Kick her while she's down

Before this week, I didn’t have one thing good or bad to say about the state of Wisconsin.

I would imagine you as well have no opinion of this far-away land.

I know nothing of their customs, except of their cheese fetish.

However, last Friday the governor of Wisconsin put into effect a bill that forces abortion clinics to require ultrasounds before abortions.

This, in no uncertain terms, is the wrong decision.

An unnecessary move, this bill will tear apart women’s hearts in what is already a life-changing decision.

Why do these women need to have an ultrasound? What does it possibly help?

Tom Everson, the governor’s spokesman, said the bill will “improve a woman’s ability to make an informed choice.”

If they didn’t know what a fetus was when they made their decision, they will now realize what a fetus is. Very helpful.

The decision to abort a fetus is a difficult one to make. With the added effects of seeing the heartbeat and the description and images of the fetus, the bill is an uncalled-for move to guilt a woman into backing out of the abortion.

These scans all must be done at least 24 hours before the abortion, which is just enough time for a woman to feel horrible about herself.

This guilt trip by “pro-life” supporters has gone too far.

We are constantly bombarded by bumper stickers talking about how they don’t want to kill babies. Next month maybe they’ll force women to put on headphones to hear the fetus scream.

The true motive of this bill is apparent, even behind this façade of extra knowledge they claim.

The stated goal of this bill is to give women a more informed decision on their situation.

However, the requirement of the ultrasound is removed if the fetus is the result of rape or incest.

If that really were the true goal, wouldn’t we want all women to have the most knowledge possible?

I’m glad the government of Wisconsin has half of a soul and feels bad for putting the added pressure on rape victims.

But with this caveat, the motive is especially clear. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker wants women who have abortions to feel bad about what they’re doing.

Next time he takes a drink of alcohol, I’d like to show him how his liver reacts. Next time he eats a cheeseburger, I’d like to show him his cholesterol.

Maybe Scott Walker will realize shaming someone into a decision only serves to humiliate.

­— lewicole@indiana.edu