Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

In after Baud. Damn.

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

Second rate reporter says what?

This has so much WTF written all over it that it is hard to comprehend.

“What are Republicans afraid of?” Everything.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

I didn’t have alien invasion on my 2023 BINGO card.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

Trump’s legal defense is going to be a dumpster fire inside a clown car on a derailing train.

Today’s GOP: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

Innocent people don’t delay justice.

Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

“Squeaker” McCarthy

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

… among the most cringeworthy communications in the history of the alphabet!

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Reader Interactions

132Comments

  3. 3.

    Roger Moore

    The whole conflation of embryo, fetus, and child is infuriating. They’re deliberately calling a small bundle of cells a child as an emotional appeal, even as they ignore the effects of their policies on women and their actual, living, post-delivery children.

  5. 5.

    MisterForkbeard

    Ouch. That’s… well, Erick Son Of Erick doesn’t have any shame to begin with, but on a normal human being this would hurt. :)

  7. 7.

    chopper

    As I’ve been saying…

    maybe, erick son of erick, the reason you feel compelled to keep saying this horseshit over and over is because nobody gives enough of a fuck to listen.

  8. 8.

    Ramalama

    I once gave a relative of mine the Atrios question: if a house was on fire and you had a test tube fetus in one room and a 2 year old in the other, and could only save one, who would you save?

    It did not go well.

    This line of argument always makes me feel a bit like Battlestar Galactica: “I favor the babies who made it!”

  12. 12.

    misterpuff

    Erect Son of Erect seems sadly misinformed about my secular religion – the only sacrament is spaghetti sauce.
    UMM UMM luv me some FSM in marinara.
    Oh, and sprinkled with grated cheese.

    Mr. Cole Please proceed.
    The Trump Years will be a target rich environment!

  13. 13.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    These assholes don’t give two shits about the (potential, to folks who accept actual science) babies once they cross the cervical Rubicon. Until they can tote an M-16. Fuck them and their theocratic views. The g*d I believe in recognizes science.

  15. 15.

    gene108

    @Roger Moore:

    The whole conflation of embryo, fetus, and child is infuriating. They’re deliberately calling a small bundle of cells a child as an emotional appeal, even as they ignore the effects of their policies on women and their actual, living, post-delivery children.

    They actually ignore the effects of their policies on pregnant women, who are carrying the all precious unborn. The closing of so many familiy planning clinics reduces pre-natal care for many women.

  16. 16.

    RSA

    I honestly felt sorry for Erick Erickson when he and his wife fell ill:

    I’ve learned God sometimes has a way of forcing us to reassess our priorities. An unexpected week in the hospital trying not to die reminded me sometimes I need to slow down. And this is just a reminder to me of how precious my family is and my wife is my everything. I feel like we’ve been living the Book of Job these last few months and I’d rather be with my wife than with the horde in Cleveland.

    I guess some people learn empathy when they’re unexpectedly put in unfortunate circumstances–and others don’t.

  17. 17.

    Baud

    Trump spoke the truth when he says they would punish the woman.

    (I expect to rarely get a chance to say those first four words. )

  18. 18.

    Mnemosyne

    As I’ve mentioned before, one of my cousins is a moron who voted to take healthcare away from her own existing children because she was so worried about strangers being allowed to get abortions.

    When her sons can’t get health insurance at any price because of their dad’s pre-existing MS, she gets zero sympathy from me.

  19. 19.

    Schlemazel

    @misterpuff:
    Erect? Hardly, he is a limp dick.. “Erik” is rooted in the Swedish word for ‘alone’. He is alone because he is a limp dick.

    Personally I would name him ‘Goebbelson’

  20. 20.

    Villago Delenda Est

    You should be proud, John. You actually have your head on straight, most of the time, which cannot be said for Fuck Fuckerson.

  23. 23.

    Paul in KY

    @Ramalama: That dip actually hemmed & hawed over that one?!?! What a whackjob you had there.

    I’d like a bumpersticker that says: “I’m with the Postborn, You Dips”

  25. 25.

    weaselone

    @Roger Moore:

    It goes beyond that. They don’t even support policies like prenatal care that actually help the bundle of cells they profess to care so much about. It’s all about it being carried to term, they largely don’t give a crap about the ultimate state at birth.

