Letters to the Editor
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Fetus' heartbeat argument is lame
I love this argument:
"...And while people can argue back and forth about when life begins, it is an inescapable medical fact that a fetus' heartbeat can be heard at 6 weeks into conception. That is 6 weeks BEFORE the end of the first trimester, during which abortion -- for any reason -- is fully legal. So far from trampling on women's rights, the Court has from the beginning tried to balance both, and in fact awarded women a right to abortion that exceeds the time at which it can said that there is irrefutable proof of life: a heartbeat..."
The heartbeat doesn't mean a thing. It can't be sustained w/o the womans body, which the parasitic fetus needs to live. A baby with no brain will still have a heartbeat but does that mean it's a human? A mouse has a heartbeat. Dos that mean its life is precious? I love how people assign all kinds of emotional meaning to this organ, a simple pump that keeps our blood flowing through our body. People really believe it's more than that, just because of its association with Valentines Day & love & shit.
Someone else said that a fetus is essentially a living human because if left alone, it will become a human. Left alone? I assume by "left alone", he means left inside of a (sometimes) unwilling host until it can be born & but then will continue to need food & attention, etc. from that host. I never met a baby, nevermind a fetus, that was self-sufficient enough to be "left alone" & grow into anything besides a dead baby.
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yes, it's a parasite
This person wrote:
"A welcome parasite?? So long as the fetus cannot sustain itself outside the womb, it is essentially a welcome parasite.
Hmmm, interesting thought, wrong yet at the same time interesting. Here's another interesting thought; my son and daughter immediately after they were born (37, and 38 weeks respectively) were not able to sustain life on their own (no child can), in reality if they were left to sustain life on their own they would have died, I guess they were just welcome parasites as they held on to my finger. Just like YOU were a welcome parasite."
She tries to say that that person who called embryos parasites was wrong with no argument at all in support of her claim that it's wrong. She just tries to use her fucked-up inbred babies stories to tug at our hearts & I don't see how that supports her argument. Then she assumes that the person who called embryos parasites never realized that he/she would have then been a parasite too. I think the person who thinks they are parasites is ok with the fact that he/she was once such a parasite. We're not all so emotional that we can't think embryos are parasites and be ok with it.
Parasite:
1 : a person who exploits the hospitality of the rich and earns
welcome by flattery
2 : an organism living in, with, or on another organism in parasitism
3 : something that resembles a biological parasite in dependence on something else for existence or support without making a useful or adequate return
If an embryo isn't a parasite, I don't know what is.
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To paraphrase Rumsfeld ....
"You don't go to court with the Supreme Court you want, you go with the Supreme Court you have."
In our country, the U.S. Constitution reigns supreme in matters of federal law. Whether one agrees with the logic behind Roe vs. Wade is irrelevant. SCOTUS really are "the deciders" (to quote a moron) on these sorts of things.
Now SCOTUS gives us a decision that upholds "partial-birth" abortions. Again, whether we as individuals agree or not is irrelevant.
Thank your lucky stars our laws are not interpreted for all times by screaming extremists facing each other across a police-enforced "demilitarized zone."
Yes, I wish that for the last 30+ years the right-wing fundamentalists had chosen to shut up about Roe v. Wade. Just as now I wish the pro-choice lobby would shut up about this decision. It's been made. Your reproductive rights, as defined by Roe v. Wade, have been infringed on. Vote accordingly.
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Ginsberg is our ray of hope
It is great to see that people are talking about this. The news yesterday hit me hard. I haven't felt this angry and depressed since Bush was "re-elected." Some of the letters are correct that only a small number of procedures will be affected by this ruling. Actual women accessing abortion has been hit much harder by the waiting limits and lack of providers in many areas. However, the horror of this opinion cannot be understated. This opinion does not follow existing legal precedent, neither does it overrule Roe or Casey but opens the door to do so. If there is one anti-abortion quack doctor out there that says a procedure isn't needed to protect a woman that seems to be enough for this Court.
I would encourage everyone to read Ginsburg's dissent.
You can find it at:
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/06pdf/05-380.pdf
Or go to the Supreme's website and look for recent opinions you can find it under Gonzalez. Her dissent starts at pg. 49.
It is as passionate as it is comprehensive in covering all of the problems with this ruling. For those that were asking, it also does a great job of going over the medical stuff.
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Fucked up inbreds?
Real Classy. Someone points out that their premature children weren't parasites and the retort is that they were fucked up inbreds?
I take it back. Some "people" do deserve to be sawn into pieces. They can first be prepared by being doused in a caustic solution. After all, they're a parasite on my society.
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????
Mdhpiper, I'm confused.
Are you pro-life?
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Poor Parody(mes)!
paradimes is right! He (I think he's a he) has convinced me. Because his logic is so sound, I think we need the following law:
Any man seeking a vasectomy must present his petition before a board made up entirely of women who have signed a notarized statement that: 1. They don't like men. 2.They are not physicians and know nothing about vasectomies, birth control, or male reproductive issues. 3. They are entirely devoid of humor and normal human empathy. 4. They admit to no normal sex life.
Why should men do this? It is far too hard a decision to be made by a thirteen-year old teenager, a poor single father, a hard-working career man, a young grandfather, a man who travels, or AND man for that matter to make by himself.
Oh gosh! I hope that didn't sound like patronizing nonsense or pious cant right out of Dickens! I hope it didn't sound caught-in-a-lie or pure passive-aggression! I just *care* about these men so much!
Despite the seriousness of the issues and the sadness of yesterday's ruling, I will be smiling at poor paradimes Freudian-as-it-gets slip all day.
And remember all you pro-lifers -- aren't you glad your father didn't have a vasectomy before you were conceived? -- oops -- I mean born -- as they are one and the same -- or -- oh never mind. Now you got my all confused!
P.S.I do know one teen who has had a vasectomy. No laws that he have to notify his parents! Gasp!