nonhormonal, nonsteroidal drug was first developed as an anti-cancer drug, but researchers soon noticed it also shut down sperm production. Lonidamine does have toxic effects on the liver and kidney, but similar compounds under development appear to be much less toxic.

* MENT (7-alpha-methyl-19-nortestosterone).
Implants containing MENT, a synthetic hormone resembling testosterone, are being developed by the European drug company Schering AG, along with the Population Council, and they are in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration pipeline. In a recent trial, nine of 11 men achieved zero sperm counts after receiving four MENT implants.

* Eppin.
Dubbed an "immuno-contraceptive," it has proved effective in primates and works by stimulating the immune system to shut down an enzyme crucial to sperm maturation.

* Alkylated sugars.
In mouse studies, ingestion of these compounds produced sperm with misshapen heads, poor mobility and other problems. After three weeks, the mice became sterile, but regained their fertility a month after discontinuing use of the drug.

[AntiCoup2K4]

12. I support chemical castration...

...provided you have a time machine, and Prescott Bush can be the test subject.

[Seabiscuit]

18. For those who males who get married before producing offspring

the marriage contract is all that's needed to require them to pay child support until the child is 18 years old or emancipated.

For those males who produce children out of wedlock, the district attorney's offices across the country have plenty of legal ammunition to force them to pay the same child support.

Chemical castration? Bah, Humbug!

A drastic and insane solution for a nonexistent problem.