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Should feminine hygiene products be available for free?

Debate Information

I didn’t choose to bleed, and I have to use products to be able to go on with my day while I’m on my period. Luckily, I can pay for them, but there will be people out there who can’t. 
  1. Live Poll

    Should pads/tampons be available for free?

    11 votes
    1. Yes
      45.45%
    2. No
      54.55%
«1



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    Arguments


  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    I didn’t choose to have facial hair should I get free shaving products?
    Zombieguy1987
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    I didn’t choose to have facial hair should I get free shaving products?
    I don’t know, does your facial hair hinder you from going on with your day-to-day life?
    Zombieguy1987
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    Yes , because it’s time consuming shaving and I have to do so twice a day 
    Zombieguy1987
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

    Yes , because it’s time consuming shaving and I have to do so twice a day 
    True, but after you are done with it, you can go to your job without a problem. What I’m saying is if you would not be able to shave because you were too poor to buy razors, you could also go out without a problem. If a woman doesn’t have something to stop a flow of blood, she is forced to stay home.
  • danabentondanabenton 18 Pts   -  
    Just wanted to say I think having free feminine hygiene products is ridiculous, do you have any idea how expensive that is for the government? If you can't afford feminine hygiene products, just go on the pill, to be honest. 
    Zombieguy1987piloteer
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

     You say.....If a woman doesn’t have something to stop a flow of blood, she is forced to stay home.

    Yet women in third world countries manage without having to stay at home 
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Just wanted to say I think having free feminine hygiene products is ridiculous, do you have any idea how expensive that is for the government? If you can't afford feminine hygiene products, just go on the pill, to be honest. 
    Taking the pill will put you in a rhythm in which you will stop taking it for a week every month to, you guessed it, have your period. The bleeding can become lighter and more regulated, yes, but it is not gone.
  • MrRemiMrRemi 27 Pts   -  
    @Joeseph

    The thing is, they do stay at home. Teenage girls in third world countries are forced to skip school and pass on opportunities that could give them a better chance for the future because of the lack of feminine hygiene products. 
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

     You say.....If a woman doesn’t have something to stop a flow of blood, she is forced to stay home.

    Yet women in third world countries manage without having to stay at home 
    Due to a lack of access to sanitary products, girls are often forced to miss school and low-income women are more susceptible to infections and other devastating consequences. In places where women’s bodies are viewed with suspicion, damaging social stigmas and myths cast them away from the community, limiting their job options and social interactions, which inevitably takes an incalculable socioeconomic, physical and mental toll on their lives.
    -The Huffington post.
    It takes about ten seconds to google this and find out that this is not true. 
  • MacKenzyMacKenzy 17 Pts   -  
    You talk about people missing their jobs but most people with a job will be able to afford a packet of pads once a month. And if they can't, my grandma used to manage using only a sock and a washcloth.
    JoesephZombieguy1987
  • danabentondanabenton 18 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    The pill maybe wasn't the best example. Let's talk about IUDs. They only have to be inserted once, and will last for several years. Why doesn't the government give out IUDs for free instead of feminine hygiene products? 
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    @MrRemi

    What do you base these assertions on? 
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    The pill maybe wasn't the best example. Let's talk about IUDs. They only have to be inserted once, and will last for several years. Why doesn't the government give out IUDs for free instead of feminine hygiene products? 
    You said pads were too expensive for the government to hand out, but IUDs are fine? Also please consider not everyone will want to be on birth control.
    MrRemi
  • MrRemiMrRemi 27 Pts   -  
    @danabenton

    More often than not, IUDs will not stop you from having your period. Hormonal IUDs may stop the cycle altogether ("One major potential selling point of hormonal IUDs is their ability to sometimes make periods lighter and shorter. For about 1 in 5 people using the Mirena or Liletta IUDs, periods stop altogether after a year.", Bedsider.org), but these have an enormous impact on a woman's hormonal cycle and can cause serious mental problems by altering the hormonal cycle. 
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MacKenzy said:
    You talk about people missing their jobs but most people with a job will be able to afford a packet of pads once a month. And if they can't, my grandma used to manage using only a sock and a washcloth.
    Tell that to people who have to sustain a family with a minimum wage job
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -   edited October 2018
    @AnneHakkert

    You say ......It takes about ten seconds to google this and find out that this is not true

    My reply .... Nonsense, are you seriously saying people in third world countries mostly don’t work , go to school or do anything else because of menstural flow ? 

