Thank you, Albuquerque!!!!! Albuquerque voters soundly reject late-term abortion ban

[PeaceNikki]

Voters in New Mexico's largest city soundly defeated a ban on late-term abortions in a municipal election that was being closely watched as a possible new front in the national abortion fight.

Voters rejected the measure 55 percent to 45 percent on Tuesday following an emotional and graphic campaign that brought in national groups and hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising. The campaign included protests that compared abortion to the Holocaust and displayed pictures of aborted fetuses.

Activists on both sides of the issue said it was the first municipal ballot measure on the matter, which usually is debated at the state and federal level. Abortion opponents hoped a victory in Albuquerque would create momentum nationally in their long-running fight to ban abortion.

A coalition of abortion rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico and Planned Parenthood, called the results a huge victory for Albuquerque women and families.

"Albuquerque families sent a powerful message today - they do not want the government interfering in their private medical decisions," Micaela Cadena, of the Respect ABQ Women campaign, said in a statement. "Dangerous, unconstitutional laws like the one we rejected today have no place in Albuquerque, no place in New Mexico, no place anywhere in our nation."

NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue said, "We hope today's resounding defeat of this abortion ban sends a clear message to the extreme forces around the country now trying to impose their agenda on cities around this country. "

Thank you, Albuquerque!!

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57613091/albuquerque-voters-soundly-reject-late-term-abortion-ban/

[newfie11]

1. Tell that to a woman with 6 month pregnancy

Carrying an anacephalic baby with the head the size of a walnut!
Wonder how those voting for this would feel.
Years ago ( pre u/s) I xrayed a young women expecting her first baby. She and her husband were so excited. There was no head, just a stub.

[PeaceNikki]

2. They don't care. They're evil horrible people who want those women to carry to term. Literally.

Force them. Not give them the option, force them.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/19/albuquerque-abortion_n_4301860.html

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, addressed the issue of fetal anomalies in a recent op-ed. She said women should still carry the fetus to term.

“Where a lethal fetal anomaly does exist, patients and their families can and should be offered the compassionate, ethical option of perinatal hospice to support them," she wrote. "Studies have shown that carrying a fatally ill child to term rather than performing a late abortion does not result in increased maternal mortality. On the other hand, it brings comfort to parents who can indeed parent their child as long as time permits."

[newfie11]

3. Your right

This is insanity. It should be the mothers decision and no one else.

[CTyankee]

8. Does Marjorie even address the issue of prolonging suffering of the infant once born?

Advocating bringing a fetus with a lethal anomaly to term and delivering it is a hideously cruel thing to do in the name of being "pro-life" for the sake of Marjorie's ideology. We know she and her ilk don't care about women and their families, but what about her precious fetal life? These people are insane.

[mountain grammy]

13. "Studies have shown" bullshit. Studies in the warped mindset of this weird, bat shit crazy group.

[tavernier]

14. I don't know that they are all horrible people

Many who have seen and heard horror stories of aborted healthy fetuses in late term can be rational people who see it as the death of an almost fully developed child.

Can't there be a sensible middle ground?

I am both pro life and pro choice, and I think it is possible to be both.

[Wilts10]

18. I agree

I think there can be a middle ground. I wish people could get over themselves, put their brains together and come up with a solution. If something is wrong with the fetus then by all means do what is right for your family. If everything is alright physically, then I think adoption is better. iMO

[PeaceNikki]

21. Better... for yourself only, correct?

[Wilts10]

23. No...

What I am saying is abortion is fine but once a woman decides to carry the fetus to term and something else happens ...loss of job, unstable relationship... Then adoption is a better choice. Unless something is wrong with the fetus then abortion could become an option again.

[idwiyo]

30. In other words you demand woman should accept she is an 'incubator with legs',

because she is not allowed to change her mind.

You are welcome to decide for yourself why and when, but don't presume you have a right to force your personal views onto others.

[Wilts10]

36. No, not what I said at all.

I haven't forced my views on anybody like I said IN MY OPINION. I had an abortion, so I know what it feels like to have to decide what to do. I'm just stating what I think, you are the one jamming your opinions down my throat.

