My God, Sam Brownback is a moron
"Rape and incest are horrible crimes, but why punish the innocent child?" Yes, an elected public official said that. He's Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, and he's a moron. He said that to Newsweek in response to South Dakota's recently-enacted law banning abortion except when the mother's life is in danger. Many Republicans seem concerned with the law because it lacks provisions for rape and incest. Obviously, Brownback is not.
So let's talk about that innocent child for a moment, Senator Moron. Let's trace the course of his life, shall we? When he's born, his mother looks upon her brand new baby and thinks to herself, "Oh great, now I have a constant reminder of that horrific moment from my past." Which is exactly what he will be to her. She suffers additional psychological damage as a result of having to see him every day and relive that terrible experience. The child, meanwhile, probably gets treated like shit as a result, and he grows up with a single parent who doesn't want him and neglects him. He too suffers psychological damage. Without a guiding force in his life, he probably turns to drugs or alcohol, maybe even crime. Or maybe he simply commits suicide.
Way to protect that innocent child, Senator. And congratulations on achieving official moron status.
So let's talk about that innocent child for a moment, Senator Moron. Let's trace the course of his life, shall we? When he's born, his mother looks upon her brand new baby and thinks to herself, "Oh great, now I have a constant reminder of that horrific moment from my past." Which is exactly what he will be to her. She suffers additional psychological damage as a result of having to see him every day and relive that terrible experience. The child, meanwhile, probably gets treated like shit as a result, and he grows up with a single parent who doesn't want him and neglects him. He too suffers psychological damage. Without a guiding force in his life, he probably turns to drugs or alcohol, maybe even crime. Or maybe he simply commits suicide.
Way to protect that innocent child, Senator. And congratulations on achieving official moron status.
10 Comments:
Well Christian Troy's father raped Christians mother. Look how he turned out. He's a doctor, worth a few million, has(he's said on the show)a 8 inch member, and gets to bang all these awsome women. BUT...he was adopted so that really has nothing to do with your comments...that and its a tv show
To Brownback - and, I might add, to me - it's a choice between psychological torture of the mother and (possibly) the child....or murder of the child. Not an appealing choice. Not a choice I feel comfortable making. One of the few instances where I would probably, upon reflection, agree with pro-choicers and leave it up to the mother. (It's something I'd really want to work through.)
But holy fuck do I ever take issue with calling Brownback a moron for that comment. I'd probably call him a moron for other comments, but not that one. He's perfectly right that it's not the child's fault that her/his mother was raped. To kill the child for that is unfair and I find it reasonable (if not necessarily convincing) to argue that, for that reason, there should not be a rape exception.
The other side, of course, is that it's unfair to force the mother to carry that reminder of such psychological torture for 9 months and (possibly) to see the kid as a constant reminder. So I find it reasonable (if not necessarily convincing) to argue that, for that reason, there SHOULD be a rape exception.
It's a difficult issue, one with emotions at a fever pitch. But coming down on one side of that difficult issue does not make Brownback a moron.
I see your point from the pro-life perspective. My response was, as was likely evident, written in a state of very high anger, which is probably never a state in which a blog post should be written. I can ordinarily discuss abortion with a rational state of mind and an understanding of the underlying nuances of the issue, but when rape is brought into the picture my rationality goes completely out the window.
Suffice to say, Sam Brownback's statement offends me deeply on a very personal level. Hence my declaration that he is a moron. I'm sorry if that bothers you and other pro-lifers who I respect, but I stand by my declaration.
[Trying to post and it didn't work. This is my 2nd attempt. Technology...blech.]
I respect you standing by your declaration. But if we are responding emotionally then, for the sake of provocation, let me respond with something I think Brownback or one of his supporters might say.
-----------------------
Your argument about the pain the child will go through rubs me the wrong way.
Maybe the child will have a terrible childhood. Or maybe the child will still be loved. Maybe the child will be permanently screwed up. Or maybe the child will grow up stronger for having suffered and live a life dedicated to helping others who suffer (without going into details, suffice to say I know such people). We cannot know what his life will be like.
More to the point, even if we did know, that doesn't give anybody the right to kill him. "Kill him in order to save him?" What is this, the Vietnam of the womb?
And - hey - maybe the child will kill himself. But then at least it would have been his choice. We have no goddamn right to make life-or-death decisions for him.
(Or "her"....not like all children are boys.)
----------------
Assuming the role of "Ben" again.
The above response articulates my initial emotional response to your post. In my more reasoning moments, of course, I realize this is only part of the argument. Everything you said about what the mother goes through is true. And Brownback does not appear to show any compassion for the mother in that statement. She, too, is an innocent victim here.
If - as Matt Novak speculates in his latest blog post - technology will one day develop where the fetus can be viable outside the womb from Day 1, I would fully support that as a way to end the mother's torture and prevent the child's death.
In the meantime, I repeat, the issue is difficult. Treating only one side of the issue in a state of high emotion does NOT make one a moron. But it does mean one should stop, take a breath, see the other side, and clearly articulate one's own stand in a defensible manner.
(Note: I'm just as guilty in this respect as anyone. Only recently when I've been called a "terrorist sympathizer" by Republicans and an "anti-choice sexist" by Democrats have I begin to taste my own medicine in that respect.)
you can't abort a child of incest...that's your brother in your uterus, young lady!
Yeah, maybe I shouldn't have written that post. Have I mentioned that, inasmuch as I have thought about the issue, I actually do agree with pro-choicers on this sub-set of the abortion debate? Actually, most pro-lifers agree with pro-choicers on this sub-set of the abortion debate.
I just really took issue with Mike calling Brownback a moron for that comment. But yeah, Meredith's on the right track. Time to lighten up the tension. So....a joke.
Q: How many UNC students does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
A: HA, HA! UNC LOST TO GEORGE MASON! DUKE'S BETTER THAN YOU IN EVERY WAY PUNKS!
Q: Why did the UNC student cross the road.
A: GEORGE MASON! YOU LOST TO GEORGE MASON FOR CRYING OUT LOUD. I'M NOT EVEN SURE WHO GEORGE MASON IS, BUT HE'S NO COACH K, THAT'S FOR SURE.
Q: What's black and white and red all over?
A: WHO CARES? UNC LOST. No, wait.....the answer is newspapers. Specifically, the college newspapers all over the state which announced that UNC LOST!
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Um, yeah, I picked the Bucking Flue Devils to be gone by now, and UNC to win it all. So that too arouses emotion.
To be honest, I'm not really sure why I ended up focusing on the child when my concerns really lay with the mother. As I've never met an aborted fetus, whereas I have met women who've been raped, you can guess where my sympathy lies.
It's probably more accurate to point out that Senator Brownback has rubbed me the wrong way for a long time, and this was just the straw that broke the camel's back. The remark strikes me as incredibly callous and insensitive. Which is probably accurate.
But getting back to Duke and how much they suck. I can't believe the most devout Christian I know is actually rooting for the devils. They're evil! And blue! And they come from Durham, where it's impossible to find a place to eat after 5 on a Sunday!
Dude, Durham is a place where it's impossible to find a place to eat after 9 on a weekday. Durham sucks.
Except when it doesn't I love Fowler's.
George Mason, for those of you who don't know, is down the street from Mike's and my high school. Literally. It's on the same street.
I would make more fun of UNC losing, but NCSU checked out in the same round. Granted, it was to Texas, and not to George Mason, but still.
Raleigh's open a little later. I think 10.
Post a Comment
<< Home