Today's edition of quick hits:
* Syria: "After a bruising, 27-day siege under intensifying bombardment, rebels holed up in the shattered Baba Amr neighborhood of the central Syrian city of Homs announced a 'tactical withdrawal' on Thursday, apparently handing victory to forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad but raising concerns about the plight of civilians there."
* Diplomatic resolution in Egypt: "The foreign nationals under criminal investigation here for their pro-democracy activities, including several Americans, arrived in Cyprus on a chartered flight from Cairo on Thursday night in what could be the end of a months-long diplomatic drama between Cairo and Washington."
* It's a good thing the country didn't let Detroit go bankrupt: "A surprising sales gain by General Motors Co and strong performances by Ford Motor Co and others helped put U.S. February auto sales on track for their highest annual sales rate in nearly four years."
* The Blunt Amendment probably wasn't the best way to kick off Women's History Month.
* Sounds right to me: "When you get a prescription from your doctor, you shouldn't have to wonder whether his or her decision was influenced by payments from the drug's maker."
* U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull's racist email has caused a stir on Capitol Hill. I'll have more on this tomorrow morning.
* And in an unfortunate exchange during a House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on contraception, a confused Republican congressman, Rep. Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania, falsely accused HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius of lying about the administration's policy, and argued that understanding whether the morning-after pill is an abortification is a "religious" question, not a scientific one.
Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
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FYI, Steve, the word is "abortifacient"
The definition is something that causes termination of a pregnancy. The medical definition of pregnancy is "The state of carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the female body". (MedTerms) One is not pregnant if one has a fertilized egg. Only after implantation is one considered pregnant.
Murphy "inquiry"/inquisition seeks to redefine medical terms in ways less heretical to his "religious" point of view. It is indeed a culture war. A war on culture.
On the contrary, Mr. Murphy. This is not about religion. It is about whether a significant minority of the US population will return America to the Middle Ages or not. It is about whether economic power can be used to dictate personal decisions made by employees.
The typo was never corrected. So much for the promise of joining the blogosphere to the Mass Media.
This is not bidirectional.
Are there any smart Republicans? Murphy sure doesn't make the case for it. And his utter lack of disrespect for Secretary Sebelius was palpable. The only thing he was missing was a sweater vest.
Is it possible that we can make sure that Mr Murphy never reproduces a bunch of little Murphys? We don't need more people who can't - or won't - understand what science is and won't listen to another person's point of view. Unbelievable.
Murphy's law?
Edit -- in my earlier post, the line should read "his utter lack of *respect*" for Secretary Sebelius is palpable.
I'm kinda surprised that I haven't seen the comment that the Blunt Amendment is basically a back door attack against the ACA. The birth control thing gets all the attention, but I think taking down the ACA is the true agenda.
s/Blunt Amendment/Blunt Instrument/
WCDood: You are right. The Blunt amendment is an attempt to gut the ACA by giving employers a way out of paying for health care. All they have to do is say that heath care is against their consciences.
These guys are BULLIES. AND they think if they act like HUGE Dbags somehow it gains them respect. I can't even BEGIN to tell you what I have been screaming at the TV today, but it has been denigrating some body parts.
Rep. Murphy's complete lack of respect for Secretary Sebelius is appalling. Giving more credit to views of Jesus and religion than to those of science and women's health shows an utter disrespect for women and is an embarrassment to Congress.
How about in honor of women's history month only women are permitted to speak on women's health and contraception access issues.
I'm stunned yet, ultimately, not surprised at Rep. Murphy's obstinacy. He wants his answer, not hers.
Organized religion has shouted down progress and change until forced to acknowledge its inevitability. As knowledge grows, dogma is exposed. The churches can grow with the world or be left behind. God is available without the necessity of any intermediary so religion can choose to be a part of modern life or be left behind. If you have faith you allegedly have certainty, so why are you so threatened by ideas that differ from yours?
Close-minded male misogynist bullying...remember how Eliz Warren was treated?
No other opinion....or knowledge!...is allowed.
Maybe Sesame Street can dumb it down for poor, ignorant Mr. Murphy. The muppets can probably simplify it so this poor schmuck can understand the policy ... or maybe not.
Which planet is tim murphy from? how did he ever get elected? representing fools?
These men have far too much time on their hands if they're thinking so much about women's conctraception, ultrasounds, and other related reproductive subjects. Are they in need of, what shall we call it, physical satisfaction, or what? I have no idea what else can account for this concentratration of attention to these matters, unless it's an obsession that hit these particular Republican guys at one time.
Pass the recall petitions. Please.
Shorter Murphy: Stop talking at me with your facts and your science, you wrong, stupid female!
This @!$%# needs to go.
The institution of Congress, as now organized, is inherently very, very, vulnerable to corruption. We should not be astounded when we see corrupt players populating it.
Sria, Egypt , etc. Aha! Here's a real story-Murphy and the far right strike again!
Gawd we are doomed.
From Chuck Colson's 'BreakPoint' column today.
I couldn't have said it better myself....
"You’ve heard me talk almost non-stop over the last two weeks about this huge threat to religious liberty from this administration, requiring employers to provide contraception and abortion-inducing medication for their employers.
But what makes this fight all the more difficult is the culture-wide misunderstanding about what sex is about and what it’s for. For example, Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania made headlines recently when it was learned that students could buy a morning-after pill, known as Plan B, from a vending machine in the student health center.
Just to be clear Plan B is not merely preventative birth control. It can stop fertilization, and it can also be taken up to 72 hours after intercourse to stop the implantation of an already fertilized egg. And it’s up to 89 percent effective in causing an abortion to occur.
Well, it’s tempting to just shake your head and say has it really come to this? But my colleague John Stonestreet, host of “The Point,” identified in his recent commentary the wrong sort of thinking about sexuality that’s really behind this.
When contraception is as convenient as sodas and candy bars, that’s the sign that sexuality has not only been divorced from marriage and procreation, it’s been divorced from any relational responsibility.
Think about it: Slide in 25 dollars, out comes an abortion-inducing drug. No one has to see, no one has to know.
If a woman chooses to get an abortion from a clinic, she at least has to face another human being and acknowledge, “This is what’s been done.” But now, the young woman has to face no one. She’s not accountable for her actions to any other human being, and even worse, no one might know if she needs help.
The idea that sexual behavior is a purely private affair is now deeply embedded in our culture. How many times recently have you heard that women have a right to birth control at no cost? A right? Where did they get that idea? And of course, the ultimate example of this way of thinking about sex is pornography, where men and women can indulge and never have to be relationally responsible to the one they are using for personal pleasure.
Vending-machine abortions take this to the next level. As one Shippensburg student said, “I think it’s great the school is giving us this option. I’ve heard some kids say they’d be too embarrassed to go into town.”
Precisely, it should be embarrassing. Shame is a very important concept in civilized society, and there are consequences to our behavior. We’re giving these students the idea that something this significant can be tossed around, and somehow we are all surprised then at the level of human brokenness we see from risky sexual behavior.
John Stonestreet got it right in his commentary: as we make sexual behavior more convenient, we are also making it more thoughtless and less personal. And that reduces it to a mere animal act rather than the beautiful interpersonal, mutually responsible behavior God intended.
Parents and grandparents hear this: The students John Stonestreet deal with every day and those I’ve worked with over the years, do not need more sexual brokenness, they need more guidance and accountability from adults."
As usual, Mr. Colson nails it....