There are few things in life that you can have an absolute opinion on, things you consider strictly black or white. For me, I have always been Pro-Choice and I have always been against the Anti-Death Penalty. For the former I was first openly challenged at age 14 when the "abortion" video was to be presented to my Catechism class by a fervent women lawyer spouting few facts and plenty of hate...I got up and left- the rest of that story I will save for another time. As for the death penalty, I came to fully realize the extent of my feelings at the age of 12/13 in my eighth grade U.S. History class. My teacher was an interesting character. My Mother also had him for her eighth grade history class at the same middle some several decades before- she described him as a sort of lecherous man who was at times "too friendly" to his female students. Needless to say I was particularly weary of him from the start. While Mr. Barry's teaching methods were somewhat unorthodox (he once threw one of our text books out the window upon being dared to by my classmates), I learned a great deal from that class and the one thing that sticks with me to this day is how much I disapprove of State sponsored executions in any case. Once during a debate on the death penalty, at the very end I was pitted against the only other student in the class who was as advanced in debating as I was (at least at that time). I had him changing his mind by the end of class and won the debate for the anti-death penalty side.
Mr. Barry jumped on the boy for over turning his convictions so easily once the debate got heated. I used the most popular arguments for why I was anti-death penalty. Obviously, the inability to be 100% confident of a person’s guilt and therefore the inevitability of executing innocent people is the primary. In addition, the lack of certainty that the death penalty does anything to actually deter crime, the unjust way in which the death penalty is handed down to those who are the poorest members of society and the hypocrisy of murder being a crime when committed by an individual but a "sentence" when handed down by the state. Mr. Barry then turned to me and congratulated me on sticking to my guns so to speak- he then proceeded to offer me examples of situations where the death penalty could be considered by some to be a reasonable and just consequence for the perpetrator of such crimes. He asked about cold blooded murder, murder of a child, murder of multiple people, murder with torture, rape, dismemberment, murder of multiple people, families, women and he went on for some time- each time he paused and looked at me with eyebrows raised, waiting for me to respond that I still would not call for the death penalty as appropriate punishment. Each time he asked in a louder voice and at first I calmly replied "No" in every instance. As the instances became more and more severe he begun shouting and the student's in the class had their heads shifting rapidly back and forth between my 12 year-old self and this 50 plus man in the clear position of authority- you could sense the intensity rising in the classroom as the bell rang and other classes began pouring into the hallway. I don't remember the exact situation described which finally brought the exchange to a climax but I will never forget standing up with so much force that I knocked my desk over and screamed "NO!" so loudly that the students in the hallway fell dead silence. At this point tears are escaping my eyes and I'm psychically shaking with adrenaline- Mr. Barry calmly walked over to me and stuck his hand out to me to shake, "Good for you Ms. Callahan, good for you."
Earlier this year I wrote about the horrific instance of the fatal gang rape which took place on a bus in India. A woman was returning home with a male friend from viewing a movie in Delhi were lured onto a bus that contained six intoxicated men who attacked them. Please see A DANGEROUS PERSPECTIVE for my initial post and more information. This is how the suspects were found and tied to the incident, DELHI RAPE SUSPECTS. The driver of the bus* was found hung in his prison cell in March of an apparent suicide. The youngest (and by several accounts the most vicious) of the six perpetrators was several months shy of his 18th birthday when the rape occurred and therefore was sentenced to the maximum term allowed in the instance of a juvenile which is three years in a special correctional facility. According to a police spokesperson, the teenager was the most violent, and apparently “sexually abused his victim twice and ripped out her intestines with his bare hands (citation). The remaining four perpetrators were found guilty of murder and rape and while the sentence was supposed to be handed down on Wednesday, the judge waited until this morning to announce the fate of the guilty.
The four men were sentenced to death by hanging this morning. In India, death penalty sentences have been on the decline for the past decade. However, the last state sanctioned executions have occurred in late 2012: the hanging of Ajmal Kasab, convicted of terror charges in a 2008 attack on Mumbai that killed more than 160 people, and Afzal Guru, convicted of plotting a 2001 attack on Parliament. Looking at India's history of sentencing past Supreme Court rulings have said the death penalty is warranted for crimes committed in such "an extremely brutal, grotesque, diabolical, revolting or dastardly manner so as to arouse intense and extreme indignation of the community."
