why they won't

Once again I am late in the game on talking about something. But here goes.

The fear of our government banning all abortions is a real one. I understand why many people believe that we are headed in that direction but let me tell you why I don't think we are.

When South Dakota banned all abortions unless the woman's life is in danger, it took an issue that politics and religion have been talking about in the abstract and brought it into reality. It brought it about during the time of impending election and during the time of new Supreme Court justices. The South Dakota legislature may have thought this was the perfect time to do it, but they could not have misjudged the climate more.

The Supreme Court's two new justices are appointees of our current president. Our current unpopular, warmongering, numbskull of a president. They are still however, judges. Yes, I am upset that it was Bush who got to nominate them instead of Clinton nominating someone I like more, but these judges will still be faced with the same legalities involved with trying to over turn Roe v. Wade. Precedent has been set. These judges are old enough to remember the times of coat hanger abortions, and they do not want to be the ones who force a 14 year old girl who was raped by her father to then give birth to a baby conceived from that violation.

Let's go on further to the Republican party as a whole. Republicans have used the abortion issue as a way to sway voters for many years. But now they are faced with entering an election cycle with an extremely unpopular president and the moderates that they picked up to win the last election will be making a mass exodus. If you want to see voter turn out, then lets tell the women of America that their right to choose is on the line. In actuality, it is always on the line, but they won't all vote until they are cornered.

Now take a worst case scenario. Roe v. Wade is overturned and South Dakota's law is made national. Fast forward to a victim of a brutal rape who becomes pregnant and then illegally gets an abortion and gets arrested. Imagine that woman's face plastered all over the newspapers. The media and the public will find this martyr; and anyone who voted to over turn Roe v. Wade will now be the devil. Or some young girl with an angel's face will die in an illegal botched procedure. It can happen. These thoughts will haunt any person who is running for office, and anyone who votes to ban abortions. The simple truth will force its way through. That you cannot commandeer a persons body for any purpose.

South Dakota has jump started an ugly machine that, while we all argued, had laid dormant for a long time. Like everything else under this current administration, South Dakota's law seeks to move us backwards as a nation and as a people. Instead of moving backwards in a woman's right to choose, education, human rights, poverty, economy, and peace; we need a leader to move us forward to a higher level of thinking and acceptance.

This all may be optimism on my part. I remember when I knew with certainty that there was no way this country would ever let Bush be president, and then I knew with certainty that this country would never elect Bush president. I was obviously wrong. Here's hoping I am right on this one.