Smear tactics from the deep end
“ Had Bobbie Jo Stinnett decided to have an abortion, there is no question that, legally speaking, she would have been entitled to do so.
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Of course, Stinnett did no such thing. She was ruthlessly murdered by Lisa Montgomery, who then stole Stinnett’s unborn daughter. But, gruesomely enough, in this country today, Stinnett, had she desired to, could have excised the baby growing inside her womb herself with the help of a doctor. She could have done this late in the pregnancy when the baby was fully able to survive on its own, or (depending on which federal judge you ask) up to the very moment of birth, when the baby’s body was fully outside the womb and only the head remained inside. ”
Last week, conservatives used abortion to support torture. This week Joshua Carden, supposedly a lawyer with the extremist values group Alliance Defense Fund -- recently famous for the Declaration lie -- attempts to smear Planned Parenthood as profiting from abortion in a bizarre scheme by distributing faulty condoms, and tries to link advocates of choice with the gruesome murder of a pregnant woman. This wingnut has taken his disgusting rhetoric way off the deep end.
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| Pro-choice people believe reproductive rights consist simply of the "right to abortion." "The casual observer can be forgiven for thinking “reproductive rights” actually means “the right to reproduce.” Planned Parenthood, the National Organization for Women, the National Abortion Rights Action League, and other such groups have long championed reproductive rights as the “alpha and omega” of womanhood. But in these organizations’ view, “reproductive rights” is simply synonymous with the “right” to abortion without legal restriction or moral condemnation." |
According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, reproductive rights encompass the right to safe contraception, the right to a healthy pregnancy, the right to medical privacy, freedom from coercion and violence (such as genital mutilation), and others, including, yes, the right to a safe abortion if necessary. In other words, the rights of a woman to freely determine what happens to her body. Rights, of course, exist under the law, and people like Carden are free to judge and condemn others, even if they know nothing about them. |
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Planned Parenthood has a bizarre moneymaking scheme to profit off abortions while selling faulty condoms. "...Planned Parenthood took in $104 million from performing abortions in 2004 alone. And this month a Consumer Reports study revealed that two of three Planned Parenthood condom models are the worst on the market because of their high failure rate. Who stands to gain financially if a condom fails and a girl gets pregnant unexpectedly? In legal circles, that sort of situation smells like 'conflict of interest.' "...With abortion so profitable and such a central part of the organization’s operation, it isn’t surprising to hear so little from them about how women such as Stinnett “should be in charge of their own destinies” when those women choose to keep their babies." |
Carden has really gone off the deep end here. I mean, seriously, do you think even he really believes this? Planned Parenthood is a non-profit organization which performs a wide variety of affordable services that are shunned by society out of embarrassment and denial. This includes gynecology, STD testing, fertility counseling, family planning and advice, prenatal care, adoption referrals, contraception, and yes, abortion. They are an easy target for Bible-thumpers who would prefer not to think about social realities. As for their condoms, they certainly meet industry standards, and PP is working to ensure confidence. Nobody wants to promote abortion. Carden's accusations are disgusting. In reality, unwanted pregnancies occur more often because young women are uninformed, thanks in part to disgraceful "abstinence-only" education. |
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Choice advocates support the murder of pregnant women. "Despite violent attacks on pregnant women, pro-abortion advocates have consistently fought any legislation to guarantee protection of unborn children or increased penalties for violence against these undeniably human beings. Opponents of such legislation have argued that doing so would be an incremental step toward granting Fourteenth Amendment rights of life, liberty, and due process of law to unborn children. Of course, that line of reasoning puts the abortion lobby in the untenable position of opposing justice for murdered children and women—women who exercised their “reproductive rights” by choosing to keep their babies." |
I think we can agree that the murder of a pregnant woman is all the more tragic for the loss of the potential life within her. Most people would support increasing punishment for the murder of such a woman. Let's not forget, murder is already illegal. Most murdered women -- pregnant or otherwise -- are victims of someone they know, such as their husbands or boyfriends, which is why groups like NOW advocate education and tougher laws to decrease domestic violence. But the legislation Carden advocates does not try to protect pregnant women -- such laws are worded merely to give legal status to fetuses, in an effort to erode women's rights. If Carden were truly concerned with the murder of pregnant women instead of furthering his ideological agenda, he would advocate laws that have that effect without divisive wording. But instead, he is in "the untenable position" of opposing such "justice." |
Last week, conservatives used abortion to support torture. This week Joshua Carden, supposedly a lawyer with the extremist values group Alliance Defense Fund -- recently famous for the Declaration lie -- attempts to smear Planned Parenthood as profiting from abortion in a bizarre scheme by distributing faulty condoms, and tries to link advocates of choice with the gruesome murder of a pregnant woman. This wingnut has taken his disgusting rhetoric way off the deep end.
As we've said before, abortion is a delicate subject. Emotions are high. But come on, Carden -- can we at least stay in reality?
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