[idwiyo]

39. Your posts #14 and #21 say otherwise, and you were asked to clarify.

I highlighted the relevant part. If that's your personal choice, shouldn't it clearly state 'once I decide' instead of 'once a woman decides'?
Never mind post #18 specifically asked you to clarify if you are talking about yourself only.

No...

What I am saying is abortion is fine but once a woman decides to carry the fetus to term and something else happens ...loss of job, unstable relationship... Then adoption is a better choice. Unless something is wrong with the fetus then abortion could become an option again.

[Wilts10]

42. Here is more clarity

Why does it have to be ALL OR NOTHING ? I think the pro-choice and pro-life people are idiots. Pro- choice is... you can have an abortion the day before you go into labor, Pro-life is...you cant have any abortion no matter what. There has to be a middle ground somewhere, anywhere. It doesn't have to be all or nothing.

[idwiyo]

44. The only 'idiotic' position is the one described in your posts. It IS 'idiotic' to presume YOU know

better.

Her body, Her choice. There is no middle ground there.- She is the ONLY ONE who has a right to Her body. Anything else is forced-birthers bullshit.

[Arugula Latte]

33. Luckily your opinion matters less than a fart in the wind to the woman.

It's up to her. End of story.

[idwiyo]

40. +1 Short and sweet! Well said!

[Sheldon Cooper]

34. It's nice that you've considered all possible angles and determined the necessary

response for the rest of us. We appreciate your effort.

[greiner3]

22. "... then I think adoption is better."

Once the fetus is viable outside the uterus it should be the government's responsibility to provide it with a 'home' if the mother does not want to carry it to term.

Society does this with 'children' of any age so why not the pre born ones?

[HERVEPA]

32. Pre-born is a bullshit loaded term. Not your body, not your business.

[LanternWaste]

45. I find it odd that we sometimes refer to a human fetus as pre-born but rarely apply that in a biolog

I find it odd that we sometimes refer to a human fetus as" pre-bor"n but rarely apply that in a biologically consistent manner... as I've never heard anyone say "I'm going to scramble up some pre-born chickens for breakfast..."

I'd say it advertises our biases more than anything else, but I'm quite certain others will rationalize a distinction without a difference.

[HERVEPA]

29. It's not your body, it's not your business. What you think is better doesn't count.

[MH1]

59. The solution is simple - it is the woman's choice. PERIOD.

"Adoption is better" is a fine and valid opinion for you to hold - for yourself, if you are ever in that position. (However if you are, you may come to discover that you were wrong. But it is still your choice.)

There are many negative consequences to adoption that are generally not discussed or thought through.

[PeaceNikki]

20. Those who want to take this decisions out of the hands of women and their doctors are horrible

and evil.

Yes, I stand by that.

[kydo]

4. this is the best news I heard all week!

This just helps to prove this country is not as conservative as the right wants us to think. It also shows how out of whack some judges on high courts truly are.

The people voted against the anti-abortionists/anti-women law yet certain federal courts (aka a few extremely wing nut minded wacko birds that pass as judges) up held an anti-abortionists/anti-women that was rammed through legislation by mostly old white men. This is crazy! This is all on W, has he appointed the fundie judge to that court.

Nov 2014 can't come soon enough!!!

[TBF]

5. I think I want to move to New Mexico. nt

[LuvNewcastle]

17. I like New Mexico and I wouldn't mind living there.

I like northern NM, especially Santa Fe and Taos, but Albuquerque is nice, too. Alb. is in a valley surrounded by mountains, so you can do a lot of hiking around there. If you haven't been there, I recommend going there and checking it out.

[Voice for Peace]

25. come on down! or over! or up! depending on where you are now..

I've been living here nearly 3 years, & beginning to
understand the meaning of "Land of Enchantment."

Albuquerque is a peculiar and very interesting
place, depending of course on your interests.

It's still probably one of the cheapest places to
live in the US, unless you move to the more posh
areas. Quite a poor state overall, I think. I like
their roads, seem well-engineered. I miss Bill
Richardson even though I didn't live here back
then.. wish he were the governor now.

