Patterico's Pontifications

3/30/2015

Putting The Proverberial Lipstick On A Pig

Filed under: General — Dana @ 3:53 pm



[guest post by Dana]

It’s a smart tactic when advocates (and people in the business of making money) take a divisive issue and attempt to normalize it in order to remove its stigma and garner public acceptance. But, if one is honest about it, whether an abortion involves a cold, sterile operating room with a vacuum suctioning out the contents of a womb or swallowing a pill from within the confines of a luxury spa, the goal is the same and the objective remains unchanged.

With its natural wood floors and plush upholstery, Carafem aims to feel more like a spa than a medical clinic. But the slick ads set to go up in Metro stations across the Washington region leave nothing to doubt: “Abortion. Yeah, we do that.”

The clinic, opening this week in tony Friendship Heights, specializes in the abortion pill and will be unique for its advertising. Its unabashed approach also reflects a new push to destigmatize the nation’s most controversial medical procedure by talking about it openly and unapologetically.

At Carafem, staff members plan to greet clients with warm teas, comfortable robes and a matter-of-fact attitude.

“We don’t want to talk in hushed tones,” said Carafem president Christopher Purdy. “We use the A-word.”

Another striking aspect of the project is the design: The clinic will have wood floors and a natural wood tone on the walls that recalls high-end salons such as Aveda. Appointments, offered evenings and weekends, can be booked online or via a 24-hour hotline.

“It was important for us to try to present an upgraded, almost spa-like feel,” said Melissa S. Grant, vice president of health services for the clinic

And without a hint of self-awareness, the author of the article explains why this move is afoot:

Plagued by political setbacks in recent years, abortion-rights activists are now seeking to normalize abortion, to put a human face — and in some cases, even a positive spinon the procedure.

Feminist Katha Pollitt explains the need to normalize the procedure:

“We need to talk about ending a pregnancy as a common, even normal, event in the reproductive lives of women,” Pollitt writes, adding that the decision to abort can be “just as moral as the decision to have a child — indeed, sometimes more moral” because “part of caring for children is knowing when it’s not a good idea to bring them into the world.”

The abortion spa will only offer the abortion pill experience to clients, thus they can be no more than 10 weeks pregnant. The charge will be $400.

With that, I’m a fan of the show “The Good Wife”. I enjoy the smart writing, quick-paced dialogue and varied story lines. In a recent episode, lawyer and staunch Democrat Diane Lockhart finds her uber-chic, smart, liberal self uncharacteristically arguing abortion rights with a Republican billionaire who exhorts her: Don’t look away from the aborted fetus. Look at it. Why is it not a baby?

The more we see abortion dressed up and “normalized”, the less we will have to (or even be able to) look at what is really happening. Which just might be the point.

–Dana

11 Responses to “Putting The Proverberial Lipstick On A Pig”

  1. Hello.

    Dana (86e864)

  2. The market should address such behavior i think

    happyfeet (831175)

  3. Why am I reminded of this?

    Soylent Green

    Xmas (bfaacb)

  4. I found that episode of The Good Wife annoying in that it reinforced the idea that the main difference between Democrats and Republicans is abortion and social issues. The 70’s called and want their issues back.

    Kevin M (25bbee)

  5. Kevin M,

    I think the Huckabee and Carson supporters still see social issues as very important. However, clearly the priorities of Republicans at large have changed.

    You really can’t expect GW writers to actually tackle the current issues of strife between the D’s and R’s – after all, their guy is still in the WH and I’m sure they would be reluctant to push too hard.

    Dana (86e864)

  6. Further, Kevin M, it’s interesting that *if* Hillary runs, her platform will be women’s issues, including abortion.

    Dana (86e864)

  7. Greetings:

    And once again, as The Doobie Brothers so foresightedly predicted, “What were once vices are now habits.”

    11B40 (844d04)

  8. Some good old fashioned capitalists have managed to figure out a way to turn a $50 abortion pill packet into a $400 pseudo-sophisticated spa experience for urban professional women? I give them a resounding “Hell yeah!” from my cold capitalist heart. Now if only we can figure out how to make sure that ObamaCare covers the entire cost of this treat-yourself get-away.

    JVW (a1146f)

  9. I am NOT making her a “Happy Abortion” cake.

    Which is probably the next battle.

    Steve57 (b69525)

  10. you’re like the least win win person i know

    happyfeet (831175)

  11. Words fail me. Thanks for posting this.

    scrubone (c3104f)


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