The country responded with widespread outrage after details of the gruesome attack began becoming available to the public. As in most countries and the world, rape is a widespread occurrence. In India, statistic start at a rape occurring every 20 minutes or a total of 72 rapes every day (citation). Most rapes are unreported for fear of societal stigma and familial rejection, thus few perpetrators ever face consequences for the crime. Even in the instance of reported rape the conviction rate is startling low.
I've followed this case closely since January and especially so this week. It's something that I haven't been able to get out of my mind to be honest. When the guilty verdict was handed down on Wednesday I started pouring over the all the articles again and any new information on the case that I could find. I first heard about the sentence at about 6:30am this morning. I wasn't surprised, but I can't lie- I felt relieved. For the first time in my life I was a type of happy that a "State" was planning on ending the lives of the accused and tried of an unspeakably horrible crime.
I can't say that I think it's the "right" thing to do. I can't say that I "agree" with the sentence, but I don't feel the way I always have in the past. I've looked at cases of horrific, disgusting crimes- murder, child murder, murder with unspeakable torture involved-all by seemingly indecent and inhumane individuals and I've always come up with the same result in the end. The death penalty is always wrong- but at least for the moment in this case I cannot say that anymore. It isn't that I haven't thought that some people are not savable, unable to be reformed, a "waste of space" even...I have thought all those things and I have wondered why it is that I don't think executions are an acceptable form of punishment. I was raised Roman Catholic and I'm sure that may have something to do with my opinion but I look at it as more of a "gut check" so to speak. When you face yourself and reason with yourself and search within yourself you come up with a core feeling or belief. "This is wrong, this is right" or even "I don't know." In this case my gut tells me that I don’t think I have any problem with these men being killed.
I will continue to ask myself these questions…will the death of these four men prevent any rapes from occurring? Will the precedent make would be rapist reconsider their actions? Will their murders at all change the way that women are perceived in Indian culture? What if perpetrators turn from rapists into murderers to further prevent women from reporting their rapes if the instances of reporting begins to rise? Is this a ploy to save face by the Indian government and does it even mean anything if it is? What about what the victim wanted? On her deathbed she is said to have requested that her attackers and killers be “burned alive.”
So no, I don't think I'm alone in these sentiments. My personal struggle with right and wrong will continue on as it does with everyone. I don't have a monopoly on personal struggles. Neither death nor jail for life will bring back the victim of such a miserable fate. Maybe I feel this way because because I'm getting older and more jaded. Maybe as a women/human my own personal aversion to rapists has allowed me to finally cross over to the side that says some individuals commit acts which forfeit their right to continue living. I don't think changing ones mind is not allowed. I don't think having an evolving opinion means that you have weak convictions and I don't think that calling out a gray area means that you have failed to choose a side. My 12 year old self wants to stand up and state with utter certainty that no one should ever be executed by a government...and not that it really matters in the grand scheme of things but my 28 year-old self does wonder what the late Mr. Barry would have to say to me now.
*Most of the articles I have read call Ram Singh (the accused who was found hung in March) as the driver.
Friday, September 13, 2013
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Waiting for October
August is nearly over and I have only written a single entry this entire month. My blog is most certainly mirroring the identity crisis I am (hopefully) in the middle of having. I've been thinking of changing to a different site to host it and or MAYBE starting my own site. I've been worrying about copyright and legality issues (almost unreasonably so) and I am almost thinking that I may close the whole thing down and work solely on pieces geared towards being published online or in print. There are so many things that can be related to Feminism and Women's rights- A TON of things. My focus is mostly on Reproductive Rights and Abortion. Secondarily, I have written a lot outside of this blog about Pornography and the relationship it has to Feminism. As of right now, I am drawn to the exclusion of minority and African American women in mainstream Feminism and the disservice that results in allowing white women to speak for all women.
A lot of....THOUGHTS I guess. I will leave you with some items that have stuck out to me in recent weeks and then continue meandering through all my thoughts and my current crisis of self.
The President of the League of Women Voters in the US wrote this blog post for the HUFFINGTON POST on Women's Equality Day- the day commemorating the passage of the 19th Amendment. She also talks about the current status of voting rights in the United States.
