Tuesday, January 24, 2006

the right tone?

The 30th anniversary of Roe happens to coincide with the first vote, today, on Alito in the Judiciary Committee. Dana Milbank in the Post has a very affecting article on the huge march that took place in DC to mark, well, both occasions really.

In these situations, it is common for those of us who value our right to live unhindered by the moral surveillance of the christian right to look to the north for salvation. But there's no comfort there today.

More than one person has pointed out that Roe is in no immediate danger, despite the marchers' euphoric insistence otherwise: even with Alito replacing Sandra Day (who I blame for all of this, ironically) 5 votes remain on the court to preserve the right to an abortion. And even if it were overturned, somehow, I, nestled safe in commie Brooklyn, would hardly feel the effects. Except. I am one of those lefties that struggles with America without getting all bleak and bitter about it. Even having grown up in DC, where Diogenes would have been even more hard-pressed to find an idealist, I retained some pride in a country whose system has the right intentions.

I don't wave flags and I don't burn them either, is what I'm trying to say. But on the day that this country capitulates to the Christian right, regresses 30 years into the past, takes my personal liberty off the table to replace it with a big steaming pile of self-righteous bombast, on that day I would. Burn a flag, and be done with it.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

and that is exactly why they can't simply overturn roe in one fell swoop. because all of the happy safe feminists hiding in our liberal enclaves would rise up and something big would happen. i don't know what exactly, but it would be big. but as long as they chip away at the right slowly, until you can only get an abortion if you know the day after and the father was related to you and you have one million dollars, we'll stay happy in our liberal enclaves and not say a word.

or something like that... (;

sorelle.

(ps. hi!)