Criminal law, Politics

The Right’s War on Women Continues…at the State Level

Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger

On the National Level

In late January, I wrote a post titled Rape Redefined and Brought to You by the US House of Representatives in which I talked about members of Congress—mostly Republicans—who were attempting to “redefine” what the only REAL kind of rape is—that would be “forcible rape.” (I wasn’t aware there was any other kind of rape.) These Congressmen were proposing legislation that would no longer consider the following types of sexual assault as rape: The rapes of women with limited mental capacity and rapes in which women were drugged or given excessive amounts of alcohol.

Last week, Lawrence Rafferty (rafflaw) wrote a post titled The Right’s War on Women in which he discussed legislation proposed by Rep. Mike Pence (R-Indiana) that would eliminate the entire budget for Title X. Lawrence wrote: “Rep. Pence and his fellow Republicans are trying to defund Planned Parenthood because it receives millions from Title X funds to assist women in their family planning and health matters. In order to try to end abortions without testing the strength of Roe v. Wade in the courts, the sponsors and backers of this bill don’t care if low-income women suffer by not getting the health care that they so desperately need. Many of these same legislators also backed the repeal of the Affordable Health Care act which would also assist low-income women get affordable health care.”

And Now from the State of Georgia

Just yesterday, I read about State Rep. Bobby Franklin of Georgia who is introducing legislation in his state that would require proof that a miscarriage—aka a spontaneous abortion—was the result of natural causes. If this legislation passes, there would have to be proof that a woman’s miscarriage was the result of natural causes. If a woman can’t prove that—she might face felony charges!

From a piece in Daily Kos: “Franklin wants to create a Uterus Police to investigate miscarriages, and requires that any time a miscarriage occurs, whether in a hospital or without medical assistance, it must be reported and a fetal death certificate issued. If the cause of death is unknown, it must be investigated. If the woman can’t tell how it happened, then those Uterus Police can ask family members and friends how it happened. Hospitals are required to keep records of anyone who has a spontaneous abortion and report it. Yup, we’ve been waiting for someone to suggest this–and Franklin has.”

Here’s the link to Franklin’s bill:
http://www.legis.ga.gov/Legislation/en-US/display.aspx?Legislation=31965

There are millions and millions of American women who suffer/have suffered miscarriages through no fault of their own. Suffering a miscarriage can be an emotionally wrenching experience for a woman. Imagine losing a much wanted pregnancy–and then having to prove the miscarriage was the result of natural causes. How does a woman do that, Rep. Franklin? Can you explain to the women of Georgia how they should go about gathering evidence to prove that they haven’t committed a felony when they have a miscarriage?

By the way, Rep. Franklin also introduced a bill to change Georgia’s criminal codes so that  victims of rape, stalking, and family violence could only be referred to as “accusers” until defendants have been convicted.

FYI 

Here are some statistics on miscarriage for you:

From WebMed

Frequency of Miscarriages in the United States

The overall miscarriage rate is reported as 15-20%, which means 15-20% of recognized pregnancies result in miscarriage. The frequency of spontaneous miscarriage increases further with maternal age. With the development of highly sensitive assays for hCG levels, pregnancies can be detected prior to the expected next period. When these highly sensitive hCG assays are used early, the magnitude of pregnancy loss significantly increases to about 60-70%. Late implantation by the conceptus beyond the usual 8-10 days after ovulation also has an increased risk of miscarriage.

About 80% of miscarriages occur within the first trimester. The frequency of miscarriage decreases with increasing gestational age. Recurrent miscarriage, defined as 2-3 pregnancy losses, affects about 1% of all couples.

From American Pregnancy Association

Miscarriage is the most common type of pregnancy loss, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Studies reveal that anywhere from 10-25% of all clinically recognized pregnancies will end in miscarriage. Chemical pregnancies may account for 50-75% of all miscarriages. This occurs when a pregnancy is lost shortly after implantation, resulting in bleeding that occurs around the time of her expected period. The woman may not realize that she conceived when she experiences a chemical pregnancy.