The ONLY thing that I've shared or cared about regarding Miley Cyrus and her VMA performance SOLIDARITY FOR MILEY CYRUS
This blog post really struck me. It popped up on FB a couple weeks ago and whether you are in a relationship or not it's a must read TOXIC RELATIONSHIP HABITS
What difference does it make if you can't take a day off during the week to get an abortion? ALABAMAS SATURDAY WOMEN
Until next time...
A lot of....THOUGHTS I guess. I will leave you with some items that have stuck out to me in recent weeks and then continue meandering through all my thoughts and my current crisis of self.
The President of the League of Women Voters in the US wrote this blog post for the HUFFINGTON POST on Women's Equality Day- the day commemorating the passage of the 19th Amendment. She also talks about the current status of voting rights in the United States.
The ONLY thing that I've shared or cared about regarding Miley Cyrus and her VMA performance SOLIDARITY FOR MILEY CYRUS
This blog post really struck me. It popped up on FB a couple weeks ago and whether you are in a relationship or not it's a must read TOXIC RELATIONSHIP HABITS
What difference does it make if you can't take a day off during the week to get an abortion? ALABAMAS SATURDAY WOMEN
Until next time...
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Six Week Timer (or Would You Know You were Pregnant?)
North Dakota is trying to ban abortions after 6 weeks. North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple signed a bill into law in March and did so with the expectation that it would be ruled unconstitutional. Thankfully, it was. A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against the law, siding with reproductive health advocates and stating in no uncertain terms that the law is clearly unconstitutional.
Republicans in both Arizona and Arkansas passed 20 week and 12 week bans (respectively) within the past year. After the 20 week ban in Texas passed the Republican law makers drafted their own legislation to bring a proposed 6 week ban into effect. The bill would require women seeking abortion to first undergo an ultrasound, and if the fetal heartbeat can be detected she would be banned from having the procedure. The fetal heart beat is usually detected around the sixth week of pregnancy.
The tactics of Republicans and the Pro-life movement have long been rooted in creating obstacles for women to obtain a legal abortion. The 20 week abortion ban in Texas for instance, not only made it illegal to obtain an abortion after 20 weeks but simultaneously closed down most of the abortion clinics in the State who could not afford to make the unnecessary changes to be licensed as surgical ambulatory centers which was called for in the bill (i.e. wider hallways).
While Republicans spend an enormous amount of time, energy and resources on drafting these bills and attempting to push them through their respective state legislatures, the end goal is to overturn Roe v.Wade and in the meantime prevent as many women from obtaining legal abortions as possible. With bans in place women have a limited time in which they can find out they are pregnant, decide to terminate said pregnancy, gather funds in which to pay for the procedure, make an appointment, find a ride, take the day off from work and so on and so forth. Of course, the longer one has to wait to obtain an abortion the more expensive and more complicated the procedure will be.
This is why the ban on abortions starting as soon as a fetal heart rate is detected is absolutely ridiculous. Women often find out that they are pregnant at the 6 week mark or for some much later. For anyone who has the opinion that women have to know the second they are impregnated, you are wrong. Simple as that. If you don't have a female reproductive system your opinion on the matter is null and void, if you do have a female reproductive system and you still can't believe that women cannot know that they are pregnant then you are also wrong. It happens.
The exact statistics of these instances are hard to pin down. It seems that the most recent statistics claim it occurs between 1 in 475 women and 1 in 600 women (though European data seems much lower at 1 in 2500 women as of 2009). Upon further inspection the difference in statistics is that the 1 in 475/600 is in the case when a women discovers she is pregnant late into the actually pregnancy and the 1 in 2500 is for women who actually go into labor without knowing they were pregnant at all.
You may be asking yourself the question- "how is it possible to not know that you are pregnant?" Let's discuss how this is possible.
First and foremost you may take one or more pregnancy tests that come back negative. Okay, easy enough to understand right?
What about missing your period? Doesn't that make it obvious? Some women get their periods (menstrual cycle) every 21 days, menstruate for 4-7 days and then start all over again. A more average occurrence may be every a period every 24-35 days and actual menstruation of somewhere between 2-7 days. This is just an average and the point is that there are women who's cycles are completely irregular. Sometimes stress, weight loss or gain or environmental circumstances can cause missed periods or cycle changes. Some women may have very light periods that often include minimal spotting or barely any fluid at all. Everybody is different! There are women who spot throughout their pregnancies too. So saying that a woman would automatically know she was pregnant because she misses her period is not accurate.
