More Evidence That Republicans Hate You

In Texas this week, Governor Big Hair signed into law a truly hateful piece of legislation. HB 15 requires that any woman undergoing an abortion in the state of Texas be required to undergo a transvaginal ultrasound. She may choose to look away but must listen as the doctor describes what he sees. Yes, that's right. She has no choice except to look away. She must undergo the indignity (and ladies, we all know getting a vaginal exam is no spring picnic) of having a condom-and-gel-covered probe inserted into her vagina.

This medical prodcedure has specific uses, according to NIH.


Transvaginal ultrasound may be done for the following problems:

• Abnormal findings on a physical exam, such as cysts, fibroid tumors, or other growths
• Abnormal vaginal bleeding and menstrual problems
• Certain types of infertility
• Ectopic pregnancy
• Pelvic pain

Transvaginal ultrasound is also used during pregnancy to:

• Evaluate cases of threatened miscarriage
• Listen to the unborn baby's heartbeat
• Look at the placenta
• Look for the cause of bleeding
• Monitor the growth of the embryo or fetus early in the prgnancy
• See if the cervix is changing or opening up when labor is starting early

The State of Texas has added one more use.

Transvaginal ultrasound is also used during pregnancy to:

• Force the mother to undergo an invasive procedure designed to discourage the abortion

Rah. So glad to be from Texas. I won't even repeat what Sen Dan Patrick (R-Hell) had to say.

So Texas has gotten it's long sought after bill to try to convince women to change their mind about an abortion. Sen. Patrick believes that if 20% of women change their minds that will "save"10,000 to 15,000 lives a year. Which goes well with this next tidbit.

US House Republicans' budget plans are calling for a reduction in funding to the WIC nutrition program. If this item remains in the budget that eventually passes, The Center for Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that WIC would have to turn way 325,000 to 475,000 eligible low-income women and young children next year. So those, 10 to 15K souls the Texas Sonogram bill is supposed to save? Well, they're on their own. Surprise.

But real beauty of the week came from Kansas State Legislator Rep. Pete DeGraaf. Kansas approved a ban last week on insurance companies offering abortion coverage as part of their general plans except when a woman's life is at risk. If an individual or employer wants to get medical coverage for an abortion in Kansas they will have to purchase a supplemental policy rider that covers only abortion.

When Rep. Barbara Bollier, a Republican who supports abortion rights, asked if it was reasonable to think women would buy such policies ahead of time, say before they're raped, the lovely Rep. DeGraaf replied this way:

"We do need to plan ahead, don't we, in life?" He continued, to groans from his fellow House members, "I have spare tire on my car. I also have life insurance. I have a lot of things that I plan ahead for."

Yes, you heard that right. He just compared an abortion rider to AAA. After all, every woman should expect to be raped in her lifetime. Avoiding unwanted pregnancies is entirely the responsibility of the woman, regardless of how that pregnancy occurs. If you want to be prepared and you're one of those heathen Pro-Choice types, then you buy yourself a rider. Otherwise, you just have to make lemonade out lemons, as Sharron Angle would day.

These people, and I use that terms loosely, hate women. They want us back in the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant. They want to return to the time when a man owned a woman's body. When rape was considered a property crime and compensation, if there was any, went to the male who "owned" the woman be he husband or father.

In truth, the current crop of Tea-Party-leaning Republican whack-a-doodles wants to return us to time before labor unions, before women's rights, before the Voting Rights Act, before anything as silly as the Clean Water Act or anything that regulates business in any way. They want to return us the era of robber barons. They care only about the pocketbooks of their wealthy cronies and supporters. If you can't afford to maintain your health insurance, pay for an abortion or feed your child, they don't care. It's your own fault for not working hard enough to get enough money to buy these things.

H/T to Juanita Jean, Crooks and Liars, Dallas News, The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, McPherson Sentinel 

In Case You Needed Any More Evidence...

Republican politicians are out for one thing and one thing only - themselves. To this end they have sold their souls to the corporations, the Koch brothers, et al. They refuse to let go of their "principals" even when what they're espousing is patently absurd on its face.

Here are three examples from today's headlines:

Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), whom according to Think Progress,  owns "a building worth up to $1 million, a dental practice worth up to $500,000, an antique store worth up to $500,000" and more, rightly earning the label "millionaire", told a town hall

Seriously. I ain’t wealthy. I built my own house, I wouldn’t do it again. I own my building, I have a dental practice. I live just like the rest of you folks. It’s all on paper, it’s not in cash.

 And don't forget his 174K congressional salary.

Next is Rep. Rob Woodall (R-Ga) who told a constituent who asked, what do I when I retire and my company doesn't provide health care coverage to employees?, quote:

"Hear yourself, ma'am. Hear yourself," Woodall told the woman. "You want the government to take care of you, because your employer decided not to take care of you. My question is, 'When do I decide I'm going to take care of me?'"

In other words, she needed to plan better and save the money to pay for her own healthcare cause the government can't be expected to help you.

