(no subject)

[dreamer_easy]

So. Infant mortality. I'm sure I sound naive and sanctimonious and middle-class and White in my surprise and anger. Not being directly, personally affected by it, you read all these statistics about the results of racism, about mortgages and glass ceilings and whatever, and it all seems so abstract; and then one figure smacks you between the eyes like a shovel. Piles of dead babies tend to have that effect. That's what racism is, what sexism is, what war is, what it always has been. The most vulnerable human beings, like miner's canaries, tumbled into mass graves, dead of greed.

*takes a deep breath*

Meanwhile in Australia:

Forced to live in hunger: a study of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory (infant mortality: 16.7) finds they can't afford to eat healthily - or sometimes at all. Researchers suggest short-term help (eg fruit and vegetable hampers) but also long-term change. Lemme see if I can find the full report online.

Comments

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

I said nothing about "tactics to prevent women from obtaining abortions."

That's correct - you mentioned the exact opposite: "abortion on demand".

[jblum.livejournal.com]

...I think you might need to clarify for David why the assumptions underpinning his phrase lead to yours. It makes sense to _me_, but he hasn't had this discussion already!

[thegameiam.livejournal.com]

Last I checked, that is actually the desired outcome of most of the US pro-choice groups. I have yet to see one of the major, well known ones accept any limitation on abortion rights without fighting it.

In many places in the US, a minor can get an abortion without parental consent, but cannot get a cavity filled without it. That is quite a strong position to advocate, and I believe that "abortion on demand" does reasonably and fairly characterize it.

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

I don't have a problem with the terminology.

Under what circumstances do you think abortion should be permitted?

[thegameiam.livejournal.com]

I don't know, and thank God, I don't make policy. I however do think that the answer lies somewhere between "never" and "always" - those two are such appalling approaches to life that my spirit recoils in horror.

The minor thing I mentioned above is a good example of how abortion gets treated qualitatively different from all other medicine. This to me seems like a problem.

I think that a big problem is that a medical procedure has gotten tangled up with "rights" and that makes for crummy policy all around.

Aside: you might be interested to know that Orthodox Judaism is the only major religion which views abortion as religiously required under certain circumstances. (In general, it tends to be forbidden unless it's obligatory, and this is handled case-by-case).