Thank the Universe that I don't live in Oklahoma.
poisongirl6485
Posts: 1,487 Member
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/16/us-oklahoma-personhood-idUSTRE81F0ES20120216
Anti-abortion "personhood" bill clears Oklahoma senate
By Steve Olafson | Reuters – Thu, Feb 16, 2012
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OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - Oklahoma lawmakers edged closer toward trying to outlaw abortion on Wednesday by approving "personhood" legislation that gives individual rights to an embryo from the moment of conception.
The Republican-controlled state Senate voted 34-8 to pass the "Personhood Act" which defines the word person under state law to include unborn children from the moment of conception.
The measure now goes to the state House where pro-life Republicans outnumber Democrats by more than a 2-1 margin.
Oklahoma's Republican Governor Mary Fallin, who signed every anti-abortion bill sent to her last year, did not issue a reaction to the latest right-to-life measure.
"Oklahoma is a conservative pro-life state-we are proud to stand up for what we know is right," Senate Pro Tempore President Brian Bingman, a Republican, said.
"This bill is one of many Senate Republicans have advanced which affirms the right to life and I am proud to support it," he added.
The Oklahoma legislation cleared the state Senate a day after Republican lawmakers in Virginia's House of Delegates passed a similar personhood measure.
Republican senate leaders said the Oklahoma bill is patterned after a similar law in Missouri that was determined to be constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.
State Senator Brian Crain, who backed the bill, said it would not hamper access to contraception or prevent stem cell research.
But Martha Skeeters, president of the Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice, said that a state law declaring that life begins at conception could have "dire consequences."
The bill offers no exceptions in the case of a pregnancy resulting from rape or incest and could mean some forms of contraception such as the "morning after pill" would be unavailable, she said.
Doctors who perform in vitro fertilization procedures also will be unlikely to continue for fear of prosecution, she added.
"It's a sad day for people in Oklahoma when the Legislature puts them in harm's way," said Skeeters.
Anti-abortion "personhood" bill clears Oklahoma senate
By Steve Olafson | Reuters – Thu, Feb 16, 2012
OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - Oklahoma lawmakers edged closer toward trying to outlaw abortion on Wednesday by approving "personhood" legislation that gives individual rights to an embryo from the moment of conception.
The Republican-controlled state Senate voted 34-8 to pass the "Personhood Act" which defines the word person under state law to include unborn children from the moment of conception.
The measure now goes to the state House where pro-life Republicans outnumber Democrats by more than a 2-1 margin.
Oklahoma's Republican Governor Mary Fallin, who signed every anti-abortion bill sent to her last year, did not issue a reaction to the latest right-to-life measure.
"Oklahoma is a conservative pro-life state-we are proud to stand up for what we know is right," Senate Pro Tempore President Brian Bingman, a Republican, said.
"This bill is one of many Senate Republicans have advanced which affirms the right to life and I am proud to support it," he added.
The Oklahoma legislation cleared the state Senate a day after Republican lawmakers in Virginia's House of Delegates passed a similar personhood measure.
Republican senate leaders said the Oklahoma bill is patterned after a similar law in Missouri that was determined to be constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.
State Senator Brian Crain, who backed the bill, said it would not hamper access to contraception or prevent stem cell research.
But Martha Skeeters, president of the Oklahoma Coalition for Reproductive Justice, said that a state law declaring that life begins at conception could have "dire consequences."
The bill offers no exceptions in the case of a pregnancy resulting from rape or incest and could mean some forms of contraception such as the "morning after pill" would be unavailable, she said.
Doctors who perform in vitro fertilization procedures also will be unlikely to continue for fear of prosecution, she added.
"It's a sad day for people in Oklahoma when the Legislature puts them in harm's way," said Skeeters.
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Not only should the morning after pill now be illegal but ditto IUDs and the regular pill. They can work as abortificants. If I lived in OK I'd start sending used menstral pads to the idiots who voted in favor of this so they could verify that no one died and attach a positive pregnancy test to my state tax forms and claim another dependent. Every pregnant woman on welfare should demand the increase she'd get once the baby is born start immediately. Start calling the police when you see a pregnant woman doing something that she shouldn't do to a child such as having a drink of wine, smoking, or working in an area with things that could possibly harm her pregnancy. Tell them it's child endangerment.
Freaking idiots.0 -
drinking and smoking during pregnancy ISN"T child endangerment?
Hm.0 -
No. It's not. It's stupid but since it's not yet a child it's not child endangerment. Under this assinine law a woman who gets drunk the week after she conceives could be charged with child endangerment even if she didn't know she was pregnant.drinking and smoking during pregnancy ISN"T child endangerment?
Hm.0 -
GOP Motto: Corporations are people. Women, not so much.0
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Totally stealing this!GOP Motto: Corporations are people. Women, not so much.0 -
This is really worrying stuff. I can't remember which state it is (and I don't have time just now to look it up), but there is at least one state (and more, I think) where women are facing criminal prosecutions for actions that might have lead to miscarriages. This sort of law is a gateway for these types of prosecutions, which are profoundly unjust and illogical - the majority of miscarriages are spontaneous and have no obvious medical reason, and very often occur before the woman is aware of the pregnancy.
This sort of law also opens us up to exactly the sort of Big-Brother situation that Bahet mentioned - the police could conceivably be called if a pregnant woman was observed behaving in a way that was perceived to be endangering the foetus. Attitudes and guidelines for behaviour in pregnancy vary immensely around the world - some countries suggest complete abstinence from alcohol consumption, while others regard moderate consumption as entirely harmless and normal, for example. We all know how fierce the 'Mommy Wars' can get - imagine if every person on the street was empowered to accuse a pregnant woman of endangering the foetus, with the potential for criminal charges arising from the accusation! This smacks alarmingly of 'The Handmaid's Tale' to me.0 -
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/24/america-pregnant-women-murder-charges
Mississippi, Alabama, Indiana, South Carolina ... according to this article, 38 of 50 states have foetal homicide laws that can, and are being used to prosecute women whose actions are deemed to have been possible causes for miscarriage or foetal death. Very, very worrying.0 -
drinking and smoking during pregnancy ISN"T child endangerment?
Hm.
Depends on where you live! The guidelines given to preganant women vary enormously around the world, and often have more to do with local cultural norms than anyhting scientifically conclusive.0 -
drinking and smoking during pregnancy ISN"T child endangerment?
Hm.
I know plenty of pregnant women who've had one glass of wine here and there - one glass of red a week doesn't make a child endangerer. Some HEAVY smokers have been told by their physicians to continue smoking and gradually try to quit VS cold turkey.0 -
I don't see how this kind of law could be upheld as constitutional..it is basically wresting away a woman's right to her own body. Besides, there is nothing to stop a woman who absolutely does not what to have a child from going to another state to have an abortion.
I hate that they feel the need to control a woman's body to this extent....what they SHOULD be focusing on is better sex ed in schools (even so far as having condoms easily obtainable from school, etc) It won't solve the problem, but at least it's a start.
I don't believe in abortion as in I would never do so (unless there was some harm to me as a result of it) but I fully support a woman's right to choose.0
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