# Abortion clinic "Buffer zones" in Massachusetts not legal, says unanimous SCOTUS **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [June 26, 2014, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698 "2014-06-26T14:58:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/141 "2014-06-26T20:34:43Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I have to wonder if you think Argentina is a U.S. state. 😉 No it isn’t, it’s a more civilized country which defeated an attempt to legalize abortion three years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/142 "2014-06-26T20:39:35Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > No it isn’t, it’s a more civilized country which defeated an attempt to legalize abortion three years ago. And somehow this is supposed to justify what happens in the U.S., I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/143 "2014-06-26T20:40:30Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > There is no homicide involved in this issue, and accusing someone of homicide when there is no legal basis to do so is very serious. What do you think are the legal consequences of expressing the belief that abortion is murder? Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/144 "2014-06-26T20:41:01Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > What do you think are the legal consequences of expressing the belief that abortion is murder? Possible election to Congress? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/145 "2014-06-26T20:41:40Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Anecdote: twenty-odd years ago, a good friend of mine was outside an abortion clinic, and a young woman passed him; he asked her to reconsider what she was doing. She said angrily to him, “Yeah, you’re here now, but where will you be when the baby is born and I can’t take care of it because I have no money? If you’re so serious about this, why don’t you take this baby?” > > He said, “Let me call my wife.” > > Not only did he and his wife adopt the baby, but they kept her mother in her life, and all three of them recently watched that young woman graduate from college. > > One starfish. Nice anecdote. Got a half-million more just like it? I guess I’m okay with the right of protesters to be close enough to be annoying (though not harassing or assaultive) but the disingenuity on their part is amusing. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/146 "2014-06-26T20:42:35Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > No it isn’t, it’s a more civilized country which defeated an attempt to legalize abortion three years ago. How can you tell if someone is walking into a build to get an abortion? Do you ever feel guilty about yelling at the wrong terrified young woman? ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/147 "2014-06-26T20:43:43Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > How can you tell if someone is walking into a build to get an abortion? Do you ever feel guilty about yelling at the wrong terrified young woman? I’ve never been at an abortion protest, so there’s nothing (in this area) for me to feel guilty about. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/148 "2014-06-26T20:44:39Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > What do you think are the legal consequences of expressing the belief that abortion is murder? > > Regards, > Shodan Can you tell the difference between saying that you think abortion is murder, and publicly stating that someone has committed homicide? ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/149 "2014-06-26T20:45:07Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > And somehow this is supposed to justify what happens in the U.S., I guess. No, it’s supposed to demonstrate that some people are perfectly happy to defend disorderly protest tactics that shut down daily life when they support their pet causes, but not when they oppose them. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/150 "2014-06-26T20:45:53Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > Because we don’t consider _natural_ deaths to be a big problem in need of a solution. We don’t? How many millions of dollars do we spend each year just on breast cancer research? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/151 "2014-06-26T20:46:11Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > I’ve never been at an abortion protest, so there’s nothing (in this area) for me to feel guilty about. I guess this lack of personal knowledge allows you to made unfounded suppositions about what goes on at these protests. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/152 "2014-06-26T20:47:07Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > No, it’s supposed to demonstrate that some people are perfectly happy to defend disorderly protest tactics that shut down daily life when they support their pet causes, but not when they oppose them. You mean like how you support abortion protests, but don’t support funeral protests ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/153 "2014-06-26T20:49:30Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > How can you tell if someone is walking into a build to get an abortion? Do you ever feel guilty about yelling at the wrong terrified young woman? A woman making a decision about her health care can be presumed to be ignorant and up to no good. > [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > No, it’s supposed to demonstrate that some people are perfectly happy to defend disorderly protest tactics that shut down daily life when they support their pet causes, but not when they oppose them. And it fails to demonstrate that because those protests are taking place in other countries regarding other issues. However it does suggest you’re trying to tag people as hypocrites because you can’t make a strong case. