i know, RIGHT?

Yay... holiday cards done.

2010-11-22T20:46:00.001-05:00

Mod Snowflakes Story Christmas Card

Shop Shutterfly for elegant custom Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

the claim that Roe v. Wade was decided without the benefit of medical research & scientific knowledge concerning fetal development is simply not true

2010-02-14T15:25:00.003-05:00

Roe v. Wade, “New” Science & the Old Geography of Pregnancy from NAPW on Vimeo.

Our Heartbreaking Choices

2009-06-08T19:39:00.005-04:00

This book sounds like such a great opportunity to bring the real stories of real women who have experienced late-term abortion.... God bless them! I've also just finished reading this post by Amanda Marcotte on the RH Reality Check webiste. When I read this excerpt I related so much...

When your opposition is relentless and has no moral qualms about harassment and deceit, it’s exhausting to keep pushing.

I mean, it just becomes tiresome dealing with all the fringe fanatics when trying to reach the majority of people who really aren't certain how they fell about abortion. In light of the events surrounding the murder of Dr. Tiller, I must admit to feeling a certain amount of guilt for not sustaining my passion and fervor in defending our basic reproductive rights. Amanda goes on to say that if we stop or draw back because of these extremists, they've basically won. She phrases this so perfectly, in a way that rational people will understand:

We were wrong to be afraid. We have the moral high ground on late term abortion, and that should be obvious now. No one wants to see their wives, daughters, friends, or colleagues suffer the trauma of fatal birth defects or health hazards that kill or maim them. Few of us are sadistic enough to be party to laws that would force 10-year-olds to give birth to the babies of rapists.

I'll do my best not to allow those who wish to distort facts, manipulate emotion and minimize the experiences of these brave women & their families... we can never allow them to take women out of this discussion, no matter how mightily they may try.

Holy Moly...

2009-06-07T16:14:00.003-04:00

You silly wabbit... facts is for squares. So, thinking people are aware that feminism is the cra-hazy notion of equality right? Actually, here's what Websters has to say on the matter (You know... Websters, that radical, left-wing propaganda mill?):

fem·i·nism
Pronunciation:
\ˈfe-mə-ˌni-zəm\
Function:
noun
Date:1895
1 : the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes 2 : organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests
— fem·i·nist \-nist\ noun or adjective
— fem·i·nis·tic \ˌfe-mə-ˈnis-tik\ adjective

So, this ~~douchebag~~ super sane dude on Youtube thinks that feminism is the worst thing to happen since free will (seriously, it's been downhill since we got the vote, right ladies?) This is, I shit you not, an excerpt from his response to a comment I left on his page; a page which encourages people to murder those who do not agree with them (it's super Christian):

Armerdylo: I also find it funny that you have a family when feminism (that you support) brought in the wave of lesbianism and pornography as "empowering" to woman. That's another one that is ridiculous to my logical mind.

He seriously wrote that... I'm a lesbian because I support the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. Oh-kay man. Oh, & that last sentence is freaking precious. Hello red flag... when your "logic" doesn't coincide with the facts, you may be an idiot.

~Keep clickin'!

censor those you don't agree with... how very "christian" of ya.

2009-06-06T20:09:00.003-04:00

This chick (catholichomeschool) will not allow me to post this (or any other) response to her video... as you can see, it isn't offensive (unless, of course, the truth is offensive) so I'll post it here. This is in response to this poster (ignatiusofantioch2) who has this annoying habit of SPAM'ing the same tired copy & paste crapola from every anti-abortion site in the internets...

ignatius: "Where you are has no bearing on who you are. Where you are has no bearing on who you are. Does your value change when you cross the street or roll over in bed? If not, how can a journey of eight inches down the birth-canal suddenly change the essential nature of the unborn from non-valuable tissue mass to valuable human being"

me: That is precious. So, are you saying that a person who "cross[es] the street" or "roll[s] over in bed" ceases to be a person whenever they engage in these behaviours? You are being deliberately untruthful or misleading (at best) if you are going to pretend that gestation, labor and the birthing experience are merely about "eight inches "... which would be par for the course among the anti-abortion extremists.

I'd like to add more, such as the fact that the value of a womans pregnancy is determined by the pregnant woman... how this dude (or I) *feel* about her pregnancy is irrelevant... it doesn't change science and it doesn't change the law.

OMFG... trashy is as trashy does

2009-05-19T16:43:00.005-04:00

I shit you not, this glitter chick is fourteen years old y'all... who is raising her?

leiapeison (1 week ago)
Reply Spam
if i was raped, i created nothing. there is no right to be inside someone against their will. there is no right to life at the expense of anothers body. no one has a right to reduce me to breeding chattel. i will deny my body to anyone born or unborn. i have bodily sovereingty unlike a fetus. if something is growing on or in me against my will, i will make it stop. and yes a fetus is a foreign entity.
glitterkiss26 (6 days ago)
Reply Spam
Sweetheart, if you were raped, I really would not care about you, just the baby b/c most rapes happened b/c the woman leads them on::not dressing modestly A.K.A. dressing like a slut! You are a stupid person to think that your own child, the one you helped create, is a foreign person. You choosing to murder your own child makes you not have any respect for your own life, your child's life, and human life in general.

Yes, rape victims "helped create" the pregnancy... because they *want it* deep down... they really do. Dude, I'm pretty sure she's a rapist.

PS. on her youtube home page (click her super fun name above) she purports not to "believe in" Miley Cyrus. Yep... fuck that birth certificate, that chick doesn't exist... but she does "believe in" God (no birth certificate.) Go figure.

comment #184 retitled "Buck needs our help"

2009-05-19T14:34:00.002-04:00

The following is an actual comment to an aol TV News Daily (inside TV blog), I've not altered any wording nor have a left out any text. Seriously. This. Is. It.:

I called my stock broker today and asked him, "So, what are YOU buying"?
He replied, "Rifles, pistols, shotguns, lots of ammo and canned goods."
I said, "Sounds like a plan to me.".....
War is coming....it will be the "Government" against Christians and those who do not accept the ÜberLeft's "religion" and politics.

Posted at 11:17AM
on May 19th 2009 by Buck

Buck, step away from the computer, set down the bong, and please get back on your meds. The post was about ABC pulling "Samantha Who", "According to Jim" & "The Unusuals." Seriously, we're all pulling for ya, Buck!

Unimpressed...

2009-04-30T10:17:00.005-04:00

80,000 fans? I am unimpressed, JC... Ashton has over 1.5 million.

40 weeks of gestation = labor and childbirth

2009-04-13T21:16:00.004-04:00

I find it incredulous that the women who responded on the RH reality check website post by Marcy Bloom (love her) entitled "We Already Have an Abortion Pride Movement" were not aware of the fact that if one gestates a pregnancy, one will (provided a healthy pregnancy & labor/childbirth) give birth to a baby. Why, on earth, would these women have opted to terminate their pregnancies if not to prevent the birth of a baby? I know I've touched on this subject briefly with this post, but I'm ever amazed that these women were not aware of human reproduction. And it worries me. I worry because I wonder if there are other women who are not aware that if they opt to terminate their pregnancies, they will not continue to be pregnant. Shall we start a movement to make women aware that an abortion is the termination of a pregnancy (& that the word "terminate" means "end"?) Further, if these women wanted to have a baby... why would they have opted to terminate their pregnancies (isn't gestation how one goes about having a baby?) and if these women didn't realize that by terminating their pregnancies they would not have babies, then why would they have terminated their pregnancies? What did they think would happen if they had not terminated their pregnancies... that they would have had puppies? I suppose I shouldn't be so harsh, after all, studies have consistently shown that women who suffer from depression or other psychological issue's prior to experiencing an unintended pregnancy will likely suffer from those issues afterward, regardless of whether they gestated or terminated thier pregnancies... but... why such shock & awe afterward?

National Womens Law Center Webinar

2009-04-10T20:38:00.002-04:00

Not a lot of notice, but if you get the chance...

They are hosting a webinar on making contraception more accessible and affordable. I don't know about you, but I believe that we should do whatever we can to help women avoid unintended pregnancies.

Bring on the crazies...

2009-04-10T11:17:00.009-04:00

So, there is this wackadoo on youtube who sometimes calls herself kirstiedale3 - she claims to be an adult... I'll let you be the judge. So, she doesn't care so much for an opposing view & clearly is unable to come up with a valid retort (one which would include any valid, factual information which has anything at all to do with the topic of abortion rights) and in lieu of this, she prefers to use profanity (I, for one, am shocked and chagrined!) and ad hominem as her "argument." It apparently bothers her that I include valid and truthful scientific data, statistics, legal precedent, etc in my posts. I totally get that it can be aggravating when science, the law and common sense do not support your view but seriously, it only makes it worse to respond to a post concerning abortion statistics with the following diatribe:

"she claims to be a busy mom of 3 happy wife,femenist,ect ect,not busy anough it may seem!husband out working all hours to pay the bills for his strong, independent,active femenist..??????she needs to go comment on the good house keeping guide,she may give better advice to people who will listen,,,,,,,there is always one,that has to butt in and think they know everything !!!!!!dont burst her bubble,she will have nothing else to do,,,lol"

So, in addition to having issues with grammar, punctuation (what is up with the comma's?) & sentence structure, she also appears unable to comprehend what the words: strong, independent, active and feminist (er... "femenist") mean. The upside is that her spelling makes me giggle. The inability to control her underlying anger issues is a bit disturbing but come on... I've just met the lass, there is simply no way that I am responsible for those issues. Now, her posts are entertaining and are filed under the "things that make you go HMMM" heading. Unfortunately there exists serious amounts of misogyny within the extreme anti-abortion group (which, fortunately is a very small group) - the upside to this is that rational, thinking and relatively sane people could never agree with these extremists opinions... point in case, this li'l nugget from a dude called "BulldogsRule12"... he was responding to a comment I made asking why the personal beliefs and full legal rights of the pregnant woman wouldn't take precedent over his (or my) opinions regarding pregnancy, life and/or abortion. His response:

"The pregnant woman took herself out of the conversation by getting pregnant in the first place"

Yes, ladies and gentlemen... this fella actually believes that once a woman becomes pregnant, she is no longer relevant (aside from her uterus, which houses his bizarre obsession... "fetus fetish," if you will) Oh lordy... I dig it when they reveal their true agenda: regulating women to the status of "walking uterus." I kind of thought it was something they'd rather keep under wraps but I suppose when a woman has the gall to challenge their thinking, it just kinda slips out, eh? Good to know that sweet, li'l ole me can fluster these folks so bloody much. Oh, there is this other person who sometimes uses the name sintetsu. He doesn't hide his misogyny (which makes me sad for any women in his life) he writes things like:

* fucking ignorant selfish immature vile whore
* hypocritical irresponsible IMMATURE feminists go back to your cave, primate
* stupid ignorant hypocritical immature selfish primal whores.
* maybe you should keep those legs closed? (me: because apparently you can't get pregnant that way)
* selfish irresponsible promiscuous animals
* thats why war exists. (me: yes, the reason war exists is because of abortion. seriously... not religion or oil or greed... just abortion. Ahhhh.)

All of which are ~~super retarded~~ totally valid arguments for those opposed to abortion to make, no? If nothing else, they've proven my point. Gotta love 'em!!

Concern Trolls

2009-03-06T18:28:00.004-05:00

If you've ever run across a Concern Troll you will be doing this @@ about now (oh, that's an eye-roll.) Because they can be almost as annoying and disgusting as the extremists out there (I did say "almost") sometimes... perhaps more often than not, they are the extremists out there... they're just dressed up in sheeps clothing. Here is how a typical exchange goes with a Concern Troll.

Concern Troll (going by the name of MrDarkbloom): ...telling them that although in a very narrow sense we could use the word 'child' to describe the result of the offspring of two parent

Me: Actually, "offspring" and child are synonymous... and do not occur until birth but really, the "extremists" are not that interested in factual information anyway, right?

Concern Troll: I explained quite carefully how to label women murderers for opting for abortion is to completely and utterly disrepect them as human beings.

