by Noah
With Republican-run state legislators rushing to outdo each other in extremism when it comes to taking away reproductive rights from American women, and Moscow Mitch threatening a national abortion ban and more if/when his crackpot party regains the majority in the $enate, I would hate for anyone to miss the little tidbit below from the now infamous Alito memo wherein he justifies his insane position on the issue by using the thoughts of Matthew Hale, a woman hating, knuckle dragging executioner of "witches" from merry Olde 17th Century England. It was all so damn predictable. What else should we expect from the members of a party who have dedicated themselves to not just turning back the hands of time to the 1950s but even further to the 1640s and doing it while sadistically asserting as much power upon women as possible. Republicans. They sure love to catapult the human misery! Medieval? You bet. And they revel in it like drunks dancing around burning witch strapped to a pole.
Here's a very pertinent section of Samuel Alito's "reasoning." It comes right after he cites some 13th century insanity. Next thing you know, he and the rest of the GOP will be claiming that since King Henry the 8th beheaded his wives that that sets a precedent we should all follow, too!
Sir Edward Coke's 17th Century treatise likewise asserted that abortion of a quick child was "murder"" if the childe be born alive" and a "great misprison" if the childe dieth in her body. Institutes of the Laws of England 50-51 (1644). ("Misprison" referred to "some heynous offense under the degree of felony.") Two treatises by Sir Matthew Hale likewise describe abortion of a quick child who died in the womb as a "great crime and a a "great misprison." See M. Hale, Pleas of the Crown. Or, A Methodical Summary of the Principal Matters Relation to that Subject 53 (1673) (P.R. Glassbrook, ed. 1973) M. Hale History of Pleas of the Crown433 (1736) (Hale). And writing near the time of the adoption of a "quick" child was "by the ancient law, homicide or manslaughter" (citing Bracton and at least "a very heinous misdemeanor" (citing Coke)"1. Blackstone, Commentaries opn the laws of England*129-*130 (7tgh ed. 1775 (Blackstone).
English cases dating all the way back to the 13th centurycorrorborate the treatises state that abotion was a crime See generally J. Dellapenna, Dispelling the Myths of Abortion History 126 & 16, 134-142, 188-194 & nn. 84-86 (2005 (Dellapenna): J. Keown, Abortion, Doctors, and the Law 3-12 (1988) (Keown). In 1732, for example, Eleanor Bears was convicted of "destroying the Foetus in the Womb" of another woman and "thereby causing her to miscarry." 28 For that crime and another "misdemeanor," Bears was sentenced to two days in the pillory and three years imprisonment.
28 Even before Bracton's time, English law imposed punishment for the killing of a fetus.
Yeah, whatever. If you're going to go that far back in English law, you might as well just use Pol Pot's Cambodia or Saddam Hussein's Iraq to justify your aims. Alito even goes on to cite a publication called Gentlemen's Magazine from August of 1732. I can see Alito and Clarence Thomas perusing 18th century "gentlemen's magazines," strictly as research, of course. I do realize that much of our farce of a legal system borrows from the Brits but, when you have to go back multiple centuries in an effort to make your case, you are being disingenuous at best and more likely supremely grotesque. Oh, and Earth to Alito, Earth to Alito! We kicked those lunatics and the policies of their chain of inbred syph-brained royals out of our country over 200 years ago! What other British laws would Republicans like to bring back? Crucifixion of apostates along with the wife-beheading? Stringent class divisions? Am I being unfair? OK, something more recent then. How about chemical cures for homosexuals? That and other absurd laws were on the books in England well into the 1950s and later, and enforced with glee! Oh, that's right, Republicans like the idea of electro shock "Gay Conversion Therapy." Hey, I know! Electro Shock for all!
How about going back to Roman law and allow our leaders the privilege of "Thumbs Up, Life-Thumbs Down, Death" in a public forum? The GOP's Dear Leader Trump would love that
Most important of all is the fact that the leaked Alito missive has given us a clear insight into the Republican mind, not that we didn't already know, but it's nice to have it on paper in a document from the highest (multiple meanings there) court in the land. Such insane "reasoning" can be used, not just for doing away with reproductive rights but anything else that displeases the frenzied conservative mob. For the autocratic nutjobs, taking away reproductive rights is a gateway drug. It's a window to the dreamworld of republicans everywhere.
Addendum: The meme I made for tonight's post is the second in a series. The first was just a few days ago. I just think the visual of a coat hanger with a black background is a perfect visual for representing today's Republican Party.
Definitely. The Republicans are the American Taliban. Just like the Taliban in Afghanistan, not all of them are religious fanatics but they are all fanatics united in a common quest for power.
It’s no coincidence that two of the English jurists Alito cites, Edward Coke and Matthew Hale, were writing their treatises in the period when witch trials in England were at their peak. That was also the time of the Connecticut Witch Trials (the Salem Witch Trials were a little later) and the English Civil War (which was actually a series of three civil wars).
And all of those things were motivated by religion — just like Alito’s dreadful draft decision!
christians are the taliban. the gop are nazis. there was a yin/yan back in germany in the '20s - '40s also. they go hand in hand.