I can't really think of anything to contribute to this. I'm distracted by a fantasy of beating this guy with a baseball bat in his cell, and then moving on to find wherever Eric Rudolph is imprisoned to do the same damn thing.
This guy, Sarah Palin, and the people who mouth-breathe and follow them... they are the last gasps of the white patriarchy. Hear them scream as they die out, replaced by thinking individuals who are not ruled 100% by fear and hate. Keep gasping, Scott. It'll be over soon.
Next thing you know, Fox News is going to give this guy his own show with Sarah Palin. They will have a call in format and Palin would be his side kick. They could call in "Shitstorm with Scott & Sarah."
I didn't realize that prisoners were allowed to send and receive mail. Also, where would he get addresses for people to do mass mailings? Why is the justification and celebration of murder not classified as hate speech? It all seems very scarily conspiratorial to me. So many questions.
@i'm going to have my friends call me valerie: But hate speech is still allowed in the US, no? Doesn't it fall under the first amendment? I was under the impression that you could only prosecute someone for their words if they directly call for an act of violence. So saying "It's great that doctors who perform abortions are dead/killed" is okay but "kill doctors who perform abortions" is not? I'm never too clear on this. But then I live in a country where Holocaust denial is illegal.
@haguenite: You're allowed to say "Kill doctors who provide abortions," I think, but NOT to say "Kill Dr. X tomorrow after church when I know he will be running errands at the South Tallapoosa Walmart." I think (and I'm not a lawyer, etc.) that the distinction is that the latter specifically incites a violent act.
Um, Crazy Dude? I am pretty sure that the Army of God is made up of saints, angels, and people who exhibit a great deal more love and better judgement than the likes of you and your fellow crazies.
I would like an episode of '24' where Jack Bauer bites the ear off of a doughy 40-something white guy from Topeka, rather than another anonymous brown person. Imagine the poutrage!
@wtfox?!: I think there needs to be formal evidence of involvement in a conspiracy to commit murder for the purposes of intimidation, rather than veiled allusions and insinuations, which is what most of the radical anti-abortion groups traffic in. Unfortunately enough, I don't think there's any shortage of semi-deranged lone-gunman types like Roeder in the anti-abortion fold. Targeting groups as terrorist organizations that can't be directly linked to violence in a formal manner is a slippery slope that raises constitutional issues - for instance, the Bush administration using eco-terrorist bombings as justification to place FBI moles in environmental organizations.
@thegogglesdonothing: I consider it terrorism to threaten, and occasionally enact, violence against a group in order to achieve your political goals.
This is what the "Army of God" does. One of their members is Shelley Shannon, who shot Dr. Tiller in 1993. They also have ties to Roeder, and they have claimed 'loose affiliation' with numerous clinic bombers and the killer Eric Rudolph. Not to mention the fact that they explicitly advocate for the MURDER of doctors, going so far as to provide pictures, addresses, and family member info. And yes, they have been cited as a possible terrorist organization by the Feds, because one of their founders sent fake anthrax letters post 9/11.
The hilarious thing is that they have adopted the strategy of fostering 'lone-wolf' terrorist acts to avoid prosecution as a terrorist group. They call it "leaderless resistance". They are quite proud of this strategy, actually. So, yay.
@thegogglesdonothing: I should clarify that I don't disagree with the merits of your post. I just find it incredibly frustrating that these dillweeds have figured out a way to function as terrorists outside of the legal definition of being a terrorist organization. They might be cited as a potential terrorist group, but they aren't having they're money cut off or their leaders prosecuted.
HOW is this not a terrorist conspiracy? I don't see how there is any excuse for this. I don't believe that if this group of terrorists were targeting random civilians, or Christians or Jews or Military Personnel that there wouldn't be a hell of a lot more going on to stop this.
@mythago: I don't think so. Eric Rudolph has been doing this exact same thing for years. I think he probably has enough rope by now to rappel down the Grand Canyon.
@mythago: You're more generous than I am. I don't think the FBI gives a shit. Our gummint isn't interested in enforcing any laws that protect a woman's right to abortion.