    Ever hear of Menstural cloths or rags?

    It takes about ten seconds on google to find this out for yourself 


    MrRemi
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

    You say ......It takes about ten seconds to google this and find out that this is not true

    My reply .... Nonsense, are you seriously saying people in third world countries mostly don’t work , go to school or do anything else because of menstural flow ? 

    Ever hear of Menstural cloths or rags?

    It takes about ten seconds on google to find this out for yourself 


    “The first time I used a new sponge it stung because it was full of chemicals. The next time I rinsed it out but it dried hard and was like a brick of sandpaper sitting in my underwear grinding my butt cheeks.”

    As for the leaves, she says they were useless and using rags made her hot and sweaty. Campbell says she opted out of socialising and her work productivity dropped significantly.

    -SBS.com

    yeah I do love google. The point is, the women aren't going to school or their job, because even what they do have isn't enough.

    MrRemi
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    You say ....The point is, the women aren't going to school or their job, because even what they do have isn't enough.

    My reply .... The majority of women in third world countries do  use  the very solution I stated to this problem ( rags !cloths)  , either way you will deny this so do carry on I’m sure you will find enough people to agree with you 
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

    You say ....The point is, the women aren't going to school or their job, because even what they do have isn't enough.

    My reply .... The majority of women in third world countries do  use  the very solution I stated to this problem ( rags !cloths)  , either way you will deny this so do carry on I’m sure you will find enough people to agree with you 
    You want to talk about this? Let’s talk. 
    The majority of women in third world countries use rags, cloths, leaves etc because they do not have any other option. Most women find these uncomfortable, and state that because the rags don’t always stop the flow, they still have to stay at home. For the source, see the post you just quoted. Yes, there are options for those women. Yes, it is better than nothing. But it is not an ideal situation and If we can make that situation better by handing out free products, don’t you think we should?
  • MacKenzyMacKenzy 17 Pts   -  
    You should look into free bleeding, People are going through their day without pads or anything and just let it flow. It actually helps you connect to nature and keeps the chemicals out of your privates. If people can do that, they can go on with their day without products.
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MacKenzy said:
    You should look into free bleeding, People are going through their day without pads or anything and just let it flow. It actually helps you connect to nature and keeps the chemicals out of your privates. If people can do that, they can go on with their day without products.
    Yeah except people who do that often do so because they are protesting pad/tampon costs. There are a few examples of women who feel empowered because of it, but they have a choice to do so. I’m not against free bleeding, but I don’t think we should force people to free bleed just because they can’t pay for supplies.
  • MacKenzyMacKenzy 17 Pts   -  
    I'm not saying we should force people to do anything. I'm just saying going padless isn't the end of the world.
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MacKenzy said:
    I'm not saying we should force people to do anything. I'm just saying going padless isn't the end of the world.
    It isn’t, but it’s also not comfortable. Would you go out in bloodstained pants? I know I wouldn’t like to.
  • MacKenzyMacKenzy 17 Pts   -  
    MacKenzy said:
    I'm not saying we should force people to do anything. I'm just saying going padless isn't the end of the world.
    It isn’t, but it’s also not comfortable. Would you go out in bloodstained pants? I know I wouldn’t like to.
    You wouldn't like to, but you said before you can afford to buy supplies. What's the problem?
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MacKenzy said:
    MacKenzy said:
    I'm not saying we should force people to do anything. I'm just saying going padless isn't the end of the world.
    It isn’t, but it’s also not comfortable. Would you go out in bloodstained pants? I know I wouldn’t like to.
    You wouldn't like to, but you said before you can afford to buy supplies. What's the problem?
    The problem is that not everybody can afford to. I’m not saying I want them to be free so I have to spend less money, I’m saying they should be free so people with less money would also be able to use this product they need.
  • MacKenzyMacKenzy 17 Pts   -  
    Okay, so let's say we do make them free you we can help the poor people, you could also use that to your advantage and still get them for free. You say this isn't about you but you will profit from it to and you can't deny it.
    Zombieguy1987
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MacKenzy said:
    Okay, so let's say we do make them free you we can help the poor people, you could also use that to your advantage and still get them for free. You say this isn't about you but you will profit from it to and you can't deny it.
    That depends how they are given away. If they are just handed to everybody, I would indeed recieve them. But let’s say they were provided like food banks provide their supplies: not to everybody but to the people who can’t afford them.
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -   edited October 2018
    @AnneHakkert

    You say ....You want to talk about this? Let’s talk. 
    The majority of women in third world countries use rags, cloths, leaves etc because they do not have any other option. Most women find these uncomfortable, and state that because the rags don’t always stop the flow, they still have to stay at home.

