The reason I won't be reading ANYTHING by MIchael Chrichton anymore...

Hey Gang. Sorry it's been so long. I've been, well.... I dunno. I've been busy, but not really any more so than normal. I guess I'm just a generally shitty blogger. I'll try to do better.

Anyway, I've got my undies in a bunch this morning, so I figured it was probably time to vent.

I love to read. As a general rule, I'll read just about anything, but my favorite genres tend to be fantasy/science fiction and suspense. Therefore, I've read just about everything that Michael Chrichton has written. Yes, I realize it's just pulp and that he's not a great writer, but his plot-lines are generally interesting and that pretty much all I ask.

No more.

It turns out that he's a right-wing wack-job. This, in itself, is not reason enough for me to stop reading his books. I have, after all, been to MANY Ted Nugent concerts. (I still have nightmares about cardboard cutouts of Janet Reno...) However, it also turns out that Chrichton's a totally socially-maladjusted, vindictive asshole. (Thank You to Think Progress for tipping me off to this.)

Chrichton is a vocal critic of Global Warming. (Maybe that's a bad way to phrase that. I mean, anybody with half a clue is a critic of Global warming. What? We should support it? What i mean to say is that Chrichton is the kind of scientific oblivious moron who doesn't think it exists. I say this as I look out my window on December 15th at green grass in Northern Michigan. ) In 2004, he release the novel State of Fear, wherein he depicts global warming as a a hoax concocted by environmentalists to raise money. He has since met with our Moron-In-Chief to discuss this and the two of them are in near-total agreement.

As a response to Chrichton's public stance on this subject, last March, New Republic senior editor Michael Crowley wrote a cover story called “Jurassic President: Michael Crichton’s Scariest Creation.” It talked about how dangerous this stance was, especially when it's held by the f-ing President.

From Think Progress-


Crichton’s response was to smear Crowley in his latest novel, Next, by writing in a character named “Mick Crowley” who rapes a two-year-old boy. The following is a graphic excerpt from Crichton’s novel (reader beware):

Alex Burnet was in the middle of the most difficult trial of her career, a rape case involving the sexual assault of a two-year-old boy in Malibu. The defendant, thirty-year-old Mick Crowley, was a Washington-based political columnist who was visiting his sister-in-law when he experienced an overwhelming urge to have anal sex with her young son, still in diapers. Crowley was a wealthy, spoiled Yale graduate and heir to a pharmaceutical fortune. …

It turned out Crowley’s taste in love objects was well known in Washington, but [his lawyer]–as was his custom–tried the case vigorously in the press months before the trial, repeatedly characterizing Alex and the child’s mother as “fantasizing feminist fundamentalists” who had made up the whole thing from “their sick, twisted imaginations.” This, despite a well-documented hospital examination of the child. (Crowley’s penis was small, but he had still caused significant tears to the toddler’s rectum.)

The real-life Michael Crowley is also a Washington journalist and also graduated from Yale.

Well, that's it for me. I absolutely HATE IT when people can't come up with a reasonable argument so they resort to name calling. And truly, I can't honestly think of anything worse to call someone than "child-rapist".

Even for all you right-wingers out there, (And again, what are you doing reading MY blog?) I can't imagine being willing to support anyone who behaves that way, regardless of his political views.

Good grief...

Affirmative action

A little fair warning- This post is just off the top of my head. Some details contained in it may well change in the furute as new information presents itself to me. Just so you know...

---------------------------------------------------------

Well, SA blogged about Proposition 2 today and, as is invariably the case, somebody felt it necessary to cry out in the comments section that all the poor, beleaguered white men want is a fair shake, doggone it. Okay, I guess I'm paraphrasing a little. His (I'm assuming it's a him.) actual words were, “Every opponent that has spoken out about this proposal has failed to answer one simple question. Can you answer it? What is wrong with equal protection under the law?"

I don't feel as strongly as SA does about the necessity of affirmative action in employment. That's not to say I don't feel it's necessary, it's just saying that I won't be burning my bra about it any time soon. My feelings about affirmative action are much stronger in relation to higher education.