  26. 26.

    Elizabeeth Lane

    Ol’ Scott DesJarlais (Republican, TN 4th) ran as pro-life but arranged abortions for his wife and mistress. The story became public and Rutherford County, Tennessee, didn’t give a damn. Back in 1971, the Southern Baptist Convention passed a very liberal abortion resolution. There is no consistency among abortion opponents, and I wonder what is really behind the kind of faux indignation,

  28. 28.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @gene108: This is the part that baffles me. Oh, wait, it does not. Sluts must be punished, fuck the unborn. Planned Parenthood’s prenatal care is forgotten in the rush to PUNISH THE SLUTS.

  29. 29.

    Baud

    @Ramalama:

    if a house was on fire and you had a test tube fetus in one room and a 2 year old in the other, and could only save one, who would you save?

    Neither. My secular religion prohibits it.

  31. 31.

    SiubhanDuinne

    That’s so awesome, John.

    And, I’m speakin’ truth here, I don’t know anybody else who could, simultaneously, completely refurbish a house with one hand and completely destroy a twitterpated moron with the other.

  33. 33.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Ramalama: I thought that was Al Franken’s line, but I remembered it as a two year old in one room, and refrigerator full of fertilized eggs

  34. 34.

    JPL

    There’s a reason that abortion rates falls under Democratic presidents, and rise under Republicans.

  36. 36.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Chris: In Bullet the Blue Sky on Rattle and Hum:

    well the g*d I believe in isn’t short of cash, mister.

    Thanks for catching the allusion; I almost added “apologies to Bono.”

  38. 38.

    randy khan

    For people coming to the Women’s March on Washington on Saturday, some important stuff on what you can bring to the march from the FAQ. (I’ve linked the whole FAQ below.)

    Key points: (1) No bags bigger than 8″x6″x4″ *except* that you can have a gallon plastic bag for food and a transparent backpack up to 17″x12″x6″; and (2) Flags, posters, and signs are okay, but no wooden poles will be allowed. (Cardboard tube sign posts are okay.)

    Not on the FAQ, but important: The current forecast calls for temps in the 50s to about 60, withs some clouds. (Much nicer than the forecast for Inauguration Day.)

    From the FAQ:

    Q: Can I bring my backpack/bag to the march?

    All backpacks and bags may be subject to search at the March, and those not conforming to the standards set here may be confiscated or asked to be left behind. Backpacks are not permitted unless they are clear and no larger than 17″x12″x6″ (colored transparent bags are not permitted).
    Bags/totes/purses for small personal items should be no larger than 8”x6”x4”.

    Specifically for people who would like to bring meals, each marcher is permitted one additional 12”x12”x6” plastic or gallon bag.

    For marchers who have medical needs or for mothers who need baby bags or breast pumps, please ensure that your supplies fit into the above clear backpack. You can have one backpack per individual in your group, as long as they abide by the above guidelines.

    If you are a member of the press, covering the event officially, and have equipment that will not fit into bags of the above dimensions: please contact the National Communications Team to get press credentials in advance in order for your equipment to be allowed into the rally site.

    If you require disability accommodations or related equipment, that will not fit into the above bags, please enter via the ADA Accessible route: 4th St. SW from C St. to Independence Ave. For anyone using Metro, please get off at Federal Center SW and use 4th St. to enter the rally area.

    Canes, walking sticks, walkers, and portable seats are allowed for individuals who require them for mobility and accessibility on a regular basis.

    Do not bring anything that can be construed as a weapon, including signage with any kind of handle (e.g. a sharpened wooden stick). We recommend also checking with your bus company if your bus will be secured during the march and if you can leave larger belongings in the bus, rather than carrying them all day.

    This is the policy of the Women’s March team of organizers, security, and logistics. We ask all marchers to please cooperate with these policies and guidelines in order to ensure that this event is safe and comfortable for all attendees. We understand the environmental implications of using plastic bags and backpacks, but in this case, we believe the safety and security of the hundreds of thousands of marchers supersedes other concerns.