Me: Oh, for the most part I disagree... I believe that to call a woman who has had a spontaneous, therapeutic or elective abortion a "murderer" reflects a serious lack of knowledge about the word: murder. It just simply fails to describe the termination of ones pregnancy on even the smallest measure. Although, there are some nut-cases who do have a general disdain for women and as such, use our biological ability to become unintentionally pregnant as an excuse to justify their own misogyny. Luckily, they are few and far between and are usually so blatantly idiotic that it becomes almost comical

MrDarkbloom: abortion is never a good thing in the way that unwanted pregnancies are never a good thing

Me: If you are a man, you may not understand this, but a person needn't gestate an unwanted pregnancy in order to benefit from the experience. What I mean is that abortion does not cause feelings of guilt or suffering of any kind to the majority of women who have opted to terminate their pregnancies. Sometimes, after an abortion, a woman will change her life (and as a result, the lives of her children/dependants/family) and be forever grateful that she was able to do so. Also, perhaps you are unaware, but abortion is safer than childbirth and in no way "bad" for women. Certainly there is a risk to any medical procedure, however, it is safer for a woman to terminate a pregnancy than it would be to gestate and give birth.... just some scientific facts I thought you could use. PS. it would serve you well to recognize that women do not become pregnant without sperm and therefor men should do what they can to ensure that the women they are sexually active with are protected (and it wouldn't hurt to discuss pregnancy options prior to engaging in vaginal intercourse, eh?)

Now, the Concern Troll will oftentimes turn on you during your exchange (or in this case simply run away.) But what they will never, ever do... is stick to the premise that they support womens reproductive choices. They disdain that they have for women who opt to terminate their pregnancies (for whatever reason) is always evident. Always. Well... as always, God bless!!

Typical Crazy Anti-Abortion Extremists!!

2009-01-23T15:54:00.005-05:00

This is a rather disturbing (albeit amusing) exchange between a dude called "PheonixBornAgain" (PBA) and yours truly. I couldn't make this shit up if I tried really, really hard:

PBA: "the females. they make up over half the population in the world, so majority rule if applied would acutely give them the power to steamroll anything they want."

Me: "The females" sound super scary! And how crazy they appear... thinking that their opinions and/or personal beliefs should matter. I mean, who do they think they are... Men? Fu**ing chicks, man!

PBA: then if these same people were abducted and examined and found to be pregnant they were placed in very comfortable surroundings and made safe so they don't hurt themselves or their fetus. then after the unborn were allowed to be birthed the woman were simply let go.

Yes, he seriously wrote that... seriously. We should abduct pregnant women force them to risk their physical, mental and spiritual lives gestating a pregnancy and then take their babies from them. So the infertile can have them. Oh, but then we would totally let them go. My response? As follows:

Me: Wow. That is seriously deranged. You play pretty fast & loose with that whole morality thing, eh? It's good that you make yourself clear that you do not value the lives of women (particularly pregnant women, particularly if their pregnancies are unwanted and/or doomed.) It's easier to disregard your comments when you've made your disdain for women so crystal clear.

And this guy is simply a telephone number (and a tool):

7035601553: "The unborn gets killed and the mother gets wounded."

Me: Or... if you're not crazy (present company excluded, of course) the pregnancy is terminated and the woman feels a mixture of things, predominantly relief (I know, it's hard to admit that women are complex beings capable of a myriad of feelings)

36 Years of Roe

2009-01-22T10:23:00.004-05:00

This year's Blog for Choice topic: What is your top pro-choice hope for President Obama and/or the new Congress?

The passage of FOCA (Freedom Of Choice Act) would be one of my hopes, to be sure. In addition, I would really like for the focus of the abortion debate to be put back where it belongs, on the women facing an unintended, unwanted or doomed pregnancy. Listening to the voices of these women (pro-voice) is one way to accomplish this task. Further, I believe putting our energy toward better ways to help women avoid unintended pregnancy would be simply fabulous (including making sure that any and all contraceptive options are covered by insurance and/or medicaid.) And another thing that I think would be worthwhile is listening to the women who may be faced with an unintended, but wanted pregnancy and helping them to find a way to gestate their pregnancies if that is their wish (prenatal care and/or economic help.) My hope would be that every woman is able to decide for herself the best course for her pregnancy and also be sure that women (in consultation with their doctors) have the ability to make any medical decisions involving her pregnancy. Full bodily autonomy/bodily integrity is my hope!

Exhale

2009-01-16T19:08:00.002-05:00

Aspen Baker's Experience with Abortion. Exhale has such a fabulous mission... let's all pull together to end the silence and stigma that currently surrounds abortion. Shall we...

One in 3

2008-12-28T21:11:00.003-05:00

This makes me wish that I lived in the Dallas area... I would love to see this play! Hell, I'd love to have played any part in it's production. Just seeing this and knowing that others are willing to end the stigma surrounding abortion makes me soooo happy!

REFUSE TO CHOOSE

2008-11-20T17:04:00.001-05:00

That is the message Feminsts for Life is pushing. Wow. Just... wow. Women shouldn't worry their pretty little heads about whether or not they want or are capable of bringing a child into this world. We're simply baby-makers and we should fufill our babymaking destiny, right? Come on now (you oxymorons), there are many instances of girls and women who "refuse to choose" (refuse to think) about the fact that they're pregnant at all... then, they give birth quietly in some basement/bathroom/hotel and dump their newborns into dumpsters. Good advice, oh lovers-of-women. On another note, I came across this website and would like to encourage everyone to take notice:

Extremist Catholic Bishops... way YIK!

2008-11-12T08:22:00.004-05:00

This article, in USA Today is just completely irritating... particularly this:

The bishops suggested that the final document include the message that "aggressively pro-abortion policies" would be viewed "as an attack on the church."

Are they going to pretend that respecting the personal belief systems of people of every faith could be considered "aggressive polic[y]?" They don't find it even slightly hypocritical to claim that the only belief systems worth protecting are their own? Are they going to pretend that the personal belief systems of the many clergy who support reproductive freedom (including Catholics) are somehow less deserving of respect than theirs? Really?

2008-10-22T16:38:00.003-04:00

There are several buttons and images that you can re-post on the NARAL Prochoice America website... please display these as a show of support for our pro-choice representatives!!!

Go here to download this and various other buttons/images!!

Peace & Love to you all,
~Kelly

Understanding the extremists

2008-10-05T12:29:00.003-04:00

These are merely a few of the crazy statements made by the (mostly anonymous) anti-abortion extremists (oftentimes religious fruit-balloons):

But, suffering is very much a part of life, and everyone must come to terms that we all must suffer at one point or another.

You've gotta love the sado-masochists. Hey dude... suffer all you want, hold it real tight because it's yours and I'll have no part of it. I do what I can to ease the suffering of others (call me crazy)

Outside of the argument of rape, what gives a person power to choose whether or not she will have the baby?

What makes the fertilized egg that was the result of rape any different from the fertilized egg that was the result of consensual sex? That's what I thought... look out, it's the morality police and they're coming for YOU! Bwahahahaha!

As good as sex feels, it's main purpose is procreation.

Not for the many people who are actively sexing it up but have finished with the procreation (or have chosen to forgo that whole scene.) I'm done having children... I will not gestate or give birth ever again. That certainly doesn't mean I'm done having sex. My husband had a vasectomy and now we will happily have sex that feels really good without even being open to the possibility of procreation.

When is a seed considered a child? Conception

That sentence is just yucky... ew, I can't get it off of me. A seed? A seed is never, ever considered a child. YIK!

This deduction clearly states that abortion is murder. Regardless if you think it isn't, it very much is.

I love this... this is the crux of their argument. "It doesn't matter what your personal belief system is because what I say is the absolute truth. My thoughts, beliefs and opinions trump yours because... well, because I say so!" And then there is much foot stomping and hmph-ing.

By the way, the scientific community acknowledges the fact that birth begins
at conception.

No, seriously... he/she ("anonymous" surprise!) wrote that. That's right ladies and gentlemen... scientists are now saying that Conception is the new Birth! I couldn't make this shit up.

If you support Obama you clearly have no knowledge of basic economy or the basics of capitalism for that matter. Let me point out that that statement is not meant to be insulting; I'm just stating the truth.

I just threw this nugget in because of it's absolute absurdity. And to prove that these people exist (if only on the anonymous Internet.)

More distorted political commercials...

2008-10-05T11:57:00.002-04:00

Is anyone else just sick to death of this? I cannot wait for November and an end to this nonsense!

What do they mean by "life"?

2008-09-26T18:40:00.006-04:00

Main Entry: 1life
Pronunciation: \ˈlīf\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural lives \ˈlīvz\
Etymology: Middle English lif, from Old English līf; akin to Old English libban to live — more at live
Date: before 12th century

1 a: the quality that distinguishes a vital and functional being from a dead body b: a principle or force that is considered to underlie the distinctive quality of animate beings c: an organismic state characterized by capacity for metabolism, growth, reaction to stimuli, and reproduction
2 a: the sequence of physical and mental experiences that make up the existence of an individual b: one or more aspects of the process of living
3: biography 1
4: spiritual existence transcending physical death
5 a: the period from birth to death b: a specific phase of earthly existence c: the period from an event until death d: a sentence of imprisonment for the remainder of a convict's life
6: a way or manner of living
7: livelihood
8: a vital or living being ; specifically : person
9: an animating and shaping force or principle
10: spirit , animation
11: the form or pattern of something existing in reality
12: the period of duration, usefulness, or popularity of something
13: the period of existence (as of a subatomic particle) — compare half-life
14: a property (as resilience or elasticity) of an inanimate substance or object resembling the animate quality of a living being
15: living beings (as of a particular kind or environment)
16 a: human activities b: animate activity and movement c: the activities of a given sphere, area, or time
17: one providing interest and vigor
18: an opportunity for continued viability
19: capitalized Christian Science : god 1b
20: something resembling animate life

It always seems as if people discussing "life" are referring to different meanings of the word. How can people argue about two different interpretations of the same word? It gets very confusing. It's like debating personhood. The "life begins at conception" crowd is always aghast that any person could deny this absolute truth. But, what do they mean? Do they mean the the quality that distinguishes a vital and functional being from a dead body? Well, what is meant by a "vital and functioning being?" Do they mean an organismic state characterized by capacity for metabolism, growth, reaction to stimuli, and reproduction? The fertilized egg does have the capacity for those things but studies done have proven that 1/3 of all embryo's fail. They certainly can't mean the sequence of physical and mental experiences that make up the existence of an individual - these things would occur after birth, right? I know that they don't mean the spiritual existence transcending physical death. Obviously they do not mean the period from birth to death. Do they mean a vital or living being (if so, we're back to the whole question of what constitutes "living"?)

I believe it is really difficult to argue an interpretation or perception. I think it is equally difficult to argue a personal belief system. I believe that each individual is capable of deciding for her or his self what these things mean to them. It would be wrong to force ones interpretation, perception or personal belief system upon the general population. Therefor I believe that is it every persons right to decide for themselves what life and/or personhood means when referencing abortion and to decide for themselves what the best moral decision would be. Now, why is that concept such a difficult one to comprehend?

Another try in South Dakota

2008-09-24T09:58:00.005-04:00

Just a few of the reasons to vote NO on Measure 11: No exceptions if baby wont survive outside the womb; Women can be forced to carry their pregnancies to term; Exceptions for "health" are dangerously vague.

If you'd like more information, please visit the South Dakota Campaign for Healthy Families site.

If you're wondering how this ban will affect women, here is just one excerpt from a Doctor in SD (one of very few) who perform abortions for seriously ill women...

Dr. Buehner is an obstetrician and gynecologist from Rapid City, SD who opposes the abortion ban. Buehner has previously stated that he would no longer perform abortions for seriously ill patients if the abortion ban passes, at the risk of spending 10 years in prison. He said that the phrase “accepted standards of medical practice is so vague and nebulous that no physicians I know, myself included, would take that chance.” [Wall Street Journal, 8/12/08] Such a situation would have chilling effect on a doctor’s ability to properly care for his or her patients.
In the video, Dr. Buehner says, “It’s a very difficult decision for any woman to make, but especially for women with health complications in pregnancy. […] [Under Measure 11] the decision would probably be made by attorneys, rather than the physicians or the patients themselves.”

I don't know how these anti-abortion fruitballoons would feel about having non-medical personnel make their private medical decisions (perhaps they'd be just A-okay with it) but I would prefer that every single one of my medical decisions were made by myself after proper counsel with those whose lives have been dedicated to medicine. I'll keep the legal decisions for those who have dedicated themselves to the law.

She said fungible.

2008-09-22T09:57:00.001-04:00

I love Cox!

