A Mid-February Update

I know, I know, it's been a while since our last update. It's not a good excuse, but remember that whole DC "Snowpocalypse" thing? Yeah. It was that bad, and it set me back a bit, so apologies for the lack of blog posts. Before we get back to the regularly scheduled blogging, I wanted to give you an update of what's been going on in the world of choice-related news. I hope this is helpful.

So-Called "Personhood" Measures are the New Abortion Ban: Mississippi and Colorado - get ready to fight because anti-choice opponents set their sights on outlawing abortion in your states. Late last week and early this week, anti-choicers put the wheels in motion to get anti-choice "personhood" measures on the ballot. In Mississippi, the Associated Press reported:

Personhood Mississippi, led by Les Riely of Pontotoc, delivered petitions with signatures of 105,167 people on Tuesday. The group's goal is to extend rights to fetuses and stop abortion in Mississippi. Similar efforts have been under way in several other states, including Colorado, Florida, Montana and Nevada.

In Colorado, the Denver Post noted:

So-called "Christian soldiers" announced Friday that they have handed in the thousands of signatures needed to place the Personhood Colorado amendment on the 2010 ballot. But proponents of the anti-abortion measure fell well short of the 131,000 signatures submitted for a similar amendment in 2008. This year they will be handing in only 79,817 signatures, just 3,770 more than then 76,047 valid signatures needed for the Secretary of State's office to certify the initiative for the ballot.

Thankfully, our colleagues at NARAL Pro-Choice Colorado are working hard to defeat this extreme measure in their state, just as they did in 2008.

R.E.S.P.E.C.T: An independent Pentagon panel's decision to ensure military women have access to EC at military health facilities received excellent coverage in The New York Times this weekend. The "Gray Lady" even called for an end to the anti-choice policy that prohibits servicewomen's access to abortion, even when they use their own money:

Next, Pentagon officials and members of Congress need to address the callous treatment of servicewomen with regard to abortion. Under current rules, military doctors may perform abortions only in cases of rape, incest or when the women's lives are endangered. And even in cases of rape and incest, the women must pay. It is outrageous that politics is allowed to interfere with the health care decisions of women who wear the nation's uniform.

It's a must read, and a must share.

Things May Go South for Some Women in North Carolina: This week, we learned that county employees of Wake County, North Carolina, might lose abortion care from their insurance policy. NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina calls this move "a slap in the face to every female employee" and is standing up to this attack on choice at the local level.

Because Crazy Talk Never Goes Out of Style: All this unexpected snow in Washington, D.C. must have sent crazy dust across the country. This week, we had not one, not two, but three extreme examples of crazy-talk from anti-choicers. Let's file these under ARE YOU KIDDING US WITH THIS?

Via Hotline's Wake-Up Call, courtesy of the Associated Press:

A Tea Party organizer in eastern WA who told a crowd that she'd like to "hang" Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) says her remark "was taken out of context," and that she meant she'd like to "hang Patty Murray, by vote."

Uhhh, WHAT? Statements like that have no place in the political dialog and, in fact, are downright scary.

The New York Times' Caucus Blog reported on a speaker, Jason Mattera, who bashed President Obama at the infamous Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). That alone doesn't surprise anyone, but highly-insensitive remarks like the one below gave cause for a double take (or read, rather):

He then mocked what he described, with a Chris Rock voice, as "diversity," including, he said, college classes on "cyber feminism" and "what it means to be a feminist new black man." Describing the latter, he said: "Think of a crossover between RuPaul and Barney Frank."

REALLY, Mr. Mattera? Really?

Finally, Ken Blackwell - senior fellow at the Family Research Council, visiting professor at Liberty University School of Law, and chairman of Ohio Faith and Freedom Coalition - was at it again this week, this time attacking Dawn Johnsen, President Obama's nominee for a top job at the Justice Department:

If Mr. Obama is serious about civility he needs to withdraw Dawn Johnsen's nomination. If she is confirmed, we will see a radical anti-Catholic, pro-abortion zealot influencing policy th[r]oughout the Justice Department--but also policy throughout the entire federal government.

Riiiiiiiiiight. Ironic that Ken Blackwell is calling someone other than himself a radical and a zealot.

The Problem with Pro-Choice Men?: Nope, that isn't a set-up to a lame joke, but rather the subject and headline of an article that ran in the Daily Beast.

Pro-choice activists argue that there's more to the issue than one poll, however. Ted Miller, Communications Director at NARAL Pro-Choice America, points to South Dakota. When a legislative ban on abortions was defeated in 2006, anti-abortion activists claimed that a similar bill, with exceptions for rape and incest, would pass in the next legislative cycle. In 2008, the bill, now with exceptions, was handily defeated again, and both pre- and post-polling showed men and women equally against it.

... Miller says that NARAL's ongoing research project among young voters has found that of those who "were supportive of a woman's right to choose... almost all the young men talked about women in their lives who had gone through the experience of choosing abortion."

We thought it was an interesting piece, and would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Finally, we'd like to offer pro-choice Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) our best wishes for a speedy recovery following his diagnosis of stomach lymphoma. The entire staff of NARAL Pro-Choice America will keep you and your family in our thoughts and prayers.