John’s right about how we need to fight, and after reading Planned Parenthood Saved Me, all I can think is bring it on. Reading story after story of women for whom Planned Parenthood was a last choice, and who were treated with dignity, compassion and the kind of love that Jesus preached makes me spitting mad. How could we have sunk to such a low point that a national treasure like Planned Parenthood is treated like an outcast and pariah? Why do we even deserve these people? They’ve gotten nothing but a ration of hate, bullets and bombs, and embarrassed and cowardly tolerance from a lot of “moderate Democrats”.
DougJ and SteveM are right that the noise machine is formidable. But at some point people just decide “enough” and there’s really no amount of media noise that can change their minds. Usually that point is when the human damage and pain caused by policies from the right are just too much for the overwhelming majority of Americans to tolerate. In the last couple of years, a number of factors coalesced to connect homophobia with teenage suicide, and while there’s still plenty of hate for the gays by a minority in our society, is there any doubt that efforts like the It Gets Better project and thousands of other efforts have made a lasting change in the way an overwhelming majority looks at homosexuality? When I read Planned Parenthood Saved Me, I feel the same way that I did when watching the first It Gets Better videos. It’s hard to tell if something’s really changed until long after it happens, but I have some cautious hope about attitudes toward Planned Parenthood changing after the Komen incident, and the attention that it brought to Planned Parenthood.
Danny
I think you should clarify exactly who you are talking about there, champ. Don’t take this good, united-in-working-for-a-good-cause vibe we got going in the wrong direction, ok?
The Ancient Randonneur
The waambulance the righties are riding on over this issue has got me so filled with schadenfreude I’m about to OD! But, hey, it ISN’T class warfare when these atavists pick on causes that help out those who can’t afford to call up their personal OB/GYN and make an appointment to get the treatment they need.
Mouse Tolliver
I’m sure everyone will be shocked — SHOCKED! — to learn that Ari Fleicher was secretly involved with Komen’s Planned Parenthood strategy.
MikeJ
Look at what they did to Jesus.
JGabriel
Mouse Tolliver:
The Bush Administration, Tiger Woods, now Komen.
Why would ANYONE hire Ari Fleischer for communications strategy with that kind of record?
I can just imagine what the initial calls to his firm must sound like. “Hi, Ari? Yeah, I just did something bad, and I want the whole world to condemn me, mock me, and hate my guts. Can you help me with that?”
.
Princess
I would love to see a study about how many women have been saved from unwanted pregnancy and thus from having an abortion by the availability of Planned Parenthood. I imagine it would be hard to get good data but I would bet real money that the abortion rate is lower in areas with functioning Planned Parenthood offices.
Princess
Well, facts do have that liberal bias…
Ruckus
I want to reiterate that we are so screwed with our entire health care system, from the insurance, from the piecemeal way the entire system is set up, to the constant political and religious interference, to…
A few examples, not in any particular order.
1. Workers comp ins. If we had proper health care for everyone this would be totally unnecessary.
2. We need organizations like Planned Parenthood or free clinics just to have a modicum of proper healthcare for way too many of us.(50 million!)
3. SGK. We need organizations like these fuckers to fund those in #2. If everyone paid their fair share(proper single payer, tax paid, rich fuckers paying at least what the fucking average taxpayer does) we wouldn’t have assholes like these in the first place, wasting how many of everyone’s millions for their own benefit. Notice, we are paying anyway, but millions don’t get the help they need due to the waste of the process.
Government fucking waste indeed.
Woodrowfan
I remember back in the late 1970s, our fraternity had a woman from PP come talk to use about Birth Control and STDs. A non-nonsense but friendly middle-aged nurse came and gave the frankest, most useful talk on the subject I ever heard in my life. It was far better than what i go in school health class. And my parents, yeah, right. My Dad’s sole advice on going to college was “son, you’ll meet women who want to have sex. You don’t need that.” Gee, thanks Dad.
The PP rep’s talk was about respecting your partner, sex is normal, but there’s no need to rush you or your partner if you’re not ready, and when you both feel you are ready, here’s how you both stay safe and healthy.
Excuse me, time to go make a donation.
Nutella
I am cautiously optimistic, too. Worms are turning in Wisconsin, in Ohio, and even for a minute or two on Andrea Mitchell’s TV show. We’ve got to keep pressing forward on all fronts.
