Just reading this, after following a link from your 8/15.2023 Dobbs article. I think you misread David French's point. He was not saying Roe should not have been overturned when it was. He was criticizing the pro-life movement for not being ready, specifically moving away from a position of compassion
I would add, they -- we -- had no post-Roe plan of action, which is why we have lost several state referenda. And why the Ohio abortion rights referendum this fall is going to be a tough fight
I thought (and still think) it's fair to argue that our planning was inadequate. I don't think that's what French was getting at, though. I think he was arguing that our *spirit* was inadequate, that it was insufficiently life-giving. Even so, that's *also* a fair argument.
However, I thought (and still think) that foregrounding those defects *two days* after the fall of Roe was exceptionally -- historically! -- poor judgment and poor taste. Anyone unable to unreservedly celebrate during at least that week, I thought (and still think) had something wrong with them. I think David French has something wrong with him.
That being said, on the list of "people with something wrong with them," David French is wayyyyy down the list (and, given the hatred directed at his family by his supposed allies, I can understand how his lens has been somewhat distorted). I'm still glad to have him as an ally.
Related topic: I'm going to preview some upcoming articles in a sec here, but I don't think we lost the string of referenda because of bad planning. I think we lost them because:
Montana + Kentucky - both amendments were attempting to impose new restrictions on / legal defenses against abortion, which is always hard to do through the amendment process, and was impossible given thermostatic public reaction.
Kansas + Michigan - in both states, voters believed (in both states, with some cause) that they faced a binary choice: abortion on demand up to birth, and abortion banned without exceptions even for the life of the mother. Faced with such a binary choice, especially given thermostatic public reaction on abortion, especially in Michigan (a blue state that stood by some pretty deceptive ballot language), we never stood a chance. (Not that I didn't man the phone banks, but it always looked like a longshot, and I never shared the universal confidence about Kansas.) Kansas, too, scheduled their referendum on a weird date to favor more motivated voters, and, in the wake of Dobbs, that wasn't pro-lifers for once.
The Ohio referendum will put this theory to the test, though. In Ohio, they are choosing between a heartbeat ban and abortion on demand, which is a much more favorable binary for pro-lifers. The ballot language isn't perfect, but is at least pretty honest (at least currently). It's on a general election day (albeit an off-year election). The state is basically red. If media+opposition can reframe it like they did Michigan, or (worse) if we lose on that frame, then the problems we have are likely deeper than I've given them credit for.
PROGRAMMING NOTE: The rest of "The Rest of Dobbs" is coming, but I had to write this first.
Just reading this, after following a link from your 8/15.2023 Dobbs article. I think you misread David French's point. He was not saying Roe should not have been overturned when it was. He was criticizing the pro-life movement for not being ready, specifically moving away from a position of compassion
I would add, they -- we -- had no post-Roe plan of action, which is why we have lost several state referenda. And why the Ohio abortion rights referendum this fall is going to be a tough fight
I thought (and still think) it's fair to argue that our planning was inadequate. I don't think that's what French was getting at, though. I think he was arguing that our *spirit* was inadequate, that it was insufficiently life-giving. Even so, that's *also* a fair argument.
However, I thought (and still think) that foregrounding those defects *two days* after the fall of Roe was exceptionally -- historically! -- poor judgment and poor taste. Anyone unable to unreservedly celebrate during at least that week, I thought (and still think) had something wrong with them. I think David French has something wrong with him.
That being said, on the list of "people with something wrong with them," David French is wayyyyy down the list (and, given the hatred directed at his family by his supposed allies, I can understand how his lens has been somewhat distorted). I'm still glad to have him as an ally.
Related topic: I'm going to preview some upcoming articles in a sec here, but I don't think we lost the string of referenda because of bad planning. I think we lost them because:
Montana + Kentucky - both amendments were attempting to impose new restrictions on / legal defenses against abortion, which is always hard to do through the amendment process, and was impossible given thermostatic public reaction.
Kansas + Michigan - in both states, voters believed (in both states, with some cause) that they faced a binary choice: abortion on demand up to birth, and abortion banned without exceptions even for the life of the mother. Faced with such a binary choice, especially given thermostatic public reaction on abortion, especially in Michigan (a blue state that stood by some pretty deceptive ballot language), we never stood a chance. (Not that I didn't man the phone banks, but it always looked like a longshot, and I never shared the universal confidence about Kansas.) Kansas, too, scheduled their referendum on a weird date to favor more motivated voters, and, in the wake of Dobbs, that wasn't pro-lifers for once.
The Ohio referendum will put this theory to the test, though. In Ohio, they are choosing between a heartbeat ban and abortion on demand, which is a much more favorable binary for pro-lifers. The ballot language isn't perfect, but is at least pretty honest (at least currently). It's on a general election day (albeit an off-year election). The state is basically red. If media+opposition can reframe it like they did Michigan, or (worse) if we lose on that frame, then the problems we have are likely deeper than I've given them credit for.
Have no fear, I rejoiced and gave thanks to God when the Dobbs decision came down.
I look forward to your article on abortion referenda, especially as an Ohio pro-life voter!