So, about that US Supreme Court ruling....

[YoungDemCA]

Five justices-all of them men-ruled that women can be denied health care (contraceptives are part of health care, of course) because their employer (a corporation, in fact) has owners whose right-wing religious beliefs hold that women don't have the right to control their own bodies.

Alito wrote that the owners of Hobby Lobby believe that the coverage required of the health care law "is connected to the destruction of an embryo in a way that is sufficient to make it immoral for them to provide the coverage … HHS [Department of Health and Human Services] has not shown that it lacks other means of achieving its desired goal without imposing a substantial burden on the exercise of religion by the objecting parties in these cases.”

"Protecting the free-exercise rights of corporations like Hobby Lobby, Conestoga and Mardel protects the religious liberty of the humans who own and control those FRFR companies,” Alito wrote in the majority opinion.

More: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hobby-lobby-wins-contraceptive-ruling-supreme-court/story?id=24364311

It's 2014, and misogyny and sex-based discrimination are alive and well at the highest levels of power in American society.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

1. !!!!!

[Tuesday Afternoon]

3. seabeyond says, me too!

[YarnAddict]

2. This really isn't the end of the world

Women aren't being denied healthcare, or even contraception. this is about who pays for it. My understanding is that Hobby Lobby pays pretty well for retail. So. their female employees are free to use their earnings to purchase whatever birth control they want. No one will stop them. Or fire them for doing so.

I just think we need to keep this in perspective.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

4. Let me guess =

I bet you buy your yarn at Hobby Lobby.

[YarnAddict]

6. Actually, no

I buy it on-line. www.knitpicks.com

[Maedhros]

7. The ruling sets precedent for a whole host of potential future bad rulings.

That is the perspective. I'll leave it as an exercise for the reader to imagine some of the possible rulings.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

9. exactly! they have their inch and they will take their mile. no doubt about it.

the implications of this ruling are bad. so bad. for the USA. not just the womens which is by gawd bad fucking enough.

steam. out. my. ears.

PISSED OFF

[YarnAddict]

12. I have read that the decision was extremely narrow

Any businesss would have to meet a very rigid set of criteria. Not likely anyone would be able to "take a mile" using this as precedent.

[Maedhros]

13. Ruth Bader-Ginsburg disagrees, and I trust her judicial knowledge

just a tad bit more than yours.

[YarnAddict]

15. And other judicial experts

disagree with RBG.

[Maedhros]

16. Yet they don't have RBG's depth and breadth of experience.

So fine - you don't really care about the Hobby Lobby decision. Bravo to you! Why do you linger in this thread, trying to convince us all to not get angry about it? I doubt you will succeed.

You may want to consider cutting your losses and just bowing out.

[nomorenomore08]

23. So you say now. But we shall see.

[etherealtruth]

29. what specifically have you read?

It was quite inaccurate. Perhaps you would like to do further reading and get a grasp of what is going on ...?

Ignorance is never attractive.

[boston bean]

11. Anyone who believes that women do not have the right to have

medication, procedures etc covered by insurance and think it's fine that they pay extra do not belong in this group.

We are not going to deal with that here in this group.

Please keep that in perspective.

[William769]

21. And you shouldn't. Just know I support all of you 100%

And think SCOTUS id dead wrong!

[nomorenomore08]

24. +1

[Maedhros]

14. Contraception is basic health care.

To entry-level minimum-wage employees at Hobby Lobby, paying for contraceptives on top of health insurance could indeed be impossible, especially if the employee is a single mother.

That is de facto denial of health care.

[nomorenomore08]

25. And it absolutely should not be treated any differently from any other medication.

And if not for misogynist religion - and really, misogyny period - it wouldn't be.

[MadrasT]

17. Contraception is BASIC HEALTH CARE for women.

A pregnancy is a tremendous health burden on a woman, therefore PREVENTING pregnancy is a mandatory part of full health care for women.

Full stop.