One thing Kate Harding noted about the size of the Komen splash is that the pro-Planned Parenthood folks seemed so loud because media amplified us for once. Journalists “aren’t afraid of losing access to Komen, so they let ‘er rip.”
Jay C
And speaking of “homophobia and teen suicide”…
If you really want a depressing read, check out this piece from Rolling Stone on how far “tolerance” gets one in suburban/rural Minnesota (clue: it’s Michele Bachmann’s former home district).
via Lawyers, Guns & Money
Mnemosyne
@Danny:
Yes, because “embarrassed and cowardly tolerance” is on exactly the same moral level as fucking murdering people.
Go fuck yourself with your “both sides do it!” bullshit.
Firebert
The whole Komen blowup put a huge spotlight on all the life-saving non-abortion things that Planned Parenthood does. That’s probably the best thing to come out of all this.
mistermix
@Mnemosyne: This is not “both sides do it”. It is pointing out that elected Democrats have not fought for Planned Parenthood as hard as they should. Example: only 20-something Democrats in the Senate signed the letter in support of Planned Parenthood. Where were the rest?
Linda
There’s actually a lot of positive we can take away from the events of the last week. One is that thousands spontaneously arose to take PP’s back, and the noise machine can only sputter impotently about it. Another is that said noise machine is trying to create a shitstorm about Obama’s decision to make Catholic institutions provide birth control coverage for their workers. The leadership is crazy over it, but since most Catholic rank and file women use contraceptives, it’s going nowhere in the public mind, even among Catholics.
Also, too, the Solyndra “scandal” was supposed to knock the Obama administration off its pins. The truth is that the right-wing noise machine has lost its ability to create gold out of poop. Fox is fuming about it, but, oh well.
Pongo
I am so hopeful that this Komen issue will be the beginning of a strong coalition of the millions of American women who are legitimately concerned about the barrage of Republican legislation attacking their rights. I think the outrage that mobilized so many to act against Komen so quickly is evidence that women have had enough and sitting back waiting for reason or the legislative process to put an end to the nonsense is just not cutting it any more.
The message to conservatives from American women (via Komen) is get your hands off my daughter, my sister, my mother, my friend. Their breasts do not belong to you, nor do their uteri and plastering all the pink shit in world over your filthy agenda will not hide it from us. Back off or feel our wrath.
We need to send similar unequivocal messages to them about other Americans under attack; Gays, minorities, the poor, union workers, the sick, the uninsured, etc.
Ruckus
@Linda:
Gold out of poop.
Is that like water out of wine? You know where you take all the flavor and alcohol out that someone put in in the first place?
ETA I’m stealing that line BTW. Gold out of poop. Nice presentation.
Arclite
Well spoken, sir.
Ruckus
@Pongo:
We need to send similar unequivocal messages to them about other Americans under attack; Gays, minorities, the poor, union workers, the sick, the uninsured, etc.
IOW, most of us, some of whom fall into more than one category.
Arclite
Oh, and that PP Saved Me tumblr blog is freakin’ awesome.
pseudonymous in nc
@Ruckus: Don’t even forget the number of workplace bake sales and tin-rattles for individual medical bills. Private charity is inherently capricious, even for orgs like Planned Parenthood.
wmd
Planned Parenthood isn’t just for women. They offer care to men and women beyond reproductive health and STD prevention and testing.
I had an extended period without insurance after my COBRA coverage ended. When I was 48 I needed to get a prescription refilled and my previous doctor wouldn’t renew it without an exam that I could not afford. Planned Parenthood gave me an exam, including blood chemistry work (both lipid and liver/kidney function panels) for $5.00. I ended up knowing that my Sodium levels did respond to lower Ibuprofen, my cholesterol was still very good, and my prescription for borderline hypertension was refilled.
Now that I’m working again and my finances are shaping up my local PP clinic will be getting a donation.
Alison
One thing I’d like to suggest to folks, as a way of supporting PP in addition to donating, is to consider volunteering as a clinic escort. I did it when I lived in San Francisco (yes, we did have protestors even there, though generally just the same few old folks who sat across the seat and mumbled prayers for about an hour) and it was a really great experience overall. If you live in a more conservative area, I’d especially encourage you, because it can be so intimidating for patients to walk past that shit when they are already likely feeling vulnerable, scared, unsure, etc…and then they get horrible people screaming at them about being sluts and baby-killers and shit. Having welcoming, warm friendly faces there to meet them and take their hand helps so much…and trust me, even though the protestors will make you enraged, at the end of the day, you’ll feel good knowing you were the one there to be helpful rather than hateful.
