Amazing that a religious nutcase who has just taken away a fundamental freedom from women has the brass neck to speak on liberty. Though, in my experience, Catholicism is more interested in the repression of personal liberty than protecting it.
2 Likes
I am not so sure Catholicism is to blame, Fundamentalists of any religious presuasion are unfortunately in a powerful position. And they are using this to suppress freedom - mostly from women. But also any opponent of monolithic religionsâŚ
1 Like
In the US, children are also often the target. If you can control what the children think and know, then you can control the future. Hence the huge effort by right wing âorgainsationsâ to ban books in schools and libraries that donât fit in with thier views. These âorganisationsâ, with emotive names like âmoms against âŚâ are often run and funded by male dominated right wing organisations, where a âmomâ is unlikely to be seen.
2 Likes
Indeed, it is not only Catholicism, but in Alitoâs case it is.
Yes, the Jesuits certainly practice that. Though they are excellent educationalists, just with too Catholic a slant.
1 Like
Nothing new about that idea.
Aristotle : Give me a child until he is 7 and I will show you the man.
1 Like
Indeed not. Itâs being taken to an absurd level in many Republican states though. You have ârent a mobsâ picketing libraries all over these states, intimidating librarians and crashing readings en masse. State and County authorities are also passing edicts with lists of books or subjects that are banned in libraries. The pace is accelerating. They may as well burn the books publicly.
1 Like
Any religion which denies women an equal place in their hierarchy is a no no for me.
1 Like
The really interesting thing about this whole question is peopleâs tendency to believe it of others, but not of themselves. People brought up in christian countries turn out to be christian; people brought up as muslims turn out to be muslims; people brought up in capitalist countries believe in capitalism - and so on. Yet they all tend to believe that their ideas are their own, and that they are the right ideas, rather than simply the ideology imposed on them by the society they were born into.
5 Likes
Mr Alito clearly does not do irony or understand it but then nor do any religions as it always contradicts their dogmas or makes them transparent.
True, but Iâve no problem with people pursuing their religious beliefs once they donât try and bully and coerce others. What the bastard Alito has done is force his views on millions and millions of unwilling women. Using his own style of language, one can say he is truly evil.
I have no doubt that, if you were to enable abortions to take place, he would consider you utterly evil too.
This kind of language is emotive, and while it may feel satisfying, can only add heat rather than light to the debate or serve to whip up the mob.
3 Likes
Where do you stand on this?
Why does my opinion matter?
2 Likes
Of course your position matters, it lets me know how invested you are in this issue of womenâs rights.
Iâm up front about having railed for over fifty five years against Catholic bullying on contraception, divorce and a womanâs right to choose.Itâs been a long walk to freedom (as one might say) in Ireland.
Why should there be a âdebateââabout a womanâs right to choose, as if they werenât sensible enough to make their own decision?
Not everyone wishes to put their private convictions on a public forum⌠and I certainly wouldnât want to be pressed to do soâŚ
and my silence or my comments (on whatever subject) shouldnât be taken to mean one thing or anotherâŚ
just sayingâŚ
6 Likes
There was some good discussion of this issue in the âRoe vs Wadeâ thread - where I think genuine progress was made, which I found heartening.
One aspect of this was I think that both âsidesâ of the debate recognised in the end that it wasnât about âprivate convictionsâ at all: that however strong our personal feelings or beliefs about our own bodies are, and whatever decision we would make personally, the nub of the issue is not this - but whether (mainly male) politicians or their appointees have the right to try to impose their own views on others - on women.
The public debate, that is, is not really about abortion at all - it is about authoritarianism.
I couldnât agree more Geof, which is why I used the term âbullyâ.
We are so lucky that we have you both to set us straight with your continual personal opinions and observations on womenâs issues. Thank you so much.
2 Likes
Right, sort yourselves out then 
On the other hand, since itâs mostly men doing the oppressing, shouldnât we try and help restrain our genderâs misogyny?
Sorry Stella, it is important to stand up for womensâ rights in public, private conversations whatever.
Perhaps you have not noticed but the extreme right, and I include the Boris government in this, are following Roe v Wade in unilaterally removing from the Statement that 20 countries agreed to on Womensâ Reproductive Health.
Women Judges and holders of Public Offices before the Taliban took over are in hiding and men are being helped to leave the country, but not the women.
Etc. Etc.
1 Like