    Q: Can we bring flags and banners?

    A: Flags are allowed, but not on a pole. Posters and signs are allowed, but not with the use of wooden sign posts. Instead, we encourage people to use cardboard sign posts.

    Just the FAQ

  40. 40.

    Eljai

    Was it Gloria Steinem who said “If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament”? I can’t remember, but I’m certain it’d be true, especially of republican men.

  41. 41.

    Yoda Dog Democrat

    At his wittle blog they’ll kick you out merely for taking a liberal position. Its in his rules… No swearing, no trolling required, merely advocate for a higher minimum wage or a woman’s right to choose and they’ll punt you out, no warnings or questions asked..

    Because they’re scared. Because he’s nothing but a FUCKING COWARD just like the rest of the rotten bunch of losers.

  42. 42.

    weaselone

    It’s also just plain fucking stupid. It’s not as though liberals are picketing hospitals with birthing units, screaming at every woman that passes to get abortions and calling them vile names. Liberals also aren’t the only group getting abortions and we are the group that’s interested in policies that reduce the number and need for abortions either by preventing pregnancy or by providing economically stressed families the support they need to make a different choice.

  43. 43.

    Feathers

    If you’re in the mood to be skeeved and pissed off The Scary Truth About Childbirth. Goes deep into the disregard for the health and safety of the mother during childbirth. We don’t even bother to track childbirth injuries, there aren’t codes for them in medical charts, and they often don’t show up by the six week “mother’s check up.” In fact, gynecologists don’t even check for them during that visit. Women aren’t told about the risks and when troubles show up later are told, what did you expect, having a baby fucks up your body.

    I knew some of this, that the metrics of successful childbirth entirely measure the baby’s wellbeing, often at the expense of the mother’s health. Women deserve real, actual healthcare devoted to making sure they are actually healthy.

  44. 44.

    Ruckus

    @chopper:
    No, the reason half wit keeps saying crap like this is that he’s trying to brain wash himself into believing it. No on knows why he’d does it, maybe a bad acid trip, maybe a brain transplant gone wrong, maybe he’s just an ignorant fuck…….. But the bottom line is that he thinks that if he says it often enough and loud enough, it will become true. So I’m going with just an ignorant fuck.

  45. 45.

    Feathers

    @randy khan: Sigh. I don’t think I own a purse that small. I always carry a book and 90% of the time knitting as well. I’m going to Boston. And not with a small purse bunch of ladies.

  47. 47.

    Major Major Major Major

    Remember, these are the people who thought the abortionplex was real. They think liberals have them recreationally. Since everything about them is projection I shudder to think what’s going on with this particular issue.

  49. 49.

    Another Scott

    @gene108: Abortion politics is all about politics – nothing more – and always has been. Jill LePore at the New Yorker (from 2011) is great and well worth a read (or re-read):

    In the late nineteen-seventies, the Republican strategists Richard Viguerie and Paul Weyrich, both of whom were Catholic, recruited Jerry Falwell into a coalition designed to bring together economic and social conservatives around a “pro-family” agenda, one that targeted gay rights, sexual freedom, women’s liberation, the E.R.A., child care, and sex education. Weyrich said that abortion ought to be “the keystone of their organizing strategy, since this was the issue that could divide the Democratic Party.” Falwell founded the Moral Majority in 1979; Paul Brown, the founder of the American Life League, scoffed in 1982, “Jerry Falwell couldn’t spell ‘abortion’ five years ago.”

    […]

    Nothing even remotely resembling party discipline on the issue of abortion can be identified on Capitol Hill before 1979, as the political scientist Greg Adams demonstrated in a study of congressional voting patterns. And a partisan divide over this issue only split the country a decade after it showed up in Congress. Adams reported that, among voters, “Republicans were more pro-choice than Democrats up until the late 1980s.”

    I’m not sure how we cut the knot that ties single-issue “pro-life” Republican voters to the cynical monsters of the GOP, but we should continue to try. Calling out monsters like Erickson is certainly part of the fight. Well done, John.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  53. 53.

    Ramalama

    @Paul in KY:

    That dip actually hemmed & hawed over that one?!?!