I grew up in a very small town in Northern Michigan. I graduated from high school with 54 students, all of them white. However, (even though my high school guidance counselor told me I was insane) I went to college in Miami, Fl. The biggest reason I left home was because I knew it was important for me to see something different. My parents instilled this in me from a very early age. Unfortunately, most people in the world are afraid of anything different.

I explain all this for a reason. The best part, I repeat- THE BEST PART of my college education is that I went to a school with a tremendously diverse population. I learned a HUGE amount about the rest of world and the way people experience it because I went to school with a whole ton of people who were VERY different from me. Had I gone to a small school in Michigan - Northern Michigan University is almost exactly the same size - I would not have had that experience, because, like most public universities in Michigan, Northern's student population is almost exclusively white.

One exception to the lily-white rule in Michigan is the University of Michigan. Michigan has admitted that they do weigh race into their admissions decision-making because they feel that diversity is an important part of a positive college experience. I'm sure that they'd rather not have to look at race but the problem is that, in the United States, minorities tend to be concentrated in urban areas and, unfortunately, inner-city schools tend to be inferior to their suburban and even rural counterparts. Because minority students often get an inferior high school education, to weigh their desirability compared to white students solely on their grades and test scores would not result in nearly as many minority students attending Michigan as the school wants. So they factor race into the equation.

Anti-affirmative action advocates often state that this is unfair to white students. They're wrong. By having a more diverse population, colleges provide a more positive experience for ALL their students. Also, for all the folks who say, "Now you have students in school who shouldn't be there because they didn't get a good enough education to be successful at a school like Michigan!" check the graduation rates.

Michigan, the lightning-rod for all the affirmative action controversy, has the highest graduation rate of any public university in the state. Not bad for a school that keeps letting all those "unqualified" students in. My guess (based on my personal experience) is that if you were to look at only the students who were specifically admitted to U of M based on affirmative action guidelines, you'd find that their grades and graduation rates were even better than the student body at large. Those folk tend to be the people who really want to be in college. They recognize the opportunity they've been presented with and don't want to waste it.

I guess my point is this, the day that everybody actually has an even playing field- when every student has access to the same quality of education - when Michigan voters decide that it might actually be important to give enough money to education to FIX it!!!- then affirmative action in college admissions won't be necessary. But until then, it's necessary. Period.

Holy Crap...

We won.

And by "we", I mean rational, conscientious Americans as a whole. The American people have spoken and they say, (to quote Lou Dobbs - and I can guarantee this is definitely the first time we've quoted Lou Dobbs on my blog...) "[Washington,] Shut up and Listen!"

Democrats now have control of the House. They have control of the Senate. And Rumsfeld is FINALLY gone.

It's about damn time!

They FINALLY have the right people in enough positions of power that they can offset some of the moronic policies put in place by President Can't-tell-my-ass-from-a-hole-in-the-ground.

Now we pray that they don't screw it up.

Good grief...

Well, it's not as bad as the last election...

American voters turn out in pretty good numbers (for a non-presidential-election year) to turn control of the House of Representatives over to the Democrats. As I type this, there are still 2 elections that are undecided, with Senate races in Virginia and Montana (Montana??? Seriously? The political fate of the country hinges on Montana?) being too close to call. At this point, though, it looks look for the Democrats in both of those races. If they do, in fact, win both races, they'll have control of BOTH houses and effectively block any other hair-brained schemes our Moron-in-Chief comes up with for the next 2 years.

Everybody cross your fingers.

On a more local note, Michigan voters somehow managed to elect the right candidate for most of the important positions, at least least those that directly effect Northern Michigan. Governor Granholm was re-elected. (Thank God...) Stabenow and Levin were re-elected to the Senate. Bart Stupak was re-elected to the State Senate. And Gary McDowell was re-elected to the state house by a landslide. Evidently most folks agreed with my "Jay Duggan is an ass" stance.

However, even though we elected most of the right people, we COMPLETELY screwed the pooch when it came to the various ballot proposals. In a state with a Democratic Governor and 2 Democratic Senators, we managed to effectively eliminate affirmative action and to declare that education is important to Michiganders, but not THAT important. So on a National scale, I'm pretty pleased this morning. On a local scale... Not so much.


