Transcript below the jump.
Fuck you, President Bush.
Last month, the Bush Administration tried to redefine contraception as abortion. That's right, defining birth control--which 98 percent of American women will use at some point in their lives--as abortion.
Basically, they proposed a rule that says anyone who receives money under federal health programs can't refuse to hire health care providers who object to abortion.
But the rule defines abortion so broadly that it could also apply to birth control like the pill, the IUD and emergency contraception. It's a sneaky move, but that's not unusual for the Bush administration, of course.
And, as Ann pointed out when we first broke this story, because the rule applies to federal health programs, it's low-income and uninsured women who will be most affected.
But as many Feministing readers know, this move is just the latest in a long line of anti-choice maneuvers. Bush reinstated the Global Gag Rule his first day in office, he's appointed anti-choice judges to the Supreme Court, instated anti-choice officials at the Dept of Health and Human Services and continues to block abortion services on military bases, the list goes on and on.
So to the Bush Administration, for continuing to put women's lives and health in jeopardy, and for focusing your efforts on the most marginalized women in the U.S., Fuck You.
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I was hoping the big guy would get one of these. Not that I haven't totally agreed with the other ones too, but I've always felt like there was no way I could give enough "fuck you's" to bush myself.
Don't they realize that if they fuck with my pills, I will turn into the raging, out of control, hysterical, hormonal bitch that they all fear so much?
It's a matter of national security, really.
Yup. And the Bush administration will be worthy recipients of FY's, even unto the seventh generation.
Great stuff, Jess, as always, and I would like to second that. There are so many reasons to flip the bird to the Bush administration, but this is one of the list toppers.
::claps::
94 Days, 11 Hours, 38 Minutes, 12 Seconds....
Jess, I love how smiley and sunshiney you are when you hand out these fuck yous. It makes me giggle every time.
Ha, thanks! There's nothing like saying fuck you with a smile. :)
Amen to that.
Fuck you, Bush Administration.
Just one more set of reasons the Bush administration needs a FY.
PeggyLuWho says - Don't they realize that if they fuck with my pills, I will turn into the raging, out of control, hysterical, hormonal bitch that they all fear so much?
Wow!!! This reminds me of all my girl friends...
I'm confused. We all know George Bush and his cronies hate minorities, so why wouldn't they want to give them loads of contraceptives to ensure that white stay the majority? Or is it a conflict of interest--they want to, but that would fuck with their ability to domineer women, so they decide it's better to keep fully half the population down than a mere (but growing) minority?
Or are they just dickholes?
just when you think it couldn't get any worse, the Bush Adiminsrtation finds a way!
Shadowen: those are not mutually exclusive. The Bush Administration is large, it contains multitudes... to share the blame.
I am convinced that history will view him as one of the worst presidents to ever sit in the oval office. he is single handily responsible for literally millions of deaths and he is completely unrepentant. I am not a religious woman but in his case I cannot help but wish for a reckoning.
@Shadowen - My voted is for just plain casual dickholes.
When I read the problems faced by American women on issues as basic as controlling their fertility, I find it hard to reconcile this with the image the US government projects to the rest of the world of being the world's greatest democracy. What is their agenda in being so hellbent on taking away a woman's right to control her fertility? Is the Bush administration controlled by right wing religious groups? Someone please enlighten me. I live in Australia where access to contraception isn't even an issue, and it has been this way for decades. A recent hiccup, however, showing that one must never rest on one's laurels, was when an attempt was made to introduce the "abortion pill", RU-486. It came to light that all drugs are approved by a special committee, except this one, which the Minister of Health had the right to veto. Being a practising Catholic, and in a position of power, he therefore saw it as his right to deny this drug to Australian women. Bad move. Women of all political parties banded together, some "crossing the floor" when voting, with the result that the drug is now available. It just goes to show that we must never take for granted the rights which have been made available to us by previous generations of women, as they can be taken away if women do not remain vigilent. This is exactly what Bush is doing to American women now. Just to let you know that overseas he is regarded as a walking disaster, and one of the worst presidents ever to lead the US. When he was over here last year he referred to us in a speech as "Austrians". Anyway, our former government and Prime Minister, who crawled up his rear end, have been unceremoniously kicked out of office in a landslide defeat at the last election. I guess the American people have their chance soon to change things. Granted, Bush will be gone, but whom will they choose to replace him?????
I just read an article about this and apparently, this proposal can supercede laws that require hospitals and health clinics to provide emergency contraception to rape victims.
I can't believe how fucked up and wrong all of this is.
In Australia any woman can buy the morning after pill for emergency contraception over the counter from a pharmacy (drug store). If she requires advice the pharamacist will assist or refer her on to a doctor. Moe (above) claims that the proposal in the US could supercede laws that require hospitals and health clinics to provide emergency contraception to rape victims!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My God! How backwards is this thinking? I don't even live in your country and I'm fuming at the injustice of it all......
AliCat said:
"Is the Bush administration controlled by right wing religious groups?"
Pretty much, yes. Imagine the scenario with your Minister of Health vetoing RU-486 because of his religious beliefs. Now imagine if that was the mindset your presidential equivalent in the executive branch took, not just on one issue, but on virtually every issue. Now imagine that that one person could appoint a whole bunch of different positions within the administration: people in charge of education, in charge of Americans' health issues, and in the courts.
