Yesterday’s article in the Sentinel contained a factual error about my campaign finances. In attempting to set the record straight, I set off a firestorm of comments.
One conservative poster accused me of avoiding the tough questions of Abortion, Guns and Gays. I may have been too flip with my answer: “I promise not to shoot anyone with a gun. I promise not to get an abortion. And I promise not to marry a woman.”
What I left out was, “And I promise not to make those decisions for you.”
I grew up in a family of hunters. In fact, I have the hunting license and antlers from the first deer my dad shot. I have no problem with individual ownership of guns. As in any freedom, that right needs to be balanced with what is safe for all citizens. So, I also support keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, and background checks when people want to buy a gun. If you aren’t planning a murder or robbery, what difference does it make if you have to wait a few days to get a gun?
The right-to-life movement has framed the abortion issue like George Bush framed the terrorist issue: either you are with us or you are against us. That is way too simplistic. I agree with them on some things, and disagree with them on others. To me, the right-to life includes keeping children nourished and secure once they are born, but does not extend to killing in the name of a cause. The right-to-life movement is way out of line when they call for the murder of doctors who perform abortions, or attempt to interfere in a decision that should be made by a woman and her doctor. Abortion is a legal medical procedure that should remain legal, safe and rare.
Remember, the opposing movement is not the Pro-Abortion movement, it is the Pro-Choice movement. It is about protecting a woman’s right to determine her own reproductive health. Most of us hope that a woman makes choices that prevent an unwanted pregnancy in the first place. I’ve known four women who have had abortions, (oddly enough, three of them were Republicans) and none of them took the decision lightly. Government does not have a role to play in that agonizing decision. Government does not belong in our intimate lives.
As for Gays, for the life of me I cannot figure out why one American should have greater or different rights than another. It took years to get rid of slavery, but we did it. When the Constitution was written women couldn’t vote, but Colorado became one of the first places to change that. And now it is time to give Gay couples the same (not different, but the same) rights as heterosexual couples enjoy. I’ve enjoyed the friendship of many Gays, and they did nothing at all to endanger my marriages. My two ex-husbands and I managed to mess that up all by ourselves.
One conservative poster accused me of avoiding the tough questions of Abortion, Guns and Gays. I may have been too flip with my answer: “I promise not to shoot anyone with a gun. I promise not to get an abortion. And I promise not to marry a woman.”
What I left out was, “And I promise not to make those decisions for you.”
I grew up in a family of hunters. In fact, I have the hunting license and antlers from the first deer my dad shot. I have no problem with individual ownership of guns. As in any freedom, that right needs to be balanced with what is safe for all citizens. So, I also support keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, and background checks when people want to buy a gun. If you aren’t planning a murder or robbery, what difference does it make if you have to wait a few days to get a gun?
The right-to-life movement has framed the abortion issue like George Bush framed the terrorist issue: either you are with us or you are against us. That is way too simplistic. I agree with them on some things, and disagree with them on others. To me, the right-to life includes keeping children nourished and secure once they are born, but does not extend to killing in the name of a cause. The right-to-life movement is way out of line when they call for the murder of doctors who perform abortions, or attempt to interfere in a decision that should be made by a woman and her doctor. Abortion is a legal medical procedure that should remain legal, safe and rare.
Remember, the opposing movement is not the Pro-Abortion movement, it is the Pro-Choice movement. It is about protecting a woman’s right to determine her own reproductive health. Most of us hope that a woman makes choices that prevent an unwanted pregnancy in the first place. I’ve known four women who have had abortions, (oddly enough, three of them were Republicans) and none of them took the decision lightly. Government does not have a role to play in that agonizing decision. Government does not belong in our intimate lives.
As for Gays, for the life of me I cannot figure out why one American should have greater or different rights than another. It took years to get rid of slavery, but we did it. When the Constitution was written women couldn’t vote, but Colorado became one of the first places to change that. And now it is time to give Gay couples the same (not different, but the same) rights as heterosexual couples enjoy. I’ve enjoyed the friendship of many Gays, and they did nothing at all to endanger my marriages. My two ex-husbands and I managed to mess that up all by ourselves.
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