There was a great op-ed in yesterday's Pittsburgh Post Gazette written by Christine Stone of Pennsylvania's chapter of the National Council of Jewish Women about the war on contraception. Stone outs the opposition locally, writing,

"We are all familiar with the unyielding campaign against abortion. But recently, as the conservative tide has continued to grow, this campaign has taken on a broader and more pernicious scope.

Speaking with several legislators before their decision to table a vote on HB 288, which would provide emergency contraception (to rape victims), it was clear that they either see a direct connection between contraception and abortion, cannot distinguish between the two or wish to extend their religious beliefs about abortion to contraception (which has not been considered controversial by most Americans for at least 40 years). Mixing religion with accepted medical practice and long-standing legal rights is worrisome to say the least. It is nothing less than cruel to victims of sexual assault.

The sad reality is that Pennsylvania is not alone. State legislatures across the country are debating dozens of bills regarding emergency contraception -- not abortion, but contraception -- including whether pharmacies can refuse to fill orders for contraceptives or whether school districts can teach only abstinence-until-marriage "sex education" programs. Some of these programs have even misinformed our youth by telling them that condoms do little to prevent pregnancy or protect against sexually transmitted diseases. Others have discouraged teenagers from receiving the HPV vaccine, which can prevent cervical cancer, on the false basis that it will prompt young women to be more promiscuous."

The National Council of Jewish Women has joined in on efforts to expose the war on contraception with their own initiative, Plan A.