you are a proponent of critical thinking, except when it comes to politics?

That’s disappointing.

Sarah Palin will set the woman’s movement back 300 years. So that takes us back to 1707.

THIS JUST IN: a ‘megachurch’ is not exactly equal to one thousand regular churches! AND a millipede does not actually have one thousand legs! And the Superdome is not actually located above another dome! Stop the presses, someone call the president, pope, and Morgan Freeman!

…welcome to the world of figurative language*. Have a nice stay.

*note: This post should not be construed as suggesting that there is literally a place called ‘Figurative Language.’

I am not insane or stupid enough to have that make sense

Don’t sell yourself short, champ!

Well, if you don’t like it, then skip the political posts.

Phil obviously makes these posts because he has strong feelings on these political matters. It’s his blog: get over it. I wish he would turn off comments on these subjects simply because of the stupidity that follows. Normally I think he’s a very level-headed guy that makes sense with almost every word — but this time I think he wrote before thinking, making his post a bit ignorant. Regardless, most of this is directed towards the other commenters:

Yes, Palin is a woman. Get over it. Yes, choosing her is meant to bring in women voters. Get over it. But bringing in “disenfranchised women who wanted Hilary?” You have got to be kidding me. Simply making that comment is an insult to MY intelligence! There will be some that vote for her because she’s a woman, just like there will be plenty that vote for Obama because he’s black — if anything, this simply provides a small offset to the simple-minded voters. She brings so much more to the ticket — but so many Democrats can’t get past her gender that its easy to see who the reals sexists are.

Ok, now to tackle the abortion issue. According to science, should abortions be allowed? … (crickets chirp in the distance) … Nobody? That’s right — a scientist can only say what the effect will be on the mother, child, and society, but not whether its “right” or “wrong.” Scientific knowledge only helps us make an informed decision. So why the heated debate? It’s become a fight between “Life” vs “Choice,” two moral ideals that cannot both be satisfied (at least, so it seems with abortion).

Hear this, hear this! Both “Pro-Life” and “Pro-Choice” are right — and the moment you try to say that the other side is morally inferior you have only proven your own ignorance on life.

Thanks for thinking that people who are pro-life are some monolithic group. While many oppose abortion for religious reasons, I oppose it because I think it is unconstitutional due to the lack of due process (i.e. it violates the 14th Amendment). I don’t oppose contraception (even though my church does) as long as fertilization does take place. I wouldn’t necessarily oppose abortion if there was some sort of due process, but as it stands now…

The most disturbing thing about her is this:

Sarah Palin displays an Israeli flag in her governor’s office in Juneau, even though she has never been to the country, and attends Protestant evangelical churches that consider the preservation of the state of Israel a biblical imperative.

Her faith makes her a favorite with the staunchly pro-Israel neoconservative elements in the Republican Party.

But other Republicans may be concerned that a John McCain-Sarah Palin administration will disregard the caution of former President George H.W. Bush and some of his top advisers and continue the tilt toward Israel.

Most Republicans and conservatives outside Alaska know little about Mrs. Palin’s foreign policy views – on Israel or anything else.

But Tucker Eskew, who holds the title of counselor to Mrs. Palin in the McCain-Palin campaign, left no doubt where she stands.

“She would describe herself as a strong supporter of Israel’s, with an understanding of Israel’s fear of an Iran in possession of nuclear weapons,” Mr. Eskew told The Washington Times.

In that case, let’s nominate the governor of Illinois.

We’re still waiting for the list of significant legislation with Obama’s name on it (not the “Resolution to honor Arthur Smedley” kind if stuff).

From either Illinois or D.C.

About the abortion thing: If as Hillary says, “safe, legal, and rare” – if it’s such a big deal, why not make it “safe, legal, and commonplace”?

“… months — now years — of slime attack after slime attack about Obama, …”

I’m going to have to get one of those loose-leaf history books like you guys use.

To bring up the association with Ayers is not a “slime attack” (unless by “slime” you’re referring to Ayers). Ditto the association with Rezko. Ditto Frank Marshall Davis.

“They are against the right of a woman to have sole control of her own body, which is one of the most fundamental rights that exists.”

Exactly. And people have known for a rather long time what it is that causes pregnancy. Control starts up front. The choice is made up front. After that, the choice has been made, and now it’s a responsibility.

And it’s not a responsibility the man can get out of, either.

I would really hate it if Phil ignored developments in the wider world which have or might have an impact on science, simply because there is a political angle to them. It would be irresponsible, in my view, NOT to call attention to them.

