My Body, My Decisions – Support Women’s Health
Posted by Michelle Moquin on February 15th, 2012
Good morning!
Republicans Overreach With Sweeping Assault On Women’s Health
Declaring “There Is No Room For Compromise,” Republicans Push For Extreme Measures That Would Let Any Employer – Secular Or Religious – Deny Women Access To Range Of Critical Health Services, Including Mammograms, Sonograms and Contraception
Republicans Ignoring Polls Showing Broad Support For Administration Compromise – Including Among Catholic Women
New Push Is Just The Latest In Litany Of Republican Efforts To Curtail Women’s Access To Health Services
DECLARING “THERE IS NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE,” REPUBLICANS VOW TO PURSUE EXTREME MEASURES TO RESTRICT WOMEN’S ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES.
Sen. McConnell Pledges Senate Vote On Blunt Proposal To Give Employers Unprecedented Power To Deny Women Access To Critical Health Services. SCHIEFFER: “Well I guess what I’m asking you though is are you willing as far as Senator Blunt now wants to go and just write in legislation that would ban any group that had just a, quote, moral objection, not just a religious group but just any group that had a moral objection to that? Would you be willing to push that in the senate?” MCCONNELL: “Yeah. You know, if we end up having to try to overcome the president’s opposition by legislation, of course, I’d be happy to support it and intend to support it. It would be difficult as long as the president is rigid in his view that he gets to decide what somebody else’s religion is. I assume he would veto it. But yeah, we’ll be voting on that in the Senate. And you can anticipate that that would happen as soon as possible.” [Face the Nation, 2/13/12]
Speaker Boehner Vows Push To Restrict Women’s Access To Contraception. “House Republicans say religious leaders are not convinced the White House contraception compromise ‘doesn’t constitute an attack on religious freedom, which has been a fundamental American right for more than 200 years,’ a spokesman for Speaker John Boehner said Friday. He urged the president to work with the Catholic bishops, and in the meantime the House would work on legislation ‘that respects all Americans’ constitutional rights.’” [Politico Pro, 2/10/12]
Sen. Coats: “There Is No Room For Compromise.” “Today’s announcement changes nothing. Whether religious employers are forced to pay directly for contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs or to act as facilitators, their religious liberty remains compromised. But what the president fails to understand is that when it comes to freedom of religion – a core American principle – there is no room for compromise.” [Press Release, 2/10/12]
Sen. Hatch: Anything Short Of Full GOP Position “Is No Compromise.”“This is about religious freedom, and anything short of a full exemption is no compromise” [Press Release, 2/10/12]
Sen. Blunt: Administration Compromise Is An “Accounting Gimmick.” “Just because you can come up with an accounting gimmick and pretend like religious institutions do not have to pay for the mandate, does not mean that you’ve satisfied the fundamental constitutional freedoms that all Americans are guaranteed. I’ll continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to ensure that we reverse this unconstitutional mandate in its entirety.” [Press Release, 2/10/12]
Sen. Johanns: Repeal Entire Mandate. “Though he may call this a compromise, asking people of faith to turn their backs on their deeply held beliefs is anything but. The one thing you cannot compromise is your conscience, and the only way to avoid this dilemma is to repeal the mandate and protect fundamental rights granted by the Constitution.” [Press Release, 2/10/12]
Sen. Rubio: Solution Is Full Repeal Of Health Reform. “It’s good that the president reaffirmed that the federal government cannot force faith-based institutions to provide services that they teach are wrong. Unfortunately, as more of these rules are written, our constitutional rights will continue to be threatened by the administration’s policy goals. This issue exemplifies the problem with putting the federal government in charge of health care, and shows why we must fully repeal Obamacare.” [Sunshine State News, 2/10/12]
REPUBLICANS BACK RADICAL PROPOSAL TO ALLOW EMPLOYERS TO DENY COVERAGE FOR CONTRACEPTION AND OTHER CRITICAL HEALTH SERVICES TO WOMEN
Senator Blunt’s Proposal Lets Any Employer Deny Anyone Access to Health Care. As part of their ongoing effort to politicize women’s health, Senator Blunt’s extreme measure would essentially allow any employer or health plan to decide not to provide any essential health benefit or preventive service to any American.