Joan Walsh was on The O'Reilly Factor last night (and delivering quite the smackdown, I must say), where she made a comparison that I absolutely love.
There are people in America who believe that guns should be illegal, but they don't go around picketing gun shops with signs that say "child killer", accusing the store owners and employees of being "murderers", screaming abuse, and harassing anyone who tries to enter the store. That sort of thing wouldn't be even remotely acceptable, and yet for some reason it's been allowed to go on at abortion clinics for years.
If you think the law should be changed, then WORK TO GET THE LAW CHANGED! How anyone is able to feel any inkling of sympathy or respect for a movement that uses these kinds of tactics, I will never understand. It makes me sick.
@Slovenly Muse: While I agree with Joan Walsh, I think part of the problem is that the legalization of abortion was never a law passed through legislation - it was a law decided by the supreme court. I think the legal reasoning of roe v. wade was flawed. However, I would like the issue put to a vote to shut the far right wingers up.
@Mymoustache: Fair enough. Admittedly, I don't know much about the circumstances of its legalization, the details of Roe v. Wade, or the process necessary to make it illegal. I'm from Canada, where abortion is considered a health issue rather than a political one, and we don't have nearly the kind of pro-life movement that you do.
That's actually probably why I find it so frustrating and infuriating to see the issue fought about in this manner.
@Slovenly Muse: But the comparison with Canada is interesting because it too was a Supreme Court decision; however, it was grounded under s.7 of the Charter (life, liberty, & security of the person) as opposed to privacy rights, which are not explicit in the U.S. Constitution but rather read in.
I don't think having a vote would shut these people up because they're religious zealots.
these procedures should be performed in hospitals, which should be *required* to offer them as part of their charters from the states in which they operate
Halfway through watching the video and I am offically in love with Dr Carhart. Love his "trust women" badge and just want to give him the biggest hug in the world.
@roadrunnerbeepbeep: Dr. Carhart is amazing. I met him when he was the named plaintiff fighting the so-called "partial birth abortion" ban. He is such a hero, and is so terrifically kind.
I'm also guessing many of the doctors are old enough to remember what it was like before Roe v. Wade, and that makes them more determined. (Sorry if I'm repeating anyone else up there.)
@Sunflowercat: this is true. Tiller, Hern and Carhart all remember the septic wards, and Dr. Tillers father, who was also a doctor, performed abortions even when they were illegal.
I am currently unemployed and highly tempted to go back to school at the age of 29 and become an ob/gyn surgeon explicitly to provide this service. Anyone want to come along?
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How are these people not considered terrorists again? Class?
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This is what the "Army of God" does. One of their members is Shelley Shannon, who shot Dr. Tiller in 1993. They also have ties to Roeder, and they have claimed 'loose affiliation' with numerous clinic bombers and the killer Eric Rudolph. Not to mention the fact that they explicitly advocate for the MURDER of doctors, going so far as to provide pictures, addresses, and family member info. And yes, they have been cited as a possible terrorist organization by the Feds, because one of their founders sent fake anthrax letters post 9/11.
The hilarious thing is that they have adopted the strategy of fostering 'lone-wolf' terrorist acts to avoid prosecution as a terrorist group. They call it "leaderless resistance". They are quite proud of this strategy, actually. So, yay.
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Arrrrgghhh! Ya know?
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In what America is this excusable?
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There are people in America who believe that guns should be illegal, but they don't go around picketing gun shops with signs that say "child killer", accusing the store owners and employees of being "murderers", screaming abuse, and harassing anyone who tries to enter the store. That sort of thing wouldn't be even remotely acceptable, and yet for some reason it's been allowed to go on at abortion clinics for years.
If you think the law should be changed, then WORK TO GET THE LAW CHANGED! How anyone is able to feel any inkling of sympathy or respect for a movement that uses these kinds of tactics, I will never understand. It makes me sick.
[gawker.com]
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That's actually probably why I find it so frustrating and infuriating to see the issue fought about in this manner.
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I don't think having a vote would shut these people up because they're religious zealots.
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They're amazing.
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