feminizzle

Watch
"Frontline: Abortion Clinic" (first aired on my birthday, april 18, in 1983)

and
"Frontline: The Last Abortion Clinic" (aired summer 2005)

Today is the 33rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

What makes this anniversary, and the current political climate facing reproductive rights, so interesting to me is that Roe v. Wade and I are the same age. So throughout my entire lifetime, I have had the privilege of knowing that I had more alternatives available to me than my sisters from previous generations. Even though I am a lesbian, and I don’t have to deal with the fear of unplanned pregnancy on a regular basis, I also am not unaware that I live in the Patriarchizzle, and considering the amount of violence aimed at women…anything is possible.

I do not know what life would be like without Roe v. Wade protecting women’s autonomy and control over their own destinies, nor do I want to. Yet, increasingly, I have had to consider that very reality, watching Samuel Alito slide through the Judicial Committee hearings like a greased pig, with nary a challenge to his lies and obfuscation. Watching the “lawmakers” in my own state put forth legislation to illegalize abortion without even a headnod toward exceptions for rape and incest. Watching the self-righteous “ProLife” movement targeting women at clinics, lying to draw them into their “crisis pregnancy centers” to proselytize, terrify and sometimes even STALK them after they leave. Watching politicians allow constant infringements upon women’s rights based on “moral” grounds, while they justify mass murder of brown people the world over in the pursuit of resources and power.

I watch this all…and my blood boils and my anger spills over.

The fight to overturn RVW has NOTHING to do with morality, or babies, or God, or anything else that the Crazy Rightwing NutjobsTM have used as justification for their perpetual attack on women’s rights. If it did, they would not be so hellbent on taking away birth control as well.

It’s about CONTROL, stupid! Control over the most basic functions of a woman’s body. Compulsory pregnancy has been, throughout history, the most convenient method of keeping women occupied, subjugated and (most importantly for the p-izzle) POWERLESS. For those seeking to maintain power, it is an easy way to keep HALF of the world’s population under the thumb of what they have defined as a biological imperative. They will use anything: economics, jails, war, whatever…but how easy to just use women’s own bodies as a ready-made prison to keep us under their thumb. And if you can write it off as “God’s will”, well even better…

I have read my history, and I see the battles of my sisters to gain control over their bodies as a legacy that I must uphold. My state has become a battleground, and I proudly take my place on the frontlines to maintain the gains my sisters won, and to fight for even more.

So on this anniversary…this day that marks a lifetime I have shared with Roe v. Wade…I promise to fight with everything I have…for my mothers, my sisters, my friends, my lover and for those who are still struggling for even the most basic rights in countries across the world.

These things I must do, because the legacy of Roe v. Wade is also our shared history of fighting for women's freedom. Sisters for 33 years...a lifetime lived in solidarity and struggle.

Yeah yeah...I know this is not about feminism, but I just can't help myself...

Karl Rove, in a speech to the Republican National Committee:

"The United States faces a ruthless enemy, and we need a commander in chief and a Congress who understand the nature of the threat and the gravity of the moment America finds itself in," Mr. Rove said. "President Bush and the Republican Party do. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for many Democrats."

It's too bad the "ruthless enemy" is our own government.

Grumble grumble.

and more:

He said some Democrats want to abandon Iraq too soon, which would cause enemies to "laugh at our failed resolve." Rove added: "To retreat before victory would be a reckless act -- and this president and our party will not allow it. This is worthy of a public debate."

Wow. I won't even go into the laughable mention of "public debate". It's not as if Rove or the rest of the wonderTyrants would bother listening anyway. But I do have to wonder if Rove, Bush and the rest of the manly men running the country (into the ground) have ever been introduced to the game of poker.

Rarely will you hear me expound upon the genius of Kenny Rogers, but in this case, it seems appropriate. "Know when to hold 'em / Know when to fold 'em / Know when to walk away / Know when to run." That chorus really does sum up the number one strategy of poker. As a stubborn Aries on the Taurus cusp, many times I find myself with a pile of chips thrown into the pot, and a terrible hand that I had *hoped* would amount to something. And even though it rarely ever does amount to a win, for some stubborn reason I just keep at it, thinking that I will just stumble upon that ONE card that will make me a winner. Never happens.

Perhaps the Bush administration cronies think they have a handle on the game though. I mean, bluffing works sometimes right? Too bad they don't even bother with that.

The L Word’s idea of diversity:

Didn’t you see the black girl dancing in row three at the drag show?

There was a butch in coffee shop scene 23.  She was the one picking her nose.  We did out best to capture the nuances of butch women.  Really.

We are trying to show our experiences as women and lesbians.  Soooo…the main butch characters will all want to be men.

I’ll take skeeball, thanks…

Building up steam for that first, all important post...that should not be made at 5 am when all caffeine has exited the system...

So...welcome to Feminizzle...more to come...

For now, peep this dazzling bit of stunning verbal ineptitude from the likeliest source.
To put it simply...

This guy probably can't even SPELL uterus...so he needs to stay very far away from mine, ok?