Thursday, March 15, 2012

Phil McColeman Attempts to Reopen Abortion Debate

Yesterday, Phil McColeman stood up in Parliament and said this:
Mr. Speaker, I have six petitions to present from my constituents asking the House of Commons to determine when a fetus becomes a human being.
In essence, he was asking the Canadian government to reopen the abortion debate. He did not have to present the petitions, he chose to present the petitions.

The optics of this alone are fantastic. A middle-aged white guy standing up in Parliament and trying to overturn decades of progress for women’s rights. Amazing. Bravo. Somebody give this guy a medal. Somebody name a park after him.

This is not the first time I have wondered: What. On. Earth. Is. Phil. McColeman. Thinking?!?!?!?

4 comments:

Adam said...

Okay, I'm getting tired of the ridiculous speaking points generated in Ottawa. While I certainly don't want Mr. McColeman as my MP, the fact is that it IS a part of the MP's job to present petitions on behalf of his constituents.

Worse, the petition he presented has nothing to do with opening the abortion debate per se (although that is a logical outcome of the question being asked), but to suggest that Mr. McColeman is looking to reopen the abortion debate is preposterous.

Also, why does it matter that Mr. McColeman is overweight? What relevance does that have to your criticism regarding the presentation of petitions? If you referred to a woman in that way, you would rightly be criticized. What little standing your argument might have is removed when you attack someone's looks.

Like you, I often wonder what Mr. McColeman is thinking. But this is just ludicrous, especially given your selective use of the facts.

Anonymous said...

why would Phil's age, race, or weight be relevant to the rightness or wrongness of reopening the abortion debate?

fordian said...

Adam, your point regarding Phil's weight is well-taken. I've edited the post.

Adam, there is nothing "selective" about the facts. Phil asked Parliament to determine when a fetus becomes a human, the logical consequence of which, as you state, is to reopen the abortion debate. MPs are not obligated to present petitions from their constituents, and Phil should have used his discretion more wisely in this instance. In other words, What. On. Earth. Is. Phil. McColeman. Thinking?!?!?!?

Adam and Anonymous, I mention the optics of Phil McColeman presenting the petitions because, as a middle-aged white male, he symbolizes the dominant class who for so long exerted control over women's reproductive rights.

Seriously? said...

Ummm Adam, are you kidding me? "Worse, the petition he presented has nothing to do with opening the abortion debate per se (although that is a logical outcome of the question being asked), but to suggest that Mr. McColeman is looking to reopen the abortion debate is preposterous."
I can only assume you have no idea what the abortion debate is based on your comment. It is not preposterous to suggest Phil is looking to reopen the abortion debate, because that is exactly what it means when you put forward petitions about when a fetus becomes a human being. The move is meant to have a fetus declared a human at a very early stage of development (typically embryonic) so that having an abortion would basically be murder, leading to bans and curtailing of critical reproductive rights for women.
This debate also opens up the possibility for pregnant women being held liable for a litany of other crimes due to things that happen to their embryos and fetuses while pregnant. Read up on the stupidity of personhood amendments, which basically say that if a clinic is on fire and there is a tray of embryos sitting on a counter and a toddler sitting on the ground and you can only rescue one, let that kid burn because we can save 100 people by taking the embryo tray! All those 100 embryo people shall be saved! So before you run your mouth, maybe do a little bit of research.
And as a woman, I can assure you that I don't want old, white men completely devoid of any kind of perspective trying to control my reproductive health and rights.

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