Susan Estrich Soulless, Ann Coulter

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.10069058070x460503tion Inde402Abor3020110ercentage Giving a Pro-Choice ResponseP1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004YearStrong Chance of a Serious DefectWoman’s Health Seriously EndangeredPregnant As a Result of RapeMarried–Wants No More ChildrenLow Income–Can’t Afford More ChildrenNot MarriedAbortion Index (Average Number of Circumstances Legal)Popular Attitudes Toward Abortion Since Roe v.WadeSource: Calculated from the General Social Surveys.The Moral Majority Is Us117But Professor Fiorina’s second point is even more telling.Virtuallyeverybody in the country supports legal abortion in the first three in-stances cited in the survey questions.By huge, overwhelming majori-ties, in both red and blue states, Americans favor abortion in those firstthree categories.According to Fiorina’s breakdown, “residents of the redstates supported legal abortion in about 3.5 of the 6 circumstances, abit lower than the national average, while residents of the blue statessupported abortion in about 4 circumstances, a little higher than thenational average.”Overall, the majorities on questions 1, 2, and 3 are just enormous,in the 80–90 percent ranges.It is certainly true with abortion, more so than with most issues,that she who controls the questions determines the answer.If you want to prove that the country (as of 2003) is equally divided(46 percent to 46 percent) between those who think abortion is murderand those who don’t feel this way, and that the division is closer than itwas in 1995 (40 percent murder, 51 percent not), you can.That’s alltrue.But it is also the case that almost two-thirds of all Americans sup-port the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v.Wade protect-ing a woman’s right to choose, prior to viability, whether to continue apregnancy, and that Republicans and Democrats, Catholics and Protes-tants, even churchgoers and non-churchgoers all tend to agree that thereare at least those three circumstances—a risk to the health of themother, rape, or a strong chance of a serious defect—when a pregnantwoman should be able to secure an abortion.Fiorina writes: “The fact that the differences among Americans areas small as they are is widely understood by social scientists and widelyobscured by political debate.”Consider what that means.There really is a consensus in this coun-try about abortion.It’s just that most people don’t know about it.And Ann takes advantage of that fact to turn people againsteach other.118SoullessKnowing that there is a consensus, however, can at least help youwin the argument—not by convincing anyone, but by asking the rightquestions instead of falling into her traps.If you’re in an argument, and you ask someone (Ann Coulter, forinstance), should a woman be able to get an abortion if her health is en-dangered, Ann will say no—but 90 percent of the people listening willdisagree with her.If you ask, should a woman be able to get an abortion if she becamepregnant through rape or incest, Ann will say no—but 80 percent ofthose listening will disagree with her.If Ann starts going on about partial birth abortion, and you say,but what if there is a strong chance of serious defects in the baby—youwin the argument.And if she says, but most of the cases don’t involve serious defects, look at Ann, or whomever you’re talking to, and ask: Will you make an exception for those that do? They won’t.But if they will, ask if they will alsomake an exception for the health of the mother, when it is endangered.Ask them how much danger the mother must face before they willrecognize an exception.Ask them how much additional risk they think a mother shouldbear.Reasonable danger? Serious health risk? What pound of flesh dothey want from women?On the issue of abortion, there is indeed a gap between the extremeand the middle, but the gap is between the extreme that Ann repre-sents, and the rest of America, which supports a woman’s right to securean abortion in at least some circumstances (my definition of pro-choice) and has done so since 1972—even at a time when the countrydidn’t support Roe, which they do now.There is a gap between the overwhelming majority that wants tofind common ground, and the only group that doesn’t.And whatgroup do you think that is? Surprise: it is the small minority, the rightThe Moral Majority Is Us119tail of the right tail, that supports a total ban on abortion.They are theonly ones who don’t want compromise, don’t want common ground,don’t want peace.How can it be that we’ve won and it feels like we’ve lost?This is what happens when the losing side makes all the noise,when that noise is mean and sometimes vulgar, and when they aredominating the discourse and insisting on continuing the conflict.* * *Here’s something even more “fun” to note, if anything can be fun in adebate about abortion.It is also, potentially, very significant.The only cases where a majority doesn’t support abortion are thetruly elective middle-class situations: where a married couple choosesnot to have more children, or where a woman is not married, anddoesn’t wish to marry the man.These are what I call the “doctor’s office abortions.” These are theabortions that white middle-class women get in doctors’ offices, thatcollege girls get in clinics, and that suburban women get from theirown OB/GYNs.Imagine what would happen, speaking purely politically, if theseabortions were to be outlawed.Talk about all hell breaking loose.Talk about bad news, electorally speaking, for the party consideredresponsible [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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