Considering the Consequences of SCOTUS Holding on Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt

Despite the statistics which Family Research Council President Tony Perkins recites regarding womens' health and abortion, the United States Supreme Court ruled 5 to 3 threw out a two provisions of a Texas law which imposed health regulations which put "an undue burden" on abortion providers that have resulted in clinics shutting down.

In the majority opinion for Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, Justice Steven Breyer wrote:

There was no significant health-related problem that the new law helped to cure.  We agree with the District Court that the surgical-center requirement, like the admitting-privileges requirement, provides few, if any, health benefits for women, poses a substantial obstacle to women seeking abortions, and constitutes an "undue burden" on their constitutional right to do so.

Per the SCOTUS majority, requiring an abortionist to have admitting privileges to local medical facilities in case something goes awry and to maintain surgical standards in abortuaries is an undue burden.  Using this logic, it seems the only reason Dr. Gosnell could be convicted is for illicitly writing drug prescriptions.

Prima facia, the ironically named Whole Womens' Health decision drops the veil on so called reproductive rights being a womens' health issue and points towards abortion on demand, despite the medical circumstances. 

Last year in Obergefell, the Supreme Court usurped the rights of states to contract marriages as they saw fit.  Now, the Supremes have essentially mooted the role of states to regulate for health concerns.  Between the burgeoning bureaucratic state and a Supreme Court which is acting more like a legislative body than an impartial arbiter of law, elites may cynically question why we need states anyways.

So we should stop using the politically correct euphemism of "Womens' Health" when referring to Abortion Rights. It will be interesting to learn where presumptive Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump stands on the issue.  While Trump has promised to only nominate  pro-life justices to the Supreme Court, Trump also repeatedly echoes accolades to Planned Parenthood for all that they supposedly do for womens' health. 

Playing the Trump Card on Political Correctness

During a revealing NBC Today Show Townhall, Republican Presidential front-runner Donald Trump commented about the North Carolina Bathroom Bill, which in most circumstances prohibits men who claim to be transsexual to use the womens' bathroom.

Trump's concern seemed to be that Tarheel State businesses are suffering from the LGBTQQ? inspired boycott, which has allowed artists like Bruce Springsteen to choose not to perform in North Carolina. 

Trump mused that allowing men to urinate in women designated bathrooms is fine because it does not cause problems, which echoes current politically correct sentiments. It seems in Trump's weltanschauung Obviously, celebrities have more rights than bakers, pizza makers,  photographers and wedding planners to exercise their First Amendment right of Religious Liberty.

In the same townhall, Trump opined that he would change the longstanding Republican National platform plank about opposing abortion in all circumstances.  This is yet another abortion position as several weeks ago Trump took three allegedly pro-life positions in one day then later settled on a position to maintain the status quo, as he praised the virtues of Planned Parenthood for womens' health issues.

One of the virtues of the Trump campaign is an appeal to political incorrectness as the angry silent majority is tired to caving to progressive PC whims.  Trump will say outrageous things which his fanatical following will excuse as just being politically incorrect.  Well, Trump's New York Values seem to be shining through  and his anti-PC schtick is losing its cover. 

Surely the voters in Pennsylvania and Indiana should take a measure of Trump's character and discern if it aligns with their values.  However, there is little doubt that Trump supporters will follow the flip flop and vigorously promote the line of the day from their dear leader. 

Questioning NOW's Dirty Labeling

During a tough interview with Megyn Kelly on Fox News Channel, Patricia Ireland speaking on behalf of the  National Organization for Women (NOW)  sought to justify NOW's labeling of the Little Sisters of the Poor as part of the "Dirty 100" in light of the recent Burwell v. Hobby Lobby (2014) Supreme Court ruling.

Ireland deflected the denigration of the Catholic nuns as being like the "Dirty Dozen" with other corporations, presumably for fundraising efforts.  But Kelly does not let her off than easily, suggesting that the nuns be considered "Groups with whom we disagree".

The former NOW President kept insisting that the Little Sisters could "opt out" of the Obamacare contraception mandate.  Except the alleged work around forces the Sisters to sign the Form 700 document permitting others to provide the abortifacients which are anathematic to their faith. 

Ireland offered patronizing lip service to the nuns' living their faith and helping the indigent infirmed. But what she does not realize is that if the Little Sisters of the Poor are eventually forced to pay for such unwanted services ordered by former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius then they will move out rather than contravene their consciences.  