Anyway, I'm sure I'll be checking back in throughout the day as new stuff happens. Good work people. At least the who friggin' country won't be controlled by right-wing-wackos now. Maybe we can start bringing some of our soldiers home now, before they get killed for no damn reason...

Everbody cross your fingers..

Well, polling places have just closed in the east (including most of Michigan) so we just have to hope, now. To paraphrase my buddy Adam, in a few hours I'll know if I should put everything I have into leaving the country.

----------------------------------------------------

On an unrelated note, remember, when next you look at your wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend/significant other, tell 'em how much you love 'em. We all need to hear it from time to time.

I love you, S.A.

Reasons why Jay Duggan is an ass.

We have a local election coming up. Among the races to be decided is the race for the 107th District of the Michigan State House of Representatives. The incumbent, Gary McDowell is a Democrat who ran last election on a pro- gun rights platform (obviously among many other things). This sticks out for me as I'm not a big fan of the pro-gun lobby. His opponent is Jay Duggan, a local Petoskey businessman.
There was never a chance that I was going to vote for Mr. Duggan, but I thought I read the absolute perfect reason to vote against him recently. My Duggan stated in a number of ads that he was endorsed by a national right-to-life organization. Obviously this classifies him as someone for whom I would not vote. But then it a tremendously humorous twist, the organization commanded him to stop saying he was endorsed by them, because they didn't want him either.
So he's pro-life (strike 1) but evidently so undesirable that even right-to-life groups don't want to claim him (strike 2) and on top of everything else he's a liar (strike 3 - shouldn't he be out by now? Maybe it's a foul ball. I guess being a liar may be a pre-req to being a politician.) and, since he put his lies out in the media where it was going to be EASY to get caught, he's obviously stupid. (That's it. You're outta here!)

Even you Republicans shouldn't be voting for this guy.

Sheesh...

Arguing with "The Voice of Reason"

This afternoon's entry's title refers not to the fact that SA would tell me I've been doing just that ever since we got married, but instead, to the fact that yesterday's "Chickens*** Commenter" has decided it's time to lose to derogatory title. So he/she checked back in with more abortion-centered argument.

I'm not gonna go into detail rebutting him/her again, because, in all honesty, I really don't want my blog to turn into Spike's Online Crossfire.

Also, I can't figure if "Voice" is from Holland, MI, (which would explain A LOT. Holland is the Dutch Reformed Church capital of the US. When my dad (an Earth Science major) worked at a grocery store in Holland in the Early 70's, the butcher spent a great deal of time telling him that evolution was a bunch of bull. When my dad calmly asked him how he explained the preponderance of dinosaur bones found in the earth, the butcher exclaimed "God made the earth with big bones in it!" Logic like this can make it very difficult to argue with creationists. It also makes you wonder who let them all out of the loony bin.) or else from Cincinnati, OH. Truly, I don't really know a ton about Cincinnati, other than there must be something in their water supply, because their football players get arrested at a REALLY rapid rate.

Anyway, I'll give a little bit of credit to "Voice", if only for checking back in. Also, sir/ma'am, there's not too much danger of offending me by disagreeing with me about abortion. It's an issue that I wrestled with for a long time, so I can understand why some folks (my folks included, when last I checked, though it seemed like my mom might be wobbling a little) disagree with me. As long as y'all don't tell me what I should think, I'll mostly leave you alone.

And on that note- I declare a truce. At least until the next time the Conservative Christian right-wing wackos try to pass yet another law that's WAYYYYY to wide-ranging about abortion. (Yeah... I know. I couldn't let this post end without at least one more dig at the right-wingers. I'm a shitty person. Deal with it.)

p.s. Evidently some of my other readers weren't so easy-going about Voice's stance. I really appreciate the cardboard tube metaphor. I also love that they made the phrase "Food for thought," mean "Stop talking, you bloviating moron."

Political Podcasts

In case any of you were unaware, iTunes offers a number of free political podcasts. You can download weekly addresses from a number of politicians (Barack Obama continues to be well-spoken, in case you'd wondered.) as well as a number of poiltically-themed news shows.