2008-09-18T19:14:00.000-04:00

Affirmation Girl

2008-09-18T08:10:00.003-04:00

Okay, so I may have stolen this from the Bloggess (but I am pretty sure that I'm in love with her so it should be totally cool.)

My favorite line: "I'll shit on you... how do you like that... how does that make you feel in your mind?"

Embryology? We don't need no steenkin' embryology!

2008-09-17T15:10:00.006-04:00

Those opposed to abortion usually use the same old arguments including, but not limited to: misinformation, half-truth, pseudoscience, circle-talk, religiosity & the "personhood of the fetus" so this was a new one for me. Denying embryology.

Following is a li'l tidbit from a severly uneducated person who thinks abortion is icky... now, to be fair and all, I personally know people who are morally opposed to abortion and they are intelligent people who are capable of acknowledging both science and the law. For the most part, their distaste for abortion comes from the belief that a fetus is a "person" with a "soul" although some (not all) have no response to (or find it very difficult to articulate) why abortion would be acceptable in the case of rape or incest since there would be no apparent difference between the fertilized egg that was the result of rape and the fertilized egg that was the result of consensual sex (aside from the obvious differences regarding the intercourse.) Which leads one to believe that their stance on abortion has far less to do with the moral or physical status of the zygote/embryo/fetus and more to do with the intercourse itself (enjoying it without being open to the possibility of gestating a pregnancy.) But I digress... this person who (perhaps in a deliberate attempt at irony) calls him/herself "truth" makes the following statement regarding embryology (which is a branch of biology dealing with embryos and their development also the features and phenomena exhibited in the formation and development of an embryo.)

Truthiness: Seems like Embryology is a farse...

my thoughts: Yes, I just made it up, right now.
*

Truthiness: It just seems that Embryology takes the focus off the child developing in the womb and makes it seem like it's just another animal.

my thoughts: So what you're saying is that embryology takes the focus off of the embryo? Hmm, okay. Would you be okay with it if you could change this branch of biology to "thechilddevelopinginthewombology"? I mean, come on... put forth a tiny, little effort.
*

Truthiness: Do you think that Humans are just animals with higher functioning brain capacity?

I swear to God, I could not make this shit up if I tried.

ps. farce is spelled with a "c"... it doesn't really matter, I knew what he/she meant... I'm just saying.

News from Illinois

2008-09-17T09:10:00.002-04:00

According to the ACLU of Illinois, an appellate court has blocked an effort to grant rights to fertilized eggs that have not implanted. The statement reads, in part:

The Appellate Court properly noted that the Illinois law cited by the Cook County Judge was never intended to grant rights to an unimplanted, fertilized egg. In an amicus curiae brief filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, we also noted that the decision relied on antiquated, scientifically-invalid Illinois abortion laws that long ago were blocked from enforcement by federal courts. The Appellate Court today acted swiftly and directly to reverse this lower court's error.

One of the comments from the coverage at RH Reality Check says (and I'm not embellishing):

This Godless judge needs a Biology 101 class!! (truthiness, is that you?)
"An abortion kills the life of a baby after it has begun. It is dangerous to your life and health. It may make you sterile, so that when you want a child you cannot have it." — Planned Parenthood

That PP "quote" is another anti-abortion myth that the extremist claim came from a 1963 pamphlet from PP. Now, I don't doubt that illegal abortion most certainly caused sterility and even death - but this is a very good argument for keeping abortion safe and legal - legal abortion is safer than childbirth, for crying out loud. The baby stuff is pure nonsense... no pregnancy, no birth, no baby.

This is for Princess.

2008-09-16T19:09:00.004-04:00

I was browsing the net... not sure how I happened upon this (the official website of Sofie Kinsella.) It is Kelly Tuesday and sometimes magical things happen for no reason whatsoever on this, the Grandest of Days. I couldn't remember if Ms. Banana-hammock had read the one published in February (Remember Me?) - it looks good! Maybe you bring it over here and I'll read it, eh? Anhoo... just thought I'd share (I love you so mu-u-u-u-u-u-u-uch!)

Get out and vote!

2008-09-16T15:17:00.003-04:00

I am voting to protect my daughters basic human rights and to ensure that we, as Americans, do not end up living in a Theocracy!

Why are you voting?

Saturday Night Live

2008-09-15T15:05:00.002-04:00

*** update at 10pm 9/15/2008 - my video is gone - youtube is not permitted to keep the SNL skits up. I've tried to embed off of the NBC site but it totally sucks balls... just go here to see it (it's worth the ride)***

They are so good... the only thing I can bare to watch on SNL is the political satire and "the news"... enjoy!

Her Good Abortion

2008-09-15T12:33:00.004-04:00

Erika Lutz is a writer of both fiction and non-fiction and wrote about her abortion experience; called "My Good Abortion"... there is also audio found here if you'd rather listen. I so love women who share their experiences with abortion - good, bad or indifferent we must end the stigma surrounding this medical procedure.

Abstinence only education: an oxymoron

2008-09-12T16:18:00.002-04:00

Great video and if you're interested in speaking about the content... visit the Reproductive Health Reality Check site!

Oh, the hypocrisy... will it never end?

2008-09-11T12:43:00.006-04:00

I got this off of the RH site... I have always had a crush on John Stewart that grows with each Daily Show. Rock on Daily!

oh, Boo...

2008-09-10T14:27:00.003-04:00

McCain is now freakin' out that Obama used the term "putting lipstick on a pig" - accusing him of directly insulting Palin (why Mr. McCain... are you implying that Palin is a pig?) but the most ironic part? McCain used the same phrase when discussing Hillary Clinton's health-care plan.

Ah well... does any of this actually surprise anyone? Smear tactics and politics as usual in the McCain camp... par for the course and all that. What a maverick of change, no?

a letter worth reading

2008-09-09T22:03:00.002-04:00

please take the time to read this...just click on the title. very well stated.

Random Funny

2008-09-05T13:01:00.003-04:00

I know I've been in this whole pro-choice place for a while... thanks should be given to Mr. Jasper for the role he has played in this fact. But the truth of the matter is that I do not spend all of my online time reading RH or posting about Reproductive Rights... sometimes I just like to laugh and thanks to some really ~~fucked up~~ funny bloggers, such as The Bloggess and Mimi Smartypants I am able to laugh whilst online on a pretty regular basis (writing "whilst" makes me feel fancy.) I hope I'm not breaking any blog rules by posting this - I'd really hate to do hard time for blogging.
Here it is and it is fabulous.

How Much Time Should She Do?

2008-09-04T15:10:00.002-04:00

McCain/Palin: The Most Anti-Choice Ticket in History

John McCain is worse than George W. Bush on abortion rights.

But guess who’s worse than John McCain?
Sarah Palin.
From supporting failed abstinence-only sex education,

opposing abortion even in cases of rape and incest and

cutting funds for programs that support teen mothers –

Palin has consistently demonstrated a chilling lack of respect for women and a

refusal to acknowledge any options other than the ones of which she approves.
The stakes have been raised.

With the presidency and the Supreme Court hanging in the balance,

the time is right to expose the stark realities of what a

McCain/Palin administration would mean for America.

Help get this message out to the public.
Run our ad yourself or contribute today so we can

get more ads like this on the air.

If I were the king of the world, I tell ya what I'd do...

2008-09-02T21:09:00.003-04:00

Mr. Jasper: Pro-lifers are not against measures taken to save (or that risk) the life of the mother. Induce labor or have a C-section.

Mellankelly: How lovely that you would risk a woman's life and her reproductive future by "allowing" her to have a Cesarean Section. Only (and correct me if I'm wrong here) there is not an instance where some third party with no stake whatsoever in the outcome is allowed to make private medical decisions for another person... that's too bad, since it sounded like such a win-win scenario and all. Perhaps you should be fighting laws which restrict you (and any other like-minded person) from being able to decide which medical procedures are in a woman's best interest... Lord knows that Doctors just don't know what the heck they're doing, right?

Mr. Jasper: If I had a born child with either of those 2 conditions, could I terminate his life?

Mellankelly: If it was your child, you would be the one to decide which procedures, if any, your child would have. I suppose, for many parents, the treatment (if any) would depend upon the severity of the brain damage and paralysis, how developed the problem was prior to and at birth would also factor into the treatment options. The bottom line is... each parent would decide for themselves whether or not to start any treatment at all, and if so, which treatments they would be willing to inflict upon their child. See, their child = their decision. Your child = your decision. Are you getting it yet?

Mr. Jasper: Btw: that mother referred to unborn baby as her 'child'.

Mellankelly: Of course she did... this was a very wanted pregnancy that went terribly wrong. I forgot to add this bit to my original posting:

"I wrote my doctor a long thank-you note on my good, wedding stationery. I thanked him for his compassion and his kindness. I wrote that it must be hard, what he does, but that I hoped he found consolation in the fact that he was helping vulnerable women in their most vulnerable of times. He keeps my note, along with all the others he's received, in a large bundle. And he keeps that
bundle right next to his stack of hate mail. They are about the same size"

And this really got to me because the people who invented the "PB" phrase (no such medical procedure... SURPRISE!) and the President who helped outlaw certain procedures have caused many good Doctors who have helped countless women to deny future women these options.
This is so very sad...

"The doctor who performed my termination talks about the women he has helped through the years -- the pregnant woman who was diagnosed with metastic melanoma and needed immediate chemotherapy, the woman who was carrying conjoined twins that had only one set of lungs and one heart, the woman whose baby had a three-chambered heart and would never live. Now, he is turning these women away. 'Now, today, I can say no, but what is she going to do?' he says sadly. 'What is she going to do?'"

And a chilling quote from that Doctor:

"Now, it's like the Stone Age, it's like a Muslim country here," says the doctor who performed my procedure. "This is the most backward law, it is not for a civilized country. If this was Iran, Iraq, I wouldn't be surprised. But to pass this law in the United States, what is this government doing?"

You said it, Doctor! And how!

Late Term Abortion

2008-09-01T23:16:00.002-04:00

Mr. Jasper seems to think that women have late term abortions on a whim... here are some of the stories:

When Congress first considered the ban in 1995, Watts testified on Capitol Hill. So did Viki Wilson of Fresno, Calif., who had a late-term abortion because the brain of the fetus she was carrying had developed outside the skull. So did Vikki Stella of Naperville, Ill., whose fetus had dwarfism, no brain tissue and seven other major abnormalities.
All three women told legislators they owed their health to late-term abortions and that a continuation of their doomed pregnancies posed grave health risks such as stroke, paralysis, infertility or even death.
As they campaign to save access to these procedures, Watts, Stella and Wilson point out that in virtually all cases, late-term abortions are the only way to respond to unanticipated complications: the death of the fetus inside the womb, problems that mean the fetus can't live outside the womb, or serious threats to the mother's health.
"No women has these procedures for frivolous reasons," says Stella. "They have them because it's their only choice."
In its Roe v. Wade decision, the Supreme Court acknowledged this fact, giving states permission to regulate--or even proscribe--terminations of pregnancies except "where necessary, in appropriate medical judgment, for the preservation of the life or health of the mother."
Reference and full article can be found here.

Here is another equally compelling story which highlights why it is important that the decision of whether or not to have a late-term abortion should lie with the pregnant woman, her loved ones and her doctor... and why "maternal health" is an important distinction from "maternal life".

Instead of cinnamon and spice, our child came with technical terms like hydrocephalus and spina bifida. The spine, she said, had not closed properly, and because of the location of the opening, it was as bad as it got. What they knew -- that the baby would certainly be paralyzed and incontinent, that the baby's brain was being tugged against the opening in the base of the skull and the cranium was full of fluid -- was awful. What they didn't know -- whether the baby would live at all, and if so, with what sort of mental and developmental defects -- was devastating. Countless surgeries would be required if the baby did live. None of them would repair the damage that was already done.
We met with a genetic counselor, but given the known as well as the unknown, we both knew what we needed to do. Though the baby might live, it was not a life that we would choose for our child, a child that we already loved. We decided to terminate the pregnancy. It was our last parental decision.
Reference and full article can be found here.

That was their decision to make... not yours or mine or any other third party who would not be directly affected by this decision... that was theirs and theirs alone!

Fetal Brainwaves

2008-09-01T21:28:00.004-04:00

A favorite anti-abortion myth is the "fetal pain" myth... as taken from the ironically named "abortion facts" web page:

"the cortex isn’t needed to feel pain. The thalamus is needed and is functioning at 8 weeks. Even complete removal of the cortex does not eliminate the sensation of pain. Indeed there seems to be little evidence that pain information reaches the sensory cortex."