    No hemming, no hawing. Just a weird & really emotional response that made no sense. I can’t even pretend what she said.

  56. 56.

    chris

    Well played, John Cole! Whether we see it or not, that’s gonna leave a mark.

    This is the part where I smugly wonder how we in Canada have been able to cope for the last 29 years with no abortion law at all. There are still a few busybodies, mostly male of course, but for some reason they never seem to get any traction. It’s almost as if the women and their doctors are able to proceed without good orderly direction. A mystery, to be sure.

  59. 59.

    Skerry

    Trump told the Times of London that he considers Monday, 23 Jan to be “day one” of his presidency. Doesn’t want celebrating to get mixed up with “signing orders”.

  60. 60.

    Ramalama

    @Major Major Major Major: Well, with the aforementioned relative, I don’t want to mess with her. We’ll bring up contentious stuff every 30th time we get together, and kind of on our back heels. Also, aforementioned relative is horrifiedthat Trump’s president. For what that’s worth.

  61. 61.

    H.E.Wolf

    @Eljai:
    Florynce “Flo” Kennedy (1916-2000), an African-American feminist, activist, and lawyer, is the woman most often credited with the quote “If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament.” She was one of the contributors to the anthology Sisterhood is Powerful; and she had a way with words in general. Google “Florynce Kennedy quotes” and enjoy.

  63. 63.

    hovercraft

    Good one Cole, I like a few others felt bad for him and his family, but apparently, he hasn’t gained any empathy from his own situation.

    @JPL:
    Because “life” is not the issue they really care about. They want to control women, if they can control your womb, they control you. Making sure that you are “punished” for your promiscuity is supposed to deter you from having sex, except when it’s with them. If you do get knocked up, then they can either keep you in your place, bare foot and pregnant, or force you to bear the child alone without a safety net to help you, in a low wage job, struggling to get by.

  64. 64.

    mai naem mobile

    @Skerry: well, we better hope ISIS and their other nut job allies don’t figure out that L’Orange Dumbo doesn’t want to president during major holidays and personal celebratory occasions.

  67. 67.

    H.E.Wolf

    Also, look for an article entitled “the only moral abortion is my abortion”. It’s about anti-choice women who avail themselves of a reproductive health service they want to deny to other women – it’s fascinating, infuriating, and sad.

  71. 71.

    Redshift

    @chris: Abortion was turned into a political issue by Falwell, et al., specifically to build political power. Evangelicals didn’t care much about abortion before that. (They tell a fairy tale that it was a spontaneous reaction to Roe v Wade, but it’s complete BS.)

    Since reason abortion is a political issue in this country has nothing to do with “life” or anything medical, it’s not too hard to understand why it never became an issue in places like Canada.

  72. 72.

    Svensker

    @Major Major Major Major:

    I’ll bet Trump has pressured his share of women into abortions.

    Considering how many wives he’s had, and all fertile, it’s odd that he only has 5 kids. So he’s either using birth control — which many evangies consider equal to abortion — or we don’t want to think about it. Plus all the side bonks that most certainly must have led to abortions.

    I always wonder about Rush Limbaugh too — infertile, or? Inquiring minds are kinda interested as long as they don’t have to think about it too much.

  73. 73.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Skerry:

    Trump told the Times of London that he considers Monday, 23 Jan to be “day one” of his presidency. Doesn’t want celebrating to get mixed up with “signing orders”.

    So, y’know, ISIS and domestic terr’ists and all y’all, the weekend’s yours. Have a bla– I mean, have fun.

  74. 74.

    WaterGirl

    Boom! Well done, Cole.

    Looks like more than one person stepped up in the previous thread about the cross-stitching. Perhaps someone could do the original one you requested and someone else could cross-stitch that tweet. It’s a thing of beauty!

  76. 76.

    chris

    @Redshift:

    never became an issue in places like Canada.

    I remember Falwell et al. In Canada we had the same sort of people and they marched and picketed the clinics. And we marched and escorted women to the clinics. We won, because of Pierre Trudeau and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms certainly, but we also had a hero and a leader. Google “Dr. Henry Morgenthaler” The man never gave up and was still fighting when he died.

