Abortion rates increasing under Bush

[whosinpower]

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=sojomail.display&issue=041013#5

PLEASE NO FLAMING UNTIL YOU READ THE ARTICLE!!!

Pro-life? Look at the fruits
by Dr. Glen Harold Stassen

SNIP - Abortion was decreasing. When President Bush took office, the nation's abortion rates were at a 24-year low, after a 17.4% decline during the 1990s. This was an average decrease of 1.7% per year, mostly during the latter part of the decade. (This data comes from Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life using the Guttmacher Institute's studies).

Enter George W. Bush in 2001. One would expect the abortion rate to continue its consistent course downward, if not plunge. Instead, the opposite happened.

I found three states that have posted multi-year statistics through 2003, and abortion rates have risen in all three: Kentucky's increased by 3.2% from 2000 to 2003. Michigan's increased by 11.3% from 2000 to 2003. Pennsylvania's increased by 1.9% from 1999 to 2002. I found 13 additional states that reported statistics for 2001 and 2002. Eight states saw an increase in abortion rates (14.6% average increase), and five saw a decrease (4.3% average decrease).

Under President Bush, the decade-long trend of declining abortion rates appears to have reversed. Given the trends of the 1990s, 52,000 more abortions occurred in the United States in 2002 than would have been expected before this change of direction.

How could this be?

CHECK OUT THE ARTICLE AND SEE THE REASONS WHY THIS PERSON FEELS ABORTION IS ON THE INCREASE. It is a real eye opener.

[grannylib]

1. Thanks for linking DUers to SoJo...a true Christian voice of reason in

what is becoming an American Taliban world, thanks to wrong-wing loonies like Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Dr. Dobson, et al.

[teryang]

2. Our local jails are filling up too.

As uncared for mentally ill, unemployed, homeless, and marginally employed resort to alcohol, drugs, and crime in increasing numbers.

[sister moon]

3. Yup. It's no coincidence

Abortion and the economy cannot be separated. Good article and I say that as an athiest and pro-choice supporter. These assholes just don't get it. Their own policies backfire on them. Incidentally, I copied this same article for my right-wing so-called christian co-worker who's main reason for supporting * is abortion, gay marriage, and gays in the Boy Scouts. You know, the REAL issues. LMAO.
edited for clarity.

[yardwork]

8. G. Gordon Liddy?! Your coworker is a fan of felons, I guess?

[Anakin Skywalker]

13. You Got It!

I know what you mean, sister! (Hah! I have always wanted to say "sister" to somebody. But in this case, I don't think you would mind since it IS your name :) ) I too have observed and debated the people who are voting for bush SOLELY for "moral" reasons. And every time, I came out of it just sadly shaking my head, because they are not using theirs. A portion of Bushites are actually economically disadvantaged (see The Kansas Voter Syndrome, and the Ohio Job Loss, etc. stories), but they are hooked by bush & co.'s slick religiosity and fear-mongering about terrorism. Most have not looked at hard facts. They just believe whatever bush tells them because he is their "leader".

[yardwork]

4. Without even reading the article, I can guess the reasons...

Under Bush, millions of people have lost access to health care. No health care means no access to family planning counseling and no access to prescription contraceptives.

Instead, Bush has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into church-based abstinence-only "education." It's proven not to work.

There's another trend as well. Under Bush, more people have become more hopeless, disenfranchised, out of work, just plain discouraged. Accidental pregnancies are a lot more likely to occur when people feel discouraged.

Another trend is one probably affecting upper-income people (who get the majority of abortions anyway). Bush's message is one of self-indulgence, instant gratification, lack of ethics or morality. Why not have an abortion when the leader of the country is willing to lie and cheat and start an illegal war for profit?

Life is cheap under W.

Edited - durn spelling

[Warpy]

5. Wow, a right to lifer gets the point.

If you want to reduce abortion rates, you have to reduce the reasons for choosing abortion, which means you have to care for mothers and children through the economy. This economy takes care of only the rich and the corporate.

