Burnt Orange Report

My mother is a member, and now I have to figure out if I should forward on to here this article. Thanks Byron. grrrrrrr

(I apologize wholeheartedly for pimping my own site but it would be far too long for me to recreate the discussion)

I opined about this last week and invited people to spread the word about anti-choice activism. Then, a woman came and posted at my site about a pro-choice alternative for Curves members -- but at the time I got a funny feeling about her site (which later abated, after more input). And then some woman in California got pissed that I would dare be skeptical, and was rude about Texans, so I was rude back.

ANYway, the point is that, after a few rounds of dialogue about Curves, where I am with it is that a woman who is pro-choice enough will quit her club.

Lots of women are responding with, "Well, the owner of MY club isn't anti-choice, so I don't have to do anything." But the $1,000 fund-matching that Heavin does for every club makes the link between one's own dues money and the anti-choice effort inextricable.

And if a woman is not pro-choice enough to quit, then she shouldn't -- but she should own that, and not make excuses for why she doesn't really have to quit to still be pro-choice.

A wise blogger named Lisa Schmeiser said, "Claiming that the franchises and Heavin have only the most casual of relationships, and Won't Someone Think Of The Franchisee? ignores the reality of the business relationship the franchisee elected to get into."

Wendy at Pound offers another great point of view on the subject.

I found out about Curves at the March for Womens Lives in DC. I am actually at another gym, but honestly, I would quit if I found out the money was going to something like that. There ARE alternatives to the gym, and maybe women will explore them. Perhaps one of the women who quits will take the initiative and start her own club. Let's hope....

Dominoe's Pizza is baadddd too.

PG wrote:
"a woman who is pro-choice enough will quit her club."

"pro-choice enough"? Oh, that's a good one.

Pro-choice enough for what? By whose standards?
Yours? Thank you for appointing yourself the arbiter of pro-choice.

So many feminists are bullied into believing that they should be "pro-choice". Feminism means understanding biology enough to realize that sperm + egg could ultimately mean offspring. Let's stop fooling ourselves. How many STDs do we women need to tell ourselves to start becoming responsible? I thought the 70s were over!

I love Curves because it allows me to work on my health and my self image without worrying about what others think. I am proud to find out that the owner tithes. He and his wife have decided what is important to them and have put their money into it.

Obviously, I am pro-choice. I am also well aware of the owner of Curve's choice to give money to organizations that completely devalue what I believe in, in a serious way. To be honest, I have been obese for many years and I have tried other gyms...and frankly, this is the only one i have ever lost weight at. Part of me does feel like I gave in, while another part of me is frustrated by being obese (not blindly skinny, but actually medically obese) and not finding anything comparable. If anyone thinks they have the answer, I would love to hear it...but may I just say that I have been to many gyms, I have worked out on my own and I have been pro-choice my whole life...but now I need to be pro-my-health and it is hard to turn down something that has so far been the only real help.