  77. 77.

    hovercraft

    @SiubhanDuinne:
    I thought he was going to do a whole bunch of things day one, hour one. What happened, Obamacare is supposed to be out by the end of the day Friday, also too the Iran deal.

    ETA: Don’t worry about terrorists doing anything this weekend, they all know that a real man is back in charge, so terrorism is now over.

  78. 78.

    Millard Filmore

    There is no such thing as a one celled human.
    The soul does not jump into a fertilized egg.
    There is no magic.

    How much government money do these folks want to spend to make sure the un-aborted baby gets a fulfilling life? I’m guessing zero. They want to gain the Lord’s favor, but only if it involves someone else’s time, someone else’s labor, someone else’s money. They want to get into heaven on someone else’s dime. On the cheap.

  79. 79.

    ThresherK

    @RSA: Jeebus, Erickson doesn’t even clear the standard RW-issue bar of “my (relative or friend) is (newly out of the closet / suffering from medical issue / discriminated against) and now I care” empathy.

  83. 83.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Svensker: @efgoldman: I’ve thought of that, too. Rush Limbaugh III, the first two being very prominent in Cape Girardeau… I thought for sure when he bought himself a fourth wife so much younger than he, that the point was to make a IV

  85. 85.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Emily Badger ‏@ emilymbadger 8h8 hours ago
    So, outperforming “The Art of the Deal”?
    —-Ian Millhiser @ imillhiser
    —-John Lewis now has the #1, #2 & #3 bestsellers on Amazon.

    And you just know trump knows this

  88. 88.

    Ruviana

    @weaselone: When I worked actively in abortion rights years ago, the right-to-lifers would sometimes call us to ask about abortions they needed on the DL. We’d help them too, since for us it was about access, not denial.

    ETA: A good example of what H.E. Wolf commented on as well.

  90. 90.

    H.E.Wolf

    @Major Major Major Major:
    Re: “The only moral abortion is my abortion”: I may have been unclear. It’s an actual published article. Definitely worth reading. ETA: What Ruviana said is very germane. Thank you Ruviana!

  91. 91.

    Schlemazel

    @Svensker:
    Rush has not had sex with women often. He likes boys. No value judgement except on how he speaks of gay men. He obtains illegal Viagra for his visits to the Dominican Republic, an island known for young men trying to escape poverty through prostitution with rich, foreign men.

  92. 92.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @H.E.Wolf: Susan Carpenter McMillan (a rich wannabe Gabor sister from Bel Air who made herself Paula Jones’ patroness back in the 90s) was an anti-abortion activist before she latched onto Jones. It was revealed that she had had an abortion well into her career as an activist. She told reporters it had been a “therapeutic miscarriage”

    ETA: @Another Scott: I suspect in the end he’ll be very pleased with a fawning puff piece, and never admit it.

  93. 93.

    Schlemazel

    @Svensker:
    Rush has not had sex with women often. He likes boys. No value judgement except on how he speaks of gay men. He obtains illegal Viagra for his visits to the Dominican Republic, an island known for young men trying to escape poverty through prostitution with rich, foreign men.

  94. 94.

    Another Scott

    @H.E.Wolf: I assume this is it?

    “THE ONLY MORAL ABORTION IS MY ABORTION”

    When the Anti-Choice Choose

    By Joyce Arthur (copyright © September 2000)

    Abortion is a highly personal decision that many women are sure they’ll never have to think about until they’re suddenly faced with an unexpected pregnancy. But this can happen to anyone, including women who are strongly anti-choice. So what does an anti-choice woman do when she experiences an unwanted pregnancy herself? Often, she will grin and bear it, so to speak, but frequently, she opts for the solution she would deny to other women — abortion.

    In the spring of 2000, I collected the following anecdotes directly from abortion doctors and other clinic staff in North America, Australia, and Europe. The stories are presented in the providers’ own words, with minor editing for grammar, clarity, and brevity. Names have been omitted to protect privacy.

    […]

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  96. 96.

    Roger Moore

    @Schlemazel:

    He likes boys. No value judgement except on how he speaks of gay men.

