Women won't be able to maintain control of their own reproductive systems, not to mention their lives, much longer if the Republicans keep at it. They have been proceeding at a rapid pace since the election, and doing everything they can think of to impose their anti-choice bias.
I'm not talking about overturning Roe v. Wade. As many others have already pointed out, this is not in the Republican's best interest as they know that a majority of Americans supports a woman's right to choose. What has caught my eye is the increasing number of times this issue has been in the news recently: the fuss from the fundangellicals about Specter and the Judicial Committee, the insistence for the FDA to re-examine its approval of RU-486, the rider attached to the 2005 spending bill that allows hopsitals to refuse to comply with federal and state laws pertaining to abortion, the refusal of pharmacists to fill prescriptions for birth control... the list keeps growing.
First, the big to-do over Specter's comments that an anti-choice nominee to the Supreme Court would have difficulty making it through the confirmation process (and rightly so):
That ol' leftie, Arlen Specter. Did the conservative right stop to look at his record and notice that Specter has not turned down a single Bush judicial nominee? No, of course not- they would prefer a "moderate" be chairman on the judicial committee, when in fact Specter's dug himself into a hole and will have to rubber stamp any Thomas or Scalia that Bush chooses to nominate.
The FDA has recently changed the labelling of mifepristone, formerly known as RU-486, to more seriously emphasize the risks associated with taking the pill. This change was put into motion to highlight the critical complications that can occur with ectopic pregnancies, so that patients would know to seek medical assistance in case of severe abdominal pain. That's not enough for the right-wingers, though. They want to completely remove it from the market: Anti-Reproductive Rights Legislators Seek to Suspend Availability of Mifepristone
Then there's the budget: Negotiators Add Abortion Clause to Spending Bill. Republicans insisted that the measure, which would "allow hospitals and health care providers to opt out of state and local laws that require them to provide abortions, abortion counseling or referrals," be included. As far as I can tell, only 8 senators- all women, almost all Democrats (Olympia Snowe once again being the exception)- have made any sort of stand against the provision.
Some people from dailyKos were discussing the issue of pharmacists and their "moral values" the other day on an open thread, but I think it's an issue that deserves more attention. US Pharmacists Spark Debate By Refusing to Dispense Contraceptives According to the lnked text, Mississippi, South Dakota and Arkansas all have laws guaranteeing a pharmacist's right to refuse to dispense medicines on moral grounds. Do you think they refuse to fill prescriptions for Viagra, because they're morally against old men having sex against the will of nature? I'm sure they don't, the hypocrites!
What's next?!?!
(Personal note- this is my first diary, and I'd appreciate any feedback people might have. Thanks!)