It’s such a small commitment too – a few hours, a couple days a month. I was thanked so genuinely and warmly by patients, even in SF where, as I said, it wasn’t exactly Operation Rescue territory (though during the 40 Days For Life it sure got gross). If you have the time, please consider doing it.
Mnemosyne
@mistermix:
When, as Danny did, you say that the two problems facing Planned Parenthood are murder by the right wing and lack of support by moderate Democrats, that’s pretty much your classic “both sides do it.”
I think one of the reasons this blew up so big is that a whole lot of people in the middle genuinely didn’t realize that the right wing is trying to kill Planned Parenthood. Oh, sure, everyone heard about the lone crazies blowing up clinics, or about politicians grandstanding by saying they’re going to cut off funding, but having an ostensibly non-partisan organization like the Komen Foundation withdraw their support made a lot of otherwise apolitical people realize what the real game is.
I think we can capitalize on that from the grassroots, but “both sides do it” games that demoralize people will make those efforts harder.
So I maintain my position that Danny can go fuck himself.
AA+ Bonds
Repost Cole’s post everywhere
AA+ Bonds
It was a joy and a pleasure to read and should be used as the basis for Democratic planning until November
Danny
@mistermix:
Ah, about what I expected then. And I’m sorry man, but this is where I’m getting off your little attempt to ride a Good Thing like it’s a vehicle for your purity trip. Fuck off asshole. This is why we can’t have nice things.
Danny
@Mnemosyne: I’m not sure if this is some kind of 11-dimensional snark or something but fuck you right back, buddy.
Nutella
@Ruckus:
IOW, about 99%
AA+ Bonds
WOW and everyone here just starts doing what Cole told you he was glad to see you stop doing
Bury the hatchet, y’all had a victory
Ruckus
@Mnemosyne:
And another good call here.
Once again trying to be nice, trying to bring in everyone to the tent fails. Some people just are meant to stand in the rain and shout at everyone for no good reason.
Ruckus
@Nutella:
Xactly.
Danny
@AA+ Bonds: Thank, you but no fucking thank you.
Stupid ass counter-productive digs of the sort that our little front pager here can’t help himself from blurting out is how you take newly found strength you didn’t even know you had and using it to drive straight into a wall.
Stupid shit.
Cat Lady
The sneaky lying way SGK pulled this stunt is what has really provoked the anger from the people I know. They have shown their ass, and I think it fits into the whole larger narrative about what the right says v. what they do. SGK’s hypocrisy is just so blatant – they purport to claim some moral authority by exploiting abortion, but have no qualms about stealing the money raised by women who wouldn’t have anything to do with them if they knew what they were up to, which is why they had to be so sneaky about it. It’s really how they showed their ass – it isn’t about abortion and Planned Parenthood, although that’s the ideology, but like everything from the right wing, it’s just another way to grift. It’s about the Benjamins.
mistermix
@Mnemosyne: Ah, I misunderstood your comment. Thanks for the clarification.
gwangung
Personally, I’d call that lack of support from moderate Democrats. But that’s going to change
You’ll still have rabid hate from the right wing, but moderate Democrats won’t (and right now AREN’T) going to sit still and not support.
Gian
@Linda:
on Catholics and the noise machine. I’ll just note that I went to church last sunday.
No letter was read from any bishop about birth control, at the catholic church we went to.
I don’t know how much of an outlier it is, but I’ll bet it wasn’t the only church to forget to read the letter. it’s an odd organization, as they’ve begun to grudgingly accept the notion that condoms are better than AIDS, at least in parts of Africa at the managment level… it only took about 400 years to apologize to Gallileo, so maybe in 200 years they’ll catch up to the 20th century
Pongo
@AA+ Bonds: @Mouse Tolliver: Wasn’t that hysterical? Another example of Komen’s abysmal ‘governance.’ They pay $460,000 a year to a woman who apparently can’t do her own work and needs to pay millions ($140,000,000 according to their 990) for ‘consultants’ and ‘advisers’ and this is what they get? I know condo HOA boards with more PR savvy than this group. Planned Parenthood debacle aside, these people are just not good stewards of donated money.