    I might make a value judgment based on the age of the “boys”. If they’re actually boys and not young but consenting age men, he deserves to spend the rest of his life in one of the prisons his career has made more awful than they ought to be.

  98. 98.

    Ruviana

    @H.E.Wolf: Thanks!

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Susie Carpenter-McMillan! She was our nemesis back in the early 70s. She was the first person I was aware of who promoted the “rape victims can’t get pregnant because biology” theory later made famous by Todd Akin.

  100. 100.

    danielx

    @Ruckus:

    But the bottom line is that he thinks that if he says it often enough and loud enough, it will become true. So I’m going with just an ignorant fuck.

    There’s a lot of that going around.

    The big difference between someone like that and Cheeto Benito is that as far as the latter is concerned, it becomes true the moment he says it. It remains true until he says something that contradicts it, at which point the more recent statement becomes true and the previous statement….becomes inoperative*, as somebody once said. And to think I once felt sorry for Ron Ziegler…

    *Actually, it’s more like the previous statement was never made at all, at least in Trump’s mind. Might explain why he gets this blank look on his face when someone actually shows video of him making the previous statement. What thought process is operating in his mind when this occurs? “Who is that orange hued imposter?”

  101. 101.

    EllenH

    @Mnemosyne: Thanks for this tip. I just ordered 3 clear tote bags for me, my daughter, and her friend. We are all driving down from Philly and plan to park in Greenbelt and take the Metro in. I’ve reserved a hotel room in Dupont Circle for Saturday night, but was trying to figure out what to do about luggage. This is a great solution!

  102. 102.

    Lizzy L

    This FB post by Jeremy Beckham is making the rounds. Note the section about pregnant women.

    I sold health insurance from 2004-2006 for one of the largest health insurance companies in ~30 states. Maybe because we’ve had ACA for a while, people don’t really remember what it was like then, but I want people to know that I declined people health insurance on a DAILY BASIS.
    Some of the things that resulted in automatic “DNQ” (does not qualify) determination from our underwriters, which means there was NO policy we would issue you, included (and these were all standard in the industry):
    – Ever, in your life, having a heart attack or stroke
    – Ever, in your life, receiving any sort of mental health care or substance abuse treatment in any inpatient setting (I saw a woman in her 40s declined insurance because she was a ‘cutter’ in the 1980s and was hospitalized for that, yes, more than 20 years prior)
    – Having a history of most (but not all) forms of cancer
    – Diabetes or pre-diabetes
    – Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
    – Crohn’s Disease & Ulcerative colitis
    – Connective tissue disorder
    – Autism
    – Obesity (Defined strictly by BMI score)
    – Having both high blood pressure and high cholesterol
    – Being pregnant (fortunately at least a lot of these women could get on Medicaid, even pre-ACA, because conservatives were worried they would just choose to have an abortion if they couldn’t pay bills from delivery).
    – If you were a woman of child-bearing age and you had ever given birth to a pre-term baby, we would decline coverage for YOU, even if not currently pregnant, because the risk of an additional pre-term birth was greater and we would be on the line for that in the event you did get pregnant again
    Other health conditions, like asthma, allergies, high blood pressure on its own, wouldn’t necessarily result in a DNQ, but would result in a permanent “rider” to your policy which mean that we agreed to cover you EXCEPT any medical bills, prescriptions, incurred related to your asthma, allergies, etc.
    Another odd thing I remember: sometimes fathers would get ordered by judges as part of their child support order to pay for their kids’ health insurance. But then we (and everyone else) refused to insure the kid due to health history, and they’d basically be under the threat of violating the judge’s order and maybe even going to jail. It was a very odd legal issue that I never really saw resolved. lots of times the judges would think the fathers were lying about being unable to procure insurance and were just being lazy. I think lots of people didn’t realize how crummy the individual health insurance landscape really was until they called to try to obtain it.
    I had to console people in tears on a regular basis. We were instructed by management to just get them off the phone as quickly as possible to free the phone line for a healthy person. One line that was popular to tell people was “well you wouldn’t ask a car insurance company to insure your car after it’s been in an accident!” but it felt incredibly heartless to compare someone’s autistic son to a car accident, so I never said that. All I could tell them to do really was either try to get in their state’s crummy and expensive “high risk pool” (if there was one, some states didn’t even have that) and write their members of Congress.
    Looks like we might be heading back to these lovely days.

