More from Joplin Globe

Sheila Stogsdill sent me a link to this summary of the internet dicussion over the Doc Henrie story in the Joplin Globe last week. I find the fall out from the story fascinating. The first time I noticed the comments, I was horrified. Now, with some distance, I am starting to see how it is that folks can write these comments. In fact, the internet editor, Dave Woods, argues that Stogsdill's article "immediately separated the Globe's online viewers into two camps - pro-choice and pro-life." This assessment, to my mind, perfectly illustrates the generational shift in thinking about abortion since Roe. The women and men who lived in America before Roe, especially in poor, rural towns, simply accepted abortion as a feature of life. It may not have been part of public conversations. It may have been something frowned upon. But, it happened, and people knew it happened. What Dr. Henrie did was protect women from predatory back-alley abortionists, who profited off the illegal nature of abortion.