If you’re in favor of keeping abortion legal (and available, which is a distinction that is often overlooked), then you’re pro-choice, by definition. Everything you just described is literally the pro-choice position:

abortion – legal
forced pregnancy – no
comprehensive contraceptive & sex education – yes
morning after pill – yes
unwanted pregnancies – no

Why do you not call yourself pro-choice, if you agree with all these points?

Try finding anti-choice people, who identify themselves as “pro-life”, and convincing them of any of these things. You’ll swiftly find out that “pro-life” is just the nice, happy name for “anti-sex,” specifically anti-female-sexuality. They OPPOSE contraceptive education. They OPPOSE the morning after pill (and justify it based on lies, as you seem to already be aware of). They even OPPOSE the HPV vaccine on the grounds that sex ought to be dangerous for girls so that they’re afraid to have sex (which is also one reason they oppose legal abortion). These are all ways of reducing women’s freedom, which is why people who hold those views are correctly called “anti-women’s rights.”

They are against the right of a woman to have sole control of her own body, which is one of the most fundamental rights that exists.

(They generally don’t oppose capital punishment*, but that’s because being in favor of life has never had anything to do with calling oneself “pro-life,” which is nothing more than a branding/marketing slogan to disguise the anti-abortion movement’s true aims.)

*Although there’s that one pastor who does, whose name escapes me. He gets a minor pass for at least being self-consistent.

I am with Bill Clinton – I want abortion to be rare. I want America to be more like Europe in that girls don’t get pregnant in the first place. Given the track record of my mother’s generation, even communities with strong abstinence education and community support for abstinence and “scarlet-lettering” of those who failed still had a huge rate of teen pregnancies in the past. In other words, just about every one of my schoolmates in a very strict Catholic farming community in the 1960′s had parents who had a shotgun wedding. The old saying was – babies take 9 months, but the first one usually comes months early. To rely only on abstinence education inevitably results in MORE ABORTIONS, be they legal or backroom. Somebody has to teach teens how to prevent pregnancy and to strongly encourage use of effective birth control when they become sexually active.
We were on a downhill trend for teen pregnancy as effective longterm products were available – the shot and the implants. But our stupid, stupid liability lawsuit system seems intent on forcing such options out of the marketplace.

I take a libertarian pro-life stance. I don’t want to recriminalize abortion, but I want it to be rare because people have access to effective birth control and encouragement to use it. As someone who took Embryology 301, I also support widespread availability of the “morning after pill” as it simply isn’t abortion to prevent a possible implantation.

Having always used effective pregnancy-prevention tactics, I can only imagine the suffering of being pregnant and not wanting to continue the pregnancy. I want to prevent that in the first place. I am pro-life.

But I’ve also know 3 couples that included 1 doctor and 1 medically trained partner who got “accidentally pregnant.” (In one case, the doctor was the pregnant woman). Sheesh. Education isn’t the only solution. Our biology is geared to make babies.

Theocrats to Pray for McCain’s Death.

“I realize it is his blog and he can say what he wants” see my post…

Nope, didn’t forget it. Just don’t like it.

Perhaps you forgot a statement that Phil made once about this subject; this is HIS blog, and he can post whatever he wishes.

As far as those points go:

1) And that would be the one issue I disagree with her on. Thankfully, she is on no Boards of Education
2) Which women’s rights does she oppose? Abortion? You know, some of us don’t believe that’s a right, because some of us actually paid attention during 7th grade health class. Gotta love the 14th Amendment. Some people forget about that
3) And Obama is a bastion of experience? At least Palin has executive experience and has spent her time as governor actually doing her job, not running for president.
4) That’s only how the some bloggers have been interpreting. Could it instead be because he needed to pick someone who would energize the Republican base and counter the Obama-Biden campaign rhetoric that they are for change? No, that can’t be it. McCain is evil and all Republicans are evil…
5) Given that she was speaking… at a church…

You want someone that claims the Iraq war is “God’s will” to potentiall have her finger “on the button”?

Please tell me you’re joking.

Let me clue you in – the NEOCONS win no matter who wins – look at the issues carefully there is no difference – Foreign policy – identical.
Taxing – obama more taxes because of increased welfare, failed health plan proposals
. macain possibly slightly less but war spending stays

First Ammendment – identical.

Big Government – identical.

The only difference – an old white man and a young black man both do the bidding of their masters.

Enjoy .,.,

Yes, more so than Obama.

And, to the whole country, I ask this: If McCain dies in office, is this the person whose finger you want “on the button?” (As he, if elected, would be the oldest president at inaugaraton, this should be a real concern.)