Mommies Paradise

Julia Dahl has a piece up at Salon born of a recent victory by Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill. who more than six years ago introduced a bill which will provide 3 million dollars to the National Institutes of Health to “expand and intensify research and related activities with respect to postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis.”

The great news is that the Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act has indeed received funding to be granted in 2008. The bad news is that nothing good seems to come without a price.

But there was a catch. In order to get enough support for the bill, Rush had to add language encouraging the NIH to study the mental health effects of abortion.

Ah. Yes, of course. Because postpartum depression and the after effects of an abortion have everything to do with each other.

What the huh? Maybe I’m dense but I really do not see enough of a connection for the two to be combined into a funding bill.

I’ve had both. The two are not the same. I am very clear on that.

And I could go on and on but Dahl sums it up pretty well.

Studying the psychological effects of abortion isn’t objectionable. Abortion and its aftermath are women’s health issues, after all, and it’s hard to argue against more knowledge. But there is something distinctly offensive about anti-choice politicians thwarting efforts to expand the study and treatment of a debilitating, frighteningly common disease (which led the namesake of Rush’s bill to commit suicide less than five months after giving birth) so as to equate it with the possible consequences of a procedure they already believe is immoral and should be illegal.

Right.

NOTE: I know this is late. I meant to put this up last week but it was put on the burner while I decided if I liked the new WordPress interface. I still haven’t decided.