Great stuff to have playing at your desk at work.

One other note...

Every time SA and I see one of those "Choose Life" bumper stickers, we comment to each other "Do you think those geniouses realize that they have a PRO-CHOICE bumper sticker on their car?"

Valid comments from chickens*** commenters

I received a comment on yesterday's entry, "SA kicks ass."

The comment was left by "Anonymous" which completely pisses me off. If you are going to express an opinion, PUT A NAME WITH IT. Grow some cojones. I'm not saying you have to use your proper name (notice that mine does not show up anywhere on this blog) but put some identifier with your ideas so people can respond to them.

That said, here's the comment.

Anonymous said...

Doesn’t that onesie idea make you think about the alternative? It’s a pretty ugly thought. Anyway, why do you feel the need to polarize everyone you consider a “republican” into mindless Bush-drones. That’s almost as ignorant as pretending like it’s cool to have to have the right to pick and choose which babies are wanted enough to deserve a birthday.

I feel VERY strongly about abortion. If you want a more complete explanation of those feelings, read my entry from the Roe v. Wade Anniversary. Or better yet, read SA's, also from Jan 22nd. She got quite a bit of national blog press for hers. But here's my quickie response to the comment.

There are 3 separate issues addressed here. So allow me to respond to them in order.

1. I think about the alternative all the time. My son is a miracle. We did not think we'd be able to have him, so I'm incredibly thankful for every moment I'm with him. Personally, I'm totally against abortion. I just don't feel that my personal feelings should dictate the law.

2. My habit of "polariz[ing] everyone [I] consider a “republican” into mindless Bush-drones" is certainly over-simplifying things. I currently vote mostly (though not completely) along Democratic Party lines even though I disagree with a few issues here and there, because I strongly agree with the major issues. I don't accuse most people who read my blog (especially those who take the time to comment) of being "mindless". On the contrary, people who agree with the current Republic stance on abortion are "myopic and self-centered" and people who agree with their stance on Gay rights and diversity issues are "bigots".

3. Anyone who suggests that anything related to abortion is "cool" is an ass. However, living in a country where we get to make decisions about ourselves for ourselves, IS "cool". Christ... Lately it's about the only good thing I can say about living here. (BTW- That, too, was hyperbole, lest it be otherwise lost on you.) And again, if you really want a detailed explanation of why I'm Pro-Choice, read my Roe v. Wade entry.

Alright, back down off my soapbox. At least for a little while.

Oh yes... Thanks for commenting. Please come again. (Seriously.)

Just takin' a survey...

2 things-

1. Remember that next Tuesday is voting day. For those of you who are too lazy to wait in a big 'ol line in order to vote, go get an absentee ballot, pronto. I went over at lunch (telling the nice ladies there that I'd be out of town on Tuesday) and they not only gave me my absentee ballot, but they let me fill it out right then so I have already voted in next Tuesday's elections. So now you have even fewer excuses to not vote. Go do it. NOW.

2. One of my favorite parts of writing this blog is tracking who's reading it. My tracker lets me see a quite a bit of information about my readers, but it does not give me names. I'm able to figure out who most folks are by their location. I've thought about putting in a guest book, but it seems kind of cheesy and I only start to pay attention when somebody's been in a few times. I have one question.

Who is reading my blog in Carson City, Nevada? I know that you connect to the web via the Official State of Nevada Web Site. I just looked at the site and there's a picture of Governor Kenny C. Guinn and this man is obviously a Republican, so now I'm concerned. Am I on some sort of watch list just becuase I'm pretty sure our moron-in-chief has a difficult time remembering how to tie his shoes? I have to know! So leave a comment. Please. I HATE not knowing stuff...

SA kicks ass.

My wife has decided she wants to make a one-sy (one-sie? How the hell are you supposed to spell that? You know, the one-piece oufit that babies wear...) for Sam that says "My mom is Pro-Choice. She chose me."
It's times that this that really make me love her.

Also, voting day is coming up. Remember, Republicans don't care about you. (Unless you're a multi-millionaire. Then they're more than happy to kiss your ass. And seriously, if you're a multi-millionaire, what're you doing reading my blog?)

