[June 24, 2022] This morning's lead headline in the Boston Globe:
Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, allowing states to ban abortions
Simone -- who served with distinction as the board chair for Planned Parenthood of Southern New England; who founded the Women's Fund of RI, a political advocacy effort -- often predicted today's headline.
She was convinced this day would come.
She knew in her guts that the fight for women's bodily rights wasn't over. I'd try to reassure her. Because I didn't feel the issue the way she felt the issue. I was a blithe optimist, doing that manly rational thing. She was a skeptic.
I didn't see how a hard-won freedom that had been around for nearly 50 years could be yanked away ... in a nation of 330 million ... by 5 justices, 4 of them men, 3 of them Trump appointees ... during a time when a heavy majority of Americans (61%; 201 million) said they "support abortion rights," including a third of Republicans.
I was wrong. I'm talking to you, Sim One, up in your Existentialist heaven: I was dead wrong and you were SO right.
And now the fight for a woman's right to own her body begins again.
You know what would solve the problem for ALL TIME? For boys entering puberty to have forced (but reversible) vasectomies. They can still ejaculate. They just can't impregnate ... until some day when maybe they want kids.
Planned Parenthood is called that for a reason. Because UNPLANNED parenthood ... toss the dice.
First: My name's not THOMAS. It's TOM.
I would never give a penny to any fundraising robot that doesn't get that right. And you can thank ActBlue for that persistent mistake. They go by my credit card name, not my common name. And never asked my preference.
I can't vote in the first district, anyway; so I'm really not your target audience. I have, however, given serious money to candidate Aaron, because I like a flaming progressive; I think he has fire power. Spoken with candidate Sabina, too; be happy with her. There are what? 33 other candidates as well? Oh, my.
And Walter, who are you again? I know what you're not (your paragraph 4).
How was the opening rate on your subject line? Not exactly a barn burner declaration.
And starting with a statistic in your email is how you lose the "3-second test." (I can explain; it comes from neuroscience.)
All this must sound like criticism. Honestly, may the best candidate win. David C. did RI proud, especially during the worst of the Trump years. Little Rhody can punch well above its weight ... with the right people in office (Whitehouse, Jack Reed).
And, yes, I know no one's listening. Hi, robot!
~ tom (not thomas)