Now, if we go to the Mayo Clinic we would find the following regarding the thalamus:

"What the thalamus does is act as a sorting and switching station located deep inside the brain. The thalamus quickly forwards the pain message simultaneously to three specialized regions of the brain: the physical sensation region (somatosensory cortex), the emotional feeling region (limbic system) and the thinking region (frontal cortex). Your brain responds to pain by sending messages that moderate the pain in the spinal cord. "

Ummm... you might be asking yourself just how the heck any stimulus could be "felt" if one "completely removes the cortex" considering the thalamus forwards the stimulus message directly to the somatosensory, limbic system and the frontal cortex. You're right... it can't be "felt" without the cortex.

But hey... scientific facts? Who needs 'em... they just think abortion is icky.

It seems that the anti-abortion extremists enjoy using misinformation (considering that they tend to employ this tactic quite regularly.) I'm not sure if they think this will make women decide not to have abortions (although, as far as I know, no woman has ever listed a reason for terminating a pregnancy as "my fetus cannot feel pain.") But never mind those sneaky devils, there will always be people around to ensure that these woman receive accurate medical information (thanks Mayo Clinic!)

On another note... I recently had a fellah (yes, a person who will never know the emotional or physical -not to mention the financial- responsibilities of giving birth to a child) chastise me for using a photograph of a 6 week abortion. He would prefer that I use the photographs that the anti-abortion extremists use (usually very much wanted pregnancies which ended in still birth or therapeutic abortion). Apparently, he is of the mind that a 6 week abortion looks just like a 40 week full term baby (killed moments prior to birth, no less.) OH, the emotional horror!!!

Listen dude... I'm sorry... but this is what a 6 week abortion looks like...

And may I add (for the record and all) that if I feel compelled to use terms such as "dude", I can use my God-given right (free will... thanks God!) to use this term (and any other I so deem necessary) whenever and where ever I like. It is not enough that this guy wants to control my reproduction and my choice of medically accurate information... he would also like to control my use of verbiage.

Hey Jasper... go fuck yourself.

PRO-VOICE

2008-09-01T21:06:00.003-04:00

This is what I've been saying for the past ten years... the difference in this "debate" will be the voices of women who share their very personal and private experiences with the world!!!

GO, PRO-VOICE!!!!!!

Dr. Mildred Hanson

2008-08-29T15:14:00.003-04:00

On pre-roe abortions:

On her "what if":

God Bless You!

The death of a stigma

2008-08-28T19:52:00.000-04:00

I am so pleased that there are so many people who share my belief that we must eliminate the stigma associated with abortion. There are so many women who have had abortions and it is such a beautiful thing that we live in a time and a place where speaking openly about your experience (good, bad, indifferent) is not only permitted, it is encouraged. Thank you to all of these women for getting out the word that abortion can be a normal part of our reproductive lives... God Bless!

Since we're sharing, Mr. Jasper...

2008-08-28T10:52:00.004-04:00

* God is not affected in any way by abortion.
* God loves women.
* God loves women who have terminated their pregnancies.
* God loves all of Her creatures.
* God loves pro-choice and anti-abortion people.
* Abortion has existed as long as women have been biologically able to become pregnant.
* Abortion is a good, moral choice for a woman facing an unwanted pregnancy.
* Abortion is not a sin.
* God does not create zombies via raising dead people from their graves - that's freaky-deaky!
* "Abortion" has no "desire" (abortion is a medical procedure not capable of desiring anything.)
* A woman has an abortion when her desire is to not have a baby (kudos on keeping with the anti-abortion attempt to take women out of the equation.)
* For some women facing an unwanted pregnancy, abortion is the only choice filled with hope.
* Satan is imaginary. (due to man-kinds inability to accept responsibility for it's own misfortune.)
* Abortion is not evil.
* Evil is the logical opposite to the concept of good (which all of Gods creation possess.) without evil mankind could not perfect it's soul.
* The pregnant woman/embryo*fetus relationship is unitary... the only reason this relationship could ever be considered adversarial is when anti-abortion extremists believe that they (and not the pregnant woman) know what is best for the woman and her embryo/fetus (whereby taking rights away from pregnant women and giving them to her embryo/fetus.)
* Abortion plays no role in the relationship between men and women, mothers and children, or people and God.

PS "hisman" sounds like a real wanker. - why would some whack-job claim to speak for God or Satan? And why should I care what his personal opinions are?

Silly anti-abortionists, truth is our friend!

2008-08-28T09:59:00.003-04:00

Here is another anti-abortion myth debunked... the "abortion" photo/dead fetus props...

"A considerable number of anti-abortion visuals feature an almost fully developed fetus. Abortions preformed at this stage via hysterotomy or D&Xabortions are rare [approximately 0.08% are performed after 24weeks, when the fetus may be viable - no fetal demise] A July 1992 LIFE magazine article, The Great Divide, reported that Reverend Robert Schenk, member of anti-choice coalition Operation rescue, attended a demonstration outside an abortion clinic in Buffalo, NY, with "Baby Tia", a7-inch, gray-tinted and formaldehyde-soaked dead fetus. In the escalating madness of the crowd, the fetus was dropped onto the sneaker-trodden street. Authorities arrested Schenk and confiscated the fetus, which was taken to a coroner, only to be identified as an approximately 20-week-old stillborn. The article reads, "Many pro-choice supporters in Buffalo are angry about the distance between their reality-what they see in the clinics-and the images the anti-abortionists present as fact. 'What they are showing to the public is a lie,' says Joni Ladowski, a nurse at a nearby clinic, as she unfolds a length of gauze. In the center lies what appears to be a clot the size of a peanut. It is a fetus, nine weeks old.'This is an abortion,' she says."

You know, without misinformation, pseudoscience and/or outright lies, the anti-abortion extremists would have nothing (except their religion/personal belief system) Those of us who live within the realm of reality will always be here to provide accurate information in order to educate the average person about the truth surrounding abortion... the information is there.

More on the misrepresentations and misinformation used by the anti-abortion forces:

"Through the construction of public fetal images as 'baby pictures,' the fetus is visibly separated from its mother and can consequently enter the social imagination alone. It is relatively easy to untangle the symbolic reasons that would encourage fetal autonomy: Embryo photography has personified the fetus by replacing the mother with empty space. As Daniels (1993) has said, 'In much of the promotional literature of the anti-abortion movement, the fetus is visually severed from the mother, presented as an autonomous free-floating being, attached tenuously to the 'mother ship' by the umbilical cord.' or, as Franklin (1991) says, 'The conditions for spectator recognition of and identification with the fetus are achieved on the basis of its separation and individuation from the mother.'"
~Taylor, Janelle. 1998. Image of Contradiction: Obstetrical Ultrasound in American Culture. In Franklin, S. and Ragone, H. (eds.) Reproducing Reproduction: Kinship, Power and Technological Innovation. University of Philadelphia Press, Philadelphia.
~Daniels, Cynthia R. 1993. At Women's Expense: State Power and the Politics of Fetal Rights. Harvard University Press, Cambridge.

Adult Stem Cells

2008-08-28T09:27:00.003-04:00

I just came across this article on the Washington Post website... this is just incredible! It seems that scientists have been able to change a fully developed adult stem cell into another inside a living being (mice, in this case). The implications are very exciting - here is an excerpt from the article...

"The experiments, detailed online yesterday in the journal Nature, raise the prospect that patients suffering from not only diabetes but also heart disease, strokes and many other ailments could eventually have some of their cells reprogrammed to cure their afflictions without the need for drugs, transplants or other therapies."

I hope they are able to test this on actual people soon - the article mentioned that one scientist is hoping to start studies involving people with diabetes within a year (how exciting!)

Factual information is your friend

2008-08-27T21:53:00.006-04:00

Mr. Jasper: Doing one evil (abortion) to fix another (rape) doesn't solve anything.

Mellankelly: Too bad terminating an unwanted pregnancy (for any reason) isn't evil. Also, terminating an unwanted pregnancy most certainly solves the problem of not wanting to have a baby... so you're 0 for 2 per usual.

Your idea's about what a pregnancy should mean to a woman are completely irrelevant to anyone other than you. I know you fancy yourself a judge of truth and knowledge but when you do so, you are shipwrecked by the laughter of the Gods (my favorite quote ever, thank you Einstein).

And dude... this is what an abortion at 6 weeks looks like (important to note that 63% are performed within eight weeks gestation - calculated from the beginning of the last menstrual period and 90% occur in the first trimester)

Mr. Jasper: 98% of abortions are elective, for matters of convienance

Mellankelly: Says you... this is how it breaks down (the most recent information)

74% Concern for/Responsibility to other Individuals

73% Cannot afford a baby now

69% A baby would interfere with school/employment/ability to care for dependents

48% Would be a single parent/having relationship problems

38% Have completed childbearing

* Most women who decide to terminate understand the responsibility of parenthood; a majority already have children

* 89% of women gave more than one reason - the average number of reasons being four.

* Each year, about 10,000 to 15,000 abortions occur among women whose pregnancies were the result of rape or incest

When you use words like "matters of convenience" you are belittling the struggles that real women (a majority) endure in their lifetime - which is not surprising considering that you will never experience those struggles. You come off misogynistic, I'm not sure if that is by accident or by nature.

I suppose I should thank you, Mr. Jasper, men like you are the reason why I will do everything in my power to ensure that women are given the respect they deserve and a guarantee that women and women alone get to decide the course of their own pregnancies... and my daughters will keep up the good fight when I'm gone... and their daughters will keep up the good fight... and so on and so on and so on. Merci.

Do you see spots?

2008-08-27T20:08:00.004-04:00

Mr. Jasper: Freaking weird, I never heard of that. Nice way to dehumanize your unborn child.

Mellankelly: Oooh... "dehumanize [my] unborn child"... sounds deliciously evil, doesn't it? Way to appear rational, Mr. Jasper. By the way...

"I no longer refer to it as "alien". He or she is my bean. I don't know why I referred to baby as alien in the first place, it seems so mean. Maybe I was scared to bond with it because of the chances of miscarriage"
~from Baby says "Baff" blog

"The more people I tell about our baby bean birkel (which is how we refer to our baby at present, it being the size of a bean)"
~from Baby Birkel blog

"Well, when Dam and I saw our first ultrasound the words that popped out of my mouth was, 'It looks like a little kidney bean.' From there Dam referred to it as Bean."
~from try, try, try again blog

"I've known pregnant women who refer to their fetus as "the bean." I was briefly pregnant once, and I referred to the lil' thing as "Spud." Some women grow beans, apparently I was growing a potato. The fact that it didn't take is evidence that humans were not meant to birth potatoes. "
~from the MetaFilter community weblog entitled "your fetus as produce."

I found a lot more but I think anyone reading will get the point (not too sure if Mr. Jasper can grasp the concept) that many women refer to their fetus or their "belly" as many different things during pregnancy, including "the bean" or "bean" or sometimes "baby bean" - they certainly aren't dehumanizing anything... that is utter rubbish.

Mr. Jasper: Let’s see, you slaughtered and killed one of your babies and I’m the person lacking in judgment or prudence? Maybe you should let your other children know that you killed their sibling.

Mellankelly: When you use words like "slaughtered" and "babies" to describe abortion, yes, I find words like "lacking in judgment or prudence" befitting their subject.
Oh, gosh... when my son was old enough to talk about an act as evil as rape (and including circumstances which concerned him), I most certainly explained the situation to him. I think it extremely important that women share their personal experience with unwanted pregnancy in order to put things into perspective; considering the anti-abortion extremists wish to demonize women or take women out of the picture all together. It is imperative that rational people are exposed to the truth when it comes to the real reasons why women terminate their pregnancies... I think reading about or speaking with women who have made that decision open the eyes of those people who have been led to believe that women who terminate their pregnancies are harlots who get pregnant and abort on a whim.
Now, even my 16 year old son can recognize that an embryo is not a sibling... your judgement is clouded by your unhealthy fixation with the reproductive choices of complete strangers, you really ought to see someone about that.
Further, I've never killed a baby... I've given birth to three and there are still three hangin' around my house... again, it may help to take deep breaths prior to typing.

Mr. Jasper: I guess you’re right, I should except much thought from a selfish heathen.

