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Abortion
 Bahamut.Josseppi
Server: Bahamut
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Posts: 106
By Bahamut.Josseppi 2011-07-06 11:41:39
Phoenix.Neosutra said: That's a rare *** percentage of the total population and irrelevant to this conversation.
Yes please, just because you have a cute avatar doesn't mean you can talk down to people. We see your point, and its part of the discussion, please try not to be vulgar.
 Phoenix.Sehachan
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Posts: 13352
By Phoenix.Sehachan 2011-07-06 11:49:07
Sylph.Anjali said: Seha, I do think every woman should have the option. And contrary to what a certain other crass poster said, I wasn't generalising anyone. I was talking about the perception in society now. If you accidentally get pregnant (not talking about rape victims here), the first thoughts should be "Am I ready to have a child?" and thinking that through. Not "Oh damn... should I get an abortion?". That should be the last thing we think about. There isn't really any clearer way to explain this other than what I've said. In society now, abortion is a quick thought. Not an easy decision, but a quick thought nevertheless. It isn't the last thing people consider. I'm not drawing any conclusions about the relation between that and the availability of abortion facilities, but you can see how others might. Personally I just think it's all to do with the many other things wrong with modern society, which is too long a discussion for this :) Gotcha.
Bahamut.Josseppi
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By Bahamut.Josseppi 2011-07-06 11:55:04
Sylph.Anjali said: Seha, I do think every woman should have the option. And contrary to what a certain other crass poster said, I wasn't generalising anyone. I was talking about the perception in society now. If you accidentally get pregnant (not talking about rape victims here), the first thoughts should be "Am I ready to have a child?" and thinking that through. Not "Oh damn... should I get an abortion?". That should be the last thing we think about. There isn't really any clearer way to explain this other than what I've said. In society now, abortion is a quick thought. Not an easy decision, but a quick thought nevertheless. It isn't the last thing people consider. I'm not drawing any conclusions about the relation between that and the availability of abortion facilities, but you can see how others might. Personally I just think it's all to do with the many other things wrong with modern society, which is too long a discussion for this :)
That being said, is it possible that we're reaching a point in society where we realize the morality of abortion is not as significant as the impact that each new life has on this earth. As we discover more and more about our planet and its resources, we theorize how many people the earth can sustain. Maybe our loss of morality is part of the evolutionary process. Our morals to conserve and protect new life/clumps of cells, has weekened simply because our need to continue the species has become less and less of a driving force in our lives.
I have the same theory about homosexuality. People can debate all day long whether people are born or choose to be homosexuals. The reality is, its a bit of both plus environmental factors. The key question in all of this, is if people are born gay, why would the evolutionary process allow this? It makes sense if the process is somehow aware of the need to slow down population growth. Our bodies/minds are altering our genetics to give birth to humans who will be productive workers, happy with what they have in life, and a lot less likely to reproduce.
Is it possible that our loss of morality over abortion is part of evolution? Are we subconciously making it ok for the overall better of the continuation of the species without our genetics in it?
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By Lakshmi.Sparthosx 2011-07-06 12:03:39
Fenrir.Terminus said: Maybe not THE central theme, but it exists, and is relevant.
Point is, why take away the option simply because of the outliers? The main goal behind the pro-life movement is to completely strip the option to have abortions, completely missing the point that some individuals are not cut out to be parents, the adoption system is woefully underfunded and full of children who haven't been placed in homes and mistakes do happen.
I said it before and i'll say it again - education is the key to reducing abortions if that is the honest intention of pro-lifers. This means teaching serious sex-ed and not leaving it up to parents to give their children "the talk".
What annoys me more than anything is when individuals promote ignorance by wanting to cut funding for sex ed and at the same time promote a strict pro-life stance. It simply creates an impossible situation and ruins lives when children are saddled with children.
These same individuals become highly annoyed when programs like welfare exist. Yeah...
American media is bombarded with sex and there is no surprise when 15 year olds become pregnant as they are simply mimicking what they see on TV. If you want to reduce abortions, educate the masses and leave the option open.
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By Shiva.Xellith 2011-07-06 12:06:12
I'm Pro abortion. When an egg is fertilized does that mean its a living creature? Yes it does. Does it mean its Human? Not really. Its more of a tadpole than anything else. I mean saying that a life "starts" at conception is true however I don't think that it should be viewed that way.
I bite the skin around my fingernails. I'M MURDERING HUMAN CELLS!
See what I'm saying?
