Dammit Janet

Yet another demonstration of why there is no common ground between pro- and anti-choice.

When Kermit Gosnell was convicted Tuesday in the deaths of three babies, it might have been a moment for anti-abortion and abortion rights groups to come together over something they both opposed: a doctor providing bad medical care to women.

Instead, it was another moment of dissension. Anti-abortion groups warned that Gosnell was just one example of many doctors who carry out troubling late-term abortions across the country, while abortion rights groups said women went to Gosnell's "house of horrors" Philadelphia clinic because they didn't know what other options were available.

"I would hope that we could both rally behind the prosecution of someone who was providing subpar medical care to women," says Leah Chamberlain, administrator of the Philadelphia Women's Center, one of the first abortion clinics in the city. "[But] this situation seems to be drawing clear divisions between the two camps and there's a lot of yelling at each other rather than listening."Yeah, you'd think we could agree at least on that.

But no.

There is common ground, but it is occupied by pro-choicers. We already support all the family friendly, abortion-reducing things: affordable birth control, adoption, child care, comprehensive sex ed, financial and other support for pregnant women and families, and good health care for all.

There is no talking to, let alone compromising with fanatical fetus fetishists, and, thankfully at least in Canada, no earthly reason to.

I realize that books have to be flogged, but lately these people, Paul Saurette and Kelly Gordon, have been all over Canadian media with a 'new' take on fetus fetishist strategy.

Actually, it ain't new at all, but hey, those women's studies MAs (pdf) don't write themselves, you know.

The thesis is that the anti-choice movement in Canada is getting 'sophisticated', co-opting pro-choice language, framing abortion as 'harming women', moving the *undebate* into a discussion of free speech and democracy, claiming that it's a 'youth movement', and playing the 'silenced' victim card.

The anti-abortion movement in Canada, while increasingly enlivened and sophisticated, remains a small minority. Clearly phrased polls show that Canadians do not want the issue re-politicized. This is precisely why Harper promised not to do so. He knows that it is a toxic issue for his goal of mainstreaming conservatism. The anti-abortion movement has also understood that the old arguments and positioning have not worked. They are therefore increasingly seeking to frame the issue in ways that piggyback on values, issues and rhetorical strategies traditionally used by progressive movements (and which have greater traction and resonance in Canadian society).
Veteran fetus fetishist watchers (ahem) recognize all these tactics. They've been trying them forever.

The 'abortion harms women (AHW)' meme originated over a decade ago with the 'Moses' of the 'post-abortion movement', quack David Reardon. They try, amusingly, to back this up with sciencey stuff that we here at DJ! love to debunk. That abortion causes breast cancer, insanity, substance abuse, etc etc.

Warawa's Wank, aka #M408, is a variant on AHW with the new twist that abortion harms 'preborn' women.

Co-opting language, been there, done that.



Free speech, democracy, and human rights? Yep. Comparisons of abortion to slavery, genocide, and the Holocaust abound.

Youth movement? Sure, especially since they're now admitting that Catholic schools pay to bus kids to events like March for Lies.

Hilariously, they've been trying to 'hip'-ify their activities for years too.

Martyrdom has always been big with them, recently celebrated with
Jubilee medals courtesy of the Canadian government.

Silencing? Old hat.




In trying to work up a new take on a dying movement, these new kids on the block give the fetus fetishists waaaay too much credit. It's the sameold sameold, no matter how many books they have to sell hard they try to spin it.

Woo-hoo!.

From the Fetal Gore Tour nutters:

Anti-Abortion Face-Off with Stephen Harper

Postcards with Aborted Fetus Images Alongside Harper Images Go to Constituents

Calgary, AB. Starting today, a group of anti-abortion activists will circulate postcards with images of Prime Minister Stephen Harper next to bloody, graphic pictures of late-term aborted children to homes in Harper’s constituency.  Harper is the first of five politicians the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform (CCBR) says it will make “Face the Children”—the name of its new project.  The group plans to distribute 250,000 postcards in the five ridings by summer’s end.You can see the postcard at the link.

They are keeping mum on the other politicians they will target.

This is a beauty lose-lose for Herr Harper.

