Monday's Most Active Threads

The two most active threads yesterday were both threads included in yesterday's blog post. So, I'll skip to the third most active thread to start this post. That thread was titled, "Jessa Duggar had an abortion" and was posted in the "Political Discussion" forum. As a topic, the revelation that Jessa Duggar — a rabidly anti-abortion reality TV star — had undergone a dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure following a miscarriage, probably was the most active because there was a second thread about it in the "Entertainment and Pop Culture" forum which I locked. Pro-choice posters in this thread were quick to describe the procedure as an "abortion" and criticize Duggar and her supporters as hypocrites. Duggar backers, on the other hand, argued that the miscarriage caused the death of the fetus and therefore, no abortion had occurred. I haven't read all 14 pages of this thread, but from what I have read, most of it consists of variations of these two arguments. What the thread highlights is the unclear legal environment in which the overturning of Roe vs Wade has left much of the country. Duggar is a resident of Arkansas which prohibits abortion and has strict limitations on D&C procedures. Because so much of the law surrounding abortion relies on individuals' interpretation and judgement, making absolute determinations in cases such as this is difficult. Duggar's supporters were quick to interpret things in her favor while those viewing her as a hypocrite did exactly the opposite. What is clear is that other women in exactly Duggar's condition have been denied the same procedure. Moreover, this highlights another complaint by the pro-choice movement: the wealthy and connected will generally find a way to access such procedures either by favorable interpretations by their doctors or through travel to another state, or even country. The rest, however, won't be so fortunate as we are already learning.

The next thread that I'll discuss was posted in the "Expectant and Postpartum Moms" forum. Titled, "Please tell me about your home birth experience", the thread addresses a topic that used to be perennial on DCUM. I don't know if that is still true and I've just tuned it out or if this thread represents a revival of sorts. Either way, I felt a strong sense of déjà vu reading the thread which was immediately filled with warnings about the dangers of home births and recommendations for alternatives. No amount of pleading by the original poster and others that those responding stick to describing personal experiences could stem the flow. Generally threads of this sort pit those who combine deep suspicions of the medical community with an almost mystical reverence for the birth experience against those who are worried about the dangers of childbirth and value access to medical interventions. While a few positive personal experiences did manage to find their way into the thread, they were largely overwhelmed by stories of negative outcomes of home births. Moreover, much of the thread is diverted into debates about birthing centers before becoming almost completely hijacked by posts discussing what many of those posting consider the dismal state of medical care in hospitals. Posters espousing both support and concern for home births expressed suspicion about the other side's statistics, each accusing the other of hiding the truth.

Next was a thread titled, "Dying from terrible food in the Midwest" and posted in the "Food, Cooking, and Restaurants" forum. The original poster is either living with or visiting her in-laws and is venting that they only have processed foods available and mostly eat out, refusing to allow the original poster to cook. The DC area in general and DCUM in particular are filled with Midwesterners, including me (a native of Illinois). As such, there was a fairly immediate backlash to the original poster. Posters suggested that what the original poster described was specific to her in-laws, not the entire Midwest. Others identified what they were easy solutions to the original poster's dilemma such as ordering salads from the restaurants or simply cooking for herself. But, even some self-identified Midwesterners and to admit that there was a kernel of truth to the original poster's complaints. Midwestern salads were the subject of particular criticism. Much of the thread is fun and good-natured with natives of several Midwestern states acknowledging some shortcoming in their cuisine while frequently continuing to express their enjoyment of it. However, one poster specifically was willing to go to her death defending salads that don't contain lettuce and desserts mostly consisting of Cool Whip. That poster, who ultimately would post at least 27 times, devoted most of her posts to attacking other posters. However, she did have one valid point. Many Midwestern cities are full of ethnic groups whose cooking is fantastic. She cited Italians as an example. During a recent trip I made to the Midwest, I stumbled across a restaurant that from the outside appeared to be nothing more than a run-of-the-mill fast food chicken restaurant. Once inside I discovered an almost hidden menu for Middle Eastern food (it was even written in Arabic). The owners turned out to be immigrants from Syria who produced some of the best kabobs and kibbeh I've ever had.

The last thread at which I'll look today was posted in the "Relationship Discussion (non-explicit)" forum. Titled, "Girlfriend w tight clothing", the original poster explains that he noticed his girlfriend, who works in a corporate law firm, was wearing a very tight dress to work and commented that it made him uncomfortable. She, in turn, called him insecure and ignored him. He wants to know if he is crazy. The immediate response to the original poster was not particularly helpful, including everything from calling him a troll to suggesting his post might be better suited for Penthouse Forum. But, he persevered and was still defending himself 9 pages later. I haven't read all of the pages but from what I have read, many posters agree that the outfit didn't seem professional, but many of those suggested that she might keep a blazer in the office which would have rectified things. Others felt that the original poster had been rude and should apologize — something he adamantly refused to consider doing. As might be expected, some posters attacked the original poster for being a misogynist or mens' rights activist (MRA). On the other hand, at least one poster suggested that if the original poster's girlfriend was an attorney who looked good in a tight dress, he should simply count his blessings.