Election Day is Coming Up

I borrowed this from Ken Levine, who took it from Larry Gelbart. I don't think either of them would mind.

For Election Day – Lest We Forget


Iraq
Iraq
Iraq
Abu Ghraib
Guantanamo
Evil Doers
Evil Do Gooders
Terrormercials
Outsourcing Jobs
OutsourcingTorture
Quitting International Criminal Court
The Kyoto Protocol
The Geneva Conventions
Leaving Habeas Corpus for Dead
Civil War Abroad
Uncivil War at Home
Sound Bites
Unsound Policies
Unremorseful
Unregretful
Unrepentant
The Middle East Mess
The Middle Class Collapse
Predictably Unprepared
Perpetually Unequipped
Unmatched Ignorance
Unbridled Arrogance
Unwarranted Phone Taps
Unprecedented Powers
Compassionate Imperialism
Faith-Based Fascism
Total Dicktatorship
700 Club
700 Mile Border Fence
Over 700 Presidential Signing Statements
Unmatched Incompetence
Unparalleled Corruption
Ethic Cleansing
Governor Bob Taft
Governor John Rowland
Governor Bill Janklow
Oversight
Overlook
Stuff Happens
Stuffed Shirts
Tailored Suits
Tailored Stories
24/7 Spin Cycle
Executive Privilege
Privileged Executives
Wordsmiths
Warsmiths
Surrogate Samurais
Draft Dodging Doges
Potomac Pattons
A Coven of the Craven
Representative Tom Delay
Representative Roy Blunt
Representative Ken Calvert
Representative John Doolittle
Representative Jean Schmidt
Representative Jim Gibbons
Representative Tom Feeney
Representative Patrick McHenry
Representative Christopher Shays
Representative Katherine Harris
Representative Barbara Cubin
Representative Joe Barton
Representative Jerry Lewis
Representative Gary Miller
Representative Marilyn Musgrave
Representative Richard Pombo
Representative Rick Renzi
Representative John Sweeney
Representative Charles Taylor
Representative Curt Weldon
Representative J.D. Hayworth
Representative Don Sherwood
Representative John Patterson
Representative Rodney Alexander
Representative Roy LaHood
Representative Bob Beauprez
Representative Bob Ney
Representative Randy Cunningham
Representative Chris Cannon
Jeff Gannon
Representative Mark Foley
Representative Dennis Hastert
Representative Jim Kolbe
Representative John Shimkus
Representative Tom Reynolds
Over Paid
Over Reaching
Over Logging
Under Armored
Under Suspicion
Beneath Contempt
Senator Bill Frist
Senator George Allen
Senator Conrad Burns
Senator Joe Lieberman
Senator Rick Santorum
Senator Trent Lott
Senator James Inhofe
Senator Pat Roberts
Senator Sam Brownback
Rubber Stamps
Robber Barons
Senator Larry Craig
Craig Schelske
Ken Blackwell
Lester Crawford
Crawford, Texas
Brian Bilbray
Margaret Spellings
Media Consolidation
Homophobia on the Range
Fearmongering
Smearslinging
The RNC
The DNC (Do Nothing Congress)
DC (Dutifully Corporate)
Family Valuables
The Far Wrong
The Far Righteous
Reverend Jerry Falwell
Reverend Pat Robertson
Reverend James Dobson
Reverend Lou Sheldon
Ralph Reed
Gary Bauer
David Safavian
Vice Presidential Energy Task Force
Seventy Dollars a Barrel
Three Bucks a Gallon
Record Oil Company Profits
Anwar Pipeline
Anbar Province
Arthur Anderson
ABB
Adelphia Communications
Merck
Eli Lilly
Mirant
AOL Time Warner
Kmart
Bristol-Myers Squibb
CMS Energy
Duke Energy
Nicor Energy
Reliant Energy
Dynegy
Peregrine Systems
Homestore.com
Xerox
Qwest
Tyco
WorldCom
Global Crossing
Global Warming
Global Boiling
Lee Raymond
Exxon
Enron