A fertilized egg isn't a person until it matures. Otherwise having eggs with toast in the morning you are murdering a chicken. Even though its not a chicken. Its a yellow soup kinda thing.
Again though you do have to take into considerations about YOURSELF before you take into consideration a life which isn't even sentient yet. A fertilized egg has no brain. No brain = no mind. Until the 'baby' actually starts to form neural pathways and gains consciousness then its not a human. Its like if you take a human being and rip out their brain and put in a computer. Sure it'll be in a human body but its not a human.
Before abortion you should take into consideration whether or not you can support the child financially. Is it going to most likely suffer from some kind of deformity that's detrimental to its life? What about the world as a whole.
Life does begin at conception. But its not human life and its not human for months until brain activity starts.
The second that the creature starts to 'think'. Then its human and id kick your *** for aborting it without a damn good reason.
 Ragnarok.Beef
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By Ragnarok.Beef 2011-07-06 12:16:19
Fenrir.Ilax said: Ragnarok.Beef said: Fenrir.Ilax said: Ragnarok.Beef said: everything would be better if people didn't try to run other peoples lives.
remove all religion and everything fixed. (would also fix many other thing too)
@Phoenix.Sehachan don't mix up who believe into religion and what is religion rule/story line/ethic etc.
Edit: I believe we all should follow a life model: moral, religion, science or it would be total chaos. But there the problem now day, no one respect other believe and they try "force/convert" them. Is getting even worse since the more we go the more every country become multi-cultural, and we have to do more sacrifice to please everyone.
Take Canadian problem, they forced an GIM in montreal to hide window because it was shocking muselam when they see people without t-shirt, is kind of that ***that should not be respected into any country.
Anyway, just my 5 cent on it.
Siren.Mosin said: have you ever been making breakfast, cracked an egg, & thought "why can't all abortions be this delicious?" Lol, that was the best part of this thread.
i dont know, it really has nothing to do with religion and everything to do with individual.
if you're an ***, you're going to be an *** no matter if you're religious or scientific.
but what make someone an "*** hole", is all base on your believe, eat porc can make you an "*** hole" so is for abortion. All depend on what you believe man. The only real "*** hole" is the one that go again his own religion/moral/ethic etc, witch go back to my first point.
being an *** in general is what i'm talking about, being a bad person, a jerk, people of fall beliefs can agree on this terms. you don't think without Islam that Osama Bin Laden wouldn't have done what he did on 9/11? you don't think he was just *** up and would've did in the name of something else?
religion is like a gun, it's not good or bad, it's just a gun. depending on the individual who picks it up and uses it, to either save a life or to destroy it, that's where the evilness or the goodness comes from.
you can blame individuals for their distorted point of view of their religion, but it's not religion's fault, it's theirs.
also, i've never met a muslim who thought i was an *** for eating pork lol
Server: Shiva
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By Shiva.Xellith 2011-07-06 12:19:32
Ragnarok.Beef said: Fenrir.Ilax said: Ragnarok.Beef said: Fenrir.Ilax said: Ragnarok.Beef said: everything would be better if people didn't try to run other peoples lives.
remove all religion and everything fixed. (would also fix many other thing too)
@Phoenix.Sehachan don't mix up who believe into religion and what is religion rule/story line/ethic etc.
Edit: I believe we all should follow a life model: moral, religion, science or it would be total chaos. But there the problem now day, no one respect other believe and they try "force/convert" them. Is getting even worse since the more we go the more every country become multi-cultural, and we have to do more sacrifice to please everyone.
Take Canadian problem, they forced an GIM in montreal to hide window because it was shocking muselam when they see people without t-shirt, is kind of that ***that should not be respected into any country.
Anyway, just my 5 cent on it.
Siren.Mosin said: have you ever been making breakfast, cracked an egg, & thought "why can't all abortions be this delicious?" Lol, that was the best part of this thread.
i dont know, it really has nothing to do with religion and everything to do with individual.
if you're an ***, you're going to be an *** no matter if you're religious or scientific.
but what make someone an "*** hole", is all base on your believe, eat porc can make you an "*** hole" so is for abortion. All depend on what you believe man. The only real "*** hole" is the one that go again his own religion/moral/ethic etc, witch go back to my first point.
being an *** in general is what i'm talking about, being a bad person, a jerk, people of fall beliefs can agree on this terms. you don't think without Islam that Osama Bin Laden wouldn't have done what he did on 9/11? you don't think he was just *** up and would've did in the name of something else?
