Not your call to make

With all of the hoopla over Planned Parenthood these past few weeks, I thought I might share my thoughts on this controversial subject. If I were a candidate, here's what I would say when it comes to abortion:

No one from the most liberal senator in the country to the most scared teenager in the heartland is FOR ABORTION. Women choose this option as a very last resort and I'd be willing to guess that few are happy when they feel it's the most appropriate option or choice for them.

Then I would either play the video like above or read one of the "It's so personal" essays collected on Andrew Sullivan's blog during a discussion about the moral challenges and justifications concerning the vilified "late-term" abortions and the D&X procedure (where the baby's head is severed before removing the fetus from the uterus). But for now, I will reference the above video.

(ahem, speech):

Now, if Danielle and Robb had been able to induce labor or perform an abortion, I don't know if Danielle and Robb would burn in hell for their sin. And some people have every religious right to identify that as sin.

I don't know if God would look down at their decision with shame or sadness.

Personally, I don't believe so, and personally I believe that God knows what is in their hearts if they had to make that terrible decision.

Abortion was essentially illegal where they lived, and if they had been able to get one I don't know whether they really would have committed a crime worth penalizing them for. I would feel that they have been through enough pain already.

But here's what I do know.

I know that this decision is NOT MINE TO MAKE.

I know that this decision is NOT MITT's (Romney)'s to make.

In many ways, it's really not CONGRESS's decision to make.

And frankly America, it's not YOUR DECISION TO MAKE.

The ONLY people who should be making this decision and are capable of making this decision are Danielle, Robb, and their doctor. As President Clinton once said, "Abortion should be safe, legal, and rare." And I wholeheartedly agree that it should be rare, and we should encourage young women when it's appropriate to look into adoption services as there are many families in America who would love to take care of and raise a child. But the choice is not OURS to make, it's theirs. And I'll fight to ensure it stays that way.

Venting about the response to Rep. Paul Ryan's 2012 Budget Roadmap

All over the blogosphere, the reviews of Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-WI) 2012 "Path to Prosperity" are in and they are summarized as follows. "Some things are good, some things are bad, but let's give Paul Ryan applause for being so brave about forwarding tough solutions to tough problems vis-a-vis entitlement reform." Fareed Zakaria's recent column is a perfect example.

Below is what I wrote to Andrew Sullivan's blog (now at The Daily Beast/Newsweek) venting about this blather:

"I'm sorry but liberals came up with various serious proposals for healthcare. Yes, many of those plans either were rejected or dumbed down by the political process, but I don't remember many conservative thinkers (other than yourself) giving the liberals much credit for "policy bravery."

Hmmmm...if I seem to remember correctly, Republicans uniformly tried to negate an adult conversation about a serious policy topic by alleging that Democrats just wanted to "pull the plug on Grandma." Even though finding more honest ways to talk about end of life planning is the most philosophically "conservative" and cost-cutting policy in the bill. Being adult enough to confront one's own death and weigh the costs of useless treatment in the last few months is probably the bravest we'll have to be in our lives.

But I forgot, the Dems just wanted to kill Grandma.

Ryan isn't going to get any applause from me for being a f***ing ADULT legislator willing to seriously talk about the problems we face. Welcome to the intellectual honesty club. I'm glad someone from that party has joined."