Monday, May 17, 2010

60% Support Funding Foreign Abortions???

I am going to have to disagree with Harris-Decima on this one. The article in the Globe and Mail makes no mention of what proportion of Canadians are pro choice or pro life, and that is a statistic that needs to be included. Let's say that 65% are pro choice (which includes myself), then would 92% of pro choicers support funding abortions in Africa? We can hardly even treat pneumonia in Africa!  I am pro choice, and do not support my tax dollars paying for foreign abortions. The Globe article also does not state the specific wording of Harris-Decima's question, which is suspicious. They present the result with a lengthy analysis, but they don't say what the question was.

I know as an amateur pollster that the wording of the question can vastly affect the outcome. So, this article in the Globe doesn't say what percentage of Canadians are pro choice or pro life, and it doesn't say what the question was. Those are two red flags on information that should be presented. If I am going to believe that the vast majority of pro choicers want to pay for abortions in the Congo, I'd like to know how they worded the question and what results other polling firms have polled on this specific issue.

What I do know is that the people on the left want to get pro life people making statements about baby killers, to start a "culture war", divide families, and create a wedge issue that they can exploit for political gain. They are saying that 30% of people support the government on their position, down from 48% in March? For that to be true, a large quantity of pro choice people decided in the last 2 months that they suddenly want their tax dollars to pay for foreign abortions? Really? Something doesn't add up.

6 comments:

  1. This is just another chapter in the hidden agenda scary Harper from our media.

    Review H1N1, Prorogue, Taliban, Omar love-in. Think about how much ink and coverage were given to a very small part of the overall story.

    The is about denying the majority and saving the furniture of the socialist parties outside Quebec. Facts and truth have been jettisoned a long time ago for this narrative.

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  2. Part of the problem is that there is confusion on what is being proposed. There seems to be more than 2 positions so the polling has to be flawed.

    Is there a distinction between funding all abortions or only those that are legal in African nations?

    The Liberal policy (that was defeated in the house in part by Liberals!) seems to fund all abortions in all countries laws be damned.

    Clinton (I think) and certainly the UN wants funding for abortions only when it is legal in the host nation.

    There probably isn't any mention of how much we should be spending in such an initiative. Some might not wish to spend as much as others.

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  3. I find it hard to believe that 60% support foreign abortions. Why Africa - I could bring up the "r" word. How about South America or perhaps Asia? How do the 60% feel about preselection of gender as in China and other countries in Asia? What a bogus poll. I would have been embarassed to be part of this survey. FernStAlbert

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  4. I am also pro choice and definitely do not want my tax dollars funding abortions in third world countries.
    My big concern is that my tax dollars would only pay to abort females in third world countries. Why the stifling of debate on gender abortions Maureen McTeer? Time to have an honest debate about funding abortion in Africa.

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  5. The PM should ask the opposition where the money would come from, perhaps the 1.95/vote subsidy from libs/ndp/bloc only.
    Or maybe transfer payments to Quebec.
    Maybe if the libs paid back the millions stolen, that money could be used.
    Funny, no one has mentioned what the cost of this funding would be or what would have to be cut to afford it.

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  6. I am pro-women,
    and if there was an infinite amount of cash laying around, it would be unreasonable to exclude funding safe abortions, where legal.

    However, that it most definitely not the case.
    The funds are limited.
    The funding that gets the most bang for the buck are clean water, vaccination programs and effective contraceptives.
    All very low cost.
    All save lives.

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