I almost never get it together to participate in really important “meme” days of remembrance, or even days of celebration, on the actual designated day.
If I hadn’t stumbled across it at Scarleteen I’d have missed remembering today is Blog for Choice Day. And by the time I’d figured it out (sometime over the weekend) I’d feel dumb for having missed it and not say anything at all.
Most years I’d just say “every day ought to be blog for choice day anyway” and be done with it. This year, though, the new Republican-activist majority on the Supreme Court has handed down it’s… fascinating decision that, say, the entire Walmart Corporation has the same just-folks right to pay as much as it wants immediately before an election as any supporter of a small-town zoning-board candidate. Which suggests they might as easily next use identical logic rule that abortion restrictions are just as they infringe on pregnant men’s rights no less than pregnant women’s.
In these days of disappointment it’s so tempting to think of just staying home next time there’s an election… as, for instance, millions chose to stay home in 2000, 2004 when it might have made a difference who replaced Justices Reinquest and O’Connor.
It’s your choice to do so again in 2010.
Enjoy it while you can.
Happy Blog for Choice day.
I assume that the alternative
Submitted by Brian (not verified) on Fri, 2010-01-22 18:52.I assume that the alternative – controlled freedom of speech – is preferable? This is what I never understood about Progressives or Conservatives and their EQUALLY convoluted ideas of the first amendment. If they like what you are saying it is good. If not, then let’s ban it.
Folks, you can’t have your cake and eat it too. This is one of those ideals best left wide open with no controls for any to use/abuse. Because once you institute controls, then the game becomes gaining the reigns of those controls and I SHUDDER to think how those reigns would be pulled by either partisan group.
Campaign reform, which is what Citizens Unlimited v. FEC was about is nothing more than incumbent protection. With the Dems the current majority with the most at stake, they are squeaking the loudest. But when the opposite was true under Republican control, it was the Dems fighting hardest to RESIST these controls while the Repubs were fighting hard to institute. Typical ideological flip-flop for the control of the power base. Disgusting really.
And for those that think that these big, evil corporations are all Republican leaning…uh…do some research. Which corp was the #1 dollar contributor of the ’08 elections? And who got those funds? What were the top 5 industries to contribute political grease? Think it was Oil? Think again! Which party benefited most from corporate contributions this past election cycle? Answers and more at FEC.gov and to some respects at opensecrets.org. Do you have the guts to go look for yourself? Or do you continue to believe in media hyperbole?
[Technically “those reins” have been held without much incident for decades, which is why I’ve been feeling pretty sanguine about the status quo but that’s just quibbling — you’re evidently not familiar with Delaware election history and I had to study it in a journalism class. (Something about a guy buying all the newspapers in a town the day before an election as a “practical joke” against a cousin who was running for office. He fired his cousin’s supporters and ran editorials on election day questioning, if I recall correctly, rumors of the cousin’s “unsavory background” coming to light.” But in your opinion only government can threaten free speech, or alter elections, so that’s ok. And no, it doesn’t matter at all if, again if I remember correctly, the prankster would have been a Democrat.)
The main thing is it sounds like based on your principles you’d also agree with the mechanical logic that justice would be served so long as a law restricts pregnant men’s choices as harshly as it restricts pregnant women’s. Fair’s fair and all that. —fl]
Most years I’d just say
Submitted by markprime (not verified) on Sun, 2010-01-24 02:45.Most years I’d just say “every day ought to be blog for choice day anyway” and be done with it.
Absolutely! If we’re smart we’ll never stay home again…