Give me liberty...

Several of my friends were involved in protests about the recent abortion legislation, and so for this weeks assignment I chose to find an editorial about the topic. Problem was, most articles I found were really trying to maintain neutrality on the subject. I can understand why, it's a touchy subject after all, but after a lengthy search I found one published by the Houston Chronicle titled Editorial: Abortion bill is unwarranted state intrusion on woman’s right to choose.

I would name the author so as to give he or she credit, but I couldn't find a listed author on the page, which is fishy in and of itself.  I'm sure that the article was aimed at Houstonians as it draws quotes from Senator Dan Patrick, the writer of the Senate bill, and Houston resident. Other than that I can't pinpoint an audience. The author's points made sense to me, but I feel like they didn't spend enough time explaining the details of the situation like other articles did. There was a short list of unexplained facts at the end, two of which were contradictory about how long before the procedure the sonogram is required. I happened to know what the author was referring to because of my other reading, but not every reader will be like me. I think it's important, though, that the author mentions the Supreme Court ruling that it is a woman's right to choose because that is really the central issue in this legislation. If it's not medically necessary, and women are exempt from it if they have been raped or if there is a medical reason for termination, what is it really hoping to gain other than pressuring and stressing women about what THEY think is right to do. And by THEY I mean the predominantly male legislature, people who will NEVER be affected by this law they are trying to impose on others. The author could also have made many more valid points about the costs that the state would incur because of this, the ridiculousness of Governor Perry calling this an emergency,  the affects of placing doctors in the position of being an enforcer of legislative morality, or the irony of a male legislature passing these bills as I mentioned. Overall, I think it was a weaker article than it could have been, but the author had one valid, streamlined point; women have the right to choose without harassment. Obviously, I agree.