What about getting pregnant when you're on birth control? There are a lot of methods of birth control out there; the pill, the patch, the implant, IUD's (Intrauterine devices implanted along the wall of the uterus), the shot, the ring and more still. Each method has a varying rate of failure. IUD's can be up to 99.9% effective, BUT the only way to absolutely avoid being impregnated is to not have sex. So in theory, no matter what birth control method you use there is a chance that you COULD become pregnant if you engage in intercourse. BUT the odds of becoming pregnant while on birth control are much lower than if you aren't and it isn't hard to imagine a women who may not have any symptoms of pregnancy and have an IUD in place think that she couldn't be pregnant- add in a false negative on a pregnancy test and it becomes even easier to see how this can happen.
There is also EC (emergency contraception). EC is a pill you can take up to 72 hours after unprotected sex to greatly reduce the risk of becoming pregnant. If you are already pregnant, EC won't work. However, if you take EC right after unprotected sex your odds of becoming pregnant goes down significantly. Without additional symptoms you may think that you couldn't be pregnant.
If you want to hear specific stories about women who didn't know they were pregnant then you can look up the TV reality show that aired on Discovery Health between 2008-2011, "I Didn't Know I was Pregnant." Yes, there are obvious over dramatizations and sensationalism on this and every other reality shows but it does provide some food for thought about the topic.
So, to tie all this back into abortion bans- when States make it extremely difficult to access first-term abortions by placing obstacles in front of women (waiting periods, mandatory counseling, little to no clinic availability) the result is that women are forced to carry unwanted pregnancies much longer into term than desired which in turn hurts everyone.
Yes, it does get trickier to talk about abortion when you get to a certain gestational age. This doesn't mean that we shouldn't be talking about it though. The obvious focus shouldn't be on banning late term abortions but about ensuring accessibility to all women seeking abortions earlier in the pregnancy. When abortion access is not readily available to certain women because of their income level or geographical location the time it can take for that woman to gain access can turn a first-term abortion in the second or even third trimester. Most states do not allow third-term an abortion, the limit in the United States is about 26 weeks and this is only allowed in the event of severe fetal abnormalities or if the health of the mother is in serious danger.
The goal of states like North Dakota, Arizona and Texas is to make abortion so inaccessible to women that they need to be either extremely wealthy or extremely fortunate in order to terminate an unwanted pregnancy. Abortions will happen. They will occur no matter what. If women cannot access them early and safely than there will be women who will be so desperate that they will take matters into their own hands. Bans do nothing but further the disconnect between what Anti-choice individuals want and what all women in every state deserve; early, safe and affordable abortions.
Republicans in both Arizona and Arkansas passed 20 week and 12 week bans (respectively) within the past year. After the 20 week ban in Texas passed the Republican law makers drafted their own legislation to bring a proposed 6 week ban into effect. The bill would require women seeking abortion to first undergo an ultrasound, and if the fetal heartbeat can be detected she would be banned from having the procedure. The fetal heart beat is usually detected around the sixth week of pregnancy.
The tactics of Republicans and the Pro-life movement have long been rooted in creating obstacles for women to obtain a legal abortion. The 20 week abortion ban in Texas for instance, not only made it illegal to obtain an abortion after 20 weeks but simultaneously closed down most of the abortion clinics in the State who could not afford to make the unnecessary changes to be licensed as surgical ambulatory centers which was called for in the bill (i.e. wider hallways).
While Republicans spend an enormous amount of time, energy and resources on drafting these bills and attempting to push them through their respective state legislatures, the end goal is to overturn Roe v.Wade and in the meantime prevent as many women from obtaining legal abortions as possible. With bans in place women have a limited time in which they can find out they are pregnant, decide to terminate said pregnancy, gather funds in which to pay for the procedure, make an appointment, find a ride, take the day off from work and so on and so forth. Of course, the longer one has to wait to obtain an abortion the more expensive and more complicated the procedure will be.
This is why the ban on abortions starting as soon as a fetal heart rate is detected is absolutely ridiculous. Women often find out that they are pregnant at the 6 week mark or for some much later. For anyone who has the opinion that women have to know the second they are impregnated, you are wrong. Simple as that. If you don't have a female reproductive system your opinion on the matter is null and void, if you do have a female reproductive system and you still can't believe that women cannot know that they are pregnant then you are also wrong. It happens.
