Shorter Ross Douthat: "Conservative states may have more teen births and more divorces, but liberal states have many more abortions." Pwned, bitchez!!
(It's like the god debate--conservatives think atheists must be afraid that God will be mad at them for not believing in him, since they are unable to contemplate a world in which nobody is constantly watching, judging and punishing them. Likewise they think they score points by noting that liberal states have more abortions, since they are unable to contemplate a world in which people want to let others make reproductive decisions for themselves, instead of voting in a man to pass laws controlling their reproductive organs.)
Conservatives: Don't touch my guns, don't touch my money, don't touch my abstract concept of freedom. But my body is all yours!
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He did a really sloppy job of picking Montana to ignore the whole north/south division in pregnancy rates (and pretty much every other measure of education & economics) - 23 is not half of 35, and cherrypicking, much?
Surely the Times can find someone more competent to lie about statistics?
You are right that one of the funniest things about that column is its weird gotcha (!) over something so absurd. I mean, its like he wrote a column arguing that both red and blue states have an obesity problem but in blue states its controlled by diet, excercise, thoughtful education and good city planning while in red states its uncontrolled because people are trying to "do it all themselves" without government or societal help. To which a normal person would say "well, if its not working for the red states it seems like a really dumb plan." To douthat abortion is such a self evident evil that he simply can't grasp the "so what-ness" of it to a normal person.
I read the column and tbogg's shorter this morning and then lectured my eleven and thirteen year olds in the car about it until I dropped them off at school. My final peroration went like this "In conclusion: use contraceptives and get an abortion if you need one."
Previous on the way to school lectures have included "the Jesus Myth and how its been betrayed by various Christian sects," and "What's wrong with incrementalism."
aimai
aimai-
Good strategy. I'll bet they can't wait to get to school and flee into the building.
Or, "But your body is mine."
Also your religious beliefs, your civil liberties, your pop culture, the public school curriculum...
I don't know Mr. Wonderful, I usually get a round of applause and a hearty kiss for these lectures.
aimai
aimai, you could record them. It could become a podcast series...
Also, too. I think it applies to car conversations as well...
If that is true, it is only because conservative states have pretty much made abortion impossible -for everyone except the rich.
Batocchio, that's a really fun article. Thanks for linking to it. Of course, I was raised with a tiny tv on the table and we watched the toll of the vietnam war every night. (exhibits tics and grimaces) and it never did me any harm.
I wish I had done a podcast of my lecture on "how a bill becomes law"--I thought of filming the children's dolls doing it. Speaking of great films if anyone here missed Rumproast's reposting of this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NKXNThJ610
I urge you to go and look at it right away.
aimai
I should apologize to Susan for that post, since I can't remove it. Susan, I thought about your father about five seconds after I posted that remark about the War. I apologize.
love
aimai
Aimai, no problem, you have nothing to apologize for.
The Bronte video is all kinds of awesome, btw.
Ha! It's great. It's like the Powerpuff Girls Meet Steampunk.
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