Janet Porter, who was one of the driving forces behind the "heartbeat" laws which have passed in Alabama, Georgia, Ohio, Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi and Utah made sure that sonograms showing a "baby's heart at 6 weeks" beating, accompanied by a heart beat sound, played before legislators in these states, on the floor of the state houses.
Democrats who oppose these laws had no such images to display.
Democrats have simply cleaved to the idea that Roe is "the law of the land."
Democrats have thought it enough to argue, "It's a woman's right to control her own body. This is a simple matter of women's health."
Of course, the Republicans have tried to persuade, where the Democrats assumed they are so right, no persuasion was necessary.
Where do Americans get their ideas about abortion?
Surely, public schools must dance around this topic.
Churches, of course, teach explicitly about it, and most American churches inveigh against it.
For most Americans, their views on abortion are formed from some inchoate collection of gossip, Sunday sermons, chatter with their adolescent friends, but there is little or no attempt to actually think and consider this difficult topic. Most Americans are philosophically deprived, untutored in this department.
Abortion is what won Donald Trump the election.
Many factors contributed: rural resentment, deep seeded ideas that colored people have been given unfair advantages over the suffering whites in economically depressed regions, outright hate, undisguised fear, but mostly, abortion.
Evangelicals were willing to play the pragmatic ends-justify-the means game of voting for a libertine grab-them-by-the-pussy man as long as he gave them a Supreme Court which would reverse Roe.
What can the Democrats do?
At this late date, nothing in time for 2020, which is probably a Trump victory, barring a sudden repeat of the 2008 financial crash.
But in the future, Democrats would be well advised to actually march through a discussion of abortion, if only to answer what the Republicans have been bold enough to say.
Most Democratic candidates, nay, all Democrats become suddenly silent when asked about abortion beyond: "I believe women should have the right to control their own bodies," and then smile triumphantly and flee quickly to the next question.
But the Republicans always respond: "I believe in a woman's right to control her own body, too. But now we are talking about two bodies. Two human beings, both of whom have rights."
What is a Democrat to do?
Well, be prepared.
Begin with:
#1 I am, with all the members of the Democratic party appalled by and hate the idea of infanticide.
Then:
#2 But the difference between infanticide and abortion is all about drawing lines.
Where do you draw the line?
#3 Some "right to lifers" say the moment of conception, when sperm penetrates egg is the moment a human being with a soul begins.
How do they know this?
God told them.
I would not deny they believe that. I would not deny God told them.
I can only, humbly say, God has never said any such thing to me and until he does, until I get God's private phone number, I will not believe that.
So how do you draw a line?
#4 Now we have a "heartbeat" as where legislatures in their wisdom have decided to draw the line.
The first ultrasonographic "heart beat" can be heard at 6 weeks.
But is this a really a "heart beat" or an artifact of technology?
The "heart" at 6 weeks actually may "beat" but it has only 2 chambers.
That may be a "heart" to the right to lifers, but it isn't a heart to me, and could not sustain life.
Which brings us to the question: Is everything which looks like a baby or sounds like a heart actually what it seems to be at first glance, or is it more like "deep fake"?
Clouds, for example, may look like a baby, but that does not make them a baby.
So why does a sonogram which looks like a baby qualify as a human life?
At 6 weeks the sonogram looks like this:
But the real thing, the "baby" or the embryo or the conceptus, whatever you want to call it, is the size of a lentil bean, and looks like this.
At 8 weeks, the sonogram looks more baby like on sonogram, but still looks pretty larval, something a trout would go for.
At 10 weeks more humanoid features appear on sonogram but the thing itself is only 1 1/2 inches, a small strawberry.
For some people, at each of these stages there is enough there to qualify as a human being.
If you are one of those, I would never try to convince you otherwise.
But not for me. I'd draw the line later, maybe 18 weeks, maybe 20, but not so early to justify bringing an unwanted child into the world.
Democrats who oppose these laws had no such images to display.
Democrats have simply cleaved to the idea that Roe is "the law of the land."
Democrats have thought it enough to argue, "It's a woman's right to control her own body. This is a simple matter of women's health."
Of course, the Republicans have tried to persuade, where the Democrats assumed they are so right, no persuasion was necessary.
Where do Americans get their ideas about abortion?
Surely, public schools must dance around this topic.
 |
| Sure looks like a dinosaur |
Churches, of course, teach explicitly about it, and most American churches inveigh against it.
For most Americans, their views on abortion are formed from some inchoate collection of gossip, Sunday sermons, chatter with their adolescent friends, but there is little or no attempt to actually think and consider this difficult topic. Most Americans are philosophically deprived, untutored in this department.
Abortion is what won Donald Trump the election.
Many factors contributed: rural resentment, deep seeded ideas that colored people have been given unfair advantages over the suffering whites in economically depressed regions, outright hate, undisguised fear, but mostly, abortion.
Evangelicals were willing to play the pragmatic ends-justify-the means game of voting for a libertine grab-them-by-the-pussy man as long as he gave them a Supreme Court which would reverse Roe.
 |
| Aww, looks like a baby! |
What can the Democrats do?
At this late date, nothing in time for 2020, which is probably a Trump victory, barring a sudden repeat of the 2008 financial crash.
But in the future, Democrats would be well advised to actually march through a discussion of abortion, if only to answer what the Republicans have been bold enough to say.
Most Democratic candidates, nay, all Democrats become suddenly silent when asked about abortion beyond: "I believe women should have the right to control their own bodies," and then smile triumphantly and flee quickly to the next question.
But the Republicans always respond: "I believe in a woman's right to control her own body, too. But now we are talking about two bodies. Two human beings, both of whom have rights."
What is a Democrat to do?
Well, be prepared.
Begin with:
#1 I am, with all the members of the Democratic party appalled by and hate the idea of infanticide.
Then:
#2 But the difference between infanticide and abortion is all about drawing lines.
Where do you draw the line?
#3 Some "right to lifers" say the moment of conception, when sperm penetrates egg is the moment a human being with a soul begins.
How do they know this?
God told them.
I would not deny they believe that. I would not deny God told them.
I can only, humbly say, God has never said any such thing to me and until he does, until I get God's private phone number, I will not believe that.
So how do you draw a line?
#4 Now we have a "heartbeat" as where legislatures in their wisdom have decided to draw the line.
The first ultrasonographic "heart beat" can be heard at 6 weeks.
But is this a really a "heart beat" or an artifact of technology?
The "heart" at 6 weeks actually may "beat" but it has only 2 chambers.
That may be a "heart" to the right to lifers, but it isn't a heart to me, and could not sustain life.
Which brings us to the question: Is everything which looks like a baby or sounds like a heart actually what it seems to be at first glance, or is it more like "deep fake"?
Clouds, for example, may look like a baby, but that does not make them a baby.
So why does a sonogram which looks like a baby qualify as a human life?
 |
| Now, come on, that is a baby! |
At 6 weeks the sonogram looks like this:
But the real thing, the "baby" or the embryo or the conceptus, whatever you want to call it, is the size of a lentil bean, and looks like this.
At 8 weeks, the sonogram looks more baby like on sonogram, but still looks pretty larval, something a trout would go for.
At 10 weeks more humanoid features appear on sonogram but the thing itself is only 1 1/2 inches, a small strawberry.
For some people, at each of these stages there is enough there to qualify as a human being.
If you are one of those, I would never try to convince you otherwise.
But not for me. I'd draw the line later, maybe 18 weeks, maybe 20, but not so early to justify bringing an unwanted child into the world.