We need another D Governor here!!

[TBF]

35. I am in Texas -

My dh has a good job but I dream about retirement elsewhere. We are mostly familiar with the midwest and east coast, but we really need to do a tour of New Mexico and Arizona. I've heard Santa Fe is amazing.

[Voice for Peace]

37. feel free to get in touch

if you come to NM.

If you can make it at the time of the Balloon Fiesta..
I think it's one of the wonders of the world.

It's also a medical mj state. Many cool places to
explore for most kinds of explorers. If you are
a hiker or a biker -- this is a great town. Beautiful
properties mixed together in neighborhoods with
little funky adobe casitas. I have always lived in the
east so geographically it's like being on another
planet for me. Everything is different. No mold, no
mosquitoes to speak of. So much sun, begging for
solar panels.

[TBF]

38. I could definitely do without both mosquitoes and mold!

I do a lot of walking for my arthritis (I figure if I stop I may not be able to start again!) and my husband loves to bike.

[TBF]

6. Also, wanted to thank you Nikki for your coverage

of what the states are doing.

I am one of the DUers that was not always solidly pro-choice. Married, with children, have looked at early sonograms - I always kind of wondered whether there should be some limits on abortion especially later in the pregnancies.

But after watching the reactionary laws being passed over the course of the year I can see why women have to be 100% pro choice and not give an inch. If we do they take a mile and pretty soon we won't even have contraception anymore.

So, thank you.

[PeaceNikki]

7. No, thank you.

For 'getting it'. The issue is very important to me.

[Voice for Peace]

28. exactly, there really isn't a middle ground.

Either one is for choice, or not. Giving the choice
to the woman, who bears all of the pain and sorrow,
all of the angst, guilt, everything she may be feeling
-- or taking the choice away.

[ReRe]

9. K&R

So wonderful that the sane individuals of Albuquerque got out to vote this ban down. It's the 21st Century, for Pete's sake, not the middle effing ages. Medical technology has advanced so far that Obstetricians can tell if there is something terribly awry with the baby and/or the mother after that 20 week threshold is reached. My poor grandmother gave birth to a set of stillborn twins and to another stillborn baby, all carried to term.
What I worry about is the future if GMO foods aren't stopped.

[Voice for Peace]

24. sane person in Albuquerque checking in..

Somebody here did a good job of getting the message
out, especially to young people. I believe the biggest
turnout was in the university area, both for early voting
and day-of.

Although it was 55-45 against, I would still say it was
a close call, not a resounding defeat. I'm sure they'll
try again, and again, and again. They are good at
organizing and getting people to vote on these
emotional social issues. And there is a large population
of old-time religion -- people (even women) who believe
it is God, not the woman, who should be trusted with
such decisions -- and apparently God has already spoken.

[PeaceNikki]

31. That you VfP!!!

!!!!

[ReRe]

48. Seriously...

... they (the yea voters) would like to take us back to grandma's time, when women didn't have the luxury of modern medicine. Many of them died during or shortly after birthing. Sometimes the infant (or infants, if a multiple birth) died too during delivery or shortly thereafter. Not me.. I don't want to go back there. I have a niece who (a month ago, at age 40) gave birth to twins 5 weeks before due. I truly believe that had she lived a hundred or more years ago, she would not have lived thru it, nor her two darling 5 lb baby boys. If we went back to old times, more children AND mothers would die than we loose now to late term abortions. You just want to take those women by the shoulders and shake some sense into them! All I can attribute their beliefs to is the lack of education and closed-minded religious zealotry. If they would just think it thru, and weighed it all out, they would realize who is pro-life and who isn't!

[JimboBillyBubbaBob]

10. Good,

very good.

[Gothmog]

11. This is great news

[dembotoz]

12. k and r

[mountain grammy]

15. New Mexico, like Colorado, floating in a sea of red.

hanging on by our fingernails against these nutty, extreme groups.
In Colorado the shift has been from women's rights to fracking because, you know, freedom!

[PeaceNikki]

16. I am in WI, so I can relate.

[el_bryanto]

19. That's some good news. nt

[idwiyo]

26. k&r

[hrmjustin]

27. k&r.