Mellankelly: I'm not sure what you meant to write there, it appears as if you get flustered easily and lose track of your thoughts. I believe you meant "accept such thoughts?" Please correct me if I'm wrong. Although I'm not sure if "heathen" is the correct term as I do not doubt that we are all praying to the same God. However, I don't believe that the Bible is inerrant as it was written by men. Now the selfish part is debatable... I suppose there are aspects of our lives where we can tend to be selfish but on the whole I would have to disagree that selfish would be a proper adjective in which to describe me, as a person (particularly since you're just some random guy on the Internet.)

PS. Mr. Jasper... please seek help.

Does Elvis speak to you?

2008-08-27T18:24:00.002-04:00

Mr. Jasper: oh yea, you refered to your unborn child as "The Bean." Kinda wierd

Mellankelly: I did not refer to my fetus as my "unborn child" and yes, when quickening began, we called it "The Bean" - like a Mexican jumping bean... you find that weird yet you continue to refer to abortion as infanticide and genocide (that's not weird at all). I also made reference that I terminated my second pregnancy prior to quickening and that I think whatever colloquial terms one chooses to use does not have any consequence whatsoever on either of our arguments... you obviously disagree. Probably because you believe that if you said it, it must be true. Here we disagree once again.

Mr. Jasper: A cop out I would say. You refered to your unborn child as the "baby' didn't you? I have you all twisted up now, your back against the wall... you're not even willing to admit or give the basic respect and dignity to your own children, your own flesh and blood when they were inside you. How shameful. You have such a hard heart, examine your conscience.

Mellankelly: By that reasoning, my dog (Molly Beatrice Sorci) is not only a part of my family, she is a person. It's true, right? Because that is how we refer to her... I'm her mommy, my husband is her daddy and my children are her siblings. Sometimes we refer to her as a baby... we say things like "Who's my baby?" and "There's my baby!" Yes, your argument that whatever one chooses to call something actually alters what that thing is sounds completely grounded in logic and not at all driven by your abhorrence of abortion. And as far as having me "all twisted up" or "against the wall", well, this is merely one more reason why I bestow upon you the title of Jackass (fool; a person lacking in judgment or prudence.) I make that statement because I believe, as evidenced by your very words, that you lack the ability to discipline yourself by the use of reason. You appear to become so haughtily contemptuous that your argument is secondary to your emotive babbling. Try stepping back and taking a deep breath... next, use logic and reason as a basis for your argument - I think things would be a lot clearer for anyone reading your words (or, perhaps you'd realize how ridiculous your words are). Well, just a suggestion... clearly, you are free to argue in any manner you see fit.

Mr. Jasper: Cardinal Eagan put it well addressing Bella Pelosi

Mellankelly: Now Jasper, why on earth would what Cardinal Eagan has to say matter in the least to me? Just out of curiosity, would that be Cardinal Edward Egan? The same Cardinal Eagan that incited a group of priests to issue a letter urging the archdiocesan clergy to cast a vote of ”no confidence” against him? That aside, a man who could be so cruel and uncaring towards the many real hardships facing women (hardships, might I add, that he will never have the displeasure of experiencing) with these words: "...'chooses' to do so or for any other equally ridiculous reason" Yes, his Jesus would be so proud. What a horrible little man hiding behind his religious notions. Just YIK! Who's glad she's not a Catholic? You betchya, I am!

DNC: Cecile Richards, PP

2008-08-27T13:18:00.001-04:00

Say NO to McCain!!

Are you mad, gov'nah?

2008-08-27T10:42:00.005-04:00

Mr. Jasper: You didn't answer the question Mom

Mellankelly: Oh really... following are the links to both of my responses (thus far). I answered your question and shortly thereafter (perhaps due to your reading comprehension issues?) you asked the exact same question again... not only did I refer you to the link for my original answer but I also reiterated my answer for you. Now, since this is the third time you've asked the question (which makes me question whether or not you are, in fact, a classmate of my seven year old) I'm beginning to believe that you just do not like my answer. Simply because I didn't answer your question the way in which you wish that I had does not mean that I haven't answered your question. And seriously, if I were your "Mom" I would weep at my apparent inability to have taught you the very basics of human kindness/compassion.

In case you've a poor memory... here are the links to my previous responses to your inane question.
Reading comprehension is a must - first response
round and round and round he goes - second response

Mr. Jasper: You're partly right, I meant selective infanticide for abortion survivors.

Mellankelly: Has never happened, my dear... this is a non-issue. No politician supports infanticide of any kind... please, with the Drama Queen.

Hey Jackass...

2008-08-27T10:20:00.000-04:00

Mr. Jasper: Oh, MellenKelly, one more thing.stragetically speaking;I think your party really blew it not nominating Hillary Clinton and even leaving her off the ticket. Bad move.

Mellankelly: I'm an Independent.

Nancy Keenan speaks at the Democratic National Convention

2008-08-26T13:55:00.003-04:00

She is such a fantastic orator! I hope and pray that not only the Democrats, but the Moderate Republicans and Independents (anyone who values the rights, life/health and well-being of women) will unite behind Obama!

And to my lovely sister, MK who is, as I type, aiding NARAL in Denver....

I love you and admire your dedication to not only myself and my daughters but to each and every woman in America!

Love ya, sis!

'round and 'round and 'round he goes...

2008-08-26T12:43:00.004-04:00

**** this is a side note added at 5:26pm on 8/26:

Happy Belated Birthday, Jasper! ****

(we may disagree but that doesn't change the fact that I love birthdays!)

Mr. Jasper: Ok, let me try again. It is not a trick question. when you were pregnant with your children, when they kicked inside of you, did you say "the baby kicked" or "the fetus kicked" which was it? How did you refer to unborn child?

Mellankelly: Listen, redundancy, although a tactic quite often used by those who have no valid argument, is most certainly not a virtue. If you insist upon asking the same questions, even after they have been answered, I will simply refer you back to my previous response found here. I see no reason why referring to a pregnancy in any colloquial terms would factor into either of our arguments. What I do see is your desperate attempts to move the conversation away from the rights of pregnant women apparently due to your lack of a compelling reason to deny pregnant women these rights.

Mr. Jasper: ..the personal belief systems of a few? no not quite. As you may have noticed, your hero, that wolf in sheeps clothing, Obama is being exposed for his support of selective infanticide.

Mellankelly: Honestly, I've never indicated in any way how I feel about Obama - and to make a statement that he is "my hero" is absurd. Have you ever noticed that these generalizations and misinformation say more about you than they do about anyone else? It appears as if redundancy is second only to ad hominem attacks when it comes to anti-abortion extremists. No politician supports infanticide, you damned fool... maybe you should find places other than anti-abortion sites to obtain your information, eh? Infanticide... seriously? You sound like a bloody lunatic.

Mr. Jasper: did you read that? CREATED equal, endowed by their CREATOR. It doesn't say our rights come from the government or a bunch radical feminists but from from our CREATOR.

Mellankelly: What the heck does that have to do with anything? God has nothing to do with public policy, my dear. She gave us free will for a reason, no? She did not pen our Constitution. If you actually believed that we were all created equal you would cease treating women as if they are inherently lesser than men due to their (God-given) biology. If you believe that we are all equal you would trust women to make their own decisions regarding their reproduction... but you don't believe women are equal, do you? You do not believe that women are capable of making good, informed choices regarding their sexuality or their reproduction. I just happen to disagree with you and it appears as if you just don't like that at all (ergo, your emotive outbursts.)

Mr. Jasper: You when claim the right to slaughter innocent unborn children, you are forcing the nation to accept genocide. The good people of this country will not allow this to go on.

Mellankelly: Poppycock. When I make the very true statement that women born or naturalized in the US are entitled to their full citizenship rights under our Constitution, I am doing nothing more than arguing for the truth: Women (and their doctors/loved ones) are most qualified to make their own medical decisions - would you prefer legislatures make your personal medical decisions for you?

Seriously Mr. Jasper, you must understand that stomping your feet and plugging your ears while spouting anti-abortion rhetoric will get you nowhere. Neither will your emotive babbling about your biblegod - no person in this Country is obliged to agree with your notions about God.

This pretty well sums it up

2008-08-26T09:01:00.002-04:00

Your response to my post titled Religious nonsense and public policy is very telling, Mr. Jasper. It appears as if you have no compelling argument to counter my points (how very surprising) and instead chose the only retort you could possibly imagine: your religiousness.

Mr. Jasper: Well, its obvious we just don't share the same values. You certainly can't be a beliver in Christ.

Mellankelly: Well boo for you, Mr. Jasper. The country that we live in (a democracy) is a far cry from the imaginary country you wish it was (a theocracy). Thankfully, this country was founded by the notion that we are free to practice any religion as evidenced in the First Amendment "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." Freedom of conscience is the basis of the free exercise clause, and government may not penalize or discriminate against an individual or a group of individuals because of their religious views nor may it compel persons to affirm any particular beliefs. So while you may fancy yourself a "believer in Christ" it has absolutely no bearing on my life whatsoever. Further, I have many friends and family members who are Christian and do not share you limited views; I would also direct you to the The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice where you will find that religious people of many faiths support a woman's reproductive choices... are you now going to proclaim that they're not "real" Christians because their belief system compels them to protect the rights of all people (including - gasp - pregnant women?) Remember, "A closed mind is not only closed to outside thoughts, it is often closed to itself as well. It is closed to new thoughts and anything that threatens the status quo. But if you can open the doors, maybe just a crack at first, the ideas that have been patiently waiting at your gates will flood in."

And regarding your stories... rape victims and rape victims alone get to decide whether or not to gestate a pregnancy that was the result of rape. I believe that only a coward would hide behind his religion when insisting that women gestate rape-related pregnancies. You have proven yourself to be a coward on more than one occasion... and you've clearly demonstrated that your concern is not with "life" per se, but begins at conception and ends at birth. I pity you and I'm sorry that your religion prohibits you from caring about the life of women facing unwanted pregnancies (including rape victims). I will pray for you, Mr. Jasper.

Oh, and regarding your bogus photo ... debunked: This picture, also distributed on a 3 x 5 inch card and used in numerous anti-abortion campaigns is equally inconsistent. If the forceps securing its head over the jar are standard OR ring forceps, the ring is 1 x 0.5 centimeters, which would mean that the head is too small to be in its third trimester, yet one less developed would not have that much hair, says Dr. Ross. "I strongly suspect that this picture is fake, and the information on the back of the card certainly does not match what's shown," he adds. The second, and most obvious, fallacy lies within the description. It says that the pictured fetus was aborted in 1987 in Texas. However, that was the year that third trimester abortions were banned, rendering the alleged procedure altogether illegal

religious nonsense and public policy

2008-08-25T15:48:00.001-04:00

Mr. Jasper: What the heck are you taking about? do you think the child is an alien from space who invaded your womb? It's human life that growing inside of you.

Mellankelly: Well, if you don't understand what bodily integrity is and you you cannot comprehend human reproduction, then there is nothing more that I can do. The bottom line is that you simply cannot subordinate a pregnant woman's rights to a fertilized egg/embryo/fetus.

Mr. Jasper: Do mean the so-called "right to privacy" that scummy lawyers and judges invented to fit there agenda and allow baby killing?

Mellankelly: When I speak of defending women's ("so-called"?) civil liberties I assure you that I am speaking of legal arguments which were not invented by "scummy lawyers and judges." I am speaking of things such as: a lack of compelling state interest, procedural due process, equal protection, and also the right to privacy (combination of the first, third, fourth, fifth, ninth amendments and the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment - further, both federal and state courts have recognized a constitutional right of privacy in medical records and patient/physician relationships.) - privacy also covers bodily integrity and self sovereignty... not to mention discrimination (there is no comparative circumstance where a males bodily integrity is forcibly violated to provide for another "person.")

Mr. Jasper: My story is completely relevent, you must not having paying attention.

Mellankelly: Okay... you like to use fairy tales and tell stories to support your personal belief system, I prefer to use legal precedent, factual information and good ole' common sense to argue for the rights of every person in our country (including pregnant women).

Mr. Jasper: Yes, you take that risk when you sleep with a man.

Mellankelly: Malarkey! I have sex with my husband without even being open to the possibility of becoming pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term. Luckily for me, my husband had a vasectomy in 2001 so my chances of becoming pregnant are slim to none (she says while knocking on wood). And a woman who is raped certainly wouldn't be "taking that risk", right? Your personal opinions about intercourse and pregnancy have absolutely no relevance in any life other than yours. Your personal belief system is not a compelling reason to take rights away from pregnant women.