  106. 106.

    Steve in the ATL

    @Svensker:

    I always wonder about Rush Limbaugh too — infertile, or?

    Not a problem–Dominican rent boys don’t get pregnant

    ETA: D’oh! Beaten to the punch by multiple posters

  110. 110.

    kindness

    Just tell them Jesus didn’t believe it was human at conception. That always leaves a mark.

    How? Well, it seems that in some corners it is Jewish custom that the ‘baby’ isn’t ensouled until quickening. That is when the mother can feel the baby kick/turn over. That’s early second trimester. Now I’ve had others tell me that isn’t Jewish custom across the board. All I know is that some of my Jewish friends felt it was custom. And Jesus, he was an itinerant Rabbi. He kept with custom, ya know?

  111. 111.

    SFAW

    @RSA:

    I feel like we’ve been living the Book of Job these last few months

    There is NO iteration of God out there who would say “Hast thou considered My servant Ewick, that there is none like him on the earth, a perfect and an upright man“

  112. 112.

    Miss Bianca

    @H.E.Wolf: One of my sisters gave me “Sisterhood is Powerful” and “Our Bodies, Ourselves” when I was still in early high school. Yeah, she was that cool.

  113. 113.

    Pogonip

    @Feathers: Seems to me that doctors should be telling women the hard facts about having your first baby at 40 or older. This was common knowledge when I became pregnant in the late ’70’s, but it sounds like it’s been lost.

    I was 20 years old when my son was born. I ended up having a caesarean–he got stuck–and I was always glad they didn’t try forceps. I’ve heard too many forceps horror stories.

  114. 114.

    Raoul

    So the Facebook feed for the Rump inaugural is awesome!

    Dozens and dozens of comments like:

    Linda Rush – Yes, but STILL WAITING FOR WELCOME CONCERT TICKETS, said it would be emailed, days ago??? · 4 hrs
    . Heidi Jo Fagerlie-Ahmann Me too · 3 hrs
    . Betsy Kempf Levingston Me too · 3 hrs
    . Libby Bates Me too · 3 hrs

    Even better are the more panicky ones like this:

    George Springer – Any eta on the emailed tickets for the Welcome Celebration? I responded to the text on Saturday and they said tix would be emailed, I haven’t gotten them yet and am driving up tomorrow. · 1 hr
    . Mark Alan Parsons Still waiting also… Planning on leaving here on Wednesday though. · 39 mins

    Some are starting to freak out because they have plane tickets but no inaugural tickets. This admin will be an amazing clusterfk.

  116. 116.

    Zinsky

    Why do these right-wing assholes have to always assert that anyone who opposes the government telling a woman what to do with her body is a “babykiller” or an “abortionist”? Fuck them. I have never had an abortion, advocated that someone have one or performed an abortion. So shut you ignorant piehole, Erick Erickson, or I’ll kick your rotten teeth down your fucking throat!

  117. 117.

    Aleta

    I’ve seen anti-A people advocate hitting small children with a “rod” just for saying No to a parent. I see them outspoken about their ‘right’ to hit children or have them hit in school. The ones I know believe they have ownership rights over their children that include emotional abuse as means of control. They don’t vote to support funding for public schools. They criticize families who need food and housing assistance, even in front of their children.

  119. 119.

    Miss Bianca

    @Another Scott: @H.E.Wolf: Oh, fuck, this kicks up my shit. From when I worked at Planned Parenthood, and had women come in who were all “pro-life” until it was THEM facing an unwanted pregnancy. It was really hard, sometimes, counselling these women – usually my compassion won out, because I knew how hard it was to sit in that chair talking to the counselor, but sometimes I just wanted to scream at them. Particularly when I knew that they were going back to considering themselves “pro-life” after they – or their precious snowflake daughters, granddaughters, or nieces – were “safe” again.

  121. 121.

    Ruckus

    @danielx:

    What thought process is operating in his mind when this occurs?

