Wednesday Open Thread
Lynne Cheney: VP, Obama are eighth cousins - I wonder if I am related to Cheney or even Bush as well. Maybe 15th cousin.
Bush is holding a Press Conference soon.
I am slightly sick (a cold) at home so have a good Wednesday :) This is an Open Thread
Submitted by Ender on Wed, 2007-10-17 09:18
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Birth Control. Should the person that runs the
Department of Health and Human Services be against using birth control? I originally read this at C&L but I'm linking the original Wall Street Journal article titled: Contraception Foe Named to Contraception Post
. The previous head of the Department was also an Abstinence Only guy and made numerous gaffs doing his job. He left & now dubya has named Susan Orr to the post. Prior to joining the Bush administration, Orr was senior director for marriage and family at the Family Research Council, a conservative group that favors abstinence-only education and opposes federal money for contraception. In 2001, she was quoted in the Washington Post favoring a Bush administration plan to drop a requirement that health insurance plans for federal employees cover a broad range of birth control. “We’re quite pleased because fertility is not a disease,” she said at the time. “It’s not a medical necessity that you have it.”
Along a correlated vein, DKos has a thread up today asking why the National Right to Life Committee is against the S-CHIP program.
the premise being how can you be pro-life and against childrens medical care? One possible answer is:
"The answer is that, like the US Chamber of Commerce, they aren't really pro-life or pro-business, they're just pro-GOP and pro-Bush."
Well, yea, that's what I think. I was just kinda hoping that discussing a topic actually talked about the merits or lack there of of a particular topic, not just rooting for your team regardless.
I have a different question on Right to Life...
but draw a similar conclusion, that: "they're pro-GOP and pro-Bush".
I don't have a problem having those sets of views re: pro-life and anti-S-CHIP. I have those views myself, and think the coupling of them by the Kos folks is illogical. But more to my original point, the question I would ask, is why Right to Life has any viewpoint on S-CHIP?
Yup
the question I would ask, is why Right to Life has any viewpoint on S-CHIP?
Agreed. When advocacy groups start taking positions on issues outside their supposed area of concern, it becomes easier to dismiss them as partisan rather than principled.
As an aside, I agree that the coupling isn't required -- certainly someone can be pro-life and be against expanding S-CHIP because they believe that there are better ways to handle health care for children (not because they don't think kids deserve health care, or whatever). But it's a nuanced case and doesn't play well politically, and as far as inefficient uses of federal money go there are many more egregious programs to target. I'm a bit surprised that this is where Bush is choosing to make a stand, and I'm surprised that so many in the GOP are supporting him on this issue.
Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson
You see, your explaination is consistent.
I don't have an issue with those that hold an opinion of their own & live by it. WRT the DHHS, I don't really think the individual opinion of someone being Abstinence Only should matter....until they try to push that opinion on the broad cross section of citizens or employees. Then, it matters.
As far as the pro-life folks opposing S-CHIP....here again, you can support one and oppose the other, but these are two different topics and I'm not sure adding Children's Healthcare to an Anti-abortion agenda is good for your organization or your agenda.
I do appreciate the surface contradiction that the DKos thread brings up though. Of course I do! What else would a pro-choice, consenting adult pro-sex individual such as myself think?
Sure it's illogical
as the movement isn't really "pro life" but strictly "anti abortion" or "control of women reproductive choices". But when they call themselves "pro-life", they invite such illogical generalizations that they actually care about other people's well being.
Sic semper tyrannis
I think the apparent contradiction arises
from the willingness on the one hand to use governmental power to restrict individual rights re abortion, and the claim on the other hand that the government shouldn't be involved with doling out aid to pregnant mothers or babies.
There's a reasonable argument there if you believe that abortion equates to murder, since then the government has a duty to step in (as sort of a law-and-order response). If you don't believe that, it makes no sense and looks like they're just picking and choosing inconsistently.
Even so, there are pro-life folks who also devote significant time, energy, and money towards helping pregnant mothers and babies. If the "movement" had more of them setting the agenda they wouldn't be as open to accusations of inconsistency.
Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson
Well, woody
You know, I kind of hate it when people take self-names and twist them, even when the self-name itself is suspect, as they often are, because groups like to show themselves in the best light.
So, the easy translation of "pro-choice" into the accurate "pro-abortion" I don't like. It's not 100% accurate.
Likewise, the easy transformation of "pro-life," which is accurate when discussing unborn children, into "anti-abortion" IS accurate, but "control of women['s] reproductive choices" is reprehensible.
