To say Republican State Rep. Andre Jacque is “focused like a laser” on job creation would be a massive understatement.
Less than a week after an anti-abortion measure was signed into law and blocked by a federal judge, some Republicans are pursuing a change to the state constitution meant to give fetuses a right to life.
The measure — aimed at keeping an anti-abortion statute on the books if the U.S. Supreme Court reverses course on the issue — will have a difficult time passing the Legislature because it has divided anti-abortion groups, with some saying it could inadvertently work against their movement.
Article I of the state constitution begins by declaring, “All people are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights; among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness…”
Rep. André Jacque (R-De Pere) wants to drop the word “born” from that part of the constitution, so it begins, “All people are equally free and independent.” He also wants to add a sentence to the constitution that says, “As applied to the right to life, the terms ‘people’ and ‘person’ shall apply to every human being at any stage of development.”
Jacque said he was trying to fix a “loophole” in the state constitution and make a pre-emptive strike against potential future court action. It is meant to preserve a decades-old statute that bans abortion.
Subjugation of women at every turn, the American Christian Taliban will be distracted by no other issues of responsibly governing the state. Male dominance, female subservience, public resources forcibly taken and given to corporate donors, their warped version of the self-righteousness Christian calling.
Additionally, failure to follow their own oath of office with just about every word spoken or action taken.
“…at any stage of development.”
That means that in addition to going to hell, any of you guys who ever “rubbed one out,” are guilty of mass abortions. Same thing for sperm spilled in anal and oral sex.
IMHO the pro-choice movement might be prudent to consider encouraging the anti-choice movement to “rescue” fetuses. Surgical procedure might be more difficult (?C-section?), but instead of giving all their money to the GOP, they can give it to doctors and neo-natal units. Instead of demonstrating in front of abortion clinics, they can be home taking care of the little baby they just adopted.
I haven’t thought everything through. There might be “unintended consequences,” I haven’t considered.
One of the significant cognitive limitations of the anti-choice movement is that they ignore all of God’s abortions. When a woman “miscarries,” there’s no homicide investigation, there’s no burial. A lot of “miscarriages” happen very early, long before a woman even has a clue that she’s pregnant.
Apologies to any readers who have miscarried. I don’t mean to be speaking lightly of what’s most often a horrible loss.
Pity, though, that Conservative-Libertarian perverters who so yap on about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness consistently won’t be bothered to find out how the creators of this nation regarded any of those topics. In this case life, abortion, and “any stage of development.” Clue: The Founding Generation didn’t consider fetuses persons, they didn’t moralize abortion, and abortion was legal until the time of “quickening” at about four months when the womb was considered to contain a being with a soul.
Interesting that even the Christian founders like physician and signer of the Declaration of Independence Benjamin Rush discussed abortion in the common terms of the day. Rush wrote about abortion in the medical textbook he authored in 1805, a practical treatise entitled Medical Inquiries and Observations. There he discussed abortion and spontaneous abortion in the third month of pregnancy – regarding the embryo as what it is – an embryo and abortion a haemoptysis – terminology denoting an ejection of blood.
The more famous Benjamin – Franklin that is – and who on more than one occasion penned commentaries on women’s issues under female pseudonyms – didn’t take moral issue with abortion at all either. Writing as Celia Shortface and Martha Careful in 1729 he did remark about “the secrets of our sex” (abortion) and its proper sphere “the repository of the learned” rather than the public papers.
In “Lectures on Law” James Wilson wrote: “In the contemplation of law, life begins when the infant is first able to stir in the womb.” In other words, the quickening – when the mother can feel motion in the womb. Once life at quickening could be determined (And let’s make this point abundantly clear – a determination made by the mother) the human now endowed with a rational soul could be treated as every other person would be treated – protected by law.
And Thomas Jefferson discussed abortion and birth control without moralizing or condemning it in Notes on the State of Virginia.
While post-quickening abortion was not highly regarded as a general rule, common law harkening back to Aristotle (what Wilson cites) wasn’t by any means clear, and it wasn’t criminalized by any state statute until the late 19th century – roughly the 1880s – almost the 20th century.
The only stigmas surrounding abortion for the Founding Generation was when it was associated with pre-marital intercourse or the impropriety of discussing the secrets of the gentle sex in public forums.
Maybe Conservative perverters might follow Founding Ideals at least after quickening? As in applying some decency in attitude but better yet policy for post-quickened individuals once they are born and thereafter “at any stage of development”??
Here’s another insight into how the Founders treated “life” after quickening “at every stage of development” – a few tidbits from one of Wilson’s lectures (Wilson’s lectures were attended by and instructive for the likes of Jefferson, Adams, Madison, Franklin etc. maybe instructive enough for today’s Conservative-Libertarian right-wing?) –
Excerpts, Of Man, As a Member of Society:
“‘There is nothing more certain,’ says Cicero, ‘than the excellent maxim of Plato – that we are not intended solely for ourselves; but often that our friends and our country claim a portion of our birth. Since, according to the doctrines of the stoicks, the productions of the earth are designed for men, and men are designed for the mutual aid of one another; we should certainly certainly pursue the design of nature, and promote her benign intention, by contributing our proportion to the general interest, by mutually performing and receiving good offices, and by employing our care, our industry, and even our fortune, In order to strengthen the love and friendship, which should always predominate in human society.”
Note – human society – that means post-quickening by the way… post-leaving-the-womb-”at any stage of development.” Because you know, the post-quickened rational soul continues to develop and progress throughout its post-quickened existence – and the idea is that society should progress as well so as to better the life, liberty, and happiness of the individuals within it:
“In point of dignity, the social operations and emotions of the mind rise to a most respectable height. The excellency of man is chiefly discerned in the great improvements, of which he is susceptible in society: these, by perseverance and vigour, may be carried on progressively to degrees higher and higher, above any limits which we can now assign.”
Got that? Progress for post-quickened rational souls… but how to do it? Well, Wilson just happens to encapsulate it in the following passage:
“The possession of science is always attended with pleasure: but science, believe me, acquires, an increased relish, when we have the opportunity of pouring it into the bosom of others.”
Familiar? It should be. it’s the primary underlying principle of the Constitution – rational (scientific) governance based on empiricism for the benefit of all. But wait, he elaborates further:
“The wisest and most benign constitution of a rational and moral system is that, in which the degree of private affection, most useful to the individual is, at the same time, consistent with the greatest interest of the system; at the same time, productive of the greatest happiness to the individual. Thus it is in the system of society. In that system, he who acts on such principles, and is governed by such affections, as sever him from the common good and publick interest, works, in reality, towards his own misery: while he, on the other hand, who operates for the good of the whole, as is by nature and by nature’s God appointed him, pursues, in truth, and at the same time his own felicity.”
He also writes a bit about things for post-quickened individuals bound together by society and government like generosity, compassion, trust, but I suppose the previous excerpts should suffice.
So the question is when will Conservative-Libertarian perverters stop subverting our Founding Ideals and actually start applying some post-quickening policies “at all stages of development” – policies that, unlike the one outlined by Jacque, have some even remote resemblance to the Progressive vision the Founders anticipated and laboriously designed for this country?
Andre Jacque worthy successor to defeated Talibanista Tom Reynolds. Wear it well citizens of DePere! We in West Allis had the good sense to vote our wing-nut out of office.