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Thursday, July 11, 2013

I will never be a Republican...

I am quite disappointed in our state legislators.  Actually, I am quite infuriated.  As women, we need to stand up for ourselves and stop legislators who believe we're too stupid, as a gender, to make decisions for ourselves, for our bodies, and for our unborn children/fetuses (depending on your point of view).

Here are two examples, and from the SAME state legislator who happens to be a woman!
“'I am proud of the step we’ve taken to protect both babies and women. I think it speaks volumes about who we are as humanity,' Laubenberg said."  (Associated Press, July 10, 2013) 
"During a House debate on an appropriations bill that year [2007], Laubenberg, a staunch conservative, put forward an amendment that would require expectant mothers to wait three months before they could begin receiving prenatal and perinatal care under the Children's Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, a program that helps cover uninsured children in low-income families."  (Huffington Post, July 9, 2013)
Do you truly believe you are protecting women?  From what?  Their own decisions?  In 2007, you wanted to withhold healthcare since unborn children are "not children," but now you want to protect them as children.  The irony.  Do you know what would protect women even more so?  Expand Medicaid.  And seeing that women still make about 81 cents to every dollar a man makes (unadjusted), how about you fight for some gender equity in the workforce?  Those are two things that would improve women's lifestyles and improve the lives of their children.

The one thing I do believe is that this law is only going to pass to prove a shoddy Republican point as they run for the Whitehouse in a couple of years.  Perry is not running for governor, so I'm pretty sure he'd use this as leverage if he chooses to run for president again.  Newsflash.  Young people like me are still voting and I will do everything in my power to see the BEST candidate win whether he/she be Democrat, Republican, or Independent, but the way the Republicans have been acting these past five years...you can tell how I lean, especially as a public health worker.

Our legislators desperately need to learn how to work together, something they preach but don't do.  It's all about "being right" rather than digesting the information that they receive.  I think the two parties need a mediation session.  At least Texas isn't afraid of a fight.  North Carolina hid their abortion bill in a motorcycle safety bill; thankfully their governor will be vetoing the abortion legislation.  People scream at how our health care system needs to be changed, but I think our legislative arm of government needs a complete rework even more. 

So my final comments on this posting.  Personally, I could never go through with an abortion, but that does not mean I have the right to strip another woman of her rights to make choices because in the end, she's the one who is going to have to stand before God and be judged for her decisions.