quote:

---

Originally posted by: Perspective, Please
"Here are the problems I have with the column: First, it is a column and not an article. There's a big difference. Years ago, the NBC Nightly News had John Chancelor (anchor, then just commentator) present commentary that was clearly labeled that -- COMMENTARY. Commentary is based on an individual's opinion rather than purely reporting facts. In my opinion, our news today blurs that line between news and commentary way too much. To paraphrase the TV show Friends, "The line is a dot to them [journalists]." Second, I would like to know if the author adjusted the cost of raising a child to age 18 to account for the extremely low cost of living here in MS. My guess is that she used the lowest possible wage information available and then used the highest possible costs. "...Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics." -- MT Third, the column is another "I know better than you" item. "I know what's best for the people of Mississippi, and it's __________." It's clear that a majority of Mississippians do not support abortion, just like it's clear that Californians do not agree with the federal gov't's level of funding for stem-cell research. California passed a ballot initiative to increase state funding for stem-cell research. While some may not agree with their choice, it is just that -- their choice. Let California do what California will; let Mississippi do what Mississippi will, as long as it does not conflict with federal law. Last, if Missisissippi has the highest teenage pregnancy rate and if that rate is rising, why not focus on not getting pregnant? It seems to me that a $1 condom is much cheaper and less painful than a several-hundred-dollar medical procedure that is both physically and psychologically damaging. I think a better question to ask is "Why does the state not put more money into educational/preventative programs?" I know this is a hotbutton issue, and I'm not trying to start a war here. I just want to point out that some feel the need to degrade and belittle a state because the majority of its residents do not support this mindset? I would venture to guess that (conservatively) 50% of US citizens do not support abortion as birth control. Try to change people's minds if you don't agree with them, but you look like a bully when you start namecalling and nose thumbing to those who do not share your view. Another example of the total intolerance from the left and right. Those aren't facts the author is quoting, they're selected passages from a much larger speech."

---

I appreciated the article, and I am in a position to say that most of the statistics are ones with which I am familiar, and they are true. 

Even if one of her statistics were wrong and the rest correct, it's pitiful that this state is so eff'd up in so many ways.  I could argue point by point the rest of what you posted, but I won't purposefully create division on this board over women's reproductive rights (or lack thereof, in MS).   Why so many women in this state so eagerly accept paternalism, I'll never know.