I went down to the mall on Friday, armed with a microphone and a video camera, to talk with the anti-abortion protesters at the March for Life. Sum of Change put together this lovely little montage of apparently confused people.
I find it mind boggling that so many people would go through the trouble of traveling across the country to stand out in the cold for hours on end but not bother to read up on the issue they're protesting.
If you're holding a sign, you'd better be prepared to explain what it means. Or else, you'll have to answer to me. On camera.
In fairness, most people with whom I spoke were very friendly, respectful and had the best of intentions. It seems to me that conservative politicians and those who share their agenda count on the trusting, uneducated masses to further their cause.
10 comments:
Lol, trusting uneducated masses. Double-edge sword.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mm1KOBMg1Y8&feature=player_embedded
@Kelly,
There are some big differences. To begin with, we interviewed the President of Operation Rescue (arguably the leading national anti-choice organization) not just a group of random voters. It is completely appropriate to expect him to be able to explain what he is telling thousands of folks he knows to be true.
@ Rusty
Is that right? News packages typically name the people they interview so people who watch them don't have to magically find out. And no, it's not different. Ignorant masses are ignorant masses no matter what side of the political spectrum they rest on. I don't think this needs to be explained any more.
You have to realize that "obamacare" is the one polarizing issue today - you might even say it outweighs the abortion topic itself becuase it IS so far reaching (The healthcare bill proposed by the senate and by congress). This (Hopefully not) soon to be law could affect everyone in the US, mostly taxpayers funding it, but as you show in your clips, abortion rears its head as well.
Personally, I think the abortion issue is a red herring topic on this healthcare bill; I don't care WHO it is that pays for abortions - abortions are not the issue - the issue is that the federal govt. is about to nationalize roughly 1/5th of the US economy, and those that can still read - SHOULD read the proposed bill(s) that call for jail sentences for not following the new laws.
A notoriously blue state just voted a republican into a senate seat based solely on his campaigning as an opponent of the health care bill. This is quite the litmus test of public opinion. It's a demand for a more critical look at the implications of such a wide reaching, not to mention expensive proposition (whose sister-systems have failed in other countries). The white house embarrassingly misinterpreted this as a cry to expedite the bill.
Now, if Obama had spent a trillion dollars in educational reform, it would be a different story. Almost all societal problems (including our suffering health care system, welfare/poverty, issues of reproductive rights, even obesity) are a symptom of subpar education in this country. For one, less-expensive education for doctors (it's a roughly $500,000 expense for them) would sharply drive the cost of health care down. There are other grand implications that a simple analysis would uncover. I'll gladly give a complete explanation of this, preferably over a hookah at Soussi on some friday, but spare the comment space.
God, I wish I could have vomited on some of these people. All of these people.
PS: I embedded this vid in my blog! Hope you don't mind. ;)
@Kelly
Did you watch the whole thing? We did label Troy Newman as the President of Operation rescue.
Rusty, your single attribution comes almost 4 and a half minutes into the video. Goggle "how to make a news package." Despite your obvious political bias, it will at least make it look like you're trying to put something nice together (not a news package obviously, but at least something nice looking). I find it interesting that there's no actual commentary on the issue from your end. I'm wondering what, if any point you're trying to prove except that you like to go find people that you don't agree with and create shoddy montages of them. I have yet to see any of you qualify or quantify your politics. The closest you seem to come is commenting on other people's comments in the political arena. I'm guessing you're all prochoice, but you've given no substantial reason as to why. Because of the strategic placement of abortion clinics and the encouragement of certain socioeconomic groups to utilize elective outpatient abortions, I find it a racist eugenic practice. That and less than 1% of all abortions are attributed to instances of rape/incest, or jeopardy of the mother's life. But that's just based on the numbers and facts.
@Kelly
I thought our point was pretty simple. Pro-life groups have unloaded tons of resources convincing the public that the proposed health care legislation would fund abortion, which it would not. We were merely pointing out that no one, not event he President of a leading anti-choice organization that has been leading the charge against the health care bill, can explain how the bill would fund abortion.
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