Why I Won't Tolerate Anti-Choicers any Longer:

[Anxious Girl]

In North Carolina, 64 out of 2,000 pro-choice protesters of an anti-abortion bill were arrested: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07 ... a#comments

It makes no sense:

Republican legislators have largely stayed mum in the midst of the protests, though some state officials have grumbled about the cost of the arrests and the impact on the state.

"I'm fielding calls every day, ‘What the heck's going on (over) there?'" the state's Commerce Secretary Sharon Decker told a crowd of reporters Monday. "The current environment makes it very challenging to market North Carolina."

Governor Pat McCrory, a Republican, criticized senators for pushing the regulations through without a public hearing.

As she lined up with her father to be arrested, she said the legislature's lean education budget will slash services for her special needs child.

"This state has gone to hell and it's hurting my family," said Glover.

Here are some of the "golden" comments:

Mary J-7907240

I can see both sides, but this is a personal issue. The fight will go on forever as long as there's votes involved.

Tolerance of anti-choicers' bullshit is getting old, Mary J-707240.

ROY WILSON-336103

"Elections have consequences" - Barack Obama

I find it humorous that Liberals are all about passing laws to 'make things safer' when it comes to environmental issues, no matter the cost, but oppose laws that 'make things safer' for women seeking an abortion.

All we're talking about is requiring abortion clinics to meet minimum safety standards when the kill the babies.

Hypocrit, thy name is ROY WILSON-336103.

truebro

to the extreme left killing your baby, porn, drugs and making others pay for your health care is moral.

Neo-Conservatives values are always right, pure and should never be questioned you heathens!

America's the most free country in the world, my ass. :angry-banghead: :angry-cussing: :angry-cussingblack: :angry-fire: :angry-jumpinganger: :angry-steamingears:

[AtroposHeart]

MMmm....I love me some weed, dirty books, and getting healthcare. So evil leftist me.

I also get pregnant by Satan regularly so I can have abortions and then use the baby's blood in Satanic rituals

[FeministShrew]

Most of my friends live in NC. I'm only 8 miles from the state line, & I really wanted to move there, but now I'm rethinking. I'm just waiting for Governor Haley to jump on the bandwagon.

[Black Aliss]

Thank you for using the correct term to describe these bigots. They (or at least the vast majority) are in no way Pro-life and it's time those of us who are pro life, even after birth, took back the term and call the anti-choicers what they really are.

[starfish]

They are Forced Birthers. That's what they want.

[Minerva]

I have no patience for anti-choicers, either. Do I have pro-life friends? Yes, lots of them. They call themselves pro-life, and I respect that, but they are intelligent human beings who understand the difference between having a religion and forcing it on others. They respect other people's rights to decide whether to carry a pregnancy to term, and would never try to stop someone who wanted or needed an abortion. They are pro-choice.

[wtylcf]

I have no patience for anti-choicers, either. Do I have pro-life friends? Yes, lots of them. They call themselves pro-life, and I respect that, but they are intelligent human beings who understand the difference between having a religion and forcing it on others. They respect other people's rights to decide whether to carry a pregnancy to term, and would never try to stop someone who wanted or needed an abortion. They are pro-choice.

Back when I was religious, I also described myself just like your "pro-life" friends. I would never have had an abortion myself, but would never have coerced anyone out of an abortion nor prevented anyone from having access to an abortion. Every time the issue of terminology comes up, I think back to the first time I realized that essentially, whatever I believed for myself, I was "pro-choice," in that I wouldn't dictate what another woman should do with her pregnancy. I realized that this was a political position, not a personal statement of belief. In my personal experience in a mainstream church, the majority of people seemed to fit this soft "pro-life" definition, and no one of that congregation was out campaigning for abortion clinic closures. Yet no one would ever, ever have called themselves pro-choice.

The following musings are not directed at you, Minerva, but towards the general audience of the board: For me personally, my self-education on the topic of feminism coincided with leaving my religious beliefs behind. Many times I've thought to myself, "If I could go back in time and have this discussion between my past and present self, what could I say to get myself to realize I was essentially pro-choice?" Sadly, I don't think anything I could have said would have swayed my opinion. "pro-choice" was the label for so-called baby-killers, and I wasn't supporting that. Young as I was, I had no concept whatsoever of the burden, physical and financial, of carrying an unwanted pregnancy to term, and when I became an adult who was sexually active and could potentially become pregnant, I understood the necessity of having bodily sovereignty. In my youth, I wanted to be associated with the "pro-life" label, because of the stigma against the pro-choice label in my community, but at the same time, was uncomfortable with coercing anyone into giving birth or preventing access to safe abortions.

I agree with the OP that anti-choice rhetoric is complete bullshit. Yet as someone who WAS on the other side of that label, I always wonder if I have any particular insight into the anti-choice mentality that could help in crafting a persuasive argument to change their mind. Sadly, I feel like I don't. Once the religious and social motivations for clinging to the terminology became unimportant to me, I was free to change my mind. But it took a complete shift in my own sub-culture, from religious to not religious, to achieve that, and that's not exactly a life experience I want to persuade everyone else to emulate.

[Minerva]

Back when I was religious, I also described myself just like your "pro-life" friends. I would never have had an abortion myself, but would never have coerced anyone out of an abortion nor prevented anyone from having access to an abortion. Every time the issue of terminology comes up, I think back to the first time I realized that essentially, whatever I believed for myself, I was "pro-choice," in that I wouldn't dictate what another woman should do with her pregnancy. I realized that this was a political position, not a personal statement of belief. In my personal experience in a mainstream church, the majority of people seemed to fit this soft "pro-life" definition, and no one of that congregation was out campaigning for abortion clinic closures. Yet no one would ever, ever have called themselves pro-choice.

