A New Low

A man who purports to be a medical doctor has this to say:

First, a little political mischief.

Sounds like fun!

Since being chosen as John’s McCain’s running mate, Sarah Palin has caused a hurricane in the media and blogosphere, where one rumor has it that her 4-month old son, Trig, born with Down syndrome, isn’t hers, but belongs to her 17-year-old daughter, Bristol. The theory goes that Palin covered up her daughter’s pregnancy for political reasons.

Hang on.

So let me get this straight. It’s Sarah Palin’s fault that Kos and Andrew Sullivan printed baldfaced lies about her? She’s to blame for the MSM rushing to air with preposterous lies? Hm. So I guess that she’s now an honorary Clinton….

…what troubles me about Palin’s fifth pregnancy is that she was given a choice whether to have Trig, a choice that, as a staunchly pro-life politician, she would deny other women.

OK, now I’m totally lost. This isn’t even a reach. This “doctor’s” contortionism could earn him a place in Cirque de Soleil. I didn’t know that Sarah Palin was an advocate of Chinese-style forced abortions. Oh wait, hold on..he’s saying that as a staunch pro-lifer it was hypocritical of her to carry the baby to term. Please explain…

We could ask, given that Palin had no doubts about seeing her pregnancy through, why she bothered to take a genetic test. Why not, as you might expect a woman in her position and with her outspoken beliefs to do, decline any testing or counseling? Of course, it seems very reasonable to want to know about the health of your baby and to have time to prepare (emotionally and otherwise) for a baby that may have a genetic disorder. But that doesn’t negate the fact that by having a blood test, Palin was given a choice about what to do.

So the fuck what?

And what she has chosen to do is fantastic. The love that she and her family have for Trig was clear in her speech at the Republican National Convention. It was inspirational to see a mother in a position of political power stand up for a child with special needs. But Palin was given a choice whether to have that child, something, if she had her way as a lawmaker, she wouldn’t give others. According to legal experts, should Roe v. Wade be overturned, some states could outlaw abortion for Down syndrome or other birth defects, and women wouldn’t have Palin’s choice.

So while I respect Palin’s decision to raise Trig, that’s all the respect she will get from me. I don’t see eye-to-eye with her on anything else: energy, guns, sex education and of course a woman’s right to choose. Her supporters say that Trig signals that she practices what she preaches. But her to decision to have him is also a sign of her hypocrisy.

So maybe this man is a competent physician. I really don’t know. Given what he’s written I don’t think he’s capable of tending to any life form but that’s just me. But as a journalist? Doctor, you’re now an honorary member of the nutroots. Good luck with that.

Seriously, women should be aghast at what this man has written. We (rightfully) criticize pharmacists who won’t fill prescriptions for birth control. A person whose religious or political beliefs inhibits their ability to provide medical care needs to find another line of work. Sarah Palin a hypocrite? If she were to deny other women the right to take the same blood test she did to determine whether her baby would be born with special needs then you’d have a case. To state the obvious for the doctor, that’s not what happened here.

Google this doctor. Write him a letter and state your grievances. Send a note to Joan Walsh and ask her whether she bothered to read this poorly written and argued piece of propaganda before posting it.

What ever happened to Palin’s family being off limits? Isn’t that what Salon’s overlord Obama has decreed?

Mad as hell? You bet. And it’s only getting worse.