Bernie Sanders Explains Trump’s Position on Abortion

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1. Roy Turrentine says:

   April 14, 2024 at 12:49 pm

   Trump is more than a pathological liar. He is an amoral agent of a foreign government. No, not Putin, himself. He would sell any part of his soul for anything he wants. No doubt Putin knows that, and all of his transactional billionaire buddies know that too.

   The thing is, he is not particularly different from other transactional people whose nature has led to the accumulation of tremendous wealth. Being worth more that the GDP of Ubangia is immoral. It might mean you can rectify the matter by endowment of some societal need, but you are, by virtue of great wealth, more powerful than any human can take. We are too fragile.

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2. Christine Langhoff says:

   April 14, 2024 at 2:36 pm

   These authoritarian men with their longings to return to a “traditional” society do not view 51% of the population as fully human. Jennifer Rubin in today’s WaPo looks at what happened in Poland when women’s agency was suppressed – they turned out the right-wing Law and Justice party.

   Nearly every woman of voting age knows someone who has had an abortion, or a miscarriage, or a pregnancy that did not go as planned. It’s why 81% of voters do not want politicians involved in their medical decisions.

   Misogyny and authoritarianism go hand in hand.

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   • dianeravitch says:

     April 14, 2024 at 2:41 pm

     Well said.

     Reply
     • Christine Langhoff says:

       April 14, 2024 at 4:24 pm

       David French has a very large platform for his views via the NYT. In his April 11 column, he declares that:

       The traditional pro-life argument comes from different religious and secular sources, but they all rest on a common belief: From the moment of conception, an unborn child is a separate human life. Yes, the baby is completely dependent on the mother, but it is still a separate human life…Absent extreme circumstances, the unborn child must not be intentionally killed…

       From the moment of conception, an unborn child is a person worth protecting.

       https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/11/opinion/pro-life-alabama-trump.html

       French, of course, is entitled to his beliefs. He’s not entitled to impose those beliefs on those who do not share them. Zygotes and embryos are not “unborn children” in the eyes of many. Many do not share the idea that life begins at conception.

       He goes on to wring his hands that Trump’s portrayal of abortion as just politics undermines what French knows: one ought not to attribute malign motives to pro-life Americans.

       In today’s column, French explores why men are suffering so in our society.

       To understand the state of men in this country, it’s necessary to know three things.

       First, millions of men are falling behind women academically and suffering from a lack of meaning and purpose. Second, there is no consensus whatsoever on whether there’s a problem, much less how to respond and pull millions of men back from the brink. Third, many men are filling the void themselves by turning to gurus to guide their lives. They’re not waiting for elite culture, the education establishment or the church to define manhood.

       I agree that something’s amiss with young men when they’re overwhelmingly responsible for violence in our country, when they feel alienated and purposeless (and such a blow to ego when mere women demonstrate academic ability!).

       But French seems to miss the connection that oppressing women by taking away their physical autonomy inspires a misogynistic view point that undermines the humanity of men in the same way it objectifies women and categorizes them as “other” over whom men must exert control. His cure? Traditional virtues:

       And what are these classical virtues? Benjamin Franklin’s list included temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquillity, chastity and humility. I prefer the shorter and simpler formulation in Aristotle’s four cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, temperance and courage.

       I don’t see appreciation for diversity, a pursuit of equity, or a dismantling of hierarchical practices among those virtues.

     • Bob Shepherd says:

       April 14, 2024 at 8:05 pm

       This is a little old. I wrote it five years ago, but things are now even worse.

       Are We Failing Our Boys? | Bob Shepherd | Praxis (wordpress.com)

   • Duane E Swacker says:

     April 14, 2024 at 4:44 pm

     “The traditional pro-life argument comes from different religious and secular sources,

     No!. The anti-abortion arguments are all, yes, all based in faulty religious supposed thinking-especially xtian faithe beliefs.

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3. Christine Langhoff says:

   April 14, 2024 at 4:48 pm

   If we need to explore what toxic masculinity looks like, read this account of the connections between Trump and the world of performance that is WWE and UFC. John McCain referred to mixed martial arts as “human cockfighting”. Remember when Trump posted a fake fight video in which he knocked out CNN?

   The connections here abound. For example, Ari Emanuel, brother of Rahm, is a key business partner. Joe Rogan, Charlie Kirk, Tucker Carlson and Mike Tyson are all on this bandwagon.

   If you’ve been taken aback at the manner in which Stephen Cheung, Trump’s current spokesperson, responds to reporters, it’ll clarify things to know that his previous position was as an employee of UFC.

   Maybe David French should turn his gaze in this direction?

   No paywall:

   https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/14/business/dana-white-ufc-trump.html?ugrp=u&unlocked_article_code=1.kU0.9Sdo.WF7nCqh5xt0K&smid=url-share

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   • Bob Shepherd says:

     April 14, 2024 at 8:01 pm

     Trump is pathologically insecure, with good reason. And thus all the toxic masculinity stuff. He is a bad joke on himself.

     Reply
     • Bob Shepherd says:

       April 14, 2024 at 8:01 pm

       A cartoon