Mr. Jasper: Not good enough precautions..try abstinance and stop sleeping around. Most women who have abortions are not married. Fornication is a sin.

Mellankelly: Says you. Consensual sexual intercourse between two persons not married to each other is most certainly not a sin. Your religious notions have absolutely no relevance in the lives of others who do not share your faith (myself included). A higher rate of unplanned pregnancy is linked much more closely to economic status (women below the federal poverty level have abortion rates almost four times those of higher income women.) If your comments are any indication, you appear to be driven by your religious beliefs and not the moral status of a fertilized egg. Your religiousness and your biblegod have absolutely no relevance in the lives of others (aside from those who share your rather limited views). Why on earth should I be forced to adhere to your personal belief system?

Mr. Jasper: It's a metaphor. and yes it does have relevance

Mellankelly: Please enlighten me... how would your "opening the gate" possibly be compared to consensual sex in which the partners used precautions to ensure that they would not become pregnant. You can't.... your comment has absolutely no relevance to that scenario. You just don't like pre-marital sex quite possibly as much as you don't like abortion. Hey, those are your opinions and you're certainly entitled to them... however, your opinion does not a fact make and certainly you have no right to force your personal religious beliefs upon me or anyone else.

A Heartbreaking Choice

2008-08-25T14:15:00.001-04:00

This website made me cry... I feel for these women and their families. I remember working for a couple who found out in the 3rd trimester that the fetus had tay sachs disease further complicated by massive amount of fluid in the brain. After counseling with their rabbi and their family they opted to terminate the pregnancy. It was so heartbreaking for the family - those parents were so strong and in less than 2 years time they had a little baby girl (who went to pre-school with my youngest at the Jewish Community Center.) That child was such a blessing!

reading comprehension is a must!

2008-08-25T12:16:00.003-04:00

Mr. Jasper: Exactly?? are you saying unborn children don't count?

Mellankelly: Again dear, I say what I mean and I mean exactly what I say. I'm saying that a person, even children (no need for adjectives or qualifiers - it is simply not necessary to change the meaning of certain words in order to get my point across) have no right to force another person, even their parents to endure any form of bodily invasion (I used "blood test" as an example). You cannot give a fertilized egg greater rights than a person (that would be unconstitutional).

Mr. Jasper: when you were pregnant with children, tell me, when they kicked inside of you, did you say "the baby kicked" or "the fetus kicked" or maybe you said (since you believe in bodily invasions) "the alien kicked". which was it?

Mellankelly: I've no idea why this would be of any consequence. I've been pregnant four times and experienced quickening three of the four times. I terminated my second pregnancy prior to quickening. During my first pregnancy we referred to my belly as "The Bean." My question for you sir is why would it be of any consequence which colloquial terms one chooses to refer to her pregnancy? Clearly, using adjectives and/or qualifiers such as "unborn" or "preborn" does not change what a fertilized egg is and neither would a colloquialism. Kind of sounds like Mr. Jasper is grasping at straws, no?

Mr. Jasper: Look, I don't doubt you're a good Mom, I bet you are. I think you get the point I was trying to make.

Mellankelly: I might have, if you'd actually made a point. As it stands, all you did was question my parenting skills... something that you know nothing about, may I add. Oh well, ad hominem is par for the course with anti-abortion extremists.

Mr. Jasper: Your side will never be able to win this debate. We are not a great nation if we allow the killing of unborn children

Mellankelly: My "side"? Really? We live in the greatest country in the world, a country where the rights of any person born or naturalized (this includes pregnant women) are fully protected by our Constitution. Considering that 43 million women of reproductive age (7 in 10), are sexually active and do not wish to become pregnant, I highly doubt that they would support legislation which would prohibit them from using any contraceptive method that may potentially harm a fertilized egg (such as the pill or EC). This great nation will not allow for rights and personal liberties to be taken away from half of its population due to the personal belief systems of a few... never. I thank God (daily) that I was born into a country where abortion was a safe and legal option for me.

Common and Statutory Law.

2008-08-21T17:40:00.003-04:00

Mr. Jasper: Bodily invasion? How cruel.

Mellankelly: Tsk, Tsk... Mr. Jasper, you simply must keep up dear. This is where reading comprehension becomes an issue. I wrote what I meant and I meant exactly what I wrote: No person (including a child) has the right to force another person (inluding it's parent) to undergo any form of bodily invasion (not even a blood test) without the persons consent. Both common law and statutory law have long upheld the right of a person to refuse to allow others to invade his or her bodily integrity. If you do not understand how our legal system works, I suggest you do a little research... all of the information is out there just waiting for you, Jasper.
Further, your silly little fairy tale has absolutely no relevance to an unwanted pregnancy - do you honestly believe that every time a woman has sex she is consenting to become pregnant? That would be completely contrary to reality. The fact is that over half of the women who experience an unwanted pregnancy were using birth control during the month that they became pregnant - they took precausions to ensure that they would not become pregnant. Your little "opening the gate" comment (which is quite vulgar, in my opinion) has no relevance in that circumstance.

Mr. Jasper: Like I said in my 'fairy tale', you open gate and let the child into womb, it wasn't the child's decision

Mellankelly: What child? That's disgusting, Jasper.

Mr. Jasper: You DO NOT have the right to murder the child.

Mellankelly: Exactly. NEITHER DO you.

Mr. Jasper: Now go tell your children they invaded your body. I dare you. Nice Mom you are.

Mellankelly: Okay. Oh, my son wonders if that's why I make him clean the house like my "personal maid", walk the dog & scoop the poop and fold & put away his own clothes (hmmm, come to think of it, maybe that is the reason). Also, he really loved that movie, Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, so he's way cool with the thought of having invaded my body. He wanted me to ad a P.S. - he thinks I'm the greatest mom, ever (although I must admit that he's recently had his 16th birthday and is still awaiting his gift from us so maybe that was a bit of a stretch.) Thanks for that!

Third times a charm, Mr. Anonymous

2008-08-21T15:03:00.002-04:00

Mr. Anonymous: this isn't about a womans right. It is about a babys right. To live.

Mellankelly: No, it's not... a baby rights are not questionable... any person born or naturalized in the US is entitled to her full rights under the Constitution. Why, may I ask, should a woman suddenly be forced to give up her rights when she becomes pregnant (regardless of whether or not the pregnancy is wanted?) The person most qualified to make decisions regarding her pregnancy is the pregnant woman... but I'm sure that you'd be okay with legislatures making your medical decisions for you, right?

Mr. Anonymous: Look at it this way... [insert fairy tale here]

Mellankelly: Listen, there is nothing that can be compared to the pregnant woman/embryo*fetus relationship... and you belittle the emotional and physical (sometimes life-threatening) endeavor that is pregnancy and the labor/birth process when you compare it to an old lady entering your yard. Have you never been pregnant? Do you dare trivialize the impact that pregnancy, childbirth (not to mention child rearing) has on a woman's physical and emotional well-being? I get that you're pro-(fetal)life and that the women whose lives are affected by an unwanted or doomed pregnancy are secondary (at best.) That's just something that I'll never understand. It's unconscionable.

Mr. Anonymous: By saying that you have the right to kill your child, they ARE interfering, not with your rights, but with the childs.

Mellankelly: I've never claimed a right to kill my children... when people kill their children they go to jail or spend a serious amount of time in a psychiatric facility. Children are protected by the constitution... interestingly enough though, they do not have the right to force another person (including their parents) to undergo any form of bodily invasion for any reason.

BAIPA and Mr. Anonymous

2008-08-21T14:08:00.002-04:00

Mr. Anonymous: That's why Clinton, Boxer and Kennedy all supported the bill. It passed 98-0. Even Naral was not against it.

Mellankelly: You sneaky devil... it certainly isn't surprising that you've used misinformation in an attempt to get your point across. Perhaps this was an honest mistake but methinks it quite doubtful. The bill that passed was not the same as the original bill presented. Obama had this to say about the original bill:
"I have said repeatedly that I would have been completely in, fully in support of the federal bill that everybody supported - which was to say --that you should provide assistance to any infant that was born - even if it was as a consequence of an induced abortion. That was not the bill that was presented at the state level. What that bill also was doing was trying to undermine Roe vs. Wade. By the way, we also had a bill, a law already in place in Illinois that insured life saving treatment was given to infants."
And in case your issue is with reading comprehension (which is not optional), that was precisely my point... there was already a bill in place regarding the standard of care for infants. When BAIPA passed the Illinois legislature in 2005 it had added a clause that specifically stated that the legislation would have no effect on existing state abortion laws.

Mr. Anonymous: What kind of a monster are you?

Mellankelly: The kind that cares about women (including their mental and physical health) and the children/families they have, the kind that believes that the decision of whether or not to continue with any pregnancy is between the pregnant woman, her doctor and her loved ones... how positively evil of me. Hey, but kudos on the ad hominem attack... it's good to know that you dare not deviate from this anti-abortion tactic, no matter how unsuccessful it ends up being.

Physicians speak out against SD abortion ban!

2008-08-20T16:39:00.001-04:00

Please, help get the word out about this... pass this on to your friends and/or add it to your youtube account!

Response to Mr. Anonymous silliness

2008-08-20T14:56:00.004-04:00

Mr. Anonymous: The genesis of the death wish is rooted in the fall of man that we see in the Book of Genesis.

Mellankelly: And what, exactly, does this have to do with voting NO on prop. 48? This may mean something to you but in my opinion, quoting from the latest Stephen King novel would have been more compelling.

Mr. Anonymous: The unholy, yet inevitable, consequence of that pride is disobedience - eating the forbidden fruit

Mellankelly: Yeah, so? I love all fruit and I'll eat it whenever I want... the only "consequence" being timely digestion, thank you very much.

Mr. Anonymous: The ultimate end is death, as God said it would be.

Mellankelly: Well, that must be such a loverly concept for you, however, death is in no way "the end" - certainly we will all go home to God, as She wishes - mostly though, this occurs sometime after death - of course, there is always the possibility of coming back to this place (YIKES!)

Mr. Anonymous: The prototypical sin is pride, the pride that seeks to exalt the creature above the Creator: "I can be like God.

Mellankelly: Whatever dude... God is in each one of us. Regarding pride (a reasonable or justifiable self-respect), being the standard for sin... POPPYCOCK! Pride is not necessarily a bad thing - God would like us to have a reasonable or justifiable self-respect... I'm so sorry that your faith teaches you otherwise.

Mr. Anonymous: It was then a short and easy step to infanticide.

Mellankelly: Wow. Drama Queen much?

Mr. Anonymous: The exclamation point at the end of the death wish is that...

Mellankelly: There was no exclamation point at the end of the 1974 Award Winning movie, Death Wish... although, now that you mention it, it would've given the title a little more pizazz. I'll write to Michael Winner immediately.

Mr. Anonymous: It's hard to believe that we have degenerated to the point that we'll murder a helpless baby should it escape the violence of an abortion and be born alive.

Mellankelly: Nice try but there already exists a standard in regards to newly born infants. If you'd care to do the research (although it would appear as if you and factual information do not have a real close relationship) feel free to visit The Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics to find that the standards are already in place. The verbiage of this law is ambiguous (at best) and will not "save" any premature infants... all it will do is cause unnecessary lawsuits against Doctors (at the expense of the tax payers; not to mention cause our insurance rates to go through the roof.) You will find the following statement from the NRP Steering Committee regarding BAIPA "at the time of delivery... the medical condition and prognosis of the newly born infant should be assessed. At that point decisions about withholding or discontinuing medical treatment that is considered futile may be considered by... providers in conjunction with the parents acting in the best interest of their child." and "The BAIPA indiscriminately defines 'born alive' to include an infant 'at any stage of development... regardless of whether the expulsion or extraction occurs as a result of natural or induced labor, cesarean section, or induced abortion,' and it makes no reference to standards of care or best interests, nor does it specifically protect a parent’s decision-making authority" Bottom line: BAIPA is anti-abortion legislation - the objective of those vehemently opposed to abortion is to criminalize abortion. Period.