You are in the wrong place if you want to argue this point.

It is not in any way, shape, or form up for debate here.

[Texasgal]

19. Yup. Perspective.

I'll bet you dollars to dounuts that their employee insurance covers Viagra or cialis...

[nomorenomore08]

26. Yep.

[mercuryblues]

22. YES!!

us poor wimon folk are too fucking stooped to see the writing on the Rx pad. Thanks for straightening us out and telling us what to think. Being denied contraceptive coverage by your boss is a fine and dandy thing. Glad you cleared that up for me.

[Skittles]

27. you don't REALLY get it, do you

you don't truly understand the reasoning behind this bullshit, or the implications down the road - you have no clue, do you?

[etherealtruth]

28. Hey ... healthcare is available to everyone in the US

... all you have to do is pay for it. I hear some jobs even pay above minimum wage



Do you even hear yourself speak?

[smirkymonkey]

30. OK, WTF?

I can't even comment about this.

[ismnotwasm]

35. We have it in perspective

The thing to understand about supreme court rulings is what the full implications are. The fact the a company can use a religious excuse not to pay for anything is a precedent that will be challenged until this bullshit goes away. Hobby Lobby won. Do you honestly think this is going to stop here? An incredible waste of resources in about to ensue. The fact that it's directed toward women is a step back not just for reproductive rights, even though contraception medication is used for other conditions, but a very ugly exposure of the attitude of the court, as well as a slap n the face in the Affordable care act

The ruling had broader implications and is nothing but trouble. I suggest you read what happened legalistically before deciding it's no big deal

[BainsBane]

5. While ignoring the 14th Amendment

Another reason why we need an ERA.

Truly an awful decision. I really didn't think it would go this way. Now any employer can opt out of covering women.

[Maedhros]

8. They just need to have a corporate "Come to Jesus" moment. [n/t]

[Tuesday Afternoon]

10. Let me show them my jesus. they will be thanking god for that buffer zone if they ever see my jesus.

I need to shut up and get off here. too pissed to give a damn how I sound or how much sense I make.

I will get a hide if I keep up this shit.

[MadrasT]

18. I am furious. n/t

[William769]

20. Psst. over here.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017200046

[smirkymonkey]

31. +1000

Great post!

[Violet_Crumble]

32. Can I ask some what might seem dumb to you questions?

I don't understand how your Supreme Court works, and I'm only just catching up on this Hobby Lobby thing as it's not really in the news over here. Sorry in advance for the barrage of questions...

Can Supreme Court decisions be overturned?
Are those judges there until they die or can they get sacked or forced to retire?
I haven't read the decision, but I'm not getting it. How can they so narrowly define a decision so that it can only discriminate against women, and say it's not fine to discriminate against other groups that religious nuts hate?
Why doesn't the US have a system like we have here (the PBS) where medication including birth control is subsidised by the government? Employers aren't involved in it at all, and that's the way it should be.
Is it possible that this decision will be used further down the track to widen things and justify discrimination against other groups that religious nutters hate?

btw, I got angry on behalf of you all when I followed a link to the Hobby Lobby FB page and saw the gloating about how their 'religious freedom' has been protected. Hobby Lobby isn't here, but if it was and I was into crap craft stuff, I'd be boycotting it. I hope they get boycotted to the max and shut down. I really do think the ones that own that company are a bunch of ugly and hateful fuckers.

[ismnotwasm]

33. Yes it can be challenged

How is depending on the wording of the ruling and the lawsuit-- which I haven't read. The internet is hysterical right now--I'm completely pissed off.

We don't have a reasonable system because insurance is like a big bloated spider

We are getting a hobby lobby in Seattle, and one thing about Seattle is we're great at protests. They will regret it. There is one in the suburbs as well. I'm trying to find out the who and what of protests-- because I'll be there

[Violet_Crumble]

34. Good. I hope it gets challenged. It's so totally unreasonable to me...

If you do go and protest, I'll be there with you in spirit