The exact statistics of these instances are hard to pin down. It seems that the most recent statistics claim it occurs between 1 in 475 women and 1 in 600 women (though European data seems much lower at 1 in 2500 women as of 2009). Upon further inspection the difference in statistics is that the 1 in 475/600 is in the case when a women discovers she is pregnant late into the actually pregnancy and the 1 in 2500 is for women who actually go into labor without knowing they were pregnant at all.
You may be asking yourself the question- "how is it possible to not know that you are pregnant?" Let's discuss how this is possible.
First and foremost you may take one or more pregnancy tests that come back negative. Okay, easy enough to understand right?
What about missing your period? Doesn't that make it obvious? Some women get their periods (menstrual cycle) every 21 days, menstruate for 4-7 days and then start all over again. A more average occurrence may be every a period every 24-35 days and actual menstruation of somewhere between 2-7 days. This is just an average and the point is that there are women who's cycles are completely irregular. Sometimes stress, weight loss or gain or environmental circumstances can cause missed periods or cycle changes. Some women may have very light periods that often include minimal spotting or barely any fluid at all. Everybody is different! There are women who spot throughout their pregnancies too. So saying that a woman would automatically know she was pregnant because she misses her period is not accurate.
What about getting pregnant when you're on birth control? There are a lot of methods of birth control out there; the pill, the patch, the implant, IUD's (Intrauterine devices implanted along the wall of the uterus), the shot, the ring and more still. Each method has a varying rate of failure. IUD's can be up to 99.9% effective, BUT the only way to absolutely avoid being impregnated is to not have sex. So in theory, no matter what birth control method you use there is a chance that you COULD become pregnant if you engage in intercourse. BUT the odds of becoming pregnant while on birth control are much lower than if you aren't and it isn't hard to imagine a women who may not have any symptoms of pregnancy and have an IUD in place think that she couldn't be pregnant- add in a false negative on a pregnancy test and it becomes even easier to see how this can happen.
There is also EC (emergency contraception). EC is a pill you can take up to 72 hours after unprotected sex to greatly reduce the risk of becoming pregnant. If you are already pregnant, EC won't work. However, if you take EC right after unprotected sex your odds of becoming pregnant goes down significantly. Without additional symptoms you may think that you couldn't be pregnant.
If you want to hear specific stories about women who didn't know they were pregnant then you can look up the TV reality show that aired on Discovery Health between 2008-2011, "I Didn't Know I was Pregnant." Yes, there are obvious over dramatizations and sensationalism on this and every other reality shows but it does provide some food for thought about the topic.
So, to tie all this back into abortion bans- when States make it extremely difficult to access first-term abortions by placing obstacles in front of women (waiting periods, mandatory counseling, little to no clinic availability) the result is that women are forced to carry unwanted pregnancies much longer into term than desired which in turn hurts everyone.
Yes, it does get trickier to talk about abortion when you get to a certain gestational age. This doesn't mean that we shouldn't be talking about it though. The obvious focus shouldn't be on banning late term abortions but about ensuring accessibility to all women seeking abortions earlier in the pregnancy. When abortion access is not readily available to certain women because of their income level or geographical location the time it can take for that woman to gain access can turn a first-term abortion in the second or even third trimester. Most states do not allow third-term an abortion, the limit in the United States is about 26 weeks and this is only allowed in the event of severe fetal abnormalities or if the health of the mother is in serious danger.
The goal of states like North Dakota, Arizona and Texas is to make abortion so inaccessible to women that they need to be either extremely wealthy or extremely fortunate in order to terminate an unwanted pregnancy. Abortions will happen. They will occur no matter what. If women cannot access them early and safely than there will be women who will be so desperate that they will take matters into their own hands. Bans do nothing but further the disconnect between what Anti-choice individuals want and what all women in every state deserve; early, safe and affordable abortions.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
"Gynoticians"
I know I'm on a link kick and haven't been doing much criticism/analysis of late- it's coming.
Hilarious Slam of Gynoticians: A little too close to home.
Enjoy Amber Tambyln and David Cross show what happens when Politicians play Doctors.
Hilarious Slam of Gynoticians: A little too close to home.
Enjoy Amber Tambyln and David Cross show what happens when Politicians play Doctors.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Thursday, July 18, 2013
Progression of Opinions- A Pro-Lifer Loses Faith in the Movement
How I Lost Faith in the Pro-Life Movement
A very well written and researched piece by a young women raised to believe that abortion is always murder. She begins to change her mind after doing her own research and reflecting on what the anti-choice movement is really trying to do. Not saving the "unborn" but regulating sex and denying women their own human rights.