- Under Blunt Proposal, Any Employer Could Invoke Vague “Moral Conviction” To Deny Health Services To Employees. The Blunt measure would allow employers and insurance companies to deny coverage of any health service – not limited to birth control – based on “religious beliefs or moral convictions.” This definition is so broad, for example, that CEO’s with a “moral objection” to Type 2 Diabetes or HIV screening could deny coverage of these services to all employees. [NWLC, 2/10/12]
- Employers Could Discriminate Against Individuals Under Blunt Proposal. The Blunt proposal would allow health plans to discriminate against individuals based on sex, race, color, national origin, age, and disability. As a result, if a CEO of an insurance company had a “moral objection” to out-of-wedlock births, the company could deny single, pregnant women access to routine sonograms. [NWLC, 2/10/12]
- Blunt Proposal Creates An Unprecedented Right of Action for “Threatened” Violations. Any individual would have the right to file a lawsuit in Federal court for actual or “threatened violations.” As a result, state officials might be less likely to enforce any law which could be perceived as a threat, thereby resulting in further restricted access to critical services. [NWLC, 2/10/12]
POLLS SHOW AMERICANS – INCLUDING CATHOLICS – BROADLY SUPPORTS BIRTH CONTROL BENEFIT
Poll: Fifty Six Percent of Voters Support Birth Control Benefit. According to a poll conducted by PPP, 56 percent of voters support the birth control benefit, while only 37 percent are opposed, with women supporting the measure by a margin of 63 -29 percent. Among independents 55 percent support it while only 36 percent oppose it. [PPP, 2/10/11]
Poll: Fifty Three Percent of Catholics Support Birth Control Benefit. According to a poll conducted by PPP, 53 percent of Catholics support the birth control benefit while only 44 percent are opposed. [PPP, 2/10/11]
THIS IS JUST THE LATEST IN LITANY OF REPUBLICAN EFFORTS TO CURTAIL WOMEN’S ACCESS TO HEALTH SERVICES
Republicans Threatened to Shut Down the Government to Defund Planned Parenthood. In April 2011, during the debate over funding the government, Republicans threatened to shut down the federal government in order to gut women’s access to healthcare. [ABC News, 4/8/11]
235 House Republicans Voted To Eliminate All Funding For Title X, Jeopardizing Critical Preventive Health Services for Women. HR.1, the House Republican’s spending bill eliminated $327 million from Title X, whose providers served close to 5 million women with preventive services including screenings for breast and cervical cancer. [Wall Street Journal, 2/9/11; H.R. 1; Vote 147, 2/19/11]
Republican Budget Raised Prescription Drug Prices on 2 Million Women.The House Republican budget re-opened the Medicare Part D prescription drug “donut hole.” As a result, senior women would have had to pay an additional $599 on average under the Republican proposal. [HHS, 2/2/12]
And, last night on “The Last Word” with Lawrence O’Donnell:
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
**********
Readers: Heard enough? When will women’s health be taken seriously and supported? In my opinion, any woman who votes republican needs to have her head examined. Thoughts? Blog me.
Doug, Howie, Zen Lill, Al…et al: Thank you for the Valentine wishes.
Peace & Love…
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)
Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:
Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129
Thank you for your loyal support!
All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2012
" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"
February 15th, 2012 at 10:38 am
I’m sitting in cafe a cafe reading your blog and I decided to try for first in today.
February 15th, 2012 at 1:36 pm
The day after Valentine’s day this is sooo sweet.
http://www.aarp.org/relationships/love-sex/info-02-2012/couple-married-at-100.html?intcmp=HP-video
February 15th, 2012 at 1:37 pm
Another star dies and it is still all about the money.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/13/whitney-houston-death-dolly-parton-estate-record-sales_n_1273323.html?ref=mostpopular
February 15th, 2012 at 1:46 pm
Ym, I sat quietly waiting for your love letter to your mistress. I was going to close my eyes and imagine it was to me.
But since you didn’t I found this one. By Gustave Flaubert to Louise Colet, 1846
========================
“I will cover you with love when next I see you, with caresses, with ecstasy. I want to gorge yu [sic] with all the joys of the flesh, so that you faint and die.
I want you to be amazed by me, and to confess to yourself that you had never even dreamed of such transports…
When you are old, I want you to recall those few hours, I want your dry bones to quiver with joy when you think of them.”
================
I have no doubt you would have done much better.
Grace.
February 15th, 2012 at 5:54 pm
We Irish women are fascinated by the slop that white female voters will believe. We are catholics and we think your Santorum is loony.
Why white women catholic or not would support that man is so incredibly stupid. They are voting away the benefits other women got for them through sweat and anguish and any chance of gaining parity from men.
Who is the american female?
Cailin
February 15th, 2012 at 6:16 pm
February 13, 2012, 11:48 AM
DNA Results Are In: Canned Sardines Are Kosher
By GLENN COLLINS
Just so you know: Canned sardines are kosher.
This judgment would appear to be definitive, based on DNA evidence. Genetic testing by a parasitologist at the American Museum of Natural History has confirmed that the recent discovery of small worms in canned sardines does not render them treyf, or unkosher.
It may render them unappetizing, but that judgment is up to the consumer (more on that later).
The museum got involved last March when rabbis from the Orthodox Union, which certifies as kosher hundreds of thousands of products across the world, sought scientific help in resolving a question that arose when they began finding the worms, or nematodes, in cans of sardines.
Talmudic debates can turn on fine distinctions, but this was relatively straightforward. The presence of worms could have been a sign that, during the preparation of the canned sardines, muscle from the fish had been improperly handled and allowed to mix with intestinal contents of the sardines, rendering them unkosher.
