Rush Limbaugh Takes the Backwards Slutwalk

Can we put a condom on the contraception controversy?

The public debate on this topic just keeps getting more absurd. On Wednesday, Rush Limbaugh called the young woman who wanted to testify before Congress about the potential high cost of birth control a slut, and now his radio show is losing mattress ads.

That's right, irate women forced mattress makers Sleep Train and Sleep Number to suspend their ad buys on the Rush Limbaugh show. The company ProFlowers was reevaluating.

After three days of withering criticism, and a bomb scare after getting what sounds like an IUD in the mail, Rush apologized:

For over 20 years, I have illustrated the absurd with absurdity, three hours a day, five days a week. In this instance, I chose the wrong words in my analogy of the situation. I did not mean a personal attack on Ms. Fluke.

I think it is absolutely absurd that during these very serious political times, we are discussing personal sexual recreational activities before members of Congress. I personally do not agree that American citizens should pay for these social activities. What happened to personal responsibility and accountability? Where do we draw the line? If this is accepted as the norm, what will follow? Will we be debating if taxpayers should pay for new sneakers for all students that are interested in running to keep fit? In my monologue, I posited that it is not our business whatsoever to know what is going on in anyone's bedroom nor do I think it is a topic that should reach a Presidential level.

My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir. I sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke for the insulting word choices.

Rush got his slutmouth into trouble by taking Sandra Flukes's statement that her female law school classmates at Georgetown University were spending up to $3,000 on birth control over their 3 years in law school. He took that number, divided it by the number of condoms you could buy at $1 each, and made the judgment that was way too much sex for future lawyers.

That's the problem with all this absurd nonsense, social conservatives like Rush have managed to make this all about sex when it is really about money.

Take the issue of public funding for Planned Parenthood, which gets about $300 million a year from the federal government. That works out to about $1 per person. With a U.S. public debt around $15.5 trillion, or $50,000 per person, Planned Parenthood funding is not worth talking about.

Now take the issue of contraception. There are more choices than just condoms. If you go take the test on the Planned Parenthood website it comes down to this:

How much can you afford to pay for birth control?

__ I am willing to pay hundreds of dollars now for birth control that can last for many years, knowing that over time it would be less costly.

__ There's no way I can pay hundreds of dollars now for birth control. It is easier for me to pay smaller amounts over time, even though it may be more costly in the long run.

__ Cost doesn't matter in my situation. You may want to select this choice if you know you are likley to be covered for your choice of birth control options through insurance or other programs.

What the Obama administration wants to do is to remove all copays and deductibles for approved birth control options so as to put all women, or at least those who have health insurance, in the third category where cost doesn't matter.

But how much will that cost the rest of us? Experts point out there are offsetting savings in unplanned pregnancy costs and lost productivity. So how much is the net cost? If it's just another $1 per year, I don't care to discuss this further.