We're in a period when two necessities are out of reach for many working people: healthcare and the ability to save for retirement. In fact, many people aren't making enough to live on, period. Substandard housing, no health care, and a poor diet are becoming common, even for single workers without children.

That abortion rates are rising should be no shock to anyone but the heartless conservatives who want to cut wages still farther and try to solve the abortion "problem" by passing Draconian antiabortion laws.

The experience of the past has taught us that these laws only stop the safe abortions. They kill women along with the fetuses they say they are trying to protect.

The right wing Christians had better get their economic act together if they want to decrease abortion. They can force the GOP away from their policy of fattening the rich and starving the rest of us to do it. Economic justice is Christian.

[sister moon]

7. Excellent point.

can I suggest a parallel with terrorism? If you want to reduce terrorism (it can never be eliminated) begin by taking away their reason to want to harm us. Stop meddling in the middle east, stop propping up ruthless regimes when it suits us, stop behaving as if Israel can do no wrong, stop trying to impose our values on Muslim cultures, stop the occupation of Iraq.

[CTyankee]

6. OK I read the article

but what the author doesn't mention is that the Bush administration is not only anti-choice on abortion, but anti-contraception (actually equating birth control with abortion). Its policies discourage use of birth control and medically accurate sex ed for kids.

Now it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what the results are going to be. So while I agree with the author of the article about reduction of social services being a factor in the increase in abortions, you have only to look at what the administration is doing to discourage family planning.It's huge and part of Bush's War on Women (which you can download from PPFA.org.

BTW, the best place to find stats on abortion is the Alan Guttmacher Institute (I think it's agi.org). Planned Parenthood (PPFA.org) is another.

[yardwork]

10. Welcome to DU! You make a good point

We posted the same idea at about the same time (see my post #4 above).

My other point is that the majority of abortions occur among upper-income women anyway, a point that Republicans never mention.

[Mz Pip]

12. Abstinence only

education can't be helping. It's fine to tell a teenager not to have sex, but don't expect them to listen. Easy and non judgmental access to birth control and family planning information is essential in preventing unwanted pregnancies.

If these clowns really really really really wanted to make abortions rare they would provide such services.

:hi: Welcome!

MzPip
:dem:

[jdj]

17. they apparently have higher STD rates once they do hide the salami.

they wait a little longer,I think, but then they eventually take the plunge, and because they don't know from birth control and protection, and probably have more than a little dissassociation and denial ("oops, how did that get in there?") they come home with a heapin' helpin' of herpes, HIV, etc.

I loved Christina Aguilera's little documentary on voting and reproductive rights when she interviewed a couple of promise ringlets
and asked them explicitly what they do INSTEAD of sex, she embarassed the shit out of a couple of them when she asked them point blank if they believed that "dry humping" was okay and not a sin in their book. (they said yes). Go Xtina!!!

[Joseph Ratzinger]

9. Very Sad

:(

[DuaneBidoux]

11. I just spent hours and hours and hours and hours

finding emails to Catholic churches, catholic schools, catholic charities, diocese, catholic social action groups, and I sent email after email after email after email with this information and link. Of course, I focused on Florida, Ohio, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin. I think I have been now banned as a spammer. But it seemed much more effective than sticking these on windshields at the local Catholic church during mass (especially since I'm in Texas and it won't count anyway).

I suggest everyone else do with this info what I have done. All together researching the right links to send this info to, in critical locations, and there could be impact. It appeals to the right part of what separates Catholics from right wing evangelical Christians: that little thing called social justice, for which most catholics still have a soft spot.

[sister moon]

14. check out christiansforkerry.com

[sangh0]

15. Well, poor people vote against their interests sometimes

so why not the pro-lifers??

[Ilsa]

16. Yeah, Malloy also mentioned this article last week.

I spoke with some pro-life friends on another message board about it. They couldn't get their brains around the idea that if couples delay getting pregnant for financial reasons, then abortion decisions might be made based on the same criteria.