Roe, state legislation + a digital dragnet

Without a right to privacy, we are all vulnerable

Whatever your views on abortion are — views you are perfectly entitled to — you need to understand the dangers posed by activist district attorneys today.

If you want to understand just how far an activist DA will go to ruin a life, even in ostensibly liberal California, start with the story of Frank Carson. Carson, an extremely talented defense attorney, had his life ruined simply because he annoyed the local authorities. He is dead today, gone far too soon, because his legal ordeal destroyed his health.

Now consider women — many of them without adequate resources — and how they would fare against a well-oiled legal machine that brands them as “murderers” AND has access to their ample digital footprints.

As I’ve argued before, in a post-Roe United States, period tracking apps pose a danger. I explained how. They are just the tip of the iceberg as far as one’s digital footprint is concerned. Once the law has trained its eyes on you, anything is fair game — from your Google searches to any text message conversation you’ve had with a jealous ex who’d turn you in because you dumped him last year or whatever.

People who think that they’re safe simply because they’d never have an abortion are kidding themselves. I grew up in a part of the country that used to be very conservative. I’ve seen conservative women victimized by their husbands and boyfriends and even their parents. When a legal window opens and makes someone vulnerable, bad actors will exploit that window.

I am not qualified to give legal advice, but as a digital safety expert, I need you to go through your friend lists and group chats and see if there’s someone who doesn’t belong. I need you to invest in a VPN. I need you to consider the myriad of ways in which your smartphone is tracking you today. I don’t want to make you paranoid, but I hope you will be vigilant.

I believe that one of the fundamental problems in the United States today is that a lot of people simply don’t view women as fully human. We’re seen as “vessels” and “helpmeets” and that attitude is dangerous to any woman, regardless of her own views, her political leanings, and her spiritual beliefs. Take that concept and consider it in light of our extremely flawed criminal justice system. Understand that by destroying a constitutional right to privacy, the robed priests in our nation’s highest court have created a recipe for suffering and even death.

When Amy Coney Barrett said that Roe was precedent, she clearly lied. While the focus has largely been on Thomas and Alito in the Roe debacle, never forget that it was this woman’s *lie* that also played a part.

My own beliefs are simple. I don’t think anyone is entitled to anyone else’s organs. If you’d die without my kidney, the state can’t force me to give it to you — that would be wrong. I’m saying this as a mother to a very wanted child, whom I would do anything to protect.

I’ve appreciated the discussion on the digital dragnet we have inadvertently created, and I will keep you updated with my thoughts and any and all potential solutions to the current problem.

In the meantime, stay safe and well. And thank you so much for subscribing.