Deary me, not the Catholics again. They just can't get over their
guilt about sex.

I guess consumer response has given it's verdict. When the pill
was banned in Italy and Ireland, smuggling became a hugely
lucrative industry in those countries.

The pill is about choice. Even married women need to use a form
of contraception, as you will find out one day, Amy.

The pill has nothing to do with women going out to work etc. If
women were still content with the 12 square fibro and a battered
old Holden, they might not need to. Instead today, Australians
live in the world's largest houses and in my experience its women
who generally call the shots in that dept.

In fact the common marriage complaints are that men would like a bit
more sex and women would like more money. Going out to work a bit,
even if part time, makes perfect sense. Pill or no pill.

The Pill didn't "promise" anything, it simply made choice possible - it certainly didn't make "motherhood out to be a second-rate option" as the author contends.
While I agree with the author that society should respect and value mothers more - by providing paid parental leave for example - she seems to be blaming the Pill for what she sees as negative changes in society in the late 20th century.
The Pill has had a profound effect on society by making parenthood a considered choice for the majority of people. The profound effects are still working their way through society and are certainly not all negative. In its first decade or so the Pill was responsible for fewer abortions and less physical damage to young women from botched abortions; fewer unwanted children being born hence fewer "orphans" available for adoption and children being valued more, hence the disappearance of things like orphanages and corporal punishment in schools. In later decades the Pill was responsible for more women having tertiary education and careers; cohabitation of couples prior to marriage becomng the norm; date of first marriages being pushed further and further back, and marriage becoming synonomous with the decision of a couple to buy a house and/or start a family (commitment only being necessary with responsbility).
Overall, the Pill has had an overwhelmingly positive impact on society: we should never want to return to a world where unwanted children were plentiful, women died or were injured from botched abortions, and women's life choices were severely restricted by an inability to control their fertility.
CK John J's spouse

"In fact the common marriage complaints are that men would like a bit
more sex and women would like more money. Going out to work a bit,
even if part time, makes perfect sense. Pill or no pill". Yabby.

Oh Yabby, never believe everything you hear, it is the reverse, according to the many women I am friends with and friends of friends.The men wanting more sex would get it, if they put in the effort that women do.

We are unique:".The men wanting more sex would get it, if they put in the effort that women do."

So you see sex as a quid pro quo for "putting in an effort"? Essentially, you believe marriage to be a contract in which the woman exchanges sex for a man's productive efforts?

A prostitute here in Brisbane costs $120 or so for half an hour. By your reckoning the average bloke should be able to reasonably expect at least 3-4 really good sweaty sessions a week from the missus at that rate. I think it's about time I put in a complaint about the ex to Fair Trading...

The pill was an enabler of Feminism as it is done today. With effective control of their fertility women were freed to compete with men on an equal footing in some limited ways. As the author points out, however, that freedom comes with a price, which is the abrogation of their maternal drive. Most women I have ever spoken to expect and want to have children, even those who don't want to have anything to do with men. The use of the pill doesn't change that, it merely gives them an opportunity to determine more readily when they will do so.

I agree with the author that Feminism has become mostly about women who don't want to be mothers.There is a huge set of social structures designed to make it easier for women to use their womb then pass the child to someone else to raise. It's the "all care, no responsibility" model that was once the sole preserve of lawyers, but is now part of most women's reasonable expectations. To achieve that it has been necessary to place ever more responsibility on men.

Would I prefer the pill had not been invented? No. Would I prefer that we had a more equitable accommodation for the social impacts? Absolutely. Authority without responsibility leads inevitably to what Orwell predicted - the pigs have theor noses in the trough and rely on the loyalty of the favoured dogs to keep the rest in line.

A good article. In a follow-on article, the author may consider addressing the virtually hidden side of the pill's history, namely the damage done by the adverse side effects of the pill. I say hidden, as the contraceptive pill manufacturers do their best to suppress any unfavourable comments about the pill. It would not surprise if statistics showed a marked increase in the incidence of breast cancer in the past 50 years, compared with the previous 50 years. How much infertility is caused by the pill, leading to higher demand for IVF treatment? Then there is the lack of general knowledge, or should I say suppression of such knowledge, about the side effects of the pill on children born to the pill takers, e.g. reduced fertility.
What is the cost to the taxpayer of subsidising the prescription of the pill? As total public health expenditure appreciates at more than twice the general price inflation rate, why should the taxpayer continue to subsidise the pill? There would be substantial Budget savings from stopping this subsidy. With the pill allegedly assisting women to spend more time in the workforce and thereby to earn more income, there is a strong case for them to bear more, if not all, of the cost of the pill.

pmsl Antiseptic; a huge gulf exists between many blokes in their 40's and 50's regarding sex in relationships compared to guys in their 20's and 30's. Rarely do I hear from guys in their 30's [with older partners] complaining about sex in their relationships. Next time around I will definitely be with a younger bloke/guy; according to friends "they put themselves out and put the effort in".