The following musings are not directed at you, Minerva, but towards the general audience of the board: For me personally, my self-education on the topic of feminism coincided with leaving my religious beliefs behind. Many times I've thought to myself, "If I could go back in time and have this discussion between my past and present self, what could I say to get myself to realize I was essentially pro-choice?" Sadly, I don't think anything I could have said would have swayed my opinion. "pro-choice" was the label for so-called baby-killers, and I wasn't supporting that. Young as I was, I had no concept whatsoever of the burden, physical and financial, of carrying an unwanted pregnancy to term, and when I became an adult who was sexually active and could potentially become pregnant, I understood the necessity of having bodily sovereignty. In my youth, I wanted to be associated with the "pro-life" label, because of the stigma against the pro-choice label in my community, but at the same time, was uncomfortable with coercing anyone into giving birth or preventing access to safe abortions.

I agree with the OP that anti-choice rhetoric is complete bullshit. Yet as someone who WAS on the other side of that label, I always wonder if I have any particular insight into the anti-choice mentality that could help in crafting a persuasive argument to change their mind. Sadly, I feel like I don't. Once the religious and social motivations for clinging to the terminology became unimportant to me, I was free to change my mind. But it took a complete shift in my own sub-culture, from religious to not religious, to achieve that, and that's not exactly a life experience I want to persuade everyone else to emulate.

That reminds me: everyone I've known who was anti-choice (as well as many of the people I know who are pro-choice but personally anti-abortion) are that way because of their former or current religion. Usually when I read about people who became pro-choice but remained a member of an anti-abortion religious group, they talk about how they changed their position when they realized that freedom of conscience goes both ways. Of course, I have no experience with this myself, having always belonged to a pro-choice church.

[OnceModestTwiceShy]

AMEN. This is one issue that I'm not willing to argue about or compromise on.

[ADoyle90815]

They are Forced Birthers. That's what they want.

This. Once the birth is forced, they don't care what happens to the mother or fetus.

[ThatSnark]

I was one of the 2K protesters who didn't get arrested-- it was empowering to be with a group of pro-choice people, and infuriating that we had to gather at all to dispute a piece of legislation that has no business existing. This nonsense was tucked into the middle of an "Anti-Sharia" law, as if we are threatened in North Carolina by people trying to live by Sharia Law. (We are not.) This is an ongoing thing as the bill moves through the state House and on to the governor, who has said he will not sign it-- but he didn't say he'd veto it either.

I hate that we are still having to fight for this. It's a federal law being undermined by a handful of people who got voted into power. *sigh*

[salex]

I was one of the 2K protesters who didn't get arrested-- it was empowering to be with a group of pro-choice people, and infuriating that we had to gather at all to dispute a piece of legislation that has no business existing. This nonsense was tucked into the middle of an "Anti-Sharia" law, as if we are threatened in North Carolina by people trying to live by Sharia Law. (We are not.) This is an ongoing thing as the bill moves through the state House and on to the governor, who has said he will not sign it-- but he didn't say he'd veto it either.

I hate that we are still having to fight for this. It's a federal law being undermined by a handful of people who got voted into power. *sigh*

KS passed the Sharia Law bill-- meanwhile our governor wants nothing more than to put in a Christian version of sharia.

I guess we should all just be happy Perry isn't running for re-election for gov of TX (had he termed out???)

[Anxious Girl]

I was one of the 2K protesters who didn't get arrested-- it was empowering to be with a group of pro-choice people, and infuriating that we had to gather at all to dispute a piece of legislation that has no business existing. This nonsense was tucked into the middle of an "Anti-Sharia" law, as if we are threatened in North Carolina by people trying to live by Sharia Law. (We are not.) This is an ongoing thing as the bill moves through the state House and on to the governor, who has said he will not sign it-- but he didn't say he'd veto it either.

I hate that we are still having to fight for this. It's a federal law being undermined by a handful of people who got voted into power. *sigh*

I don't get American repubes. If they worship the American Constitution so Goddamned much, why're they against federal laws? :think:

[Just Not Good]

Those federal laws are WRONG. Also, states' rights should be ignored when, say, the state votes in medical marijuana and the governor decides they'd better run that one by the feds... despite not recognizing federal authority. (Hi, Arizona!)

[kamcho_papio]

This. Once the birth is forced, they don't care what happens to the mother or fetus.

A friend was monologuing about this the other night at a party. She said someone had accused her and other "pro-life" people like her of not caring what happens after the baby is born, but she disagreed, and said, "but I pay my taxes! Taxes support people." We're not that close, and she's moving away, and it wasn't my house, so I chose not to engage. She'd also previously mentioned that she didn't see the big deal about transvag probe ultrasounds because she'd had one, and it's not that bad. I know her opinion is formed partially by coming from a conservative small-town mindset and also religious fervor, so there's no real point in arguing, just a small nod to acknowledge what she said, and a side slink back to the cocktail table.

[pirate]

I was one of the 2K protesters who didn't get arrested-- it was empowering to be with a group of pro-choice people, and infuriating that we had to gather at all to dispute a piece of legislation that has no business existing. This nonsense was tucked into the middle of an "Anti-Sharia" law, as if we are threatened in North Carolina by people trying to live by Sharia Law. (We are not.) This is an ongoing thing as the bill moves through the state House and on to the governor, who has said he will not sign it-- but he didn't say he'd veto it either.

I hate that we are still having to fight for this. It's a federal law being undermined by a handful of people who got voted into power. *sigh*

Thank you for standing up for what's right.