First, let me extend a very warm welcome to the many new Filipino readers that have discovered this blog in the past 24 hours. My husband is from Australia, so I do get down to that part of the world on occasion and I hope to visit your beautiful country at some point in the future.
It is great to have you here, although the circumstances of our meeting are, to say the least, unusual.
It seems one of your esteemed Senators, Tito Sotto, plagiarized a blog post I wrote on February 23, 2011 entitled How The Pill Can Harm Your Future Child’s Health, lifting entire sections of the article basically word for word that was delivered in a speech to the Senate Floor regarding the possible passage of the highly controversial Reproductive Health Bill.
What’s worse, Senator Sotto is denying the charge of plagiarism, saying in an interview with ABS-CBN:
“Why would I quote the blogger? I was quoting Natasha McBride.”
Nice touch Senator. Â You almost had me convinced you were a nice guy with the tears and all.
Many of your citizens have emailed me assuring me that was a put on, and I’m starting to think they are right.
A thief is a thief, Mr. Senator. Â Denying it doesn’t get you off the hook; it just makes you a lying thief.
On the bright side, I am thrilled that your lapse of moral judgment has brought much-needed attention to the fact that the birth control pill can have devastating consequences to a woman’s long term health and possibly those of her children and even grandchildren.  Gut dysbiosis is a serious condition that has multi-generational consequences that women need to be educated about and completely aware of before making the very personal decision to use them.
It was indeed brave of you to take this controversial position. Â Kudos to you for that.
By the way, I am truly sorry for the loss of your son.
As the mother of two sons myself, I can only imagine the pain and devastation you have felt from such an experience.
While this has been a highly charged and hopefully enlightening experience for all involved, it’s time now to set the drama aside and get back to fighting the good fight by continuing to educate people about how their food and pharma choices affect not only themselves but also those they dearly love.
And although my attorney will likely try to persuade me otherwise, for now I’m moving on as I’ve got work to do.
Women of the Philippines: I am terribly sorry my blog was used and twisted against you. You deserve the choice to use The Pill if you want or need to based on your particular circumstances. While I want you to know that this choice has health consequences as does the decision to use any pharmaceutical drug, I in no way would ever condone taking this choice away from you! Â Mabuhay!
Hi Sarah,
Honestly speaking it was really bad that the Senator said in the interview “why should i quote a blogger… she’s just a blogger…”. At the very least bloggers do know how to quote their sources.
Regards,
Kuroro
Sen. Sotto doesn’t want to take away any choice. Is Sarah misinformed about his intentions? Contraceptives are available in the Philippines for everybody. The RH Bill says the government should give contraceptives to the poor, which means all tax payers are going to pay for their contraceptives. When there’s a healthy and free alternative which is easy to learn, isn’t it obvious that money can be spent more adequately on other things? This alternative are the modern methods of natural family planning (for example Billings method). I am sorry Sarah, but with your last apology by acting as if Sen. Sotto is using your words against the women in the Philippines, you sent out a completely wrong message! Women need to be informed about not only the possible health consequences of contraceptives, but also about the established connection with promiscuity and abortion (due to failures in contraceptive use). Read for example the article by Keith Ryler: Birth Control, Contraception Don’t Cut Abortions.
Sara, when you say Sen. Sotto plagiarized your idea in your blog post, you are then saying you are the original author and all the information you stated in your blog post are rightfully yours. But they’re not yours. They are from a doctor who made a research about the subject. Why then would you accuse our Senator of plagiarism? By doing so, you are the one who’s guilty of plagiarism, can’t you see that simple logic?
Another trending for the Filipinos. Don’t under estimate a blogger… Maybe someday a blogger can help you compose your speech…
hi sarah,
was you blog on the pill original? or did you just rephrased mcbride? you bashed sen sotto for the plagiarism and at the same time kissed him for publicizing the harmful effects of the pill in his plagiarized speech.. can’t understand that. or are you just trying to play safe? afraid that the pro-rh or the pharmaceuticals will bash you for taking a stand? that’s not healthy thinking in my opinion
onyak- In what way will Ms. Pope be “afraid that the pro-rh” will “bash” her “for taking a stand”? Pay attention, the blogger is an American; Philippine politics does not concern her.
sotto strikes again, this time victimizing the late JFK! The story can be read at this link: http://ph.news.yahoo.com/did-sotto-copy-again-.html. Here are the transcripts:
Kennedy’s speech:
“Few will have the greatness to bend history itself, but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.”
Sotto’s speech:
“Iilan ang magiging dakila sa pagbali ng kasaysayan, subalit bawat isa sa atin ay maaaring kumilos, gaano man kaliit, para ibahin ang takbo ng mga pangyayari. Kapag pinagsama-sama ang ating munting pagkilos, makalilikha tayo ng totalidad na magmamarka sa kabuuan ng kasaysayan ng henerasyong ito.”
Kennedy’s speech:
“It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped.”
Sotto’s speech:
“Ang mga hindi-mabilang na iba’t ibang galaw ng katapangan at paninindigan ang humuhubog sa kasaysayan ng sangkatauhan.”
Kennedy’s speech:
“Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.”
Sotto’s speech:
“Tuwing naninindigan tayo para sa isang paniniwala, tuwing kumikilos tayo para mapabuti ang buhay ng iba, tuwing nilalabanan natin ang kawalan ng katarungan, nakalilikha tayo ng maliliit na galaw. Kapag nagkasama-sama ang mumunting galaw na mga ito, bubuo ito ng isang malakas na puwersang kayang magpabagsak maging ng pinakamatatag na dingding ng opresyon.”
From what I’ve read, it says it was translated from a speech of RFK instead of JFK
Good job in putting the best of the internet to use Sarah! Let our arrogant and ignorant senator know that the internet gives a “non-senator” the power to be heard by everyone on this planet even more than a whose who’s privilege speech!
Although sadly, more than the majority of us Filipinos will probably still see this arrogant ar$e’s behavior as a “hero” of some action movie being tortured by his nemesis and will one day still come out victorious (in the polls). Oh well, life goes on.