"Pregnancy Centers", family planning faux pas Options

[PalePhoenix]

OK, so you're distracted by Hezbollah and North Korea. That's understandable. Let's not forget that life--such as it is--goes on here in the US, with all its attendant erosions of civil liberties and back-door attempts to undermine legally protected rights. Speaking of the Right, fundie religiopaths are gettin' muthafukkin' crafty, and now they're doing it with Federal funding. So, while you're staring, aghast, at the literal fallout of secretly armed military groups building and firing missles in the general direction of their neighbors, please take a moment to remark upon the deep level of hypocrisy inherent to the treatment of a woman's right to her own body, right here in America:

Pregnancy Centers Found to Give False Information on Abortion (click for full article - WP)

Federally funded "pregnancy resource centers" are incorrectly telling women that abortion results in an increased risk of breast cancer, infertility and deep psychological trauma, a minority congressional report charged yesterday. The report said that 20 of 23 federally funded centers contacted by staff investigators requesting information about an unintended pregnancy were told false or misleading information about the potential risks of an abortion.

The pregnancy resource centers, which are often affiliated with antiabortion religious groups, have received about $30 million in federal money since 2001, according to the report, requested by Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.). The report concluded that the exaggerations "may be effective in frightening pregnant teenagers and women and discouraging abortion. But it denies the teenagers and women vital health information, prevents them from making an informed decision, and is not an accepted public health practice."

A spokeswoman for one of the two large networks of pregnancy resource centers, Sterling-based Care Net, said that the report is "a routine attack on us that's nothing new." Care Net's Molly Ford said the centers criticized by Waxman received federal grants for abstinence-only programs they conduct, but not for pregnancy counseling. "The funds are kept entirely separate," she said.

Entirely separate. Hmm, isn't that how we finally jailed Al Capone? Tax audits for everyone (rather, 20 out of 23). I couldn't believe this when I read it. I still find it offensive. The intentional misuse of scientific data would be enough, but I don't think for an instant that there's a real way to keep subsidies from infiltrating the entire operation of a business...whether it's a clinic or a coffee shop.

Let me put it this way. The government gives a coffee shop five thousand dollars, but tells them, "You can only use this for making, advertising, and selling decaf." So, do you really believe (1) That if the manager only likes decaf, there isn't going to be disproportionate use of man-hours and counter space for this blend; (2) That where distribution of decaf is responsible for keeping the business afloat, it isn't effecting the entire operation; and (3) That if you're telling all your customers the caffeine is poison, it's not pretty fucking obvious that you've got an agenda in the first place?

[ganymede]

All the world loves a clown? (your tax dollars at work, folks) At least this shit has an end in sight.