religion is like a gun, it's not good or bad, it's just a gun. depending on the individual who picks it up and uses it, to either save a life or to destroy it, that's where the evilness or the goodness comes from.
you can blame individuals for their distorted point of view of their religion, but it's not religion's fault, it's theirs.
also, i've never met a muslim who thought i was an *** for eating pork lol
I dunno... id say religion is evil in most cases. Its just most people don't follow the books they subscribe to.
example
Quote: When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she will not be freed at the end of six years as the men are. If she does not please the man who bought her, he may allow her to be bought back again. But he is not allowed to sell her to foreigners, since he is the one who broke the contract with her. And if the slave girl's owner arranges for her to marry his son, he may no longer treat her as a slave girl, but he must treat her as his daughter. If he himself marries her and then takes another wife, he may not reduce her food or clothing or fail to sleep with her as his wife. If he fails in any of these three ways, she may leave as a free woman without making any payment. (Exodus 21:7-11 NLT) Quote: However, you may purchase male or female slaves from among the foreigners who live among you. You may also purchase the children of such resident foreigners, including those who have been born in your land. You may treat them as your property, passing them on to your children as a permanent inheritance. You may treat your slaves like this, but the people of Israel, your relatives, must never be treated this way. (Leviticus 25:44-46 NLT)
If you do not agree with this then you are not a christian. And for that you can give yourself a pat on the back for not following such f***d up stuff.
now lets get back on topic >.> lol
Quetzalcoatl.Xueye
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By Quetzalcoatl.Xueye 2011-07-06 12:39:03
Sylph.Anjali said: Seha, I do think every woman should have the option. And contrary to what a certain other crass poster said, I wasn't generalising anyone. I was talking about the perception in society now. If you accidentally get pregnant (not talking about rape victims here), the first thoughts should be "Am I ready to have a child?" and thinking that through. Not "Oh damn... should I get an abortion?". That should be the last thing we think about. There isn't really any clearer way to explain this other than what I've said. In society now, abortion is a quick thought. Not an easy decision, but a quick thought nevertheless. It isn't the last thing people consider. I'm not drawing any conclusions about the relation between that and the availability of abortion facilities, but you can see how others might. Personally I just think it's all to do with the many other things wrong with modern society, which is too long a discussion for this :)
But why? Why should it be the last thought? The last case?
That's what I'm struggling to debate in my head. Is it bad? Is it wrong?
Should it be the last thing on the mind because it has the potential to be a wonderful human? A lovely part of my family? In that case, then every sperm of mine should have an ode when it doesn't make it.
I really can't figure out my views on this issue. It's quite interesting.
Phoenix.Sehachan
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By Phoenix.Sehachan 2011-07-06 12:40:34
Quetzalcoatl.Xueye said: then ever sperm of mine should have an ode when it doesn't make it. Swim! Swim my minions and conquer the world! MWHAHAHAH!!
Sorry, lol'd at the thought.
Quetzalcoatl.Xueye
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By Quetzalcoatl.Xueye 2011-07-06 12:42:49
Well, I better be wrong on religion, because with what I just looked up... I have a lot of odes to write. @.@ I'm going to need an eternity for this one!
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By Lakshmi.Sparthosx 2011-07-06 12:44:10
Bahamut.Josseppi said:
That being said, is it possible that we're reaching a point in society where we realize the morality of abortion is not as significant as the impact that each new life has on this earth. As we discover more and more about our planet and its resources, we theorize how many people the earth can sustain. Maybe our loss of morality is part of the evolutionary process. Our morals to conserve and protect new life/clumps of cells, has weekened simply because our need to continue the species has become less and less of a driving force in our lives.
We haven't lost any morals and evolution has nothing to do with a woman's right to choose. Just 47 years ago segregation was OK in the US, 90 years ago women got the right to vote and 148 years ago slavery was abolished.
Id call that progress, though we have so much more to accomplish.
Back to abortion.
As a species we've already accomplished the goal of surviving and now we realize that reproducing too much has consequences. You cannot simply continue to breed unchecked if you desire a reasonable quality of life for your decedents on this planet.
We've already steamrolled many of the natural checks on humans through vaccines and better living conditions.
If you couldn't take care of your child a few decades ago, odds are that child would die. Today we have the heart to support individuals whose parents have no financial means to take care of the children they bring into the world but such heart has limitations and ultimately the goal is slow the process which means education, education and more education.
Many pro-lifers are against education. Abstinence as policy is not going to work and no amount of telling teenagers to keep it in their pants is going to prevent experimentation. It didn't work in the Middle Ages and it won't work in the present.