Abramoff
Tribe Bribes
Mike Scanlon
Grover Norquist
War Profiteers
War Privateers
Halliburton
Bechtel
Blackwater
CACI
Titan
Carlyle Group
Custer Battles
Kellogg, Brown & Root
George Tenet
Unanswered Questions
Questionable Answers
Adam Kidan
Timothy Flanigan
Lawrence Lindsay
Jessica Lynch
Jim Ellis
John Colyandro
Donald Keyser
Peter Roskam
Katherine Gun
Garrett Lott
Armstrong Williams
Talking Points
Pointless Talking
Chuck McGee
James Tobin
Thomas Scully
Kenneth Tomlinson
Allen Raymond
Claude Allen
Katrina
Rita
Harriet (Miers)
FEMA
FISA
NSA
Cut and Run
Run on Cuts
Bring It On
Dead Or Alive
Terri Schiavo
Bill Frist, MD
John Bolton
Diebold
Florida, 2000
Ohio, 2004
North Korea 2006
Selective Diplomacy
Preemptive War
Iraq.
Iran?
Sleeper Cells
Stem Cell Research
Darfur
Dubai Ports World
Swift Boat Hit Men
Max Cleland
Douglas Feith
Mumming the Press
Dumbing the Proles
Roger Ailes
Sean Hannity
Bill O’Reilly
Fred Barnes
Morton Kondracke
Brit Hume
John Gibson
Ann Coulter
Laura Ingraham
Michelle Malkin
Glenn Beck
Neil Cavuto
Neal Boortz
Neil Bush (No Brother Left Behind)
Rush Limbaugh
David Frum
David Horowitz
Golden Parachutes
Shrunken Pensions
Sunken Bipartisanship
Bernie Kerik
Eminent Domain
J. Steven Griles
Numerous Convictions
Occasional Confessions
Social Security Privatization
Abrupt Resignations
Porter Goss
Dusty Foggo
Zero Accountability
Even Less Credibility
Michael Chertoff
Homeland Insecurity
Ahmad Chalabi
Baghdad Museum
Tora Bora
Taliban Resurgence
Iraqi Insurgents
General William Boykin
General Eric Shinseki
General Janet Karpinski
General Ricardo Sanchez
General Anthony Zinni
Mission Accomplished
Lawbreaking Lawmakers
Impeachable Sources
Suppressed Medicare Costs
The Donut Hole
Intelligent Design
Intelligence Failures
Ari Fleischer
Scott McClellan
Tony Snow
Tony Perkins
Tony Rudy
Tony Blankley
Tony Blair
Downing Street Memo
The Late Great Britain
Ken Mehlman
Dennis Prager
Wayne Simmons
Frank Gaffney
Expiration of Assault Weapons Ban
John Ashcroft
Alberto Gonzales
Alberto Fernandez
Danny Diaz
William Bennett
Stephen Hadley
Karen Hughes
Bunnatine Greenhouse
Richard Grasso
Brian Doyle
Thomas Noe
Ted Van Der Meid
Tan Nguyen
Michael Gerson
Michael Medved
Michael Reagan
Michael Maloof
Michael Savage
Aluminum Tubes
Rice
Yellowcake
Niger
Valerie Plame
Joseph Wilson
Scooter Libby
Robert Novak
Richard Armitage
Brent Bozell III
Paul Bremer III
Gulf II
Non-Regime-Changing Regime Changers
Neoconmen
Ex-Non-Vet Vulcans
Playing to an Enraptured Audience
Armageddon Uber Alles
Paul Wolfowitz
Richard Perle
David Wormser
Elliott Abrams
James Woolsey
Zalmay Khalizad
William Kristol
The Coalition of the Dwindling
Staining the Course
WMD (W’s Mass Denials)
Mad Cowboy Disease
Mad Cowhands Disease
Kissinger Redux
Duck Cheney
Rumbo
Blossom (the Turd)
George (the Fourth):Son of a Higher Father; Uniter, Decider, Flatulater; Reader of at least three Shakespeares, Camus’ “The Stranger” and “The Pet Goat;”
Prematurely discharged National Air Guardsman, missing in inaction, who describes members of the political party that successfully prosecuted two world wars as quitters.
Billions Missing in Iraq
Trillions Missing in D.C.
Missing Limbs
Missed Lives
Iraq
Iraq
Iraq

How Roe vs. Wade enabled us to get pregnant

Today is the 33rd anniversary of the landmark Roe vs. Wade decision.

