Common Sense

I’m not entirely clear on how Sen. Dan Patrick’s bill requiring ultrasounds before a woman can get an abortion isn’t unconstitutional.

I’m no constitutional scholar, but when it comes to abortion rights and the Supreme Court, I’ve read up a little. Although, Roe hasn’t been overturned, the prevailing thought is that any restriction on abortion is fine, as long as there is no “undue burden” placed on the woman, thus depriving her of her right. The recent ban on partial-birth abortion that was upheld by SCOTUS might signal a change in that thinking, but it hasn’t been changed yet.

It was Justice O’Connor who crafted that “undue burden” provision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey. She is now gone and a much more hostile justice, Samuel Alito, has taken her place. I’m sure if the High Court were to hear arguments on Sen. Patrick’s bill, they would favor it.

I guess that’s how we lose rights in this country. The Supreme Court rules that a woman has an absolute right to have an abortion. Then, within 30 years, people slowly start to chip away and hollow out that right. They put restrictions on that right and make it an impossibility to access that right. Finally, a justice like Justice Kennedy pens one of the most laughable decisions in the Court’s history by upholding a ban. Because a woman “might regret” getting a procedure like a “partial-birth abortion,” then all women must not have to right to get the procedure done. I don’t want to sound sexist, but show me a woman that doesn’t regret anything and I’ll show you a woman with a penis. Women regret eating double cheeseburgers, but we don’t ban them. Women regret getting breast implants, but we certainly don’t ban those.

Either you have the right to choose, or you don’t. There isn’t a halfway point to meet at when it comes to things like this. If any of the justices think that that there is no right to an abortion, they should grow a pair and say so explicitly and women can go back to illegal abortions.

That’s the other point about this. It’s going to happen regardless of what the nutjobs on the right think. Banning it doesn’t make it go away, it just moves it underground and makes it less safe. They are even more naive and foolish than I think if any of them actually believe overturning Roe will actually save any fetus.

I’m not entirely clear on how Sen. Dan Patrick’s bill requiring ultrasounds before a woman can get an abortion isn’t unconstitutional.

I’m no constitutional scholar, but when it comes to abortion rights and the Supreme Court, I’ve read up a little. Although, Roe hasn’t been overturned, the prevailing thought is that any restriction on abortion is fine, as long as there is no “undue burden” placed on the woman, thus depriving her of her right. The recent ban on partial-birth abortion that was upheld by SCOTUS might signal a change in that thinking, but it hasn’t been changed yet.

It was Justice O’Connor who crafted that “undue burden” provision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey. She is now gone and a much more hostile justice, Samuel Alito, has taken her place. I’m sure if the High Court were to hear arguments on Sen. Patrick’s bill, they would favor it.

I guess that’s how we lose rights in this country. The Supreme Court rules that a woman has an absolute right to have an abortion. Then, within 30 years, people slowly start to chip away and hollow out that right. They put restrictions on that right and make it an impossibility to access that right. Finally, a justice like Justice Kennedy pens one of the most laughable decisions in the Court’s history by upholding a ban. Because a woman “might regret” getting a procedure like a “partial-birth abortion,” then all women must not have to right to get the procedure done. I don’t want to sound sexist, but show me a woman that doesn’t regret anything and I’ll show you a woman with a penis. Women regret eating double cheeseburgers, but we don’t ban them. Women regret getting breast implants, but we certainly don’t ban those.

Either you have the right to choose, or you don’t. There isn’t a halfway point to meet at when it comes to things like this. If any of the justices think that that there is no right to an abortion, they should grow a pair and say so explicitly and women can go back to illegal abortions.

That’s the other point about this. It’s going to happen regardless of what the nutjobs on the right think. Banning it doesn’t make it go away, it just moves it underground and makes it less safe. They are even more naive and foolish than I think if any of them actually believe overturning Roe will actually save any fetus.