Alaska pushing anti-abortion license plates
- Thread starter blacbird
- Start date
This is one of those micro-issues that really interests me. And I'm not entirely certain where I stand on it. But if I were to offer a preliminary opinion, so to speak, without having thought about this very deeply, I'd say they probably shouldn't bother with this. The legislature probably has better things it could focus on, and they could avoid the charges of bias coming from the pro-choice side.
*facepalm* You really don't need to post you side of a political debate on your license plate. If people really care what you think, they'll ask.
Yes, but "they" apparently want Official Government Sanction of it in every state. I knew about Georgia and Florida (by seeing actual license plates - don't know how I missed the news, I suppose I don't keep up well with local and state news).
Here's an article on the phenomenon or whatever you call it:
Poetic Licenses
Are "Choose Life" license plates free speech or state-sponsored infomercials?
http://www.slate.com/id/2078247/
ETA: All these tags have the exact same design, and of course it's the same organization pushing for them in all the states:
http://www.choose-life.org/
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Another thought I had on this:
There are actually two kinds of vanity plates, as I understand it. The first kind is where a message replaces the random digits, and I see political ones all the time. It might say "Life47" or "Choice3", for example. I don't really have a problem with that. They don't get made unless a driver specifically requests it, and the text is constrained by the issue of brevity, not the political stance.
The second kind is the one in the OP, where the state offers a ready-made message of "choose life", complete with accompanying artwork. And if you want a pro-choice one, as it stands now, you're out of luck. So I'd say those two things are different in such a way that I would support the first kind but not the second kind.
There are actually two kinds of vanity plates, as I understand it. The first kind is where a message replaces the random digits, and I see political ones all the time. It might say "Life47" or "Choice3", for example. I don't really have a problem with that. They don't get made unless a driver specifically requests it, and the text is constrained by the issue of brevity, not the political stance.
The second kind is the one in the OP, where the state offers a ready-made message of "choose life", complete with accompanying artwork. And if you want a pro-choice one, as it stands now, you're out of luck. So I'd say those two things are different in such a way that I would support the first kind but not the second kind.
Speaking as someone who is vehemently pro-choice, the slogan "choose life" does not offend me at all. If someone wants to promote the idea that someone with an unplanned pregnancy should choose not to have an abortion, I'm fine with that. What bothers me is the notion that a woman should not have that choice.
Not really sure what I think about this whole thing. It seems like an unnecessary use of resources. But if that is the way the pro-life movements wants to spend their money, who am I to judge?
Not really sure what I think about this whole thing. It seems like an unnecessary use of resources. But if that is the way the pro-life movements wants to spend their money, who am I to judge?
I find the Choose Life slogan ironic when it comes from folks who'd rather we had no choice at all.
Celia, the supporters of this effort want the state to officially sanction their agenda. You have no problem with that?
Yes, I do, and I think there probably should be a pro-choice option as well. But this won't get me as pissed off as the majority of the shit they've done. And I will say that they have used far more offensive slogans in the past.
But there isn't, and ain't gonna be.
Yeah, and they still do. but they haven't got them put on state-issued license plates. Bumper stickers just make me smile, more than anything else, and they are completely voluntary. This license plate effort is only pseudo-voluntary. Yeah, you will have to request them (so far), and I don't know what the conditions intended are. Maybe they'll require a special fee. Still doesn't make it acceptable. And I can guarantee that the pushers of this effort would [/i]love[/i] to put in place a situation where these things were the normal license plates, replacing the standard bland "Alaska - the final frontier" ones, and require an extra fee not to have one.
Totally off topic, just wanted to say that this is a brilliant statement. I'm solidly pro-life (or anti-abortion or whatever you want to call it) but in the past few years I've come to realize efforts to outlaw abortion are totally misplaced. If we really believe in supporting life, then we need to focus on creating a society in which women do not feel like abortion is the only option they have. I think it's something both sides could find common ground on, in a debate that is so ridiculously polarized.
It's not just spending their money - I have no idea of the figures, but they surely see it as an INVESTMENT - both intangible in getting the "Choose Life" message on thousands (or more) of license plates in each state, and also financial - each purchase of such a plate (which costs more than a regular plate) sends some of the collected funds to organizations that do pregnancy counseling that does not include abortion as a possibility. Once the tag is on place it's a long-term income stream for such organizations.
From the Slate article I linked to earlier:
I actually know quite a few people who identify as pro-choice but are against abortion. That's why it's called "Pro-choice" and not "pro-abortion."
I don't know what the big stink over this article is. I see special interest license plates of all kinds here in Colorado, including the Choose Life one (it has a little columbine flower on it, I think).
Disgusting---you'd think the people of alaska would have learned their lesson after electing former half-term-governor-disaster.
If there's one that says "choose choice" I don't have a problem, if there is only one that is anti-abortion, I take issue.