http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/09/20/BA310011.DTL

If this girl doesn't become the posterchild for pro-lifers everywhere, I'll be amazed. Its a perfect example, in my opinion, of tragic circumstances with way too much spin-doctoring potential.

Why can't we just mourn lives and leave the politics out of it?

tarbaby

I'm lost

April 2003

SEP 20, 2003 03:20 PM

erm, i didn't see any mention of a prolife arguement anywhere in the article. just a pretty standard story about one girl's death because of the drug. =/

Midori

SUICIDEGIRL

California, USA

SEP 20, 2003 03:29 PM

No, dude. You're totally right. It doesn't have an express pro-life argument attached to it, but I guarantee its gonna be pounced on because its a pretty 18 year old white girl who died while trying to take care of her business.

I just think its unfortunate that the medical credibility of this drug gets attention because a person of her specific demographic uses it resulting in a fatality. Its been on the market for a while now and we don't hear much about it anymore. I just can't help but become hyper-sensitive to the ways in which action and reaction (such as an abortion causing a death) become manipulated these days to suit such a moralistic agenda and I fear that rare cases like this girls' will get blown up to create a destructive element against the efforts of the pro-choice movement.

Stiles

Oakland, CA

November 2002

SEP 20, 2003 03:34 PM

According to that story, the final cause of death has yet to be determined. If it was found to be the cause, and not the (lack of) follow-up medical care - which is not the drug's fault - it would make 3 deaths in 225,000 uses. That's a little more than .001% deaths per use, and 400 adverse reactions/225,000 uses is about 0.2%.

This is cold comfort to her family, but 3 deaths/225,000 uses is hardly cause for alarm, epecially considering the far greater hazards of alternatives to this drug.
If anything, change the guidelines for follow-up care.

tarbaby

I'm lost

April 2003

SEP 20, 2003 03:58 PM

i totally agree about the follow-up care. i mean, this pill is not like an aspirin. it is a full fledged medical procedure. just like after a surgical abortion, there is a chance of infection, and this is no different.

BOARDS:

TOPICS:

RU486 blamed for girl's death

Midori

SUICIDEGIRL

California, USA

SEP 20, 2003 03:13 PM

tarbaby

I'm lost

April 2003

SEP 20, 2003 03:20 PM

Midori

SUICIDEGIRL

California, USA

SEP 20, 2003 03:29 PM

Stiles

Oakland, CA

November 2002

SEP 20, 2003 03:34 PM

tarbaby

I'm lost

April 2003

SEP 20, 2003 03:58 PM