That is the mess we currently have in the United States. You're right, president Bush is a dickwad. We will almost certainly do better than him in the next election, but there are no guarantees with the American voting public. As much as I would love to assure myself, like-minded Americans, and people around the world that there will be an Obama presidency and that things will get better, there is a chance that things won't. The people who think like you, AliCat, are doing all that we can to ensure this doesn't happen. Wish us luck!
I am actually a feminist who is against abortion and supports President Bush's positions on it. I wish that my view would be respected and I wouln't be subjected to all this vitriol when I log onto this site. I understand that most feminists are probably pro-choice (although I think there is a whole other side of it you might not have considered), and that it's your site--and that I have a choice whether or not to log on in the first place. Of course, I will continue to do so because I love reading the posts and being informed about the atrocities that are going on--and just to know that I'm not alone in my frustrations about how women are treated. I just thought I'd let you know that there are other voices out there that might not fit the usual feminist stereotype all the way through. Not trying to offend anyone, just wanted my voice heard. Aside from this issue that I have, keep up the good work! And by the way, we should get Sara Haskins to show up at some feministing events (like the one coming up in DC!). Much love. Bee.
Bee, I don't mean to attack you, but women can't have total equality until they have control over their reproductive health and their bodies, and that's ultimately what it's all about (for me, and also the Bush administration). If I can't decide when and if I'm going to have kids, I can't make any concrete choices about my life, really, can I? Men can easily choose not to shoulder the responsibility of parenthood, while a woman that abandons her children is a pariah in our society. Is that equality? I don't want to say that you can't be a feminist if you aren't pro-choice, because that seems to be exclusive, but if women can't be free and equal members without abortion and birth control options available, do you fight for almost-equality? Restricting abortion is about restricting women, not saving babies.
femianimal, I didn't feel your post "attacked" me; actually, I thought it was very diplomatic. And i appreciate that. And I think we can both describe ourselves as feminists but not agree on everything that characterization entails. We are approaching it differently. For me, abortion is not about having control over reproductive health. I think it goes much deeper than that and that there are serious underlying dynamics and circumstances that women are faced with--or rather, that are systematically imposed on us--that lead women to think this way. You touch on my point when you say "men can easily choose not to shoulder the responsibility of parenthood..." I don't want to get into a pro-life/pro-choice argument here, because obviously THOSE never end well--moreover, that's a topic for a different thread, probably. I'm just saying that as feminists we should work toward creating a world in which women wouldn't even HAVE to face such a choice. I know this is a different perspective, but I think it warrants serious consideration. I agree we should definitely have the right to choose when and if we are going to have kids; however, I don't view an unborn child as simply an appendage, so for me, this choice ends once I am already pregnant. In addition, I know it's hard to look at and accept, but when I see the violence involved during an abortion procedure, I know I could never support that. I just don't perceive having a right to an abortion as equality. It seems very distorted to me. Not trying to impose my views on anyone; just trying to explain it. I also want to talk about your last sentence, "restricting abortion is about restricting women, not about saving babies." If I perceive abortion the way you do, then I would probably see it that way. All I'm saying is that with respect to this issue, maybe you can try to see if from my perspective--that some of us DO look at it as saving babies, or protecting life, or fighting for equality for women--not as a way to keep women down. I think people in the pro-choice movement can disagree with people with an anti-abortion stance without classifying them as "evil", or saying "f you," etc. If a person espouses an anti-abortion view because he thinks it's a way to restrict women's rights, then that's different. But if someone has an anti-abortion perspective for different reasons and doesn't even see abortion as a way to achieve equality anyway--than maybe we're not so deserving of the hate. Thanks for sharing your view with me. Bee.
Bee, I respect your right to decide that abortion is not for you, but I'm curious how you can define attempting to prevent other women from having an abortion as "fighting for equality for women"?
Bee - I just wanted to add that the reason for the criticism of the Bush administration (this particular criticism, anyway) is not because of its stand on abortion (though I do understand that most feminists would also criticize them for that, too) but because they're trying to redefine birth control as abortion. This video seems to be more about Bush limiting availability of birth control, not abortion.
I'm not trying to say that you're wrong to bring up your points, just that maybe in this particular example you share some ideas in common with what the video said? Or maybe not. Just a thought.
Thankyou to Llesbian Llama for your explanation of how one person in government in your country, namely the President, has so much control over so many issues. I would also suggest that as well as the visible appointments of people to positions of power who hold views that are the same as the President, there are unseen influences going on conveniently "behind the scenes" as it were, that if made public, would be seen as undemocratic or perhaps even corrupt? The influence of right wing religious groups seems to be out of all proportion to the number of people who support their views. What does Bush have to gain in pushing their agenda, particularly in denying American women basic rights which women in other western countries take for granted? These are the real issues: Why and how? Only when this is known can women, and all the other people his policies and actions disadvantage, fight back with any kind of effectiveness. At the moment it seems that Bush's opponents are cleverly kept fighting the symptoms rather than the cause. Anyway, that's an outsider's view for what it's worth...
I would like to bring up that birth control is more than preventing conception. Birth control also controls periods which can be extremely painful for some women. I know two of my friends who wouldn't be able to hold down jobs because their period is so irregular and painful that they would have to stay at home in bed not moving. So fuck you "Dubya" Bush, for not only hating lower classes and trying to control their reproductive rights, but for screwing over women who take it for medicinal purposes as well.
Heh. This Friday Femnist Fuck You was waaay overdue =]