A very well written and researched piece by a young women raised to believe that abortion is always murder. She begins to change her mind after doing her own research and reflecting on what the anti-choice movement is really trying to do. Not saving the "unborn" but regulating sex and denying women their own human rights.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
A Grave Disservice to the Women of Texas
Texas Senator Wendy Davis succeeded in her attempt to filibuster against an anti-abortion bill that would enact wide ranging restrictions on abortion access in the nations second most populous state. Speaking for nearly 11 hours straight last week, Senator Davis was halted near the 11-hour mark after the chairman ruled that she had gone off topic. Governor Perry has already called a second special session which grants the state senate up to a month in order to try and pass the bill again. As of early Wednesday morning the House State Affairs Committee approved the bill to be brought up to the House and Senate.
The proposal would effect ban abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy but that is not all nor is it the main purpose of HB2 (House Bill 2). HB2 would also require doctors to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals, limit abortions to surgical centers and stipulate doctors must monitor even non-surgical abortions (medication abortions). So while the proponents of the bill say that the goal is to protect the health and safety of every women who undergoes an abortion- the actuality of this bill leaves Texas with five (out of 42) clinics that qualify as ambulatory surgical centers and they are located only in major metropolitan areas. This is an obvious ploy by Republicans to make getting an abortion so difficult to obtain for some Texas women that they will be left with no choice but to carry unwanted pregnancies to term.
No one on the supporting side of the bill can provide evidence indicating that the proposed changes to abortion clinic facilities are necessary or would amount to the improved health or safety of the patients. The goal of this bill in its entirety is to place additional hurdles in front of women seeking abortions and the providers seeking to extend to them their legal right to terminate. Senator Harvey Hildebrand(R) of Kerrville stated,"The whole objective of this bill is to save lives ... and to protect the unborn." The lives of the women who are already born do not supersede those of "the unborn" apparently.
The lengths to which Texas Republicans will go to in order to make this anachronistic bill the law of their land is despicable. Ilyse Hogue wrote an opinion piece for CNN that covers the abysmal tactics that Texas Republicans have succumb to in order to force this unnecessary bill through. Hogue writes in part, "The Republicans couldn't pass this bill in regular session -- Texas law requires a two-thirds Senate majority for these measures, and the GOP simply didn't have it. So instead of building support the old-fashioned way for this radical legislation, Gov. Perry decided he'd just change the rules. He called a special session after the end of the normal legislative period, and his friend, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, declared they no longer needed a super majority vote."
Obviously many would disagree with me but it doesn't matter what you think about abortion if you are not the one obtaining one. If you have one and then regret it for whatever reason, you still got to choose and have a safe, private, surgical procedure. Remember, you personally do not have to have an abortion, but further still- allowing any women a safe and legal abortion is not something that negatively impacts your life in a tangible way. It does NOT take away any of your rights. You can think that she is a murderess, you can hope she can never become pregnant again, you can lose sleep over it, you can even condemn her and everyone else for that matter to hell and beyond but you cannot say that you have the right to decide what women do with their own bodies. One can argue this fact as much as one wants but the anti-choice rhetoric puts individuals whose moral or religious views differ from others on the same plane as the individual themselves. Simply put, judge and be judged and more importantly- mind your own business.
The proposal would effect ban abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy but that is not all nor is it the main purpose of HB2 (House Bill 2). HB2 would also require doctors to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals, limit abortions to surgical centers and stipulate doctors must monitor even non-surgical abortions (medication abortions). So while the proponents of the bill say that the goal is to protect the health and safety of every women who undergoes an abortion- the actuality of this bill leaves Texas with five (out of 42) clinics that qualify as ambulatory surgical centers and they are located only in major metropolitan areas. This is an obvious ploy by Republicans to make getting an abortion so difficult to obtain for some Texas women that they will be left with no choice but to carry unwanted pregnancies to term.
No one on the supporting side of the bill can provide evidence indicating that the proposed changes to abortion clinic facilities are necessary or would amount to the improved health or safety of the patients. The goal of this bill in its entirety is to place additional hurdles in front of women seeking abortions and the providers seeking to extend to them their legal right to terminate. Senator Harvey Hildebrand(R) of Kerrville stated,"The whole objective of this bill is to save lives ... and to protect the unborn." The lives of the women who are already born do not supersede those of "the unborn" apparently.