Abortion is simply the right to choose if you desire to bring a child into the world. Some parents want children, have the money to take care of them and to that I say, wonderful. But, you cannot ignore the fact that many parents do not have the financial resources, do not have the desire for children and simply will bring a mouth to feed into the world.
The choice should remain open for them to decide which is the better option.
Quote: Is it possible that our loss of morality over abortion is part of evolution? Are we subconciously making it ok for the overall better of the continuation of the species without our genetics in it?
Abortion has nothing to do with Evolution. Nothing.
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Phoenix.Sehachan
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By Phoenix.Sehachan 2011-07-06 12:49:45
Lakshmi.Sparthosx said: Abstinence as policy is not going to work and no amount of telling teenagers to keep it in their pants is going to prevent experimentation. It didn't work in the Middle Ages and it won't work in the present. About this particular matter, those who think that teens should be educated about abstinence are just out of this world. They have desires, and it's just normal if they give in to them. Some will resist, many others won't. Your only hope is sex education, not abstinence inculcation *makes up words*
Lakshmi.Flavin
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By Lakshmi.Flavin 2011-07-06 12:53:23
Phoenix.Sehachan said: Lakshmi.Sparthosx said: Abstinence as policy is not going to work and no amount of telling teenagers to keep it in their pants is going to prevent experimentation. It didn't work in the Middle Ages and it won't work in the present. About this particular matter, those who think that teens should be educated about abstinence are just out of this world. They have desires, and it's just normal if they give in to them. Some will resist, many others won't. Your only hope is sex education, not abstinence inculcation *makes up words* They should be educated about it all. Kudos on the makin' up words.
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By Bismarck.Dracondria 2011-07-06 12:57:09
America is pretty assbackwards when it comes to sex ed :/
Asura.Poupee
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By Asura.Poupee 2011-07-06 12:59:21
Bismarck.Dracondria said: America is pretty assbackwards when it comes to sex ed :/ i never learned anything about sex ed really in school.
i think they're afraid to teach us
and then they have those students with the crazy parents who won't let their children learn so the teachers can't educate us
Quetzalcoatl.Xueye
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By Quetzalcoatl.Xueye 2011-07-06 13:00:42
Bismarck.Dracondria said: America is pretty assbackwards when it comes to sex ed :/
My sex ed consisted of about this much:
"Okay, I have to teach you this ***because they made me a health teacher. If you don't want to get pregnant don't have sex or wrap it up. Now shut the *** up so we can put Erin Brockovich back on. She's *** hot."
By Halfpint 2011-07-06 13:03:16
Here is something for the highly religious "christians" to chew on:
1) according to the bible God created every living thing, plants,creatures and humans alike.
2)BE advised ...God created plants that will cause a period to start, that will cause an abortion and will prevent pregnancy if you know how to use them.
3) This information is actually IN the bible, unuseable to present day man because the names are different and there is a possibiility the plants are no longer available......
THEREFORE : If God created plants that are useful, at one point in a woman's cycle or another, FOR birth control then where does it say in the bible that Birth Control is forbidden by "GOD"?.
BTW...search herbology, abortifactants, warning...every plant listed in this catagory can also be life threatening if used wrong!
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Phoenix.Sehachan
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By Phoenix.Sehachan 2011-07-06 13:04:16
I only had sex ed once in highschool and it was mostly a lol event.
I remember someone asked something like
"why do people do..you know when they're more than two and.."
"Oh you mean the GROUP ***?! cause it's fun!"
Yeah, not really informative in the end. Needs to be a course and done professionally with a sexologist or someone competent.
Lakshmi.Flavin
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By Lakshmi.Flavin 2011-07-06 13:05:57
Phoenix.Sehachan said: I only had sex ed once in highschool and it was mostly a lol event. I remember someone asked something like "why do people do..you know when they're more than two and.." "Oh you mean the GROUP ***?! cause it's fun!" Yeah, not really informative in the end. Needs to be a course and done professionally with a sexologist or someone competent. a sexologist huh? lmao!
By Eluveitie 2011-07-06 13:07:04
Fairy.Spence said: /*** sigh
Want to save space on this website? Get rid of the entire Politics and Religion section. THIS! OMFG THIS!!!!!!
Quetzalcoatl.Xueye
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By Quetzalcoatl.Xueye 2011-07-06 13:07:59
Eluveitie said: Fairy.Spence said: /*** sigh
Want to save space on this website? Get rid of the entire Politics and Religion section. THIS! OMFG THIS!!!!!!
