‘Palin pick brings boatload of assumptions’: Columnist
September 1st, 2008
Rocky Mountain News columnist Tina Griego is offended by the assumption, underlying the coverage of presumptive VP nominee Sarah Palin, that “those pro-choice women are out there right and left, killing the life within them at the first sign it may not be perfect.”
Griego herself is a supporter of abortion rights, and chose to continue a pregnancy after an initial blood test suggested a possible genetic problem. She didn’t want an amnio because it posed a risk to the baby, and says her son “turned out all right.”
Because it did not matter to us that our child might be born with Down syndrome. Because, ultimately, we believe a child has more than a right to life. He or she has a right to love, to security, to opportunity and we could provide all that.
… I don’t pretend, and neither should you, that my husband and I are exceptions because we chose — the operative word here — to forgo further genetic testing because we would not have terminated the pregnancy, anyway. There are thousands of mothers and fathers of children, yes, many of them with Down syndrome and other congenital disabilities, who love their children with all their hearts, who will tell you parenthood is a blessing and who still support the right to abortion.
The difference between Gov. Palin and us is that we believe the choice we made – that she made – was a personal one and that we the people, the state, cannot assume control of another person’s body.
(Rocky Moutain News photo)
Our RSS Feed
September 1st, 2008 at 11:35 am
While I do not agree that abortion is a right (like free speech is a right and driving is not), I do agree that the government doesn’t have the right to make a law banning it. I too declined amniocentesis during both of my pregnancies, because at my age it was too risky for our babies and we knew that there was nothing that would make us terminate. Our son was born with Down syndrome and his little sister is typical.
I wouldn’t want the government to tell me that I could or couldn’t have either of these precious children. And I’m a big tree-hugging lefty. I broke my own rule not to join a political party because I believe in Obama so strongly. He makes me feel hope in politics for the first time in my 40-some years. And a woman politician who has Down syndrome in her life (because even if the hateful rumors are correct and he is her grandson, he’s still in her life) can’t make me switch.
I’m not voting for someone because his running mate is a woman, I’m voting for someone who makes my heart soar with hope. Hope that he will help make the future better for my family and my children and all of us.
September 1st, 2008 at 6:56 am
“cannot assume control of another person’s body”
Yet, this is exactly what Democrats want to do with socialized healthcare. In that system, no child with Down syndrome or any other genetic abnormality would be allowed to be born. This would be done by not covering payment of the birth of such a child. Every woman would be forced to undergo genetic testing and the federal government would decide who lives. They consider such a person not worthy of life.
The Democratic party’s desire to “help” people is purely a mechanism for control and purchase of vote to gain power.
Roe v Wade is unconstitutional not because it allows abortion, but because the federal government does not have the constitutional power to make such a decision. The Supreme Court does not have constitutional authority to make ANY law. Only Congress has that power. As far as I know, no law has even been passed by Congress that legalizes abortion. Want to know why? Because they know they don’t have that authority.
Anyway, Palin has never brought up her son. The only people talking about it are pundits and ignorant bloggers.
Palin has more executive experience than Biden or Obama. Obama has no foreign policy experience. Rarely does any presidential candidate have such experience. Generally senators are poor presidential choices. They are partisan negotiators with no ability to see beyond party lines. At least McCain has a documented record of bucking the party line. Palin has done the same.
Obama and Biden are mindless party drones who can’t think for themselves. Neither has shown the ability to think independently. I’m more interested in that than a party platform. They are petty thieves who want steal money from me. Republicans and Democrats are both wrong on various social issues. Mainly, because the federal government has no constitutional authority to set social policy. That is state and local responsibility. Fiscally, Democrats are socialist. It’s not a slight, it’s reality. They believe that citizens work for the state first, others second, and for themselves and their families last.
I wish everyone would stop letting politicians suck them into “the other side is bad” mantra and just use common sense. I’m tired of hearing people regurgitate the propaganda from talk radio and loonies like the Daily Kos.
As much as I like Palin, she won’t get McCain elected because there is too much corruption in Washington – on both sides – and they will never let it happen. The Republican leadership will work behind the scenes with Democrats to make sure. None of them want her in the White House.