The Pillow Method
Erin Eiermann
COM 110
Janice Graham
7:10 Tuesday
The Pillow Method
The day after the Presidential Election, my girlfriend Amanda and I discussed how we felt the next four years might go for our country. Due to our slightly opposing views (I say that very lightly), the discussion quickly turned heated. One issue that was brought up in the conversation was abortion. I am very Pro- Life, whereas Amanda is wishy-washy when it comes to the subject. Whilst beginning our excruciatingly draining chat about a touchy subject, I naturally went on my “defense mode” and used Position #1: “I’m right you’re wrong”. I started a rant of how abortion should be abolished in this country, and how inhumane it is. I was raised in a Catholic family that has always viewed abortion as murder, so in my mind, how could there be any other side? As the conversation progressed, I calmed my speech a little bit and let her take center stage. Amanda brought up, “What about the cases with rape and incest? Also, if the government makes abortion illegal, they are going to go back to old-school methods of termination. Think about how dangerous that is. People will find a way to do it, whether it is legal or not” I started using Position #2 of “You’re right, I’m wrong”. I said, “You’re right, people have been having abortions for thousands of years. Making a law that would abolish it would do nothing.” This is where we came to Position #3 together. “Both right, both wrong.” She agreed that I had good points to my side, and I agreed that she did as well. Also, we agreed that some of our own views were a little bit extreme due to past experiences that we both had during our lives, thus making each of our arguments biased. This led me to Position #4 that “the issue isn’t important”. Although this issue is still extremely important to me, I decided that I was not going to get so heated to the point that I was going to let opposing views ruin my closest friendship. Lastly was Position #5, “There
COM 110
Janice Graham
7:10 Tuesday
The Pillow Method
The day after the Presidential Election, my girlfriend Amanda and I discussed how we felt the next four years might go for our country. Due to our slightly opposing views (I say that very lightly), the discussion quickly turned heated. One issue that was brought up in the conversation was abortion. I am very Pro- Life, whereas Amanda is wishy-washy when it comes to the subject. Whilst beginning our excruciatingly draining chat about a touchy subject, I naturally went on my “defense mode” and used Position #1: “I’m right you’re wrong”. I started a rant of how abortion should be abolished in this country, and how inhumane it is. I was raised in a Catholic family that has always viewed abortion as murder, so in my mind, how could there be any other side? As the conversation progressed, I calmed my speech a little bit and let her take center stage. Amanda brought up, “What about the cases with rape and incest? Also, if the government makes abortion illegal, they are going to go back to old-school methods of termination. Think about how dangerous that is. People will find a way to do it, whether it is legal or not” I started using Position #2 of “You’re right, I’m wrong”. I said, “You’re right, people have been having abortions for thousands of years. Making a law that would abolish it would do nothing.” This is where we came to Position #3 together. “Both right, both wrong.” She agreed that I had good points to my side, and I agreed that she did as well. Also, we agreed that some of our own views were a little bit extreme due to past experiences that we both had during our lives, thus making each of our arguments biased. This led me to Position #4 that “the issue isn’t important”. Although this issue is still extremely important to me, I decided that I was not going to get so heated to the point that I was going to let opposing views ruin my closest friendship. Lastly was Position #5, “There