Sources

Daily Kos

Huffington Post

Washington Monthly (Political Animal)

Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee

262 thoughts on “The Right’s War on Women Continues…at the State Level”

  3. Elaine M.,

    I suppose you are correct…. Lets just say when it offends my sense of decency and I have seen a lot of crap in some of the finer so called homes and some places you’d rather not be at anytime… But I think MFM and Tootie crossed the magic line into depravity….. its kind of like porn…you know it when you see it… but its hard to define…. I may not agree with what someone has to say…I may not have to read it either… But there are something that would even offend Dalhmer I am sure…

  4. Blouise,

    Here’s a story about another bill Franklin introduced recently:

    From The Colorado Independent (1/25/11)
    Arizona shooting spurs Georgia lawmaker to introduce ‘church carry’ gun rights bill
    http://coloradoindependent.com/72789/arizona-shooting-spurs-georgia-lawmaker-to-introduce-‘church-carry’-gun-rights-bill

    Excerpt:
    In the wake of the Arizona “Congress on Your Corner” shooting spree, Americans began to talk again about the nation’s gun laws. In Arizona Jared Loughner, a mentally unstable man with a record of disturbing public behavior and drug use, opened fire with a semi-automatic handgun he bought in a strip mall. He killed six people and injured at least a dozen others. Some of us talked about the need to keep crazy people from buying guns. Others of us talked about how we should be able to take our guns everywhere– like into the nation’s capitol– to protect ourselves from the crazies. In Georgia today, a gun rights group is celebrating the introduction of a bill that would lift a state law banning weapons in houses of worship. Unarmed worshipers, they say, are ripe for attack. They call the bill “church carry” but there are an estimated 100,000 Muslims living in Atlanta who will refer to the bill as “mosque carry,” which may not be looked upon as favorably by the bill’s sponsor.

    Republican Rep. Bobby Franklin introduced “church carry” House Bill 54 Monday. According to the legislature home page, Franklin is a graduate of Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, where he earned degrees in Bible Studies and Business Administration. He notes that he’s “an active member of the Reformed Presbyterian Church” and that “he has been called the ‘conscience of the Republican Caucus’ because he believes that civil government should return to its biblically and constitutionally defined role.”

  10. Pingback: An Eclectic Mind » Interesting Links, February 19, 2011

  11. Elaine,

    Bob,Esq. is just a whipper-snapper but he’s a keeper! Thanks for the Muppet clip

  12. Lotta,

    From the other thread … I know you weren’t being critical and I really, really misjudged that poster!

  13. TootieBy,

    ” I’m just playing with you all.” … Yeah … and look at the subject you decided to play with … miscarriages … ain’t you just a barrel of laughs.

  15. Helen Reddy is now 70 years old. She has an autobiography out called, The Woman I Am.” I have read that she is not in good health, with Addison’s Disease, which means that her adrenal glands are failing. The disease requires constant monitoring and treatment. I do not believe she has made any television appearances in at least five or six years. She has returned to Australia and is living in Sydney.

  16. Elaine,

    I’m just a few months older than Buddha. I was a kid when the song came out.

    I’ve got no idea whatever happened to Helen Reddy. But I do remember the Helen Reddy craze; and the Helen Reddy show; and her stint on the Muppet Show.

  18. 2T: “…it has nothing to do with me thinking incorrectly that I ought to get answers to my questions.”

    2T, I was going to answer your question but Raff beat me to it, maybe the other women here just weren’t going to go along with your presentation because the real issue has been argued here before.

    It’s not about human life until certain biological requirements are met. Spontaneous abortion, miscarriage, in the main does not act on a fetus that meets those requirements. That people in general often cry at the feeling of loss, for the actual or potential object of desire, weather it is the potential for new life or a big promotion, it an not be used to prove the fetus is a human life from 0 to 13 weeks or so.

    I cried with joy when Obama was elected, it didn’t make him a good liberal. Same principle.

  19. Tootie,

    Those women and I didn’t avoid the question. We understand why women are sad and cry when they suffer a miscarriage. We assumed most people would. Evidently, you don’t understand. I would assume that people like Rep. Franklin suffer from the same lack of empathy.

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