Speaking of help from the Government, today's winner of Asshole of the Day goes to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), He says that any federal aid to tornado ravaged Joplin, MO must be offset by spending cuts. Who knows how long that process will delay the release of funds. So, Joplin? You're on your own for a while. Maybe a long while. Maybe forever cause we know how those Republicans like to raise taxes. Maybe we can defund NPR to pay for the rebuilding. Of course, we could stop the wars in Afghanistan or Iraq and pay to rebuild Joplin and Tuscaloosa and Minneapolis on just the savings generated in a week. But that won't happen.

Grr.

Since our government is in no hurry to help Joplin, here's where you can go to help:
Red Cross
AmeriCares
Heart of Missouri United Way
Convoy of Hope

What Would You Do?

This is a lovely reminder of the simple fact that despite what you may hear in the news, despite Governor Big Hair and despite the Religious Right and their spokespersons on the State Board of Education, Texas and Texans are far more open-minded than not. Yes, there are homophobes in Texas. But equally true is the fact that there are good and decent people willing to stand up to injustice and intolerance here as well.

I've never watched the series on ABC, "What Would You Do?" and I'm not generally a fan of reality TV of any stripe but kudos to them for tackling this topic. And kudos to those who spoke out against the biogtry.

It's the End of the World

Or so says the now famous, or infamous, Harold Camping. Though all his billboards say it's going to start on May 21, which is tomorrow,  what he really meant to day was it's going to start at 6PM local time AT THE INTERNATIONAL DATE LINE. So that's like 1AM here.

Oh, and just for grins he has a pamphlet all ready to go just in case, you know, NOTHING HAPPENS. Which apparently means that the end is still nigh just not yet here. Or something. Seriously, go read the article by Tina Dupuy on the Atlantic. She actually interviewed the old creepy dude.

I personally think he looks like the insanely creepy preacher man from Poltergeist 2. Here's Camping:

Here's the insanely creepy Preacher dude from Poltergeist:

Am I right?

At any rate, an untold number of people actually think old creepy dude has a point. So much so that they're preparing for end by giving away their money and quitting their jobs. Despite the fact that he's predicted the world's demise before and was wrong, there are still some that think he may be on to something. The rest of us? Having endless amounts of fun laughing at the old creepy dude.

I originally thought we should have a blow out end-of-the-world party Saturday, followed by another yay-we're-all-still-here party on Sunday. But since Harold says that end is coming sooner than I had thought, I may have to start tonight. Hmm. Is there enough alcohol in the house? Perhaps it's a good thing that Eldest is coming home this weekend.

Still, I expect that come Monday morning, I will still be here, as will the rest of the world. But just in case the world does end this weekend, you need to have seen this:

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
John Lithgow Performs Gingrich Press Release
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog Video Archive

Which, of course, reminds me of this:

Shatner Reads Palin - watch more funny videos

Damn, still funny.

Did Florida ban sex and does God have tongue spots?

Well, maybe. Depends on how you read the statute.

An act relating to sexual activities involving  animals; creating s. 828.126, F.S.; providing definitions; prohibiting knowing sexual conduct or sexual contact with an animal; prohibiting specified related activities; providing penalties; providing that the act does not apply to certain husbandry, conformation judging, and veterinary practices; providing an effective date.

Technically, human beings are animals. So, on it's face that bit up there kind of implies that they did. But of course, that's not the entire statute.

“Sexual conduct” means any touching or fondling by a  person, either directly or through clothing, of the sex organs or anus of an animal or any transfer or transmission of semen by the person upon any part of the animal for the purpose of sexual gratification or arousal of the person. [my emphasis]

And that bit implies that the person who wrote the law sees people as separate from animals. Whether or not you agree with her (and yes, it's a her. You kind of knew it had to be, didn't you?) it's rather clear her intent was to make illegal the act of a human having sex with an animal. Specifically, the news reports I've read mention a case of a goat and another with a horse, so she was thinking animal as in the 4-legged variety and not the kind that walks on two feet. Like Newt Gingrich.

So while the Twitterverse and blogosphere went a little overboard with the idea that Florida had banned sex and after October 1st Florida residents would have to confer with a vet, animal husbandry professional or conformation judge (which is a fancy term for those folks who judge dogs and such for shows) before having consensual sex, it just ain't so.

It does however raise another question.

The very fact that so many would assume that the author of the bill didn't believe humans were animals got me to thinking (always a shaky proposition). Why do so many people, especially those of the more, shall we say, conservative bent, think that way? Which of course made me think of those Christians who think the only way to read the Bible is literally. Thus, "God created man in his image" means that God looks like us and not say, the family dog.

Which I find patently absurd.

Aibhne happened to be sitting in my lap while my husband and I discussed this silly Florida law and meandered  on over to Bible literalists. I pointed to her and said, that's an image of God right there. To which he replied, does that mean God has tongue spots?

Yes. Yes, it does.  

Related articles

• Did New Florida Law Ban Sex? (alan.com)
• Florida Finally Got Around to Banning Bestiality & Sex Altogtether (redbeardedoctopus.wordpress.com)
• There goes the Florida tourism industry (scienceblogs.com)
• Did Florida Accidentally Ban Sex? [Oops] (gawker.com)
• Florida Bans Droopy Drawers, Sex with Animals (onebluestocking.wordpress.com)
• Lede of the Day (outsidethebeltway.com)