The issue was important because it “could have led to sardines losing certification as kosher,” said Dr. Mark Siddall, a curator and professor in the invertebrate department of the museum, who conducted the testing.
Many consumers, including non-Jews, look for the certification label as a sign of quality assurance in food preparation.
The rabbis brought their samples of sardina pilchardus — the Mediterranean sardine — to the museum, where Dr. Siddall conducted so-called “DNA bar-coding” to analyze the species of the worms.
Their DNA was isolated and two variants of the cytochrome oxidase gene — which is different for every animal species, as unique as a fingerprint, Dr. Siddall said — revealed that the type of worms in the samples reside only in the flesh of sardines.
“This meant that there was no evidence that the intestines and the flesh had been commingled,” Dr. Siddall said.
The Orthodox Union also discovered evidence of worms in cans of orange capelin roe, and Dr. Siddall’s testing confirmed that the worms, as well, were not intestine-dwellers.
The analysis of Dr. Siddall and his colleagues has been published in The Journal of Parasitology, and the union has formally ruled that both the sardines, and the capelin roe, are kosher. (The entire paper can be read below.)
In 2004, a similar Talmudic tempest involved a tiny crustacean known as a copepod, which was discovered swimming in New York City’s tap water, spurring debate among the observant about whether it rendered city water unkosher.
Many contended that the crustacean was a distant relative of shrimp and lobster, shellfish that cannot be consumed because they lack fins and scales.
The Orthodox Union recommended that city water be filtered before using it for drinking and cooking. That prompted restaurants to install filters, some costing more than $1,000, to remove the interlopers.
As for worms in sardines or in any fish, Article 81 of the New York City Department of Health Code has long required that “aquatic animals, fish or molluscan shellfish” be cooked, rendering such parasites harmless
— unless customers assume some risk by asking for raw fish, as in sushi. The best sushi masters constantly examine the fish for evidence of parasites.
“The notion that there are worms in fish flesh is not new,” Dr. Siddall said. “As long as they’re cooked, or frozen first, they’re perfectly safe.”
Yes, but if the sardines are both safe and kosher, are the worms themselves — which are barely visible and look like thin whitish threads — disgusting?
“It is up to the individual’s aesthetic as to whether that is ‘yucky,’ ” Dr. Siddall said. “I’ve eaten worse. Curdled goose blood. Rhino beetle larvae. Both yummy. But that’s another story.”
February 15th, 2012 at 8:35 pm
The FDA is on the brink of approving genetically engineered salmon for human consumption. This would be the first genetically engineered animal on supermarket shelves in the United States.
The salmon is engineered to produce growth hormones year-round that cause the fish to grow at twice the normal rate. The government already requires labels to tell us if fish is wild-caught or farm-raised—don’t we also have a right to know if our salmon is genetically engineered? Without labels, we’ll never know.
More than forty countries, including Russia and China, already require labels on genetically engineered foods. As Americans, we firmly believe that we deserve the same right to know what we are eating.
That’s why I created a petition to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on SignOn.org, which says:
Commissioner Hamburg, we urge the FDA to require the mandatory labeling of genetically engineered foods. We have a right to know about the food we eat and what we feed our families, but under current FDA regulations, we don’t have that ability when it comes to genetically engineered foods.
Polls show that more than 90% of Americans support mandatory labeling. Such near-unanimity in public opinion is rare. Please listen to the American public and mandate labeling of genetically engineered foods.
Thanks!
–Eric Schlosser and Gary Hirshberg
The text above was written by Eric Schlosser and Gary Hirshberg, not by MoveOn staff, and MoveOn is not responsible for the content. This email was sent through MoveOn’s secure system, and your information has been kept private.
February 15th, 2012 at 10:23 pm
Communism by insurance mandate
by Ann Coulter
Share Your Comments
One theory for why Barack Obama pushed the contraception mandate right now is that it helps Rick Santorum. Others theorize it’s because Obama is an anti-religious bigot with a left-wing agenda. Reasonable minds can disagree on this.
Sponsored Content
But it may end up helping Mitt Romney by reminding people that the “individual mandate” is the least of the problems with ObamaCare. (The “individual mandate” is simply the legal argument for why ObamaCare is unconstitutional in a country that has accepted Social Security and Medicare as constitutional.)
This isn’t a Catholic issue or even a religious issue. Conservatives are falling into the Democrats’ trap by denouncing it as such. It’s a freedom issue. (Or, as Democrats call it, “the F-word.”)
If liberals like it, it’s subsidized; if they don’t, it’s prohibited. And now they can impose their left-wing authoritarianism on the entire country by calling their mandates and prohibitions “insurance.”
Click here to continue reading Ann Coulter’s column
More from Ann Coulter
Plutocrat Dems attack Romney as ‘Richie Rich
Three cheers for RomneyCare
Re-elect Obama: Vote Newt!
Strongest case against Romney a few sheets short of a ream
Sponsored Content
February 16th, 2012 at 7:07 am
Michelle, if we don’t get help soon, there will be no Homs. Please help.