August 18, 2004
THE INSANITY LOBBY:
Pro-Abortion Madness: The abortion lobby has abandoned its rationales amid pro-life gains. (Ted Olsen, 08/17/2004, Christianity Today: Blog)
For Kerry, the basis for keeping abortion legal isn't based in science but in the "separation of church and state." The change of rationale could be great news. It's no Herculean task to explain why banning abortion doesn't establish a government religion.But abortion advocates aren't rallying to Kerry's view of conception, so they're not arguing church-state separation, either. In summary, they have lost ground on science, emotional appeals, constitutional law … What's left?
Insanity. Meet Amy Richards, whose "When One is Enough" article in The New York Times Magazine told of how she unregretfully aborted two of her triplets because it would mean "shopping only at Costco and buying big jars of mayonnaise." Without the abortions, she exclaimed, "I'd have to give up my life!" That life is one where she's a Planned Parenthood leader, a consultant to Gloria Steinem, and founder of the Third Wave Foundation, which funds abortions. She's also one of the brains behind Planned Parenthood T-shirts that proudly proclaim, "I had an abortion."
Richards's article and those shirts have outraged even Planned Parenthood affiliates, but make no mistake: This is the direction that the movement is headed. Within days of the triplets article, the Times published another article on abortion. This time, Barbara Ehrenreich savaged women who regret their abortions or oppose those "socially motivated abortions" Benjamin was talking about. "Time to take your thumbs out of your mouths, ladies, and speak up for your rights," she said.
Not exactly the textbook method for winning hearts and minds. No wonder the tide is turning.
What's happening is that all the rhetorical clutter is being pared away until you get to the essence of the issue: the desire of [some] women to demonstrate that they have arrived by wielding the power of life and death over others--sanctioned killing being the ultimate form of political power. The abortion cause is especially weakened by the fact that society now takes the equality of women for granted and such theatrical demonstrations have been rendered superfluous. Posted by Orrin Judd at August 18, 2004 2:41 PM
Actually, I'd point to another cause of declining abortions: the fact that sonograms are now standard, and the secretaries I know post these as soon as they have them. These simple black and white pictures do more than a raft of arguments to demonstrate that this is not a "fetus" -- it is a human child. And we don't hurt children, we protect them.
Posted by: Arnold Williams at August 18, 2004 4:14 PMI agree that abortion is all about power, but far too many women fail to see that it's about the power of men to exploit women without having to worry about any consequences. Women think that abortion gives them power, when it really gives it to men.
Posted by: Roy Jacobsen at August 19, 2004 10:55 AMDon't forget "The Roe Effect" -- a form of Darwinian selection where pro-abortion adults are less likely to give birth and raise their overaged pregnancy tissues as pro-abortion while pro-lifers are more likely to give birth, have large families, and raise their children pro-life. Continue for a few generations and who outnumbers who? And who is on their way to extinction?
Posted by: Ken at August 19, 2004 12:59 PMGood point Roy. Although it is sad when we equate the ability to evade responsibility with power. Which is what the whole women's "power" movement is about, the ability to evade responsibility.
Posted by: Robert Duquette at August 20, 2004 12:05 PMI have never understood the argument that women can not achieve equality with men unless they have the right to abortions. That would only make sense if men have the right to abort their babies, but men have never had that right.
Posted by: Vince at August 20, 2004 3:13 PM