On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade. Much has been said in the aftermath. But how can you tell if you are hearing or seeing propaganda instead of reasoned debate or analysis?
1. If there is no mention of the child at all, not even mention of a “fetus” or “embryo.” Or if there is no photo of the unborn child, or even a written description of her appearance or function, that is propaganda. The DNA of the baby is distinct from her parents at fertilization. Her heart is beating at six weeks. By the 12th week, each of her organs are well in place and growing.
2. If reporters reference a “ban” (rhymes with “Taliban” and means a total prohibition), it is propaganda. I have never seen a “ban.” An exception for the life of the mother is implied in law even when not expressed. Most statutes have other exceptions or definitions that operate as exceptions. Sen. Lindsay Graham’s 15-week bill only protected about 7% of unborn children with four specific exceptions, yet it was called a “nationwide ban.” That was propaganda.
3. If the unborn child is called a “fetus” or “embryo,” that might be propaganda. “Fetus” is a proper medical term for an unborn child from 13 weeks gestation (older than an embryo). “Fetus” means “offspring” or “progeny.” The feminine is “parva fetus.” If abortionists want to use Latin to dehumanize the child, then the equivalent correct medical term for the mother is “gravida.” There is no masculine equivalent, despite the wild imaginations of those who refer to “pregnant people” rather than “pregnant women.” To imply that an unborn child is not a “child but a fetus or an embryo” is logically analogous to saying that “she is not a child, she is a ‘toddler’.” “Fetus,” like “toddler,” designates a specific phase of the state of “childhood.”
4. In USA Today I read a full-page article on abortion. It never mentioned the child but constantly referred to “abortion care.” Propaganda. “Abortion” is to “care” as “armed robbery” is to “a bank.” In 99.99% of all abortions an individual living human being dies. If abortion is “health care,” what disease is being treated?
5. When they state that the U.S. Supreme Court took away a constitutional right after 49-and-a-half years, that is propaganda. Justice Alito went to great lengths to clearly demonstrate there never was a constitutional right to abortion. Ask a 5th grader to find the right to abortion in the Constitution. She will tell you it is not there. It never was, except in the fevered imaginations of seven old men with black robes. They are now dead. In North Carolina, abortion has always been a crime, a misdemeanor from 1669-1881 and a felony from 1881-1973, and still a felony to “help” a friend.
6. Some say abortions after 15 weeks are only considered for life-threatening emergencies and that lifesaving care is needed to prevent the death of women in cases such as ectopic pregnancies and for medical care after a miscarriage (a spontaneous abortion). Propaganda. Only 1/10 of 1% of abortions are committed because of a threat to a mother’s life or serious physical health problem. Such abortions have not, are not, and will not be any kind of offense.
7. Do it yourself abortions (for example, by mail-order pills) are themselves life threatening. Without an actual examination and an ultrasound, there is no way to rule out an ectopic pregnancy. Liberal excuses for DIY abortions are Propaganda. The unborn child cannot survive an ectopic pregnancy. If not resolved by about the 12th week, the child will die and the mother will be in serious danger. Removal of the child in an ectopic pregnancy has never been considered illegal, immoral or unethical. Treatment after a miscarriage is not even an abortion. The suggestion that either of these actions will be illegal is propaganda.
8. Attached are photos of the unborn child at 12, 13, 16, 17 and 24 weeks. Abortions are actually performed at about 24-25 weeks in North Carolina, if it’s the abortionist’s opinion that it is necessary to deal with some serious physical health issues. After 24-25 weeks such cases are usually referred to Virginia, Maryland, or New York.