When Justice Robert Blackmun delivered the opinion of the court, he included the following statement, with which I wholly concur.

"We forthwith acknowledge our awareness of the sensitive and emotional nature of the abortion controversy, of the vigorous opposing views, even among physicians, and of the deep and seemingly absolute convictions that the subject inspires. One's philosophy, one's experiences, one's exposure to the raw edges of human existence, one's religious training, one's attitudes toward life and family and their values, and the moral standards one establishes and seeks to observe, are all likely to influence and to color one's thinking and conclusions about abortion. "

In other words, if you disagree with me, that's okay. I just think you're wrong. Thankfully, the same freedoms that allow women to make decisions about their own body also allow all of us to make decisions about what we believe without fear of repercussion. (At least that's how it's supposed to work.)

Just so y'all understand, I am very definitely "Pro-Choice". I am definitely NOT "Pro-Abortion".

S.A. and I tried to get pregnant for over 3 years. When we found out that we were finally pregnant, it was a huge surprise because we had basically given up hope of ever conceiving. We were operating under the assumption that we were going to have to adopt in order to have children. So needless so say, though we were both strong proponents of the adoption process before that point, we were definitely in favor of it now. But our personal beliefs for how we choose to live our lives are not something that we think has any legal standing.

Both S.A. and I come from big Catholic families, and I would be willing to guess that, were you to interview all the members of our immediate and extended families, you would get the same answers from about 95% of them.

Abortion is wrong. This is true (most of them would say) in much the same way that adultery, murder, and child abuse are wrong. I believe that, for this reason, many of them would tell you that they are "pro-life" and that Roe vs. Wade should be struck down. The only major problem with that line of thinking is this-

You CANNOT legislate morality.

Devout Catholics believe that it is WRONG to eat meat on a Friday. Muslims believe it's WRONG to eat pork. According to my old CCD classes (Catholic Sunday School, for all you non-Catholic out there,) the thought is the same as the deed so it is WRONG to "lust" after the hottie who sits 3 rows over from you in your biology class. And simply thinking about how nice it would be to pull out a rocket launcher and blow the SUV in front of you (who is driving 15 miles under the speed limit and has had his turn signal on for 7 miles) off the road is WRONG. It's the same as actually doing it in "God's Eyes".

But no-one would ever suggest that we make laws against all these things. Why? Because you CANNOT LEGISLATE MORALITY. This is THE basic concept upon which this country was founded.

Now I believe that you would be very hard-pressed to find someone who thought that abortion was something they hoped to go through at some point in their life. And to anyone who suggests that folks who have an abortion rather than the alternatives (keeping the baby, offering it up for abortion) , I offer up the following opinion.

You, sir/ma'am, are an idiot.

I'm not going to go into all the research that's been done about the lifelong mental and emotional effects of having an abortion (Do a google search. They're not hard to find. Also, S.A. wrote a much longer and, in all honesty, better blog about this stuff today.) but the decision to have, and the results of having, an abortion are not EASY in any way, shape, or form.

I'll probably try to post a bit more information here later today, but I'll offer up this last bit of personal information before I need to leave for church. (I know, shocking. The pro-choice heathen goes to church.)

When S.A. and I were basically given one last chance to conceive a baby, we were told that because of the nature of the medical treatment we were undergoing, the odds of having "high-level multiples" (e.g. 3 or more babies) were extremely high. Because of this, we were commanded by our doctor to come to a decision relating to our feelings about "selective reduction". In other words, because of the health risks involved in any multiple pregnancy and birth, would we be willing/able to choose to abort some of the fetuses if we found out there were 3 or 4 or 5 or more?

Obviously the specifics of our decision are a pretty personal thing so I won't give you all the details, but in short form, the answer was YES.