Now, this has gotta sting, coming as it does from former senior advisor to Heil Harper, Keith Beardsley.
Fiscal responsibility has been the hallmark of the Harper government from day one. It's therefore quite interesting to see in year seven of his reign that the opposition is focused on trying to destroy the credibility the Tories have on that front. It's a good strategy on their part, enabled by some help from the government side.
He cites Scott Brison's jibe about each Economic Action Scam ad on Hockey Night in Canada representing the cost of the federal contribution to 32 summer student jobs.

Beardsley notes:
Simple stuff, but it resonates with Canadian families struggling to get their kids through university.
Yes, that resonates with Canadians with kids, but how about something that will resonate with all of us?

I did some math. One ad spot costs $95,000. The average yearly Old Age Supplement is a paltry $6,180.

Ergo, one EAScam ad = 15.3 yearly pensions.

In our ongoing quest to Divide the Right, it's time to bang the fiscal wastebin a little harder.

The other day I blogged about just two items: the mystery billions spent on consultants and the Economic Action Scam ads.

On Twitter, I asked my good friend Connie what her members think of such waste and unaccountability.

She obliged and started a thread at the Freaks with a link to my blogpost.

Embarrassing - hardcore leftists calling CPC on fiscal waste

by Connie Fournier » 05/ 09/ 13 11:23 am

With the CPC Convention coming up really soon, it's a good time for us to take an honest look at how the majority CPC government has been performing so far.

When the far, far left is calling the government on fiscal waste, I think we need to, at least, check it out.

What do y'all think?It didn't get much response. But hey, I'm trying and Connie is willing.

Harper is fucked on the so-con file and he knows it as Chantal Hébert points out.

And as a commenter there observes, the base is finally getting it too.
For all these years Harper's worked on the theory the "base" of his party isn't too bright, and it's taken the base this long to figure it out - which pretty much speaks for itself.
Scott Brison is a smart feller. So is Keith Beardsley. Let's help them out. Commit more math!

ADDED: Here's another unit of measurement: $3,000 a day for CON media monitoring. Two days = 1 average OAS pension.

I'm calling it. March for Lies was a huge bust. Look at all the weaselling.

LifeShite:

Up to 25,000 pro-lifers packed Parliament Hill today under threats of thunderstorms. The bad weather, however, held out, providing sunny conditions for the 16th National March for Life.

This year was another record-breaking year for the federal parliament's largest annual rally. Organizers estimated the crowd at likely near 25,000 given the evident substantial increase in numbers over last year, when the count was 19,500.Because, you know, every year must be bigger than the year before. And 19,500 was a pretty large porky last year.

Other news outlets were a bit more cautious.
More than 10,000 people joined the 16th annual anti-abortion March for Life on Parliament Hill Thursday, with several Conservative MPs adding their support to the throng.  A small group of pro-choice advocates staged counter-demonstrations.
But the real knee to the nads comes from Stun News.
A count of the crowd by QMI Agency set the attendance of Thursday's rally at about 5,000.

The RCMP estimated a crowd of 12,000, while organizers said there were 15,000.And now a note from the Martyrdom and Mail, aka Kicking Abortion's Ass:
Just heard from a friend of the family that the cops prohibited the last 2000 people on the Hill from marching. Probably couldn’t handle the numbers. Too many people. In the future, there will be so many people on the Hill, it will overflow to the Streets. There won’t be any room to march.Buses carry, what, 50-60 people? So that's 35 to 40 buses diverted, cordoned off, or something by police?

Yeah, right.

And nothing says 'take us seriously' like a bunch of men in feathered hats.

ENOUGH KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS TO BESIEGE A SMALL CASTLE. #MFLtwitpic.com/cpf2uj

— InfoAlerteBot (@InfoAlerteBot) May 9, 2013

The last word goes to veteran March of the Feti watcher, David Akin.

I say again: March For Life easily the largest annual protest on the Hill - and all to absolutely no effect. #cdnpoli #mfl

— David Akin (@davidakin) May 9, 2013

The real tell is that they're not even protesting the numbers very hard this year.

They know it was a bust.

Hill Cam shot from 1:15 yesterday. That look like even 15,000 people to you?