    My reply .... I wonder how our grandparents got by before the advent of sanitary products , the majority do not stay  at home as you seem to imply. 

    You say .....For the source, see the post you just quoted.

    My reply .... I didn’t post or link a particular site 

    You say .......Yes, there are options for those women. Yes, it is better than nothing. But it is not an ideal situation and If we can make that situation better by handing out free products, don’t you think we should?

    My reply .....I think we should be handing out other items as in food or medicine first sanitary products would be down the list a bit , would you agree?
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

    You say ....You want to talk about this? Let’s talk. 
    The majority of women in third world countries use rags, cloths, leaves etc because they do not have any other option. Most women find these uncomfortable, and state that because the rags don’t always stop the flow, they still have to stay at home.

    My reply .... I wonder how our grandparents got by before the advent of sanitary products , the majority do not stay  at home as you seem to imply. 

    You say .....For the source, see the post you just quoted.

    My reply .... I didn’t post or link a particular site 

    You say .......Yes, there are options for those women. Yes, it is better than nothing. But it is not an ideal situation and If we can make that situation better by handing out free products, don’t you think we should?

    My reply .....I think we should be handing out other items as in food or medicine first sanitary products would be down the list a bit , would you agree?
    They might be a bit lower on the list, because lack of food and meds can be fatal and a lack of pads is not. But do you agree with me that they are on that list?
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    You say .....They might be a bit lower on the list, because lack of food and meds can be fatal and a lack of pads is not. But do you agree with me that they are on that list?

    My reply .....I would only put them on a list for piss poor people in third world countries, in our  so called civilized countries people talk about disadvantage while yet most can afford I phones and such and haven’t a clue what people in these countries go through 
  • YeshuaBoughtYeshuaBought 669 Pts   -  
    No. They should be affordable?
  • MayCaesarMayCaesar 5965 Pts   -  
    Well, I did not choose to be a human and need food, water and sleep. According to your logic, for me food, water and a bed should all be free.

    Each and every one of us finds themselves in different circumstances we did could not choose from. One person was born in Switzerland in a rich family; another was born in North Korea in a labor camp. You cannot control the circumstances of your birth, but you can control how to act in the environment you find yourself in to get the most out of it.

    Feminine hygiene products should not be available for free. Rather, you should find a behavioral model that allows you to have a consistent access to them.
    Zombieguy1987
  • Not to be mean, but that’s similar to asking the government to give out free razors. Or free medicine. It’s ridiculously expensive and kind of a waste of time. But of course I’m not a woman so I’m abouta get flamed for saying something sexist.
    Wheeeeeeeeeee
    Zombieguy1987
    Not every quote you read on the internet is true- Abraham Lincoln
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

    You say .....They might be a bit lower on the list, because lack of food and meds can be fatal and a lack of pads is not. But do you agree with me that they are on that list?

    My reply .....I would only put them on a list for piss poor people in third world countries, in our  so called civilized countries people talk about disadvantage while yet most can afford I phones and such and haven’t a clue what people in these countries go through 
    That is exactly what I am pointing at. People who can’t afford to buy the supplies for themselves should be able to aquire them one way or another. Considering I am typing this on an Ipad, this would indeed not be about me. We are indeed talking about these piss poor people. 
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MayCaesar said:
    Well, I did not choose to be a human and need food, water and sleep. According to your logic, for me food, water and a bed should all be free.

    Each and every one of us finds themselves in different circumstances we did could not choose from. One person was born in Switzerland in a rich family; another was born in North Korea in a labor camp. You cannot control the circumstances of your birth, but you can control how to act in the environment you find yourself in to get the most out of it.

