Consequences
I was going to title this post What Happens Next?, but that's not really the focus here. What happens next is really limited only by our imaginations.
We vote.
We hang this around the necks of fascist candidates. We force them to put their misogynistic opinions on the record.
We do what we can to support Democratic red state women who want abortions to obtain abortions. Whether that's getting the medication or setting up a transportation/travel network, or whatever, we do that.
We reward companies that support their female employees by offering programs providing funding for travel. That said, public statements are easy, and actually fulfilling these commitments is easy. But watch the political donations, and I'm pretty sure we'll find $$$ still going to fascists.
Lawsuits, lawsuits, lawsuits. Violation of religious beliefs, wrongful deaths because of the lack of health care, etc.
I'm sure if there was a DU roundtable, its participants would come up with hundreds of suggestions.
What I'm thinking about are the long-term consequences (intended or unintended) for the country.
There was a poll posted here this morning indicating a leftward shift in a generic congressional race in November. That would be one heck of a consequence - more Dems in Congress. Or not; after all, it's only one poll. But it is an interesting consequence. (See above - vote.)
Here's where the issue of a break-up might turn up more frequently on editorial pages and in think-tank papers. It's well known that blue states send more money to the federal government than red states, and, conversely, that red states receive more federal money than blue states. Blue states are going to lose patience that situation. Gerrymandering in red states will continue to make it impossible for Democrats to gain a toe hold anywhere in red states. All of which will contribute to the polarization of the country and the antagonism between Democrats (big D and small d) and fascists. Many here on DU have dismissed that out of hand over the years. And maybe that's how it should be. But there is a decreasing amount of common ground - or common goals - between the parties. I'm not a pollyanna and so I don't see that changing, so i think there will be increasing talk of this path. Not sedition, not secession, but exploration of other options that reflect the nation we are becoming and not that one that exists mostly in our imaginations.
The irony over the abortion issue is that abortions have been on the decline (at least I read that somewhere on the internet). Although statistics will be hard to come by, abortions will probably not drop to zero in red states. It will be interesting to see the demographics and number of abortions in blue states. I'm not sure what this will mean, but I think it will be an interesting statistic.
Other long-run statistics that will be interesting to watch will be internal migration by women/families from red states to blue states and the related impacts - employment numbers, hiring gaps, companies closing up shop in red states or moving to blue states, housing demand changes.
Changes in church affiliation. Church membership has been trending downward for quite some time, including in evangelical churches. It may be that most evangelicals are card-carrying white nationalist fascists who fear the non-white majority that is going to come, regardless of wishful thinking, in less than 20 years. That said, not all of them are cultists, and they might very well seek more mainstream church affiliations and, possibly, more moderation positions on social issues.
Much of the discussion over the past few days has focused on this being just the beginning. Next is contraception, repeal of LGBTQ rights and same-sex marriage, etc. How might this change if the impact of the Roe decision is politically damaging to the GQP in November, locally and nationally?
Just some random thoughts. Gotta get back to work.
I may be putting too much faith in the press, but I wonder about the extent to which journalists will delve very deeply into the personal lives of the supreme court justices and the fascist members of congress to identify documentable hypocrisy and corruption, e.g., family members obtaining abortions.
Domestic violence increase in red states.
Deaths from do it yourself abortions (and not the medical kind). This will be almost impossible to measure as I'm pretty sure red state hospitals will classify medical data to hide this information from the public.
Deaths of red-state women for whom abortion would be a life-saving action due to a medical problem/emergency in pregnancy.
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