Because of the especially high risks to S.A. (We're considered a "high-risk" pregnancy.) carrying an especially high number of multiples (quints, sextuplets) would be EXTREMELY dangerous to both her and to the babies. Because of this, had selective reduction not been an option, (which it WILL NOT BE if our current political administration gets its way,) we would not have been able to have children of our own, because, as much as I want children, I was CATEGORICALLY unwilling to risk S.A.'s health and, more importantly, life.

Thankfully, when we finally got pregnant, it was with just one baby. He's due on April 16th. And I cannot begin to express how glad I am that I was not forced with making a choice between not even trying to conceive a baby and risking the life of the most important person in my life.

The opposite of "Pro-Life" is NOT "Pro-Choice". It's "Pro-Death". I'm immensely thankful that the laws in this country are such that people like S.A. and I actually had a choice. That, among many other reasons, is why I'm Pro-Choice.

Laterz

Back on my soapbox.

And now a few words on John Roberts.

President Hitler, oops... I mean Bush has recently nominated John Roberts to replace Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court. I've been reading everything I can find on him and I'm starting to form an opinion. I have to warn my loyal friends and readers that you may want to sit on your hands for a moment.
I'm think he might be okay.
HOLD ON!!! I know he's a conservative! I don't agree with his politics either! But...
From what I've read, he looks like the kind of judge who actually makes his legal decisions on LEGAL grounds, rather than using his own personal beliefs. He's be nominated by a conservative Christian president, so we're not gonna get another Ginsberg. This guy seems, better than a number of the names I saw batted around.
So today's assignment, class, is to get me more info. I still don't know enough about this guy to really get up in arms one way or the other. If you've seen something I should read, let me know. Aright, let me know.

Laterz

Pacifism, Bombs, & Monkees

Thoughts of the Morning-
I'd really like to be a pacifist. I'm pretty damn close. However, if somebody has some fool proof method for "letting go" when I wish harm to individuals in places of power, let me know. I couldn't even say anything about the train bombings in London yesterday because I was still too upset to talk about it at the beginning of the afternoon. I spent 20 minutes sitting at my desk just staring at my computer monitor because I was having difficulty putting it out of my mind when I came in to work in the morning.
Here's what I think. Muslims don't hate Americans for their freedoms. Muslims, as a whole, don't hate Americans at all. That's mororic. 1.6 million Muslims ARE Americans. However, Terrorist groups (and this is certainly a very different population than the general Muslim population) do target the US and their allies. I absolutely, completely, and totally blame our current presidential administration for that. How is it that the average 5th grader can see the difference between defending ourselves (Going to Afghanistan) and just acting like international bullies (Iraq, Iran, Korea). Hey, I'm not excited about countries that we've put great effort into pissing off having nuclear (Notice how that's spelled. NUKE-LEE-UR. If you pronounce it Nuke-U-lur, you're not using a regional dialect or some sort of colloquialism. You're just illiterate.) capabilities, but I don't know how we can justify saying "Hey, we're responsible enough to have them, but you're not. Neener neener." That sort of hubris is the reason Americans are not particularly popular right now in the rest of the world. So here's my suggestion to all the terrorists out there who are ticked at us- If you must take action against the people who have wronged you, make sure you're not hurting the people who agree with you that the American government has radically overstepped its bounds. And for everyone else, say a little prayer (for all you religious types) or just think good thoughts for all the people who have been dragged into harm's way through no fault of their own. And hope you don't become one of them.

One last thought, and it's a complete non-sequiter. I listened to the Monkees on the way into work this morning, and if "Daydream Believer" doen't improve your mindset at any given time, you should probably talk to a doctor. The things you listen to affect your outlook on life, so though it's great to be informed, I don't suggest listening to NPR last thing before you get out of your car and walk into work. There's no point in being in a bad mood before you start your work day. Even though life sucks and the world has gone completely and sometimes homicidaly insane, IT'S PROBABLY NOT THE SECRETARY'S FAULT. My old high school english teacher once told me that even when you're ina bad mood, you should always smile at anyone you pass. They'll smile back. And your day will be just a little bit brighter. Alright, end of sermon. Laterz.