Republicans are undermining Roe v Wade even as we speak, more than 900 measures in legislatures all across the country, banning abortion after 18-22 weeks, requiring longer waiting periods, requiring notification that women can’t be forced to have an abortion (as though this is a problem), requiring ultrasound, requiring that women listen to the fetal heartbeat, requiring scientifically-discredited “counseling” visits on different days, requiring lectures about killing a “living human being”, mandating opt-outs for medical professionals, banning providers from getting malpractice insurance, creating a hostile environment in South Dakota so abortions are only available at one site one day a week, driving providers out of business with punitive regulation.
They are seeking to cut funding for all Planned Parenthood programs including cancer screenings and contraception which reduces the abortion rate; Indiana's plan to cut Planned Parenthood has already been deemed to be in violation of federal law., and may take $4 billion away from Indiana Medicaid patients, in other words voters, who need the care badly. Michelle Bachmann kept up the hue and cry by claiming that Planned Parenthood has turned a blind eye to “the trafficking of underage girls that has gone on under Planned Parenthood's nose."
Six states have banned private insurers from offering coverage that includes abortion, except when life is at stake, and many more states are trying to do the same.
And, when all that fails, shooting abortion doctors in church; there is an organized terrorist campaign against the doctors, some of whom wear bulletproof vests, and many of whom are stalked. Recently another terrorist plot to murder an abortion doctor was uncovered by police; the terrorist had a history of targeting Planned Parenthood facilities. Officials are even tiptoeing in the direction of giving official sanction to violence: South Dakota and Nebraska were considering bills that would characterize the murder of abortion doctors as "justifiable homicide" since it allegedly involves saving a life.
Eighty-seven percent of U.S. counties now have no abortion provider at all. South Dakota is down to one provider, Wyoming has two. The anti-abortion zealots specifically target states that already have few abortion providers, with the aim of making those states abortion-free. Kansas has only three clinics left and they’re all in Kansas City, and as I understand it they must bring in out-of-state doctors. A new Kansas law requires the clinics to make changes to their doors, lights, equipment and bathrooms, imposes new rules and new inspections, new restrictions on medications, new fines. Meanwhile the anti-abortion activists are pressuring local hospitals to deny privileges to abortion providers, which means they can’t practice in Kansas.
The national Republicans, as we know, are trying to destroy Planned Parenthood because a small part of the mission involves abortions. That means wiping out PP’s programs for cancer treatment, children’s health, and contraception which, again, will lead to more abortions, and put the lives of women at risk. But the same Washington Republicans overwhelmingly passed a family planning bill – for wild horses. So as far as the Republicans are concerned, wild animals need contraception, but people don’t. So the obvious headline is ”GOP encourages promiscuity in horses!” The shame of it all.
The House GOP has now found a new line of attack: de-funding medical schools that even teach abortion techniques. So if a woman needs a life-saving procedure, finding a qualified doctor will be that much more difficult. Meanwhile they also blocked a plan that would provide abortion services to military women who are raped.
The ultimate goal is to ban abortion entirely. Santorum has called for criminal charges against doctors who perform the procedure even in cases of rape and incest, and Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi are all working on bills which would impose total bans. Louisiana wants to make an exception for cases in which the mother's life is at stake -- and then they want the woman to pay for the abortion; their bill is so extreme that they may need to revise it since it goes even further than the oppressive Hyde Amendment. And they are stalking the presidential candidates for signs of apostasy -- they are already dogging Romney for flipflopping on abortion.
They are seeking to cut funding for all Planned Parenthood programs including cancer screenings and contraception which reduces the abortion rate; Indiana's plan to cut Planned Parenthood has already been deemed to be in violation of federal law., and may take $4 billion away from Indiana Medicaid patients, in other words voters, who need the care badly. Michelle Bachmann kept up the hue and cry by claiming that Planned Parenthood has turned a blind eye to “the trafficking of underage girls that has gone on under Planned Parenthood's nose."
Six states have banned private insurers from offering coverage that includes abortion, except when life is at stake, and many more states are trying to do the same.
And, when all that fails, shooting abortion doctors in church; there is an organized terrorist campaign against the doctors, some of whom wear bulletproof vests, and many of whom are stalked. Recently another terrorist plot to murder an abortion doctor was uncovered by police; the terrorist had a history of targeting Planned Parenthood facilities. Officials are even tiptoeing in the direction of giving official sanction to violence: South Dakota and Nebraska were considering bills that would characterize the murder of abortion doctors as "justifiable homicide" since it allegedly involves saving a life.
Eighty-seven percent of U.S. counties now have no abortion provider at all. South Dakota is down to one provider, Wyoming has two. The anti-abortion zealots specifically target states that already have few abortion providers, with the aim of making those states abortion-free. Kansas has only three clinics left and they’re all in Kansas City, and as I understand it they must bring in out-of-state doctors. A new Kansas law requires the clinics to make changes to their doors, lights, equipment and bathrooms, imposes new rules and new inspections, new restrictions on medications, new fines. Meanwhile the anti-abortion activists are pressuring local hospitals to deny privileges to abortion providers, which means they can’t practice in Kansas.
