Remember those puzzles? Here are two letters from the June “Atlantic”. Let’s see if you can see why I was alternately pissed and amused by them.
SpankingThe second one…
Sandra Tsing Loh, in “Marshal Plan” (March Atlantic), suggests that “today’s cutting-edge parents” spank their children, and jovially commends them for doing so.Corporal punishment of children - regardless of how “moderate”, and no matter by whom dispensed - is considered a violation of international human-rights law. The practice violates at least six human-rights treaties: the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; the UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; the American Convention on Human Rights; and the European Social Charter.
[rest snipped]
Susan H. Bitensky
Michigan State University College of Law
East Lansing, Mich
Letting Go of RoeBlast away! Posted by shanti at May 4, 2005 7:03 AM
In “Letting Go of Roe”, Benjamin Wittes essentially says, “Who cares of women have to travel to other states to get abortions, even medically necessary ones?” Apparently, Republican lawmakers care. The so-called Child Custody Protection Act would make it a federal crime to take a minor across state lines to have an abortion without notifying the minor’s parents beforehand. Atleast twenty-one states would quickly outlaw abortion if Roe vs. Wade were overturned, according to a study by the Center for Reproductive Rights. We cannot, as should be obvious, rely on state legislation to protect reproductive rights.
Timothy Rood,
Piedmont, Calif.
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“We cannot, as should be obvious, rely on state legislation to protect reproductive rights.”
Politicians find it convenient to rely on state legislation when it suits them and oppose it when it doesn’t. Ah well… shrug
Posted by: Niket at May 4, 2005 6:13 PM
Totally - plus, I thought it was really hilarious how one letter says laying a hand on your child is torture while the other is advocating minors getting abortions without their parents’ consent.
Bizarro world, indeed!
Posted by: Shanti at May 4, 2005 7:33 PM
Bizzaro it is - How else to explain getting two letters in the mail the same day from the same company, one threatening vile things for late-payment of credit card dues, and the other offering you a brand new card.
Posted by: avinash at May 5, 2005 10:42 AM
ok, here’s what I thought about the first letter:
Whaaaat???? I mean, is she for real? And the, whaaaat????
I dunno, let’s tell Kofi about the child spanking. He can start a UN committee, which will form a subcommitte, which will then fly out the entire sub-subcommittee to Tahiti for very important talks which will result in a paper decrying said spanking. QED
Posted by: MD at May 7, 2005 1:32 PM
MD, apparently if a mother spanks a naughty child it might as well be Abu Ghraib as far as that woman was concerned. The name sounds very familiar though - need to Google her a little more.
Posted by: Shanti at May 7, 2005 6:30 PM