Ireland insisted that I.U.D.s, which is one of the abortifacients in question, does not kill eggs in the uterus.  Well, that's not quite true.  Generally, inter-uterine devices act as spermicide to prevent fertilization but copper I.U.D.s are touted as an emergency contraceptive for five days after intercourse.  Most sperm dies within two days after ejaculation (even in the uterus), thus the emergency contraceptive quality of such I.U.Ds intimates that it prevents the implantation of the blastocyst thereby killing a fertilized egg. 

Ireland incorrectly asserted that the Supreme Court had ruled on the "opt-out" provision.  Hobby Lobby covered closely held corporations with conscience objections but Obamacare opt-outs for non-profits has not been decided yet (although SCOTUS has offered a unanimous injunction pending appeal on January 24th, 2014). 

Ireland's fatal rhetorical faux pas was her bon mot that Supreme Court decisions do not affect the reality.  The hostess of the Kelly Files jumped in and asked if Roe v. Wade affected the reality. T o borrow an oft uttered Ireland phrase from the interview "Bless her heart."

Gosnell: The Movie--Trying to Tell the Story of an American Serial Killer Which Strikes Too Close to Home

[L] Ann McElhinney and [R] Phelim McAleer

Last spring, husband and wife veteran filmmakers Phelim McAleer and Anne McElhinney were publicizing their feature documentary Fracknation as the murder trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell was occurring in Philadelphia.  McAleer was amazed at the lack of coverage of a prolific serial killer that murdered two women in botched late term abortions in unsanitary conditions, used a brutal snipping technique to kill a thousand children beyond the legal limit for abortion and also dealt prescription drugs.

Yet the national mainstream media ignored the Gosnell case, dismissing it like a local murder case while lavishing attention on the concurrent Jodi Arias murder trial. McAleer did man on the street interviews in California to learn about what the public knew about sensational murder trials.

As Katherine Graham, the former publisher of the Washington Post, proclaimed: "What we cover and what we don't matter a lot...The power is to set the agenda."  Fox News commentator Greg Gutfeld recently speculated about the reasons why most of the mainstream media (including Fox) did not cover the Gosnell trial closely:

"The reason why they don't do this one is not because the evil is so grotesque.  It's that it's too close to a moral choice they've made.  That's what it's about.  It's not that like, ah it's so hard to do something on this man who butchered babies.  It's because it's too close to the pro-choice mindset."

However, McAleer and McElhinney were so haunted by the Gosnell trial that they backed away from other crowd-source funded projects so as to make a movie about Gosnell.  Yet Anne & Phelim Media encountered more velvet gloved censorship by Kickstarter, which claims to not curate projects but would not allow them to describe their dramatized movie idea as being about a mass murderer who killed a thousand children as it allegedly violated community standards which Kickstart "encourages and (selectively) enforces".  McAleer believes that it is within Kickstarter's right to not facilitate funding but that it should be forthright that it is due to the project matter not a transparent lie about community standards which it does not enforce for sundry other offensive projects.

So they moved their crowd-source funding efforts to Indiegogo, where they have raised $1.2 million  of a fixed target $2.1 million.  If they do not make their designated funding mark by May 12th, the money reverts  back to the prospective investors.

There is already an excellent documentary film 3801 Lancaster, which interviews victims of Gosnell's House of Horrors.  So McAleer and McElhinney want to make dramatized version of the Gosnell story which would run on the Lifetime  Movie Network rather than a feature documentary to reach a wider audience.

 It is easy for seaboard elitists to dismiss a film about Gosnell as just being by religious zealots with pro-life propaganda, which is a touch charge to apply to McAleer and McElhinney. In addition, this dismissive instinct ignores how Dr. Gosnell was a racist as he gave his white patients much better and cleaner abortion services than his clients of color.

A film about Gosnell must also include a political angle.  Former Governor Tom Ridge (R-PA) was elected as chief executive of the Keystone State as a moderate Republican.  The governor's office made it clear that the Commonwealth should do nothing to impede abortion services, so Gosnell's clinic was not properly inspected for 17 years, despite gruesome reports and several deaths. 

Gosnell's clinic was raided because Gosnell was writing prescriptions like a pell mell pill mill for Oxycotin and the ilk.  That raid permitted police to stumble upon an unsanitary abortion butchery, where Gosnell kept severed limbs as trophies.

Hearing the filmmakers promote their project, it is clear that they yearn to tell a compelling true story about a prolific American serial killer and pull back the curtain on details which a progressive public would rather ignore.

If one wishes to help actuate the Gosnell movie project, one can contribute to the efforts at www.gosnellmovie.com.  Those who contribute $25 will get a DVD of the film.  But the filmmakers also implore people to contribute anything to show that people care.