Every so often, someone writes a sentence so profound, so dissonant, and so unique, it deserves to be heard, often, and discussed.
The title of this diary is one of them.
First, I can’t take credit for that great line. It belongs to Lindy West, a writer of feminism and popular culture for the New York Times, and you can see it (and the entire column) at the New York Times.
By now, you’re wondering why I have linked hyenas, vacuum cleaners, and the pH scale (unless you can’t see the image), and why I didn’t put the title of the story in the previous paragraph. Probably because some of you are ready to accuse me of starting a pie fight. Well, maybe I am, but it’s a beautiful pie; the best pie, the … wait, wrong meme.
I’ll start with the title of the opinion piece: “Of Course Abortion Should Be a Litmus Test for Democrats”. Yeah, we’re going there. If you have zero interest in this topic, you should (a) stop reading, and (b) ask yourself why you vote Democratic.
After a few paragraphs about statements by Ben Ray Luján (chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee) and Senator Bernie Sanders about building a broader coalition of candidates for Democrats to take the House in 2018. Now, electing more and better Democrats is a goal of this site. The question is, which comes first? I’ve wavered on this, so I won’t be a strong advocate for either side here. Ms. West, however, falls clearly on the side of better:
I relate to the flailing panic that is no doubt undergirding (sic) such a morally putrescent idea. Nineteen hyenas and a broken vacuum cleaner control the White House, and ice is becoming extinct. I get it. I am desperate and afraid as well. I am prepared to make leviathan compromises to pull us back from that brink. But there is no recognizable version of the Democratic Party that does not fight unequivocally against half its constituents' being stripped of ownership of their own bodies and lives. This issue represents everything Democrats purport to stand for.
As she explains later, it’s not “just” about saving the earth (yeah, “just”; it’s the old “love, water, or Europe” discussion).
It's true that the left will have to choose (and soon) between absolute ideological purity and the huge numbers required to seize the rudder of the nation and avert global catastrophe. But abortion is not valid fodder for such compromise, nor is racism, nor is L.G.B.T.Q. equality, nor is any issue that puts people's fundamental humanity up for debate. Abortion is not a fringe issue. Abortion is liberty.
Think of that last sentence: “Abortion is liberty.” Wow. She makes a point. As we have felt with the misogynistic outlook in the Administration, and with some of the popular culture warning us of potential consequence with shows like The Handmaid’s Tale, it resonates. Nothing is a greater threat to male “superiority” than a woman with a choice to marry, to work, or to do both; to have children or to not.
She writes that the issue of abortion brings out some voters, but they tend to be Republican, not Democratic. And she points out that, in terms of this issue, there isn’t a middle ground, and there should not be:
There has never been a more opportune moment for the Democratic Party to demand compromise — not from the left but from the center. What are anti-choice Democrats going to do? Become Republicans? Now? Jump into the abattoir of clown meat whose top policy priority seems to be "poor people deserve to die of preventable diseases"?
Come on, Democrats. Be something. Unite and move left. The center will follow or lose.
I suppose I could have used “Jump into the abattoir of clown meat...” for a title, but hey, I still want to know which one is the vacuum cleaner. And even if they did become Republicans, the GOP would become slightly better because not so many lunatics would be controlling that party.
I recommend the article. I also recommend bookmarking the article, saving it as a PDF, and whenever a candidate comes out as being “anti-abortion” (because there’s nothing the GOP does that’s remotely Pro-Life) and asks Democrats for their vote, send them this article from Ms. West, and ask them how they justify their stance.
I welcome discussion from everyone, especially those in heavily red areas. Maybe we’re barking up the wrong tree, and we should just let men determine the fates of their wives and daughters, but I really can’t believe that to be true.
NOTE: I can’t hang around much for comments, as something has come up here. I will check in tonight.
Thursday, Aug 3, 2017 · 3:16:06 PM +00:00
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MikeTheLiberal
What?! Rescued to Recommended list? Who the heck did that? And no, I didn’t pay anyone to be on the Rec list. :)
This is my first diary to hit the Rec List without the word BREAKING in the title. Thank you everyone. There are several excellent comments in here, and it does highlight how some of us are in parts of the country where they need more before better.