by Maayan Schechter – Asst. Campus Voice Editor – [email protected]
Dear Rep. Todd Akin, quit, drop out and excuse yourself. You are an unwanted infection in the Republican Party.
According to Akin, the Republican Senate nominee from Missouri,  if a woman is “legitimately raped,” her body can force out an unwanted pregnancy.
First of all, Akin has neither a uterus nor a vagina. He has no medical degree, and he certainly has never been raped nor put into a position where he must choose whether or not he wants to terminate an unwanted pregnancy.
Akin is a hardcore Conservative who maintains a large support system in the state of Missouri and across the United States for his pro-life stance. When running in Missouri he played to the Conservative right and maintained his opinion that abortion is wrong in every circumstance.
The comments he made during an interview on Aug. 19 with KTVI-TV posted on the station’s website illustrate a rather disturbing response to victims of rape who become pregnant.
“It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, it’s really rare,” Akin said of women who get pregnant when raped. “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut the whole thing down. But let’s assume that maybe that didn’t work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child.”
Big Conservative names came out against Akin, including Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Presidential nominee Mitt Romney and Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan.
Akin stubbornly said he would stay in the race because Missouri citizens voted for him, and he should continue to try and serve his state.
To many, Akin’s comments are idiotic, so his political agenda should be of no surprise. His firm belief in his God and his religion has been the foundation of his political agenda and ideals for years.
His sponsored legislation in 2008 titled, “The National Year of the Bible” pointed fingers at Liberals for trying to separate Church and state further. He used Biblical phrases when reasoning why he would remain in the Senate race.
As Republicans across the board have chastised and asked Akin to step down, it is clear Republicans are nervous. The Republican party has a scapegoat to overshadow the real issue; the Republican party has always been against abortion.
It needs to be said that not all Republicans are against abortion. But the majority are, and it’s an ideal that plagues the face of the party. There is a rift within the party between the  traditional Conservatives and the super religious Conservatives.
The moral of the story is that the continuation of this backwards thinking will only hurt the Republican party even more. Or maybe the moral is when you run for public office it is always important to make sure your medical sources are legitimate.
There needs to be a social change in our society in the way we deal with abortion, and for that matter rape victims, keyword: victims.
We, as a country, should never be allowed to tell a woman who has been raped that although she is impregnated by her rapist, she must keep the baby because “it’s the right thing to do.”
If your argument is there have been smart and important people in society born out of rape, then my argument is rapists, serial killers and mass murderers have also been born out of consensual sex.
Point being, you cannot ask a rape victim to a bear a child because her child may cure cancer or AIDS. Just like you cannot tell a teenager who becomes pregnant due to consensual sex that if she aborts the child, she is killing the next president.
Akin’s comments are disgusting, repugnant and wrong. But there are larger issues at hand in this country. If you don’t side with Akin, then keep fighting the fight. Remember abortion will always be a right or left issue.
If you sympathize with Akin, then the next time you meet someone who has been raped and who kept the child, help the mother compensate. Give her resources and tools for the child and her future.
Akin, stay in the race and you will cripple your own party. Quit using your religion as a crutch, when science obviously trumps your medical knowledge.
Let the election be about the important things: the economy, civil rights for all and the separation of church and state. Let women do what women want to do. Because remember, without one you would not be here.