I don't know if my blood pressure can handle this legislative session

I honestly have never been so motivated to become involved as I have since this last election. I'm watching women's rights go down the toilet, as well as many other's rights. Mostly, I'm concerned with the multitude of bills that are determined to limit women's access to health care, their rights as human beings, and the presumption that they really don't want to have children, so we must force them to do it.

The WTF Bill of the day goes to... Rep Bobby Franklin of the 43rd district in GA. He's the same stellar supporter of women's rights that introduced the bill that changed rape victims and victims of domestic violence to accusers, but acknowledged victims of burglary were still victims (HB 14). Not that burglary victims aren't victims, because they are. But why single out crimes against women (for the most part) and call those women accusers, and not all victims of crime?

Whatever your views on abortion, I'm sure that everyone can agree that miscarriages are not an intentional expulsion of a baby for the purposes of terminating an unwanted pregnancy. Women who suffer from miscarriages are uniformly devastated at their loss, as are their husbands, significant others, and families.

Well, it seems that good ol' boy Bobby has gotten it into his head that that "prenatal murder" (meaning the death of a fetus from the point of conception until birth) shall be unlawful in all events, and his bill (HB 1) mandates that miscarriages be reported to the authorities and investigated with an eye toward prosecution as well as mandating that Roe v Wade is null and void in the state of Georgia because 1) the SCOTUS really had no jurisdiction over the case in the first place, and 2) Georgia wasn't a party to the suit, so the federal ruling made in the case doesn't apply to them. (Wouldn't it be nice if we could all say that about rulings we don't agree with? Well, my state wasn't a party in that case, so I don't recognize your authority. I've got plenty on my list of rulings to ignore - how about you.). Franklin's bill includes clauses that relate to unattended spontaneous abortion (miscarriage),

(2) 'Prenatal murder' means the intentional removal of a fetus from a woman with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus; provided, however, that if a physician makes a medically justified effort to save the lives of both the mother and the fetus and the fetus does not survive, such action shall not be prenatal murder. Such term does not include a naturally occurring expulsion of a fetus known medically as a 'spontaneous abortion' and popularly as a 'miscarriage' so long as there is no human involvement whatsoever in the causation of such event

Who is to determine if there is no human involvement whatsoever? What if the mother fell down, and this happened to cause a miscarriage? Do we prosecute her for clumsiness leading to murder? Cause I have to say... I was not the most coordinated person at any time through either of my pregnancies. What if the pregnancy is unknowingly tenuous or high-risk, and the woman and her husband have a raucous bout of sex? Do they both get prosecuted? Actually, I'm sure in that case, only the woman would be prosecuted. She is the whore after all. Granted, neither of these situations is likely; most miscarriages happen because of a problem with the pregnancy itself, not from any act that the "incubator" might have committed.

And I absolutely love his motivation for this:

(26) The act of prenatal murder has caused a significant reduction in the number of citizens in this state who would serve as workers, entrepreneurs, teachers, employees, and employers who would have significantly contributed to the prosperity and continuation of this state;

Heads up for some unpleasant content below.

I have been so very fortunate that both my pregnancies ended with the births of my beautiful, healthy children. Believe me, I know how amazingly lucky I am. However, many women are not so fortunate. In the general population, the miscarriage rate is about 10-15% of a clinically recognizable pregnancy. To force women who are devastated by the loss of a pregnancy (and, for the record, women do actually view a miscarriage as the loss of a child, not the loss of a pregnancy) to undergo criminal investigation is outrageous.

Furthermore, I'm not sure how Franklin thinks this can be enforced.

How does he intend to handle this clause:

(3) When a spontaneous fetal death required to be reported by this Code section occurs without medical attendance at or immediately after the delivery or when inquiry is required by Article 2 of Chapter 16 of Title 45, the 'Georgia Death Investigation Act,' the proper investigating official shall investigate the cause of fetal death and shall prepare
and file the report within 30 days;

Are women supposed to save their bloody uterine contents in a bucket or a Rubbermaid container to take to their doctor for autopsy? Do they scoop them out of the toilet to send on? Should they save their pads and mail them in to the police? Should they preserve their fetus in a bottle so that it can be examined later? And if they don't, is that an implied admission of guilt of prenatal murder?

It's bad enough that parents whose babies are victims of SIDS are investigated like criminals; now we propose to have women who have unfortunate and devastating miscarriages to be treated like criminals as well? Sometimes, physicians simply can't pinpoint a cause for a spontaneos abortion. In those cases, are women presumed guilty rather than innocent?

When we embrace the Constitution when it seems to support our desires and beliefs (2nd amendment) and discard it when it doesn't (presumption of innocence), then we have gone too far, not to mention have made ourselves out to be hypocritical, unfair, discriminatory asswipes.

It's getting to the point where I am embarrassed and horrified to live in this country where the men (and yes, some women - looking at YOU, Michele Bachmann), sworn to represent ALL their constituents, are trying so hard to subjugate women, take away their rights in the name of God, and make us baby incubators - pregnant and barefoot, submitting to our husband's will and wishes - or Face The Consequences. And damned if they aren't succeeding!

Pardon my language, but I say Fuck You to Mr. Franklin. Fuck you and the horse you rode in on. I hope that every woman in Georgia takes it upon herself to either spit on you in the street, or send you every bit of her uterine contents as they are expelled. Every single month.

I urge you to read the bill.

And while I have your ear... Michele Bachmann - are you out there? I just need to point this out to you. Women do not go shopping at the mall to pick up Starbucks, groceries, and get an abortion. By saying that they do you do a disservice to women and discredit yourself as a human being. You know what? Fuck you, too.

(originally posted at my personal blog 2/23/2011, unlinked intentionally)