[OwnedByCats]

41. I think some of those people believe that many

women would choose to have a late term abortion just because they didn't want to be a parent - but isn't it normally because life of mother is at risk, or something catastrophic wrong with fetus, incest/rape situations? Or maybe even situations where she did not know she was pregnant until later - when you think about those women who never knew they were pregnant until they went into labor, it would be entirely possible that they didn't know they were sooner? I guess it's hard for me to imagine someone choosing to wait that long before terminating, if there was nothing impeding that choice when they were in their first weeks, at least not most women getting a late term abortion.

[whttevrr]

43. Good job, NM

As always, the decision to abort is between a woman and her doctor. The responsibility of those around her are to simply support her in whatever decision she makes for her body.

Stay strong, stay active, GOTV, and VOTE the neanderthals out of office.

[colsohlibgal]

46. Proud Of Albuquerque

I was born there but we left when I was still a baby. One thing for sure, I am on of the few outside New Mexico that can spell it without thinking, I've had to write in on so many forms through my life.

[gollygee]

47. K&R

[KamaAina]

49. How did this piece of garbage even get on the ballot?

Let alone get 45 percent?! I mean, it's not like Albuquerque is Red-state hell.

[PeaceNikki]

50. "Operation Rescue". Same group that terrorized Dr. Tiller for years.

http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/get-involved/issue-campaigns/albuquerque-abortion-ban.html

[KamaAina]

51. Of course I know Operation Oppress-You.

But why weren't they just laughed out of town?

[freshwest]

52. Cheers to Albuquerque from American women.

[tavernier]

53. Sorry; I'm a liberal democrat who thinks

that a late term abortion of a healthy fetus is wrong. I'm a nurse and I realize that many pregnancies are not viable, and some threaten the life of the mother. But a strong and healthy fetus at a late stage should be allowed to be born and given to a family desiring to have children.

And I don't think for second that this makes a woman a birthing machine. Women are much more complex and understand the miracle of birth, or the sad necessity of death.

[Sheldon Cooper]

55. Your opinion would be fine if your scenario actually happened.

But it doesn't, so sleep comfortably tonight. Even if a woman wanted this, she'd never find a doctor who would perform a true 'late stage' abortion.

[tavernier]

56. Oh, pardon me

No doubt you are correct, Smelly Shelly.

[Sheldon Cooper]

57. Hey, if you're going to call me by my nickname, at least get it right.

Shelly Cooper is a smelly pooper.

[tavernier]

58. Ok

But just so you know, my ring tone is "knock knock knock Penny!"

😄

Truth!!

[PeaceNikki]

60. do you trust women and their doctors to make those decisions...

...or so you support legislation like this?

[tavernier]

62. Absolutely

And I have never known a doctor that in my 37 years of nursing has suggested that a viable fetus be aborted unless a mother's health was compromised, especially in a late term.

I don't understand why this scenario is so confusing to you?

Certainly the health of the mother of a severely malformed fetus is a reason to consider abortion, but to destroy a healthy child once development and growth has taken place is ... well, use your own dictionary.

[PeaceNikki]

63. You don't understand why I asked the question? Let me spell it out for you since we're being snarky.

You posted in a thread about how the public was asked to vote on decisions that should be made in an exam room. You stated, not once, but twice, how you don't support something that doesn't fucking happen with legal providers. You threw in the fact that you're a 'nurse'. giving the reader the implication that this sort of thing does happen and that this gives you some inside 'scoop'. It certainly can be interpreted that you do support legislation like the one we're discussing.

Oh, then you again had to throw in how you don't support this thing that does not fucking happen. And that this thing that does not happen is.... "well, use your own dictionary".

Yeah - you're as clear as mud.

[tavernier]

64. Ok, hands up

I'm off to the hoosegow again. Turning myself in before I'm put up before the tribunal.

Hey, at my age, I don't really give a shit. I will continue

[WillyT]

54. K & R !!!

[Auntie Bush]

61. Here's to the Albuquerque voters who came out and voted to reject this ban on abortion.

Thanks!