Mississippi’s “Conceived in Rape” Tour
by Noah Lugeons
Since my childhood, abortion has been the very definition of a “hot button” topic. Throughout my memory it has been the singular issue which has spurned the most disagreement and has been debated with the most ferocity. Religion ran a close second, of course, but too few atheists bring the subject up for it to be a true contender.
But through it all there was at least some sense of civility. Even in the most vehement disputes some exception was made for the more extreme circumstances. Even most ardent opposers of abortion rights would agree to exceptions in cases of rape or incest or in instances when the health of the mother was in danger.
No more. The “personhood” movement that is sweeping through the bible belt seeks to do away with that last vestige of civility by offering up amendments to state constitutions that would give full legal rights to zygotes. To put to rest and lingering doubts that they might have any sliver of compassion, the group “Mississippi Personhood” is sponsoring a “Conceived in Rape” tour.
The tour will feature one Rebecca Kiessling who was, predictably, conceived in rape.
Despite having never met her and having very little familiarity with her work, I feel confident in saying that Kiessling is a revolting bitch. If you doubt my assessment, a quick trip to her website should convince you. She is a dedicated anti-abortion activist and her whole shtick seems to be cashing in on the traumatic circumstance of her conception.
On her home page she announces:
Have you ever considered how really insulting it is to say to someone, “I think your mother should have been able to abort you.”? It’s like saying, “If I had my way, you’d be dead right now.”
Yes. Of course that is what they’re saying. Thus, those of us who believe that every woman should have the right to get an abortion are clearly saying “If I had my way, everyone would be dead right now”, which laudably sums up the goals of the pro-choice lobby.
But again, Kiessling is a rampaging bitch. I suppose that when people say they wish her mother had been able to abort her it is truly because they wish she had personally been aborted. I shouldn’t be so quick to label her conclusion as bullshit.
She continues:
And that is the reality with which I live every time someone says they are pro-choice or pro-life “except in cases of rape” because I absolutely would have been aborted if it had been legal in Michigan when I was an unborn child, and I can tell you that it hurts.
I’m not sure how many people I’ve met that are “Pro-Choice” except in cases of rape, but let’s continue on as though that part of her statement made sense.
Note that she says she “absolutely” would have been aborted if it had been legal in Michigan at the time. Her mother was raped and did not want to carry the child to term. Of course, with an over-inflated sense of self-worth, Kiessling assumes that her inherent worth makes it clear that the world is better off with her than it would be without her. She assumes that earth was one babbling Christian extremist shy of perfection at the time.
But there’s also a pretty deep insult to logic in this whole notion. We can’t go back in time and replay how the world might have gone if Kiessling’s mother had been allowed to abort her unborn child. Of course, I don’t know the first thing about the situation, but we’re not really talking about this one situation. She says herself that she wants to “put a face” on this phenomenon. So realistically, we shouldn’t be weighing a world with or without Rebecca Kiessling, but rather we should explore a world with or without baby X, conceived in rape.
Perhaps a mother who was otherwise destined to finish school, get a degree and cure some disease was thrown off the path to success when a brutal assault left her with a child she did not want and could not care for. Little matter in Kiessling’s world. Perhaps a mother who was raped at a young age might have been a great mother at an older age but because of the financial difficulties of her first (forced) child, she was unwilling to have another.
I could break out a thousand more examples and the opposition could break out a thousand theoreticals in the other direction. In the end we would be no closer to solving anything. The very exercise is insane. Rebecca Kiessling believes that people who believe a woman should be able to abort a child in cases of rape would change their mind if we only put a face on the “victim”.
I propose she take a dose of her own medicine. How about if and when Mississippi ever enacts their medieval law, she can have the job telling all the underage rape victims that they can’t have abortions. Perhaps she should meet the real victims before trying to cash in on her mother’s personal tragedy.
If you’re in Mississippi and you’d like to remind this abortion that should have happened what a foul and despicable person she is, you might be able to get tickets to one of her stops. But get your tickets quick. Events at the Trinity Baptist Church in Southhaven (on Swinnea just north of Goodman) tend to sell out fast.
The Scathing Atheist 
Question for Rebecca Kiessling: I wish that every rape had been prevented. That her mother had never been raped. Does that also mean I wish that she personally had never been born? I guess it does,
Even worse, by the wording on her website, it means that you want her dead. Shame on you for wanting all those babies to never be born.
By the way, honored to get a comment from Dirk Gently. I’m one of the few who would say that was Adam’s better series.
Would you believe that I almost didn’t exist? It’s true. My mother had a miscarriage with her first pregnancy. Had she not had that miscarriage, yours truly would not exist. Also, she used a spermicidal foam that failed to do its job and voila, yours truly exists. Had that foam done its job, I wouldn’t exist. Oh, the absolute horror that there were these two opportunities that nearly caused me not to exist. How could the world do without my existence? I vote that we ban spermicidal foams and extol the virtues of miscarriages because this is how I came to exist. I wonder if it ever entered her consciousness that it took a rape for her to exist. So all of us ladies should worship the almighty sacred sperm of rapists because they cause people to exist. I can truly see what bringing a child of a rapist into the world does and this woman is the reason why I don’t feel rapists should breed.
By the way she has amended her website and eradicated much of her touching story. It now consists of two paragraphs and this is the new one.
In reply, some have said to me, “So does that mean you’re pro-rape?” Though ludicrous, I’ll address it because I understand that they aren’t thinking things through. There is a huge moral difference because I did exist, and my life would have been ended because I would have been killed by a brutal abortion. You can only be killed and your life can only be devalued once you exist. Being thankful that my life was protected in no way makes me pro-rape.
Um, yes we are thinking things through and apparently she is grateful that her mother was raped because damn it, she does exist! Woo! I’m glad that her life was protected. As a matter of fact, people’s lives are protected. There is a law against murder. Unfortunately had her mother not complied with the wishes of the rapist, she would have been murdered. Oh shit, and then Rebecca would never have existed. Damn. Let us praise for the rapist for making it possible for Rebecca to exist.