Mr. Anonymous: May God grant us the grace to awake from this deadly moral slumber, renounce the death wish, and live like truly free men and women - in the glorious freedom of the children of God

Mellankelly: No, you mean "live like truly free men" because if you happen to be a pregnant woman (regardless of whether or not that pregnancy is wanted) in your little imaginary world... you wouldn't be free - you'd be a slave to the legislatures who would have the ultimate say over what you may or may not do with your body. No thank you... you can go live in your little Theocracy if you'd wish, but I will stay right here in the the Country that I was lucky enough to be born into! The Country where a Doctor and a pregnant woman (and her loved ones) get to decide which medical procedures are in her best interest.

Vote No on 48

2008-08-11T15:23:00.002-04:00

I know my sisters in Colorado have been paying close attention to this ideological guffaw and I'm hoping they can help end the lunacy by helping here.

keep clickin' crazy chickens... it actually helps!

2008-07-14T18:24:00.012-04:00

I've noticed that the anti-abortion posters on the RH board have been more judgmental as of late (it is more likely that they've always been judgmental and it's just more irritating lately).

"The fact that selfish murderous people slaughter millions of young a year is no better than human sacrifice. Except it is even more selfish [emphasis mine] than paganistic practices. At least pagans sacrifice to gods in order to heal crops or something vaguely
'good'"

.
Wha? She's a-okay with human sacrifice if it is done in the name of God for something "vaguely good"... what a fruitballoon! Do these people even bother to read the drivel that they write? Here is an eloquent statement

"When you spread your legs and let someone crawl on top of
you, you are INVITING pregnancy. Sex is designed to procreate"
.
Isn't that lovely? Okay... I have several issues with that statement, first and foremost... what if I crawled on top? That aside, I have every intention of having sex as much as I want to without being open to even the slightest possibility of becoming pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term. Sex is designed (for women as well as men) for pleasure. Granted, that last sentence is merely my opinion (based on a vast knowledge of pleasurable sex that my husband and I have had over the past 14 or so years... mostly PRE-MARITAL... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!) and D had a vasectomy years ago so the chances of an egg being fertilized are slim to none (she said with a prayer). We continue to have sex though... without the possibility of procreation... what sinners we are... wonder why God doesn't just "turn off" our sexuality or orgasms when we're done procreating if She's so keen on the whole "inviting pregnancy" thang. Freakin' crazies...

adjectives and qualifiers

2008-07-08T17:49:00.005-04:00

So I was reading blogs on various social issues (I'm always interested in the point of view of those who see things differently than I do). I love reading opposing views particularly those that are introspective, thought-provoking and intelligent. I like how it challenges us to take a deeper look at our own opinions, beliefs and convictions. What I have a difficult time with are those people who insist upon using nonsensical ramblings (or "brain farts") which include not one bit of factual information to support the piffle they spew.

This example comes from a gal who undertakes to set herself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge... and we all know what happens when we do that! Anyhoo, she was writing of the horrible instances of crazy people who cut open women's abdomens and uterus' in order to take the nearly full term fetuses to pass of as their own. Way, way YIK and Evil. But here's what galled her:

"During the course of the show that focused on a few specific cases, some doctors and therapists and other experts were interviewed regarding the nature of these cases and the people who committed such horrible crimes. I was struck with how every "expert" referred to the unborn stolen children as Fetuses."

Here it appears to bother her that experts in the medical field use proper medical terminology when speaking of medical cases... go figure. These doctors could be completely anti-abortion, they may even be activists - simply because they use proper medical terms does not mean that they support abortion rights. Would she prefer that they had said something like "Well, they cut into her hoo-haw and sliced through the unborn receptacle thingymagiggy..."? Be serious. Then there is this:

It is pure hypocrisy to refer to unborn babies as fetuses and not refer to adults as homo sapiens and children as offspring.

Somebody doesn't understand the word "hypocrisy". No... if we're going to refer to a fetus as an "unborn baby" we should refer to adults as "undead corpses" otherwise she's comparing apples to orangutans. The truth is that a fetus is a fetus, a baby is a baby and a corpse is a corpse. And to be fair, one could be anti-abortion and accept proper medical terminology - a fetus has the potential to become a baby just as a fertilized egg has the potential to become a zygote and a zygote to become an embryo and an embryo to become a fetus (it's a bit tricky making it all that way as many studies reflect that anywhere from 30-70% of all fertilized eggs perish spontaneously). Why wouldn't one make the statement that one believes that killing a fetus (or zygote or embryo) is wrong? Why do they insist upon their cute little adjectives and qualifiers (like "unborn"baby and "preborn")? I'm guessing they believe that the use of emotionally charged words will grab the public ear better than truthful medical words. That was the explanation behind the Partial-Truth-Abortion-Ban... grabs ya a little more than Intact D&E or IDX, doesn't it?

Oh God... she goes on to say that the reason the term "fetus" is used is "...simply the pro-abortion community's influence at dehumanizing an unborn child." (there's that adjective again). Wow... I did not realize our reach went so far... YAY us!! So, I guess abortion will never be criminalized since the pro-choice community seems to have such an influence which surely reaches past the scientific realm and into other area's such as law, religion, philosophy and perhaps even thanatology.

This ended up being wa-hay longer than I thought so I will continue with my thoughts about a blog that I can respectfully disagree with next time...

Remember the Mothers...

2008-07-07T14:27:00.001-04:00

Did you know...that the United States ranks behind at least 40 other nations in maternal mortality rates according to the World Health Organization. In 2004, the United States reported 15.1 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, up from 7.5 per 100,000 in 1982.

Also worth noting is that no improvement has been made since 1982 in reducing the maternal mortality rate in the United States.

GLOBAL CALL TO ACTION!

2008-07-06T14:33:00.004-04:00

Favorite Quotes...

2008-07-06T13:19:00.004-04:00

"Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it."
~Andre Gide
********************************
A religion without a Goddess is
halfway to Atheism
~Dion Fortune
*******************************
Whoever Undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the Gods.
~Albert Einstein

stupid quote of the week

2008-07-05T22:50:00.003-04:00

so i'm talking with this group of people about the presidential election and this guy comes into the conversation as we're all talking about the things we like about our candidates (go Obama!!!) and this jack-ass pops off with "but if Obama is elected president than the gays are gonna go around and marry anyone they want!" seriously...no shitting. i looked at him and said "that's the dumbest fucking thing i think i've ever heard anybody say in my entire life." he just stared at me blankly and i asked him how it would directly or indirectly effect him; he had no answer.

what a fuckin' moron!

The Concept of Personhood

2008-07-03T20:11:00.006-04:00

This question seems to be popping up all over the place (not just that so-called "egg-as-persons" garbage in Colorado). It seems to be the anti-abortion folk's favorite tune these days (perhaps because every other tactic has failed to accomplish their ultimate goal of criminalizing abortion). First we need to establish exactly what we're attempting to define here when we are talking about the "personhood" of a fertilized egg. What does someone mean when they say "person" or "personhood" should apply to the zygote, embryo and the fetus? Do they mean an individual (existing as a distinct entity) human being? Or are they being more specific and speaking about the personality of a human being (as in "self")? Or maybe they are leaning more towards religiousness and are speaking of the unitary personality of Christ that unites the divine and human natures? Regardless of which definition is used, how can these possibly be applied to a fertilized egg?

So let us imagine (if you will) that these people are speaking of some philosophical ideal of "personhood", shall we? Considering that it is not plausible that people will put aside their personal belief systems in order to agree upon a philosophical definition of "personhood", it would appear to be illogical to argue from this perspective either.

I suppose next they'll be attempting to define the essential attributes of other concepts such as faith or love.

I find it ever so odd that these people not only wish to establish the egg-as-person but they loathe abortion so much so that they wish to give these eggs rights that a born person does not even have (more rights than any man, woman and/or child in this country). A child does not have the right to force it's parents to undergo any form of bodily invasion (including a blood test) without the parents consent. The law fully supports the right of a person to refuse to allow others to invade his or her bodily integrity.

These people can question the "personhood" of the zygote/embryo/fetus all they want... what they simply cannot do is question the "personhood" of a pregnant woman (regardless of whether or not her pregnancy is wanted).

It's stuck in my head...

2008-07-03T19:19:00.004-04:00

I read this poem maybe two or three days ago and I cannot seem to get it out of my head. I'm not exactly certain what it is about these words but I love them and I've found myself thinking of them when I should be trying to fall asleep. Tell me what you take from these words:

“Out beyond ideas of wrong-doing
and right-doing, there is a field.
I'll meet you there.
When the soul lies down in that
grass, the world is too full to talk about.
Ideas, language, even the
phrase 'each other' doesn't make any sense."
~Jalalud’din Rumi 13th-century
Persian poet

Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself

2008-06-26T19:31:00.004-04:00

You'll be missed, George!

6 year old eats twin?

2008-05-20T14:55:00.002-04:00

Perhaps Krazy Kristy Burton would be interested in fighting for the rights of these "unborn".

Basicaly, a six year old was suffering stomach pains which appeared to be a tumor and turned out to be an embryo (what the religously motivated anti-abortion forces would call a "person"). Apparently, cases where one of a set of twins absorbs the other in the womb occur in one of 500,000 live births.

I found another incident from 2005 which occured in Bangladesh. Doctors removed a fetus from the abdomen of a 16 year-old by the name of Abu Raihan. Apparently the fetus grew like a tumor (weighing almost 5 pounds) and would have become the boy’s twin if it had developed normally.

Then there is the Vanishing Twin Syndrome in which one of a set of a twins disappears in the uterus during pregnancy. This is far more common than the above, occuring in 21-30% of multifetal pregnancies. That is so bizarre.

the business of being born

2008-05-12T12:39:00.002-04:00

Did you know that the united states has the second worst newborn death rate in the world? I didn't believe it when I read that so I did some research... sadly, it is true. I haven't yet watched this film (with the exception of the exerpt on the link above) but I plan on seeing soon.

what if your mother had aborted you?

2008-05-11T17:29:00.005-04:00

This was a recent topic of a blog on RH Reality Check but I've also been asked this question by those opposed to abortion; in my opinion, that is like asking someone "What if you were a kangaroo?" Those "what ifs" are irrelevant. If I were a kangaroo I wouldn't bloody care about abortion, would I? I tend to think not... I believe that the only concern I'd have for people would be "Whens dinner?" and "Which one of these assholes should I kick first?". Ergo... moot point. Now, I have very strong faith that had I not been born to "the Smiths" I may have been born to "the Jones" or perhaps I would've come to "the Smiths" at another time. I am certainly not asking that those with different beliefs acknowledge my beliefs as fact, I am merely asking that they respect my beliefs.

Look at it this way, these people are essentially asking us to imagine that a zygote, embryo and/or fetus are capable of cognitive thought (which they are most certainly not); they are asking that we treat the "unborn" as a person. What is up with the whole fetal personhood bandwagon?

One cannot argue against abortion based on their own personal beliefs about "personhood" - there is no consensus within the scientific field and certainly not among ordinary citizens. Some base their opinions on religion and/or spirituality (I suppose I would be in that group) but nobody knows for certain, therefor, using this as a basis for an argument is a fallacy. Back to my favorite quote:

EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO THEIR OWN OPINIONS,

JUST NOT THEIR OWN FACTS.

Answer: John McCain

2008-05-09T09:40:00.005-04:00

Question: Which candidate is anti-abortion, anti-contraception and anti-(born)woman?

The worst president in history...

2008-05-02T10:59:00.003-04:00

The news that Mr. Bush, Jr. is the most unpopular president (which is putting it nicely) in our Nations history is not all that surprising to those of us who have a firm grip on reality. This bungled war (along with the whole "mission accomplished" fiasco), our crumbling economy (with the exception of the oil tycoons who must make up the majority of the 28% who believe he's doing a fantastic job), not to mention Georgie's delusions of grandeur (by such statements as "I believe that God wants me to be President" and "I'm the Commander, see ... I do not need to explain why I say things. That's the interesting thing about being the President ... [I] don't feel like I owe anybody an explanation.") have bestowed upon him the title of Fucktard (see definition #2).

