Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell has long been thought a poet due to her lyrics. But a prophet?
While madmen sitting up building bombs
And making laws and bars
They'd like to slam free choic behind us.
The news of Sandra Day O'Connor's retirement had us all thinking of Mitchell's song "The Three Great Stimulants" (off Dog Eat Dog). It's an astonishingly clear eyed critque of the Reagan era but proving that nothing much changes.
Everything comes and goes
Pleasure moves on too early
And trouble leaves too slow
Just when you're thinking
You've finally got it made
Bad news comes knocking
At your garden gate
Knocking for you
Ain't it still true? Don't it still come "Down to You" (Court & Spark)? And didn't Joni warn us in "Tax Free" (Dog Eat Dog):
Lord, there's danger in this land
You get witch-hunts and wars
When church and state hold hands.
So in a lot of ways, after the initial shock, it's really not surprising to learn that we're back at square one with choice and have to be prepared to battle if we want to keep it. But we are prepared for that fight. We hoped we'd never have to wage it but now that it's upon us, we're ready to fight.
Friday was a time of grief, anger and shock. Disbelief quickly transformed into determination. NOW held the first march Saturday. There will be many more. People will not sit back and let the Bully Boy destroy their rights. He's gotten cocky, little Bully. He's so used to intoning "9-11" and having all criticism cease.
"Not the church! Not the state! Women must choose their fate!" Get used to hearing that. And get used to hearing it from women of all ages and from men too. Right wing fanatics have been able to set the terms of this debate. A lot of people shrugged it off with little concern. Roe v. Wade was safe, so let the nut jobs have their say.
But it wasn't safe. It won't ever be safe. It took hard work to get to the point where abortion was legal. And due to fanatics, it will always take hard work to keep it legal. In our first edition, we did an article ("Abortion: Why It Still Matters") because the topic is important to us and because we know what's stake. And we, in this case, meant "Karla" who shared her story and Ty, Jess, Dona, Jim, Ava and C.I. who wrote the article. There was no other issue we could imagine addressing in our first issue because Bully Boy had just been inaugruated and reprodutive freedom is not a "side issue." Nor, as we noted in that first article, is it on the table for debate.
A lot of "friends" of abortion got to slide over the last few years. They got comfy. As long as they didn't tamper with Roe specifically, they could modify a bit here or there and we'd be angry but they could (and did) get away with it. Any "friend" who's thinking what's now at stake is something they can navigate with "moderation" is going to learn a hard lesson. We won't accept compromise on this. Roe will be protected and it will be maintained or there will be hell to pay.
All weekend we heard determined voices ready to fight this battle all out. Historically in this country, you can take something illegal and make it legal. People grow wiser, they progress. But, think of prohibition, Americans do not look fondly on attempt to take what is legal and make it illegal. That's what the Bully Boy doesn't get yet. Women who would never have an abortion, men who obviously can't, are outraged by this.
To put it in popular parlance, it's on.
[Note: All songs quoted above were written by Joni Mitchell.]