    I see the error in your thesis right here. You seem to be under the misconception that there is an actual thought process going on under dead orange ferrets. There isn’t, it only has reactions, not a thought out reply or an originating point.

  122. 122.

    Raoul

    @Omnes Omnibus: Oh, I agree. I’m just enjoying how the Rump admin is so fvking GREAT they can’t even manage to put up something that a company like eventbr*te handles multiple times a day no problem!

  123. 123.

    Just One More Canuck

    “You had the potential to become a human being and look how that worked out.” That’s my go-to insult from now on – thanks, John

    And the house looks great – congratulations

  124. 124.

    Another Scott

    @Miss Bianca: Understandable. :-(

    Some day we’re going to know what parts of our brains allow us to believe impossible things, and believe contradictory things simultaneously, and believe that we are justified in punishing others for things we would do if we were in their shoes. But we’re not there yet. (And it may be quite scary when we can actually get to the point where we can easily manipulate what people “decide” to believe…)

    Thank you for being there to help women in need.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  125. 125.

    Ruckus

    @Lizzy L:
    Lots and lots of people have very poor memories. They sort of remember the past, say the 1950s as wonderful times. They don’t really know why they think that or maybe it was because they were young and possibly getting laid. But other than that the 50s weren’t all that great. Except that the cost of living was closer to wages paid than the average is now. But we also have a larger share of people who do OK than there was then. Of course we also have a much greater share of people whose wages aren’t keeping up with the cost of living and all those boomers who are past or arriving at retirement age and finding that life can suck hairy donkey balls when SS is all you have.
    So they want to go back to a “simpler” time. Their cars have reverse, why can’t time?

  127. 127.

    catclub

    @hovercraft:

    also too the Iran deal.

    Actually, Trump was the only one (in contrast to the seventeen dwarfs) who probably did not say it would be out by day one, but that he could get a better deal, and would strictly enforce the deal.

  128. 128.

    Gretchen

    @Skerry: Wait, so Trump is expecting to get weekends and holidays off? Call the scheduler and forbid all Saturday natural disasters!

  129. 129.

    dww44

    Erick Erickson lives in my red state city and although he and I differ politically on almost all matters and certainly on the matter of “when life begins and the perceived evil of the left’s secular religion”, 2016 was not a good year for him or his family. He and his wife have both faced serious health crises and his entire family, including his young kids at school, has faced vituperative pushback from pro Trump supporters because of Erickson’s early and vocal opposition to the Trump candidacy.

  130. 130.

    PhoenixRising

    sometimes fathers would get ordered by judges as part of their child support order to pay for their kids’ health insurance. But then we (and everyone else) refused to insure the kid due to health history, and they’d basically be under the threat of violating the judge’s order and maybe even going to jail. It was a very odd legal issue that I never really saw resolved. lots of times the judges would think the fathers were lying about being unable to procure insurance and were just being lazy.

    Funny you should mention that. Friend of mine, who happens to be a family law attorney, just negotiated her own divorce agreement. One of its provisions was, dad keeps kids insured until they age out. One of the points of contention was, is that until they’re 26? The threat to bring back medical underwriting makes the whole family uninsurable, so that contention is mooted, but…there’s probably going to be some litigation of closed child support and alimony arrangements if medical underwriting, lifetime caps and aging off at 18 come back.

  131. 131.

    Tehanu

    @Millard Filmore:

    How much government money do these folks want to spend to make sure the un-aborted baby gets a fulfilling life? I’m guessing zero. They want to gain the Lord’s favor, but only if it involves someone else’s time, someone else’s labor, someone else’s money. They want to get into heaven on someone else’s dime. On the cheap.

    Needs multiple “Like” buttons. Right on the money — as you point out, as long as it’s somebody else’s money. Pay one cent to feed that baby once it’s born? How dare you ask, you moocher?

  132. 132.

    low-tech cyclist

    @Tehanu:

    Pay one cent to feed that baby once it’s born? How dare you ask, you moocher?

    That’s pretty much it. They want to de-fund Planned Parenthood so that there can be more little moochers and takers born to poor women that they can refuse to help. Because God is love.

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