The national Republicans, as we know, are trying to destroy Planned Parenthood because a small part of the mission involves abortions. That means wiping out PP’s programs for cancer treatment, children’s health, and contraception which, again, will lead to more abortions, and put the lives of women at risk. But the same Washington Republicans overwhelmingly passed a family planning bill – for wild horses. So as far as the Republicans are concerned, wild animals need contraception, but people don’t. So the obvious headline is ”GOP encourages promiscuity in horses!” The shame of it all.
The House GOP has now found a new line of attack: de-funding medical schools that even teach abortion techniques. So if a woman needs a life-saving procedure, finding a qualified doctor will be that much more difficult. Meanwhile they also blocked a plan that would provide abortion services to military women who are raped.
The ultimate goal is to ban abortion entirely. Santorum has called for criminal charges against doctors who perform the procedure even in cases of rape and incest, and Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi are all working on bills which would impose total bans. Louisiana wants to make an exception for cases in which the mother's life is at stake -- and then they want the woman to pay for the abortion; their bill is so extreme that they may need to revise it since it goes even further than the oppressive Hyde Amendment. And they are stalking the presidential candidates for signs of apostasy -- they are already dogging Romney for flipflopping on abortion.
The silver lining in all this, is that the independents who decide all the presidential elections are social liberals. But these battles will not be won unless they are fought: where is the clamor to stop the anti-abortion crusaders, and call them what they are, terrorists?
What’s the difference between Operation Rescue and the Taleban?
And isn’t half of the electorate female?
By the by, Republicans are now going after contraception too. Thus ensuring more abortions.
Here's a quick update from the folks at Alternet on the anti-Roe war.
Idaho now only has four abortion providers; they arrested a woman for getting an abortion, claiming on no evidence whatsoever that she lied about how far along her pregnancy was.
Utah has only seven providers. A girl in rural Utah had no access to a provider to she hired a man to hit her in the stomach; she was charged with a crime.
Kansas. One abortion doctor was killed; his successor was denied a restraining order against the vigilantes who want to do the same to him.
South Dakota has effectively banned abortions by forcing pregnant women to go to non-existent counseling centers before getting the procedure. They only have one provider anyway; one third of abortion patients at a North Dakota clinic come from South Dakota.
Iowa: a pregnant woman who had an accident told a nurse that earlier in her pregnancy she had considered abortion; the nurse had the woman arrested, claiming on no evidence whatsoever that the accident was really an attempted self-abortion. She went through three weeks of legal hell for admitting she had considered a perfectly legal procedure, abortion.
Ohio: some pregnant women are actually going to Detroit for abortions to avoid the hassles in Ohio. Because Detroit is such a garden spot. A new Ohio bill bans unincorporated counties from providing abortion coverage, and bans public hospitals from performing abortions.
Louisiana passed new rules making it extremely easy to shut down an abortion provider for real or imagined violations of regulations; they already used the rule to reduce the number of providers in the state down to seven, only three of which are outside New Orleans.
Virginia: there’s an effort to reduce the number of providers from 22 to 5.
Mississippi is considering a referendum which would not only ban abortion but also contraception and IVF, and possibly criminalize miscarriage and stillborns. They may be down to their last provider anyhow.
Indiana is down to 12 providers. A pregnant woman who attempted suicide has been charged with murder. Because clearly she doesn’t have enough problems already.
Hat tip to Alternet -- http://www.alternet.org/reproductivejustice/151268/10_states_where_abortion_is_virtually_illegal_for_some_women
What’s the difference between Operation Rescue and the Taleban?
And isn’t half of the electorate female?
By the by, Republicans are now going after contraception too. Thus ensuring more abortions.
Here's a quick update from the folks at Alternet on the anti-Roe war.
Idaho now only has four abortion providers; they arrested a woman for getting an abortion, claiming on no evidence whatsoever that she lied about how far along her pregnancy was.
Utah has only seven providers. A girl in rural Utah had no access to a provider to she hired a man to hit her in the stomach; she was charged with a crime.
Kansas. One abortion doctor was killed; his successor was denied a restraining order against the vigilantes who want to do the same to him.
South Dakota has effectively banned abortions by forcing pregnant women to go to non-existent counseling centers before getting the procedure. They only have one provider anyway; one third of abortion patients at a North Dakota clinic come from South Dakota.
Iowa: a pregnant woman who had an accident told a nurse that earlier in her pregnancy she had considered abortion; the nurse had the woman arrested, claiming on no evidence whatsoever that the accident was really an attempted self-abortion. She went through three weeks of legal hell for admitting she had considered a perfectly legal procedure, abortion.
Ohio: some pregnant women are actually going to Detroit for abortions to avoid the hassles in Ohio. Because Detroit is such a garden spot. A new Ohio bill bans unincorporated counties from providing abortion coverage, and bans public hospitals from performing abortions.
Louisiana passed new rules making it extremely easy to shut down an abortion provider for real or imagined violations of regulations; they already used the rule to reduce the number of providers in the state down to seven, only three of which are outside New Orleans.
Virginia: there’s an effort to reduce the number of providers from 22 to 5.
Mississippi is considering a referendum which would not only ban abortion but also contraception and IVF, and possibly criminalize miscarriage and stillborns. They may be down to their last provider anyhow.
Indiana is down to 12 providers. A pregnant woman who attempted suicide has been charged with murder. Because clearly she doesn’t have enough problems already.
Hat tip to Alternet -- http://www.alternet.org/reproductivejustice/151268/10_states_where_abortion_is_virtually_illegal_for_some_women
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