J.W. Hamner
Just set up to give $15 a month to Planned Parenthood… I’m not a rich man, but that’s an MMO subscription. If I can afford to play SW:TOR I can afford to support PP.
Trakker
I sped a lot of time reading comments left at washingtonpost.com to get a idea of the intensity of feeling about issues. There are a LOT of the worst of the worst who post comments there, blatant bigotry and hate, but also an equal number of liberals who are well informed about the issues.
The Komen decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood resulted in the biggest and angriest outcry I’ve ever seen. The anger directed a Komen was intense, and it was easily 10 to 1 against Komen, possibly higher. The comments were also notable for their eloquence. They just poured in, four or five a minute.
Part of it was due to shock that a highly respected group who claimed to fight a fearsome disease like breast cancer would let politics trump that goal, but I also believe it tapped into the anger and incredulity that is growing as a result of what we’re hearing from the Republicans in their never-ending debates. Making kids take jobs as janitors? Seeing the most wealthy paying just 13% of their income in taxes?
I sense the pendulum has changed directions. The right has donned clown costumes and it’s up to the Democrats to shine a spotlight onto their act. I sense that for the first time in decades a lot of people this fall may be willing to consider liberal ideas.
gwangung
You know, we don’t have to be mean or vindictive about it. Just cold, hard logic. Presented relentlessly. Wham. Wham. Wham.
West of the Cascades
What I’m excited about now is that we have EIGHT MONTHS to plan how to use this during Pink October. I want to figure out how we can bang the Komen Foundation and “For the Cure Month” over the head of the Republican Party leading up to the elections. Do we have anti-Komen protest rallies at the Races for the Cure? Do we organize a “Race for Planned Parenthood”? Do we pour pink paint on the Bank of America building?
One thing that’s become fairly obvious this past week is that the Komen Foundation is the 1% and Planned Parenthood is the 99%, and that – this week – the 99% won. How do we leverage that and the ridiculous excesses Komen is sure to go to in October to try to rebuild their brand? If Planned Parenthood pwned them on the fly this past week, surely over the next eight months we can figure how to build this into a crystal clear message about how important the votes people are casting will be to the health and welfare of the female part of our population.
gene108
@Mnemosyne:
It also has to do with the fact that the poor / middle-class uninsured out number the rich and the hardcore right-wingers.
The number of people, who’ve had to use services like PP greatly outweighs the right-wing nut jobs and their billionaire backers.
I don’t think most Republicans realize the fine line they are walking between protections (kept in place by liberals) they enjoy – easy access to birth control, clean water, air, minimum wage, etc. – and how regressive the far right-wing of their Party is.
gene108
@Trakker:
Helps that the younger generation doesn’t much go for the race baiting tactics that helped Reagan, Nixon and Bush, Sr. get elected.
Thanks to low voter turn out, I really do think Republicans will maintain a disproportionate level control in this country.
The richer more conservative folks just tend to vote as a higher percentage of the population than poor apolitical folks.
ACORN looked to change this, which is why they had to be crushed out of existence.
Cap'n Magic
Under Catholic dogma, we’re all born with ‘Original Sin’-therefore, none of us are fit to enter the Kingdom Of Heaven until that sin is cleared. Yet the act of abortion, before the first breath of life is taken, preempts Original Sin from taking hold. Now that they take the position that the act of feritilization is when life occurs, just pushes the Original Sin further up the chain. Seems strange that by pushing the point of when life begins further up the chain they are insuring that those conceived but never born will be barred from Heaven. What am I missing here? And it isn’t just Catholic dogma which subscribes to this concept if one looks at the various Christian Denominations (save the LDS and a few others.)
Ruthroc
@efgoldman:
if you go research the facts you do find that the abortion rate is not nearly so high as the wingnuts preach – only 3% of the services at planned parenthood are terminations, the other 97% being all that other stuff that assists gals with the health of their lady parts.
Ruthroc
@gene108: Don’t count the moderate voices out, or the dems. but REALLY don’t count out angry women, of which there are a whole lot right now. and we do vote. and we will vote.