Super bowl, smuper bowl.

Right up front I'm going to confess that I don't follow football, watch the super bowl, and I don't think I can come up with more then three professional football players names unless they happen to be on the cover of US weekly. (I know, that makes me look so bad but I fully admit I have an unhealthy addiction to reading tabloid covers at the grocery store).

However, it has been hard to miss the Tim Tebow super bowl ad controversy. Now that the Super Bowl is just 3 days away and the debate has totally reached new levels...here are some of my thoughts.

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First, Planned Parenthood respects the ability of every woman, including Pam Tebow, Tim Tebow's mother, to make important medical decisions for herself and her family. We want every woman to live in a world in which her ability to make important personal medical decisions is respected. This is pretty basic ideology for most folks working in reproductive health/rights/justice and almost goes without saying. But just to be safe, I stuck it in here.

It's important to note that the Tebow's personal story is completely consistent with what Planned Parenthood doctors and nurses have learned from the millions of women we have served for nearly a century. Women take decisions about their health very seriously. They consider their doctors' advice, they talk with their loved ones and people they trust, including religious leaders, and they carefully weigh all considerations before making the best decision for themselves and their families.

Awesome video, check it out!

Now, that is it for the content of the actual add. As for the organization behind it - Focus on the Family...

The reported cost of the ad in question is 2.5 million dollars. Focus on the Family has every right to spend their 2.5 million as it chooses. However, it is surprising, at a time when so many people are in need that the organization's top priority is a Super Bowl Ad. 2.5 million dollars goes a long way in the non-profit world and if they were committed to 'focusing on the family' I would say most families could use some real support due to our current economy in lieu of a 30 second ad. But maybe that's just me.

Further, if Focus on the Family had its way, millions of women would no longer be able to make the important personal medical decisions for themselves and their families when it comes to abortion. The long-stated goal of FoF is to outlaw abortion except for the rare exception when a woman's life is severely at risk. This is an extreme position, which would deny a woman the ability to make important personal medical decisions for herself and her family, as Mrs. Tebow did.

In addition to opposing a woman's ability to make important personal medical decisions for herself, Focus on the Family also opposes commonsense comprehensive sex education. What?! I know, this sounds like crazy talk. How can you be against both choice and prevention? These folks live far outside the mainstream of American life. In a culture where 98% of women use some form of birth control in their life time to prevent pregnancy and STDs, being against comprehensive sex education that is proven to prevent unwanted pregnancy is the definition of crazy.

Ok. I'm done. I truly hope that those of you who do follow football and are anxiously awaiting Sunday afternoon have an awesome time. I will try not to judge you ;)