I had one at a birthing center, and it was wonderful.
Seriously, do you think that there would even be birthing centers if they were reckless in this day and age? What OBGYN would even consider it if it were reckless, not because of what harm they might inflict because I am sure that there is that rare doctor who really does not care, but because no insurance company would take that risk!
You won't be admitted to such a facility if you are not just a good candidate, but a supurb candidate. If there is even a wisper of a rumor that you might need to be in a hospital, you will be.
As for pitocin, it is pretty flaming of you to say that it is a bad drug. All chemotherapy drugs would be bad for someone without cancer, but I assume that you would see how rediculous that statement would be. Insert any type of drug that you don't need, and it could be called bad. That was not just a misstatement because there is a layperson debate about induction and epidural both that leads to a decidedly nasty superiority of whose experience was better, which is only helpful to the women who need that kind of one-up-manship for what ever twisted reason. I have no idea how anyone would choose either one of these things if they were not offered nor needed in thier situation. I mean, really, are you supperior to anyone else because you have a high pain tolerance or your uterus contracted properly, because that is how that kind of statement comes off.
Infant and maternal mortality are very low in this country. Maybe you would have been one of the Mom's who survived 100 years ago, and I wouldn't, but unless you are going to follow some kind of eugenic adgenda, that does not make how I delivered my children bad.
Frankly, I just don't see why you needed to bash pitocin and epidural to ask your question about how you convince two people you disagree with that your idea is better than theirs is. Pot...meet kettle.
M.