The Clever Moralist

For anyone who hasn't seen it:

http://www.slate.com/id/2206042/

The article discusses efforts by opponents of abortion to strengthen their position through the proposal and passage of various laws and regulations designed to make it more difficult to obtain abortions.

I marvel at how said opponents attempt to disguise these efforts as helpful or appropriate measures when in fact they are nothing more than sneaky stabs at circumventing federal law.

I'm sure that you've seen discussions of South Dakota's law before- the one requiring medical personnel to read a script to any woman desiring to get an abortion. Nevermind that information contained in the script is at best debatable and at worst utterly fraudulent. Nevermind that it purposefully ignore exisitng language and definitions in favor of terms less clearly defined.

That was bad enough.

Now add to it a proposed law allowed medical professionals to refuse service on ground of moral objection. If provision of a service countermands one's own moral beliefs, one may refuse said service to a prospective patient...REALLY?? Is THAT what we've come to? Pro-lifers are content to undo the very principles of the Hippocratic Oath to impose their will on the masses- a will that has already been addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Anti-abortionist, meet Slippery Slope. What happens with a child molester arrives at an ER for treatment? Or a death row inmate? Or a Neo-Nazi? Or a Satanist? You'll no doubt argue that it the procedure, not the patient, which the medical professional must find objectionable in order to refuse service. But surely you're not so naive that you can't see where this is going.

Absurd.

All of this comes on the heels of a controversy over gift certificates issued by Planned Parenthood. Gift certificates that may be used for any of the health services the organization provides.

Opponents immediately identified the certificates as "lethal", calling them "gift certificates for abortion". Nice.

How are these any different than a gift certificate to a grocery store? I could use THAT to buy cigarettes or alcohol and damage my body!

What's that? Cigarettes and alcohol aren't morally objectionable or illegal?

Abortion isn't illegal either my friends. Despite your efforts to the contrary. Accept it. As for the moral objection, that is subjective- I could no doubt find plenty of folks who find the purchase of tobacco or booze equally impermissable.

The world is full of people who disagree with you. Your outrage is neither justifiable nor acceptable. And attempts to undo existing law go against the very basics of what the country stands for.