The lengths to which Texas Republicans will go to in order to make this anachronistic bill the law of their land is despicable. Ilyse Hogue wrote an opinion piece for CNN that covers the abysmal tactics that Texas Republicans have succumb to in order to force this unnecessary bill through. Hogue writes in part, "The Republicans couldn't pass this bill in regular session -- Texas law requires a two-thirds Senate majority for these measures, and the GOP simply didn't have it. So instead of building support the old-fashioned way for this radical legislation, Gov. Perry decided he'd just change the rules. He called a special session after the end of the normal legislative period, and his friend, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, declared they no longer needed a super majority vote."
Obviously many would disagree with me but it doesn't matter what you think about abortion if you are not the one obtaining one. If you have one and then regret it for whatever reason, you still got to choose and have a safe, private, surgical procedure. Remember, you personally do not have to have an abortion, but further still- allowing any women a safe and legal abortion is not something that negatively impacts your life in a tangible way. It does NOT take away any of your rights. You can think that she is a murderess, you can hope she can never become pregnant again, you can lose sleep over it, you can even condemn her and everyone else for that matter to hell and beyond but you cannot say that you have the right to decide what women do with their own bodies. One can argue this fact as much as one wants but the anti-choice rhetoric puts individuals whose moral or religious views differ from others on the same plane as the individual themselves. Simply put, judge and be judged and more importantly- mind your own business.
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Crisis Pregnancy Centers: A Day of Action
One of my earliest blog entries talked about Crisis Pregnancy Centers, The Clinic Across the Street. I'd like to say that in the last year and a half a lot has changed but unfortunately that is not the case.
Crisis Pregnancy Center's (or CPC's) are defined by Naral Pro-Choice Massachusetts as being centers or clinics which (1) purport to provide education and counseling services and free or fee-based pregnancy-related services such as pregnancy tests and ultra sounds, (2) provide misleading, incomplete, or proven-to-be-false information related to sexuality, abortion, abortion-related risks, and birth control, and (3) will not perform abortions or provide abortion referrals.
In my city we have a CPC not to far from where I grew up. There is a neon sign hang up in the front window advertising "Free Pregnancy Tests"- it isn't a health center and if you are aware of CPC's you would probably come to the conclusion that this is one after spending a few moments on their web site. Some key clues to this is they do not mention abortion except in the case of "post-abortion support." The counseling they offer includes the term "spiritual" and they include abstinence education in their list of resources as well as free maternity and baby clothes. Naral Pro-Choice has a campaign geared towards exposing CPC's. Follow the link above to go to there main page on CPC's.
Women who end up in CPC's are lied to and intimidated into being convinced that they should continue their pregnancies no matter what. In any and all circumstances. If you watch the first video clip on the page above you can hear a training from anti-choice activist Abby Johnson instructing CPC workers on how to get women into their centers by giving the impression that they are entering an abortion clinic. Johnson states "We want to appear neutral on the outside. The best call, the best client you could ever get is one that THINKS they're walking into an abortion clinic." If this isn't deception, I don't know what is. Other comments by Johnson indicates that the goal of CPC's is to deceive women into thinking that they are being given advice from professionals and or medically trained and licensed individuals- "We want to look professional. We want to look business like and yeah we do, we do kinda want to look medical." Johnson goes on to explain how the staffers of CPC's should offer free ultrasounds to women who call asking if the centers provide abortion services because in order to obtain an abortion they will have to get an ultrasound anyway as part of the process. Once the women come into the centers they are then further manipulated into thinking they are receiving medically accurate information.
Another video shows a women entering a CPC in Louisville, KY. for information about her options and how she is given completely false information. A few examples: "I can tell you that everybody that has done it (had an abortion) has regretted it."
"It can make you infertile."
The counselor tells the young women "her own" story and how she cannot have children now because of her abortion. She says, "What happened to me is they did it. And it, and the fetus was still inside of me and they had to do it again." When the women asks her if this happens a lot she replies, "It can happen. It's very common."