For one, I personally think that the quality of these threads have been increasing.
Two, if you don't like it then stop clicking.
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By Bismarck.Dracondria 2011-07-06 13:12:59
In Sweden, society’s attitudes towards teenage sexual relationships are liberal, and sexual and reproductive health issues are given high priority. Family and sex education has been taught in schools since the 1950s. The age of sexual consent is 15 years. Since 1975, abortion has been free on demand. Contraceptive counselling is free, easily available at family planning and youth health clinics. Screening for genital chlamydial infection is performed at these clinics, thus providing a “one stop shop” service. Condoms and oral contraception are available at low cost, emergency contraception is sold over the counter. Teenage childbearing is uncommon.
Stole this from some site lol. It's been mandatory since 1956 and you have it in 8th grade in biology.
http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/IES/sweden.html Found this if you're interested in learning more.
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Phoenix.Sehachan
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By Phoenix.Sehachan 2011-07-06 13:14:36
How I love Sweden~ *wants to move*
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By Lakshmi.Sparthosx 2011-07-06 13:15:22
Sounds like my High School was ahead of the curve then, we got a thorough sex-ed course with bananas, condoms and plenty of delicious pictures of STDs during Freshman year after school. The immaturity levels were intense but I walked away with a much more solid understanding of sex.
People were encouraged to ask questions and you'd be surprised the silliness you get from a group of 14 year olds but those silly questions most likely stopped people from finding out the hard way.
We were even quizzed on various infections and got a grade. Condoms and lubricant were always available in the nurses office along with someone to confide in if you caught an STD.
Not that the nurse could keep her mouth shut when she told us all about how many seniors had crabs lol.
Quetzalcoatl.Xueye
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By Quetzalcoatl.Xueye 2011-07-06 13:17:23
Wow.
We didn't get any of that. But then again, I came from a very poor school...
... Which I'd imagine needed it the most, actually...
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By Bismarck.Dracondria 2011-07-06 13:17:46
Quote: Swedish sexuality education operates on four levels. In general, at the lowest level, education for pupils age 7 to 10 years deals with menstruation, intercourse, self-pleasuring, contraceptives, fertilization, pregnancy, and childbirth. The same topics are dealt with at higher levels, adjusted to the students' age and maturity. At the middle level, ages 10 to 13, added topics include the physical development at puberty, venereal diseases, homosexuality, exhibitionism, and pedophilia. On the upper level, ages 13 to 16, added topics include: petting, different views of sex roles, premarital relations, marriage and family including the views in some non-Christian cultures, abortion, pornography, prostitution, HIV/AIDS and “safer sex,” and where to go for further information and advice. On the college level are included sexual desire, with its variations in the orientation and strength, falling in love, sexual problems and dysfunctions, ethical and religious viewpoints on contraception and abortion, societal support for the family (family law), sexual problems of certain immigrant groups, and the problem of world population. Quote: In some circles, both in Sweden and other countries, there was a fear that Sweden's liberal teenage sexuality and free abortion would increase teenage abortion. However, this did not happen. On the contrary, abortions decreased in the decade following enactment of the new law in 1975. This brought about international attention and was interpreted as a result of the Swedish school programs in sex education and the youth clinics. Many other countries then introduced sex education programs modeled on the Swedish approach.
Phoenix.Sehachan
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By Phoenix.Sehachan 2011-07-06 13:18:14
Lakshmi.Sparthosx said: with bananas Mpf! Noobs!
Being creative me and a classmate made a penis using paper and glue and used that to teach our friends everything they needed to know!
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By Bismarck.Dracondria 2011-07-06 13:21:34
This article seems a few years old since the section about gay marriage isn't updated. We legalized it in 2009.
vs Kansas:
Kansas to Shut Down All but One Abortion Clinic Friday | Mother Jones
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/06/kansas-shut-down-all-abortion-clinics-friday
Quote: This story has been updated below.
It's official. Every abortion provider in the state of Kansas has been denied a license to continue operating as of July 1. As we reported last week, strict new state laws put in place this month threatened to close the remaining three abortion clinics in Kansas. The staff of one of these facilities, a Planned Parenthood clinic in Overland Park, initially thought their operation could survive the strict new standards. But on Thursday afternoon, Planned Parenthood announced that the Overland Park clinic has thus far been denied a license to continue operating—effectively cutting off access to legal abortion in the entire state.