Two Choices

2008-04-30T13:40:00.009-04:00

It always irritates me when speaking with the anti-abortion extremists that they believe the two choices involved when faced with an unwanted pregnancy are: gestating the pregnancy and adopting your child out or gestating the pregnancy and raising your child. When, in fact, the two choices are: terminating your pregnancy or gestating your pregnancy. Adoption isn't an option when a woman is faced with an unwanted pregnancy... adoption is an option when a woman has chosen to gestate her pregnancy. Not surprising is that our own President does not appear to understand this concept as evidenced by this 2004 quote "I think it is a worthy goal in America to have every child protected by law and welcomed in life. I also think we ought to continue to have good adoption law as an alternative to abortion." Listen, you damned fool, adoption is not an alternative to abortion, it is an alternative to raising your child. Curious enough, when forming this blog and when posting on other reproductive choice blogs I have tried to bring in the issue of support for women who suffer from their choices... including post-partum support, exhale (for non-biased post-abortion support), and birth mother support groups for those who have adopted their children out. Do you know what? I had a terrible time finding support for birth mothers... it was horrible. I know women who have and do suffer from their decision to give birth and put their child up for adoption. I find it pitiful that there doesn't appear to be anyplace for these women to go for help or to simply connect with other women who may understand what they're feeling and could offer support. And then I came across this...

I found this site linked to a comment on the RH Reality Check website that you can find here (originally a response to the blog "True Reality Television: Where's Abortion?"). If you get a chance you should check it out and it should be mandatory reading for all of those forced motherhood freaks out there in the webdom.

Another phenomenon I've encountered has been by those claiming to be very anti-abortion women on the web... they post about how abortion is wrong and evil and that they (or "a friend") have suffered terribly for not knowing that if they had not terminated their pregnancy, they would have had a baby. Now, I have to wonder what these women thought they would've had if they hadn't terminated their pregnancy and gestated for nine months... a puppy? These fruitballoons claim that women are not aware that by terminating their pregnancies they will not have babies... silly me, I thought that was kind of the point. They claim to have been "shocked and devastated" upon learning (usually from their church group) that it wouldn't have been just a lump of cells that they'd have given birth to... it would have been an actual baybee! Seriously? They would have us believe that women are fundamentally ignorant and completely unaware of human reproduction and that is the reason why we cannot and should not be able to make our own decisions regarding the course of our own pregnancies... that strangers, who have absolutely no stake in the outcome of our pregnancies should be able to dictate if and when we will become mothers. It's for our own good ladies, we simply do not know any better... after all, we are the "weaker sex", right? These whack jobs can get their noses right out of my uterus and kindly keep them out of the uterus of my daughters, my sisters, my friends & loved ones. For that matter, they should keep their nose out of the uterus of any other random women walking the earth. Piss off, you ants!

KSo out!

Holy Hannah Montana...

2008-04-29T16:21:00.011-04:00

What is up with the vehement response to the photos of Miley Cyrus taken by Annie Leibovitz? To tell you the truth... I was more freaked out by how way creepy (pedophilial?-probably not a word) her dad looks in those photographs. The black & white photo of Miley that appears in the magazine comes off as haunting (in my opinion, anyway)... the dark messy hair, the dark eyes, the pale, almost translucent skin... she appears ethereal. Take a look at Annie's other photographs and you'll find that many of them have this same quality to them. I don't believe for one second that Ms. Leibovitz sexualized this fifteen year old girl... but unfortunately for us all, men (and women) of all ages do just that with their salacious comments about the photographs. It is just horrible that this poor girl was made to feel as if she did something so wrong that it was worthy of an apology to the general public... the same public that would view a photo of the naked back of a teen aged girl with a wanton concupiscence. Shame on them.

And another thing...

2008-04-22T19:55:00.003-04:00

... regarding blastocyst, zygote, embryo and/or fetal "personhood" - why must the crazy control freaky anti-abortion folks insist that the relationship between a woman and her fetus be adversarial? The maternal-fetal relationship has been and should be unitary. Are they suggesting that if a woman decides to gestate her pregnancy that she has willingly given up her civil rights for the duration of said pregnancy? These so-called "fetal rights" are nothing more than an attack on women's citizenship rights and the ultimate goal of those fetus-as-persons supporters is to criminalize abortion. They abhor abortion. They care very little for women (with the exception of those still inside of a persons uterus). And they can go fuck themselves.

Fuck women... we (heart) zygotes! Part I

2008-04-20T16:45:00.006-04:00

Okay, so I'm going to lament on the whole idea of "fetal personhood" as it were. Bear in mind that my sorrow and grief on the subject is not limited to the fetus... oh, no... it is large enough to encompass the blastocyst, the zygote and the embryo as well as the fetus. Although (may I digress?) it is beyond me how one could argue that even though a pregnancy has not yet been established (at fertilization) there is still a "person" bouncing around my fallopian tubes. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, and almost all professional medical groups define pregnancy as beginning when the zygote has finished implanting (a pregnancy test is positive when the hormone HCG is present... after implantation) - but never mind all that when you're arguing that the rights of a woman are secondary to the rights of the conceptus, right? So... what these rather ironically self-proclaimed "pro-lifers" are saying is that a pregnant woman is less of a "person" than a thousandth of an ounce second old zygote (with, might I add, no capacity for thought, self awareness, reason, nor the ability to live without using a woman's body as life support). That is highly offensive at the very least... misogynistic at it's worse... and a severely flawed tactic.

Save Roe!!!

2008-04-20T16:25:00.002-04:00

Join one million voices in urging Senate leaders to filibuster any Supreme Court nominee who won't support Roe, and TELL WASHINGTON WE WON'T GO BACK!

My Favorite line of the day: Wednesday

2008-04-09T17:54:00.003-04:00

She's peeing on your leg and telling you it's raining.
~Amanda Marcotte (RH Reality Check website: http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2008/04/08/virgin-club-wins-who-judged-first-contest

How Pregnancy Happens

2008-04-04T12:37:00.002-04:00

That guy is a real dickhead, no?

Fucking Tool

2008-04-03T19:21:00.003-04:00

Anonymous writes:
Thanks Kelly, you receive a rather low grade
Kelly, thanks for the article. I did have the attention span to read it, considering that I must deal with over 90 university philosophy students every day, many of whom present arguments far more coherent and intellectually advanced than yours. For example:

Dude, if you're going to claim to be a professor of philosphy at "a university" you might want to try doing a little research about a) philosphy and b) professors... maybe we'll just throw in c) university, for a fully rounded education. And yes, the comment just ended with "example:" and no, there was no example and on top of that, it was posted twice. I replied with:

Feh?
I know you're trying to tell me something, but alas, what is it... what is it? And why on earth did you post it twice? You're a strange bird, Anonymous, PhD.

Fucking Tool.

Some should keep their opinions to themselves

2008-04-03T13:08:00.008-04:00

The following was in our "opinion" section of the buffalo news today:

Family-planning groups have a product to sell
Updated: 04/03/08 6:32 AM
I wish to thank News writer Fletcher Doyle for his March 23 Viewpoints article, “The case for abstinence.” It stated that when a New York Times reporter asked if abstinence-only programs could be behind the drop in teen pregnancy, “the president of Planned Parenthood assured the Times that it isn’t.” Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards cannot afford, literally, for abstinence to be effective.
According to its 2005 annual report, the profit from emergency contraception kits alone was $1,245,506. The profit from contraceptives was a cool $2,399,691. What must be understood is that the so-called family-planning outfits like Planned Parenthood are an industry, and they have a product to sell. If teaching kids to abstain works better than showering them with contraceptives, Planned Parenthood has everything to lose.
Helen Westover
Founder, Director, Western New York Stop Planned Parenthood
Members: 1

Anyhoo... does this woman actually believe that married women who do not wish to become pregnant should practice abstinence? She writes as if the whole of Planned Parenthoods being rides soley on the backs of the teens and unmarried harlots who are currently using contraception/EC. I love the "'so-called' family-planning" comment... last I checked the only way to plan your family is to control your reproduction (ie birth control) so why the "so-called", Helen? F.Y.I Helen... Abstinence only eduction has failed miserably... do some research: http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/publications/PDFs/impactabstinence.pdf

the silent scream

2008-04-02T18:17:00.003-04:00

Oh for the love of all things holy... why must certain people, who shall remain "anonymous" (their choice, not mine) subscribe to the George Castanza mantra "If you believe it, it's not a lie."? Why? Why? Why? Are people incapable of thinking for themselves... are we just a flock of sheep being led around blindly? My ire is derived from the RH Reality Check website... I commented on the CPC's deceptive practices blog and some idiot (anonymous idiot) told me that I should watch the "silent scream" to see how a fetus screams and claws at the uterus (trying to run away) so that it wont be aborted. Really? Are you for real? That freakin' thing was debunked by scientists & physicians (experts in the medical field, mind you) and it's very authors, for Pete's sake (I still don't know who Pete is) some 20 years ago. Idiots.
When I wrote this:
MellanKelly1: You say that the fetus "saw the needle, opened it's mouth to scream, and jerked way from the needle" - now you're claiming that a fetus can do something that a newborn infant cannot even do ("seeing" an object and not knowing: a) what it is and b) that it could hurt them, and then "jerking away" from said object.) Tell me, in this movie... was the fetus also writing poetry?

"Anonymous" replied with this gem which I've paraphrased:
Anonymous: This is a Human Being. He or she is alive. God gave you life. Your mothers did not chose to abort you. God knew you in your mothers' womb. He loves you all.

So I "says":
MellanKelly1 (thats me): Using your personal beliefs about your God is not a valid argument for denying reproductive rights to all women. There are plenty of clergy who believe in a womans reproductive rights (see http://www.rcrc.org/) You may also be interested to know that prior to 1973 many priests, rabbis and other religious people helped women with unwanted pregnancies to procure safe abortions... these same religious people were a driving force in legalizing abortion.

Anonymous: Yes, a newborn can recognize certain objects and be afraid of them. Babies are smart. Don't underestimate them.

MellanKelly1: To put it very bluntly.. no, newborn infants are not "smart" and I am most certainly not "underestimating" them. A neonate would no more move away from a needle than an office chair would. No offense to newborns, I love them and have had three of them... but they lack the cognitive development required to acknowledge what a needle is, let alone make an effort to move away from it (and certainly a fetus would be lacking the same cognitive development). That is a scientific fact.

So I insulted neonates... so sue me. I was going to make the statement that "newborn infants are, in fact, stupid" but I thought it was a little harsh. Anyhoo... if yer interested: http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2008/04/01/crisis-pregnancy-centers-we-wont-be-fooled

2008-04-01T22:03:00.000-04:00

"Personhood" in Colorado

2008-04-01T19:49:00.007-04:00

this is so positively scary to me; to think that i live in a time where i could see birth control banned (and that's just the beginning of it). i would never have imagined. people don't understand the full effects of this ballot issue.

spread the word. and if you don't live in colorado don't think this doesn't effect your furutre choices because it does; if it goes through in this state, it's sure to come to your state too.

for more information go to http://www.prochoicecolorado.org/ballotwatch.shtml

2008-04-01T19:34:00.000-04:00

RH Reality Check

2008-04-01T19:23:00.004-04:00

Reproductive Health Reality Check is a fabulous site full of fantastic info including wonderful blogs (I'm a fan of amanda-marcotte and marcy-bloom ) and today they were blogging about Crisis Pregnancy Centers (rat-bastards, all of 'em). If you get a chance, try to catch about a girl who was manipulated-by-a-cpc. Disgusting!

Women On the Web

2008-04-01T08:58:00.005-04:00

This is such a fantastic website full of fantastic women, including; Liz Smith, Marlo Thomas, Lily Tomlin, Candice Bergen, Leslie Stahl, Joni Evans (who happens to be the CEO) and many, many more wonderfully fabulous women. The question of the day is fun and the "conversations" section is a fabulous insight into the lives of these women. If you get the chance I would suggest stopping by the site!

what a feminist looks like...

2008-03-31T14:47:00.002-04:00

Oxymoron: Abstinence-only Education

2008-03-31T14:36:00.001-04:00

There are many reasons to LOVE Kate Walsh but this one is my favorite...

A new study in the Journal of Adolescent Health is making headlines this week. A nationally representative sample of adolescents, which looked at young people who had taken comprehensive sex education, those who had taken abstinence only education, and those who had no sex education at all, found:

Adolescents receiving comprehensive sex education had a substantially lower risk of teenage pregnancy than those receiving abstinence-only or no sex education.
Abstinence-only education had no impact on reducing teen pregnancy, delaying sexual initiation, or reducing STIs.
Teaching about contraception was not associated with increased risk of sexual activity or sexually transmitted diseases.
That disadvantaged youth are less likely to have received formal sex education of any kind.
In short, as the lead researcher, Patricia Kohler, stated “It is not harmful to teach teens about birth control in addition to abstinence.”