The worst part about CPC's is that they feel that their manipulation and coercive techniques are entirely justifiable. That they are blatantly lying to women is not their concern. Women who enter these centers are not independent autonomous human beings to the people who staff these places- they are simply impregnated women who cannot be trusted to be given accurate information so that they may make their own decisions. The health and well being of the mother is not something that is of concern. The greater mission of CPC's is forcing their beliefs and values on everyone who enters the centers by whatever means necessary; including giving completely false and often damaging "information" to women who are often in vulnerable positions and just want to be told the truth.
Crisis Pregnancy Center's (or CPC's) are defined by Naral Pro-Choice Massachusetts as being centers or clinics which (1) purport to provide education and counseling services and free or fee-based pregnancy-related services such as pregnancy tests and ultra sounds, (2) provide misleading, incomplete, or proven-to-be-false information related to sexuality, abortion, abortion-related risks, and birth control, and (3) will not perform abortions or provide abortion referrals.
In my city we have a CPC not to far from where I grew up. There is a neon sign hang up in the front window advertising "Free Pregnancy Tests"- it isn't a health center and if you are aware of CPC's you would probably come to the conclusion that this is one after spending a few moments on their web site. Some key clues to this is they do not mention abortion except in the case of "post-abortion support." The counseling they offer includes the term "spiritual" and they include abstinence education in their list of resources as well as free maternity and baby clothes. Naral Pro-Choice has a campaign geared towards exposing CPC's. Follow the link above to go to there main page on CPC's.
Women who end up in CPC's are lied to and intimidated into being convinced that they should continue their pregnancies no matter what. In any and all circumstances. If you watch the first video clip on the page above you can hear a training from anti-choice activist Abby Johnson instructing CPC workers on how to get women into their centers by giving the impression that they are entering an abortion clinic. Johnson states "We want to appear neutral on the outside. The best call, the best client you could ever get is one that THINKS they're walking into an abortion clinic." If this isn't deception, I don't know what is. Other comments by Johnson indicates that the goal of CPC's is to deceive women into thinking that they are being given advice from professionals and or medically trained and licensed individuals- "We want to look professional. We want to look business like and yeah we do, we do kinda want to look medical." Johnson goes on to explain how the staffers of CPC's should offer free ultrasounds to women who call asking if the centers provide abortion services because in order to obtain an abortion they will have to get an ultrasound anyway as part of the process. Once the women come into the centers they are then further manipulated into thinking they are receiving medically accurate information.
Another video shows a women entering a CPC in Louisville, KY. for information about her options and how she is given completely false information. A few examples: "I can tell you that everybody that has done it (had an abortion) has regretted it."
"It can make you infertile."
The counselor tells the young women "her own" story and how she cannot have children now because of her abortion. She says, "What happened to me is they did it. And it, and the fetus was still inside of me and they had to do it again." When the women asks her if this happens a lot she replies, "It can happen. It's very common."
The worst part about CPC's is that they feel that their manipulation and coercive techniques are entirely justifiable. That they are blatantly lying to women is not their concern. Women who enter these centers are not independent autonomous human beings to the people who staff these places- they are simply impregnated women who cannot be trusted to be given accurate information so that they may make their own decisions. The health and well being of the mother is not something that is of concern. The greater mission of CPC's is forcing their beliefs and values on everyone who enters the centers by whatever means necessary; including giving completely false and often damaging "information" to women who are often in vulnerable positions and just want to be told the truth.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Steubenville Ohio Keeps Coach on Team
Wonder how important high school football is to Steubenville, Ohio?
While the two football players accused of Rape were found guilty it seems that the teams Coach was signed on to another 2 years.
Bitch Magazine
Atlantic Wire
While the two football players accused of Rape were found guilty it seems that the teams Coach was signed on to another 2 years.
Bitch Magazine
Atlantic Wire
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Texts From Hillary Wins Tumblr of the Year!
If you haven't experienced Texts from Hillary I strongly suggest that you check it out asap.
Texts from Hillary won Tumblr of the Year as decided by The Shorty Awards
The creators of the Texts from Hillary site Stacey Lambe and Adam Smith said: "Thanks to everyone for their endorsement of our future jobs on Hillary's 2016 campaign."
Here's hoping!
Texts from Hillary won Tumblr of the Year as decided by The Shorty Awards
The creators of the Texts from Hillary site Stacey Lambe and Adam Smith said: "Thanks to everyone for their endorsement of our future jobs on Hillary's 2016 campaign."
Here's hoping!
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