The new law, which takes effect Friday, establishes new standards for abortion providers—standards apparently designed to make compliance difficult. The rules require changes to the size and number of rooms, compel clinics to have additional supplies on hand, and even mandate room temperatures for the facilities. Given that the rules were released less than two weeks before clinics were expected to be in compliance, many providers knew they wouldn't be able to obtain a license to continue operating. The laws, often called "targeted regulation of abortion providers," or TRAP laws, are an increasingly common legislative maneuver to limit access to abortion by redering it tough, if not impossible, for providers to comply.
With today's announcement that the Overland Park clinic was denied a license, Kansas becomes the first state to effectively make the legally protected right to obtain abortion services moot. One clinic in Kansas has already filed suit against the new rules, and a hearing on that suit is planned for Friday. Planned Parenthood is also expected to sue. The clinics are also expected to seek an injunction to block the law from being enforced. UPDATE: Planned Parenthood has filed suit. They are seeking an emergency injunction to allow their clinic to remain open while the lawsuit is pending.
"The women of Kansas waiting on their scheduled procedures will pay the immediate price for this outrageous and flagrant exertion of the radical GOP’s legislative muscle under the Brownback administration," said Kansas NOW in a statement Thursday, referring to conservative Republican Gov. Sam Brownback. "The freedom and right to legal healthcare has been denied to the women of Kansas."
UPDATE: In a statement issued Thursday evening, Peter Brownlie, president of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, seemed to hold out some hope that its clinic could still obtain a license to continue operating, even as the organization sought an injuction to block the law from taking effect. "We have been targeted in this bill and Kansas women are the ones who will suffer if their health care is taken away," said Brownlie. "This is radical, extreme government intrusion into private health care."
UPDATE 5:45 PM EST THURSDAY: The Associated Press is reporting that the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, after initially denying a license to Planned Parenthood, has now changed their mind. Stay tuned for more updates. PP said inspectors were back at the clinic Thursday reevaluating it, after earlier this week indicating that they would not be able to obtain one.
UPDATE 6:08 PM EST THURSDAY: Planned Parenthood just announced that the health department has, in fact, decided to grant it a license to continue operating. The PP clinic in Overland Park will remain open. "Notwithstanding that the regulations are burdensome and unnecessary, the findings of the inspection indicate what we have known and said throughout this process: Planned Parenthood operates with the highest standards of patient care and has rigorous safety procedures in place," Brownlie said.
UPDATE 7:15 PM EST FRIDAY: A federal judge in Kansas City has blocked the new abortion clinic regulations from taking effect.
Kansas Judge Blocks Abortion Clinic Regs | Mother Jones
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/07/kansas-judge-blocks-abortion-clinic-regs
Quote: A judge in Kansas has blocked the state's strict new regulations on abortion providers from taking effect, a move that will allow all three clinics in the state to continue offering services, the Kansas City Star reports.
On Friday afternoon, U.S District Judge Carlos Murguia granted a request from two clinics—Aid for Women in Kansas City and the Center for Women's Health in Overland Park—to grant temporary relief from the new rules, which took effect July 1. The clinics were denied a license to continue operating after the state issued new rules on June 17 that would have required both clinics to make major changes to their facilities. A third clinic, owned by Planned Parenthood, was granted a license to continue operating on Thursday.
The injunction will remain in place until the court hears the formal challenge to the state's regulations.
"This is a tremendous victory for women in Kansas and against the underhanded efforts of anti-choice politicians to shut down abortion providers in the state," said Center for Reproductive Rights president Nancy Northup, which joined with the clinics in filing the legal challenge to the law, in a statement Friday evening. "The facts were clear—this licensing process had absolutely nothing to do with patient health or safety and everything to do with political shenanigans."
The Kansas legislature passed a new law in April creating a new designation for abortion providers under the state's licensing system, and directed the Department of Health and Environment to issue new rules. The department issued 36-pages of rules on June 17 (though the clinics did not receive copies until June 20), mandating things like the size of waiting and recovery rooms, the number of bathrooms, and the required temperatures for each room in the facility. Clinic owners argued that it was impossible to meet the new standards, given that they were released just two weeks before the clinics were required to comply. Moreover, they argued, the rules had little to do with protecting patients and were designed to shut down the clinics.
This type of law, often called "targeted regulation of abortion providers," or "TRAP" laws, isn't exactly new or unique, but Kansas' would have gone farther than others in actually shutting down abortion providers.
Kate Sheppard covers energy and environmental politics in Mother Jones' Washington bureau. For more of her stories, click here. She Tweets here. Get Kate Sheppard's RSS feed.
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