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/154 "2014-06-26T20:52:11Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > No, it’s supposed to demonstrate that some people are perfectly happy to defend disorderly protest tactics that shut down daily life when they support their pet causes, but not when they oppose them. I’m sure that if yelling at women and spitting on them were a one off thing, we wouldn’t be having this discussion right now. I think you’re being disingenuous if you’re trying to compare violence among pro-lifers against violence among pro-choicers. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/155 "2014-06-26T20:53:17Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > According to [this](https://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/facts/women_who.html#1), it’s 1%, not half of one percent. But in any case, that’s still thousands of rape victims. So if someone has yelled at lots of women going into women’s clinics, there’s a very high chance that they’ve yelled at a rape victim. Just for laughs, and to get some use out of those statistics classes I took long ago: If there’s a 1% chance that a woman is going to a clinic to terminate a pregnancy resulting from rape, someone who has yelled at 69 women has a better-than-half chance of having yelled at a rape victim. Of course, not every woman going to the clinic is there for an abortion, so let’s speculate that for every 200 women who go to the clinic, 100 are there for non-abortion services, 99 are there for non-rape abortions and 1 is there for a rape-caused abortion, bringing the rate back to the originally-given 0.5%. If a protester has yelled at 139 women, the odds are better than 50% one of those women is a rape victim. Math is fun. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/156 "2014-06-26T20:54:23Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Anecdote: twenty-odd years ago, a good friend of mine was outside an abortion clinic, and a young woman passed him; he asked her to reconsider what she was doing. She said angrily to him, “Yeah, you’re here now, but where will you be when the baby is born and I can’t take care of it because I have no money? If you’re so serious about this, why don’t you take this baby?” > > He said, “Let me call my wife.” > > Not only did he and his wife adopt the baby, but they kept her mother in her life, and all three of them recently watched that young woman graduate from college. Cite? I heard a similar anecdote, only after the young woman suggested he take the baby, he responded by calling her a selfish murderous whore. Oh, and bad SCOTUS decision. Not a binding precedent on future SCOTUSes either. ---
**Author:** ![Jay4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f1d935/32.png) [@Jay4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jay4)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/157 "2014-06-26T21:00:48Z")
people complaining about this dont relize that people would protest their regardless the decision.not everyone is enjoying your lack of respect for the constitution ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/158 "2014-06-26T21:02:49Z")
It’s interesting to observe that there was [a dramatic and precipitous decline in the number of maternal deaths due to unsafe abortions after Roe v. Wade](http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/tgr/06/1/gr060108.html). And of course, there’s always crap like this: > [@boston.com](#): > > In 1994, a gunman killed two receptionists and wounded five employees and volunteers at a Planned Parenthood facility and another abortion clinic in nearby Brookline. The most recent killing was in 2009, when Dr. George Tiller, who performed abortions, was shot in a church in Wichita, Kansas. Horrific maternal deaths and murders. Of course. Because the debate is all about “the sanctity of life”. Screaming obscenities at women who are going through a difficult experience and perhaps emotional trauma at this point in their lives is relatively small potatoes for these lunatics. > [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > No it isn’t, it’s a more civilized country which defeated an attempt to legalize abortion three years ago. If you believe anti-abortion countries are “civilized”, you should take a closer look at [what the country breakdown really looks like](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_law). By and large, legal abortions = first-world nations in the western world, illegal = third-world backwaters. The few exceptions tend to be countries with a large number of devout Catholics or other religious zealots. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/159 "2014-06-26T21:04:13Z")
> [@Jay4](#): > > people complaining about this dont relize that people would protest their regardless the decision.not everyone is enjoying your lack of respect for the constitution I protest that this is the result \*after \*the edit. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2014, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698/160 "2014-06-26T21:06:33Z")
> [@Jay4](#): > > people complaining about this dont relize that people would protest their regardless the decision. That’s the entire freaking point: they would still protest, but they’d be a little further away and perhaps a little less intimidating or less likely to interfere. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/abortion-clinic-buffer-zones-in-massachusetts-not-legal-says-unanimous-scotus/691698.md?page=9)