    Feminine hygiene products should not be available for free. Rather, you should find a behavioral model that allows you to have a consistent access to them.
    Good point. I do think everyone should have access to food, water and shelter, even if they cannot pay for it. If I rephrased my question to ”Should feminine hygiene products be accessible for everyone?” would you agree with it? Because it’s sort of what I meant.
  • JoesephJoeseph 652 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    I hear you and yes I’m all for that 

  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    Joeseph said:
    @AnneHakkert

    I hear you and yes I’m all for that 

    Glad to see we agree on this. So let’s say schools put have supplies available for free in the restrooms and people who get supplied with food already can also get their products when needed. It will cost something, yes, but I think it will be worth something. 
  • MayCaesarMayCaesar 5965 Pts   -  
    MayCaesar said:
    Well, I did not choose to be a human and need food, water and sleep. According to your logic, for me food, water and a bed should all be free.

    Each and every one of us finds themselves in different circumstances we did could not choose from. One person was born in Switzerland in a rich family; another was born in North Korea in a labor camp. You cannot control the circumstances of your birth, but you can control how to act in the environment you find yourself in to get the most out of it.

    Feminine hygiene products should not be available for free. Rather, you should find a behavioral model that allows you to have a consistent access to them.
    Good point. I do think everyone should have access to food, water and shelter, even if they cannot pay for it. If I rephrased my question to ”Should feminine hygiene products be accessible for everyone?” would you agree with it? Because it’s sort of what I meant.

    With this I would agree - however, here the meaning of the "should" needs to be specified. There are different shades of "should", so to speak, starting with "It would be good if it was this way", and ending with "We must make it this way no matter the costs and sacrifices".

    I do not, for example, think that taxpayers' money should be used to purchase hygiene produces, food, water and shelter for those who cannot afford them. Nor do I think that any price regulations here are warranted.  I do think, however, that private charity organizations better make distributing these goods to the needy one of their higher priorities - and that proper competition on a free market will naturally make all these goods affordable for virtually everyone who has any sort of stable income.

  • CYDdhartaCYDdharta 1823 Pts   -  

    Glad to see we agree on this. So let’s say schools put have supplies available for free in the restrooms and people who get supplied with food already can also get their products when needed. It will cost something, yes, but I think it will be worth something. 

    Little boys would find all kinds of interesting uses for them.
  • AnneHakkertAnneHakkert 25 Pts   -  
    MayCaesar said:
    MayCaesar said:
    Well, I did not choose to be a human and need food, water and sleep. According to your logic, for me food, water and a bed should all be free.

    Each and every one of us finds themselves in different circumstances we did could not choose from. One person was born in Switzerland in a rich family; another was born in North Korea in a labor camp. You cannot control the circumstances of your birth, but you can control how to act in the environment you find yourself in to get the most out of it.

    Feminine hygiene products should not be available for free. Rather, you should find a behavioral model that allows you to have a consistent access to them.
    Good point. I do think everyone should have access to food, water and shelter, even if they cannot pay for it. If I rephrased my question to ”Should feminine hygiene products be accessible for everyone?” would you agree with it? Because it’s sort of what I meant.

    With this I would agree - however, here the meaning of the "should" needs to be specified. There are different shades of "should", so to speak, starting with "It would be good if it was this way", and ending with "We must make it this way no matter the costs and sacrifices".

    I do not, for example, think that taxpayers' money should be used to purchase hygiene produces, food, water and shelter for those who cannot afford them. Nor do I think that any price regulations here are warranted.  I do think, however, that private charity organizations better make distributing these goods to the needy one of their higher priorities - and that proper competition on a free market will naturally make all these goods affordable for virtually everyone who has any sort of stable income.

    In this case, think of it as “We must strive to make it this way and must do so as long as the price is reasonable and realistic”. This, of course, brings a new question to light: what would be a reasonable price to pay? Which is why I find it interesting you bring up charities here; this way people can decide for themselves what they think is reasonable here.
  • WordsMatterWordsMatter 493 Pts   -  
    To those saying women should just go about their day with no feminine hygiene supplies. Would you be comfortable going to school and sharing chairs with all the women? This is partially a public health issue as blood shouldn't be free flowing onto things in public.
    Zombieguy1987
  • MayCaesarMayCaesar 5965 Pts   -  
    @AnneHakkert

    Well, the market naturally provides the supply/demand balance, meaning that the products will cost exactly as much as the producers can push them to still bring them profit, and exactly as much as the consumers are willing to pay for them without deeming them overly expensive. If the balance cannot be established, and neither side is willing to seek compromise, then the industry dies - which almost never happens, since achieving the supply/demand balance is pretty easy in most cases, and it is very rare that the producer absolutely cannot lower the price to the level people are willing to pay without maintaining a positive net profit.

