I can't do my Christmas shopping at Walgreens either? Because I was planning to get my mom that nice tube of Colgate she's had her eye on for so long.

Isn't it East St. Louis that's in Illinois?

I don't want to make this into too much--it's just a blog entry--but I find comments like this one to be counter-productive:

"...so you'll know where to pick up your post-holiday-party painkillers."

The anti-choice contingent in this country latches onto occasional liberal glibness about emergency contraception and abortion and turns it against us, and sometimes I dare say we deserve it. This is a serious issue about which much of this country (liberal or conservative) has little or no sense of humor.

The right already characterizes the left as sex-crazed, abortion-loving hedonists. By implying that getting knocked-up at a holiday party is somehow equivalent to a headache or hangover, easily taken care of with a little pill, we're only serving to justify those perceptions whether we're joking about it or not. Like I said, they have no sense of humor, and when you write or say things like this you are more often than not taken at your word by those on the literal-minded side of the barbed-wire fence.

Having said that, I completely agree with the Illinois policy. Also, East St. Louis, IL is one of the most impoverished areas of the country, so once again we see how some--possibly white, possibly male, likely Republican--pharmacist's "moral position" is affecting a poor--and probably minority--woman's right to make safe, legal choices that can make her life better (or at least keep it from getting any worse).

And should I be shocked that NONE of the pharmacies that get a thumb's up have locations in my town in a southern state? There is a KMart 30 miles away, but they're not going to be my "usual pharmacy" with gas still at $2 a gallon. We have a Price Chopper supermarket, but no pharmacy.

GWB and supporters may not have gotten Roe overturned (yet), but in many rural areas lack of providers and supporting pharmacies make it ineffective. I suppose I'm lucky in that I'm married, have a decent job and haven't been harrassed about my BC choices. But I know I'm lucky and I know I have to be careful: should I want an abortion, I'll have to ask my husband for permission...thanks to a state law.

I absolutely was not suggesting that emergency contraception is some kind of post-holiday party pain killer.

But re-reading my post, I understand why you mistook my comment that way.

It was just trying to say: so, here's where you should shop for drugs, if you want to support women's right to emergency contraception.

In other words, if you should have a headache from drinking too much at your office holiday party, don't go to Walgreens or Target to get some asprin -- go to these other places on Planned Parenthood's list.

I hope that clarifies.

Katharine

Katherine, thank you for clarifying that misunderstanding. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, but sometimes one never knows. Again, my biggest concern was exactly what happened--that someone would misinterpret what you'd written. Anyway, keep up the excellent work!