The Chinese one child program, enforced with real muscle, could be said to be controlling women's (and men's) reproductive choices. Nor do pro-life organizations take a position on the hows of reproduction normally. Women can choose to reproduce in the missionary position or any other, and with whomever they want to reproduce with; that's not the issue the pro-lifers focus on. They have not so far as i recall come out against artificial insemination.
In fact, one may say that they have come out against a particular contraception choice, not any reproductive choice. In fact, they seem to be pro-reproduction.
But when they call themselves "pro-life", they invite such illogical generalizations that they actually care about other people's well being.
Which invites the illogical generalization that they do not actually care about other people's well-being.
Bad time to be pro-Bush
Considering how many fewer abortions would happen if more people used contraception every time, I would think conservatives would wholeheartedly support it, including with federal funding.
Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson
The Stupid Filter
The beginning of the end or the end of the beginning!
The StupidFilter Project
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
Heh, nice
and they seem to be very serious about it too.
That would make a nice addition to the site, Ender. Not that we ever post anything stupid, of course, but just in case ;-)
Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson
Has Hillary actually returned the Norman Hsu cash?
I know she said she was going to do it, but has anyone seen anything to indicate that she actually DID IT?
Republican Maverick at Large
-4:Strongly Disagree; 0:Meh; +4:Strongly Agree
Couldn't find anything by googling DiFi today?
Did you hear....Comrade Markos wants us all to vote for Senator Dodd, CT's only good Senator.
Hadn't heard. Not surprised.
Do you think that this pick will improve his track record on picking winners?
Republican Maverick at Large
-4:Strongly Disagree; 0:Meh; +4:Strongly Agree
No. The only thing I've read today about DiFi
was that she questioned the nominated AG about limits of Presidential Powers, whether the President needs to go to Congress to be able to attack Iran (she never mentioned Iran specifically), and a couple of other things.
Glenn Greenwald has the full details. Go to Salon and see.
Mukasey compares U.S. torture to Nazi tactics
Before some here freak out, that's nominated AG Mukasey that just told a Senate panel that he compares US torture to Nazi tactics.
You got a beef with that? E-mail your President. He's the one who nominated the guy.
He gets a pass.
If he wants to get confirmed he will need Democrat support. To get that he needs to make statements like this.
Republican Maverick at Large
-4:Strongly Disagree; 0:Meh; +4:Strongly Agree
democratic
is the correct term.
Democratic support.
It is the economy, stupid.
Nope, it is the party of the Democrats.
He needs the Democrats to support him, ergo Democrat Support. :)
Republican Maverick at Large
-4:Strongly Disagree; 0:Meh; +4:Strongly Agree
lol @ "Democrat Support"
C'mon guys, we're not 5 are we?
"Democrat" is a noun, and since you are describing the type of support needed, you need a modifier (adjective). The adjective form of "Democrat" is "Democratic," just like the adjective form of "Republican" is still "Republican." Saying "Democrat" Support sounds as silly as saying "Center" Approach (instead of "Centrist"). Jus sayin..
http://wealthweekly.blogspot.com
Wii FC:2805-8311-8040-2678
Brawl: 2277-7051-2186
GOP Pols do it all the time
It's some result of focus group research. They make it a point to only "Democrat" in all cases because it doesn't sound as nice as "Democratic".
Yes, it's very childish.
In my lexicon ...
The adjectival form of democrat is democratic.
The adjectival form of Democrat is Democrat.
Note that a democrat should NEVER be confused with a Democrat.
Republican Maverick at Large
-4:Strongly Disagree; 0:Meh; +4:Strongly Agree
Do you think he's lying...
... just to get the job?
If you really believe this is the "fight of our lives," how come you're not in Iraq?
BH, quit lurking
Make an account and say hello.
"Perplexity is the beginning of knowledge" -- Kahlil Gibran
Moi? Lurker???? Nah!
Just let me get my feet wet first.
ALWAYS bring your gascan -- you never know where you'll find a fire...
Welcome =)
Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson
:-)
Take your time. We move kinda slow around here anyway.
Oh, and BTW to the group at large, rumor has it that John Dean will be appearing in SL tomorrow. Since the Democratic Party group in SL is in complete meltdown mode right now (heh, funny stuff, that), notices are slim, but Jimbo Hoyer should be posting something about it over at dKos.
No SC meeting in SL this week either. I've got other stuff going on.
"Perplexity is the beginning of knowledge" -- Kahlil Gibran
JOHN Dean?
or Howard Dean? Either would be interesting...
ALWAYS bring your gascan -- you never know where you'll find a fire...
John Dean
Found the dKos diary about it.
I only got the brief group IM from Jimbo about it but the diary seems to have more information.
And there's a dance afterwards too.
"Perplexity is the beginning of knowledge" -- Kahlil Gibran