    As such, I do not think anything special needs to be done. We should just invest in technology and science, which naturally will make everything we absolutely need dirt cheap eventually.
  • WordsMatterWordsMatter 493 Pts   -  
    @MayCaesar if 23,000,000 people can afford a product at $10 but 2,000,000 can only afford it at $5 the market won't care about getting 2,000,000 more consumers because including them will lose profit. Even if the inclusion of those 2,000,000 people means a larger contribution to the larger economy than the exclusion of them the producer won't care because their own profit would decrease at the benefit of other industries profits increasing.
  • MayCaesarMayCaesar 5965 Pts   -  
    @WordsMatter

    In such cases, in order to maximize its profit, the company tends to offer lower-end products for the poorer people. That is why, for example, NVidia has both GPUs costing thousands dollars, and those costing below $100, in pretty much ever GPU generation they release. Those who can afford the more expensive GPUs tend to buy them, while those that cannot still bring the company profit by buying the cheaper products.

    Market is much more flexible and accommodating than most people realize. Most doomsday scenarios people visualize are actually (and very easily) naturally resolved by free market mechanisms. 
  • WordsMatterWordsMatter 493 Pts   -   edited October 2018
    @MayCaesar gpu efficiency changed dramatically in the tiers. A wad of cotton doesn't change beyond brand name. Poor comparison

    What's more cost effective? To supply free tampons or pads to girls in schools or to disinfect every chair a girl on her period sits on throughout the day?
  • MayCaesarMayCaesar 5965 Pts   -  
    @WordsMatter ;

    This is beside the point. The point is, businesses tend to offer wide ranges of products, so every economical segment brings them profit. There will be both low-end tampons for the poorest people, and luxury tampons for millionaires.

    Free tampons or pads in schools could be more cost-effective in that they could potentially increase the number of enrollments in that school, increasing the school's profit - assuming the school is private. But private schools are rarely affordable to the poor in the first place. And public schools gain nothing from offering free tampons, other than wasting even more of their budget than they already do.

  • WordsMatterWordsMatter 493 Pts   -  
    @MayCaesar but if women are told to just go about their day without using a tampon if they can't afford it. You can't just let their blood sit on the chairs in public school. It must be cleaned literally every time a new class comes in the room. So you have to buy cleaning supplies and make sure you have someone hired who can go around and clean the chairs between every single school period. It would just be so much more cost effective to have a large body like the public school system negotiate a price lower than can be found in any store, due to the sheer quantity being purchased, and just hand out a tampon that costs 1 cent. Schools already purchase and provide tons of free medical supplies to children who get sick or injured so why not tampons? Or should we just let all sick and injured children suffer in school if they can't afford their own medical supplies? Or just force them to go somewhere else to get treatment, probably ending their school day
  • CYDdhartaCYDdharta 1823 Pts   -  
    @MayCaesar but if women are told to just go about their day without using a tampon if they can't afford it. You can't just let their blood sit on the chairs in public school. It must be cleaned literally every time a new class comes in the room. So you have to buy cleaning supplies and make sure you have someone hired who can go around and clean the chairs between every single school period.

    Was that a problem in the 1980s, 70s, 60s?  Do people have less money today than they did in the age of Stagflation?  Was it a problem during the Great Depression?  Do people have less money today than they did during the Great Depression?  I guess all of those social safety nets and welfare programs that were set up as a result of the Great Depression have been completely worthless and should be rescinded.
  • WordsMatterWordsMatter 493 Pts   -  
    @CYDdharta I think you misunderstand that I'm posting that in response to ask the people in this thread who said if women can't afford them then they should just go about their day using absolutely nothing
  • CYDdhartaCYDdharta 1823 Pts   -  
    @CYDdharta I think you misunderstand that I'm posting that in response to ask the people in this thread who said if women can't afford them then they should just go about their day using absolutely nothing
    I don't think I misunderstand at all.  Why would leaving bloody seats in school be a problem now when it wasn't a problem during the Great Depression?
    Applesauce
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