Ten things to counter anti-choice misinformation

Here is a great article by Amanda Marcotte on ten things to say in your next argument about abortion with some misinformed anti-choicer.

I particularly like the way Marcotte points out that anti-choice fanatics, with their anti-sex messages and policies, create conditions that increase the need for abortion and later term abortions in the first place. Nice work, Ms. Marcotte.

The Abortion Monologues is available for purchase at www.abortionmonologues.com

What the Heck's with Hudak?

For those who are even slightly aware of ongoing abortion debates, the past few weeks in Ontario have been good fun. Conservative leader Hudak has been called upon to clarify his position on abortion. My congrats to DammitJanet for digging around and raising the issue. Her recent post says it all. For some of the other media on Hudak, see the following links.
Warren Kinsella
Tanya Talaga at The Toronto Star
Some have called it a public releations disaster. I think it is excellent news for the average voter. We are entitled to know the personal beliefs of politicians. Why? Because no one gets into politics to do not much of anything, to just go with the flow and try to not make any waves until it's time to collect the pension. People have ideas, dreams, visions. In the case of Provincial and Federal politics, political aspirants try to find a party that is a close enough match to their own views that they won't actually choke on the bile that inevitably rises in their throats while they are forced to live with towing the party line. For example, maybe in their heart of hearts, they think their party's policy on the environment is a disaster. That's okay. They can live with it. They can live with it because they know they will attempt to influence that policy from the inside so it is more in keeping with their personal views. That way, they can keep telling themselves they have not totally sold out (even though they probably really have and the likelihood that they will be influential is very slim, especially on the big stuff, the stuff that drives our culture and our economy). So it is with abortion politics too. Can someone anti-choice uphold the laws of the land when said laws are decidedly pro-choice without throwing themselves into existential crisis? Can you work to uphold beliefs that are antithetical to your own? I say, likely not, at least not without losing some vital piece of your soul. I know that if I  lived in an anti-choice country where abortion was illegal and clandestine and I went into politics, I would try hard to change that. I would expect Hudak to do everything he can to influence public policy in the general direction of his personal beliefs. It is naive to think otherwise.

So thanks to DammitJanet for this important piece of information. And as always, let the voter make informed choices.

Website Update

The Website update is done and I hope you enjoy the video clips that are posted from the great show we did last year in Calgary.

Also, it looks like delivery of the next print run of the play will be in just two or three weeks. Thanks for your patience.

Now, go outside and enjoy the summer.

Video Clips of The Abortion Monologues

A few changes are on the way on this teeny tiny website, this lonely internet outpost of reproductive rights. It's been a while since I updated the site. In fact, I haven't even written a blog post in a while. It's not for lack of desire. I'm pretty busy working on another project which I hope will see the light of day sometime. Anyway, you'll notice soon that there will be a button for video clips. We made a few clips from the Calgary show last year, and put them up on You Tube. This was a fabulous production that was Directed by the brilliant Tarra Lois Riley. The decision to keep the whole cast on stage through the show and present them as a Greek Chorus emphasized the sense of community among the women that is really at the heart of the play. Also it was just a darn good show with fabulous actors. I hope you like the clips. Until the new tab is in place, feel free to link from here.

Monologue 6
Monologue 7
Monologue 8
Monologue 12
Monologue 22

I hope this gives everyone a good taste of the play and that you enjoy and share the clips. As must be, comments on the You Tube channel are disabled for obvious reasons. Unfortunately, civil discourse is still not the norm on this topic. As always, it is my hope that this play will encourage thoughtful discussion. I just sold out of my last printing, and another one is in progress. If you want to order, go ahead and I'll give you an ETA.

If you're reading this, thanks for your interest, and thanks for your support of this work!