Growing tired of the omnitopical presidency
Our bitter, aggravated politics has many fathers, from gerrymandering to genuine, deep and abiding differences of opinion about how to move the country forward. But here’s another problem with our politics I’ve noticed lately: We can’t escape it.
I don’t mean the 24-7 frequency of our news media — in the age of Twitter, it’s really 60-60-24-7 — although that bears part of the blame. Rather, I’m talking about the increasing tendency of our politicians, especially our presidents and those who would be president, to pop up everywhere else, too: on Oprah and The View, on Leno and Letterman, during SportsCenter and the Super Bowl and the Final Four.
A friend’s mother calls this “inmaface.” As in, you can do things with which I disagree, just don’t do them “inmaface.” When it’s harder and harder to enjoy the apolitical without the intrusion of the politicos, they’re inmaface.
I think political handlers think this is a way to soften their man’s (or woman’s) image, to make him seem more human, to lessen the polarization toward him. And maybe there’s something to it: Barack Obama, who has taken the omnitopical, borderline-celebrity presidency to a new level, remains more well-liked than his approval ratings would suggest.
Maybe that’s because he complains about the vagaries of the Bowl Championship Series and fills out March Madness brackets — hey, just like me! I wonder, though, if there won’t be diminishing returns to flooding the airwaves this way.
When I watched Obama talk about his daughters and basketball during halftime of the men’s college title game Monday, I was struck again that, for all my and other conservatives’ complaints about his policies, Obama seems like a genuinely good father and family man.
But when he picked his Final Four? Heck, I barely want to watch Dick Vitale pick the Final Four, much less a president with more important things to do and think about. I’d rather hear Obama talk about what he’d do to stop Washington’s red ink. Or, better yet, what he plans to tell Vladimir Putin once his “last election” is over and he has more “flexibility.”
Before the week was up, he was at it again, opining through his press secretary that the Augusta National Golf Club ought to begin admitting female members. And, lest you think my complaints are only about Obama: His Republican opponent from 2008, John McCain, and his presumptive opponent this fall, Mitt Romney, made sure to air the same belief.
Personally, I couldn’t care less what Augusta National does — and have a hard time believing that it says anything meaningful about equality for a woman or two to join a private club for the 1 percent of the 1 percent of the 1 percent. So why do Obama and McCain and Romney have to chime in?
In their defense, often it’s because they’re asked about these topics by my colleagues in the media. And maybe Romney, for instance, would have declined to answer about a private club’s choices if he felt confident it wouldn’t become the latest skirmish in the GOP’s alleged “war on women.” (Promisingly, he declined to prognosticate about March Madness.)
But then, the possibility a non-answer about women joining a country club would become political fodder speaks to our bitter polarization.
We’re electing a president, not a pundit-of-all-trades. The job is demanding and — just as important — it has limits. Maybe, just maybe, we’d have higher opinions of those who would hold that job if they kept their opinions within those limits.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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285 comments Add your comment
Stupid is, as Obama does
April 7th, 2012
6:07 am
Which of the following two items are concern women more: Having contraception or having a job/economic security?
Obama’s Forum on Women a Political Ploy?
Unemployment for women has risen under the Obama stupidity from 6.2% to 8.1%.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/on-air/willis-report/index.html#/v/1550804174001/obamas-forum-on-women-a-political-ploy/?playlist_id=157870
marko
April 7th, 2012
6:17 am
Kyle, look at the very end of your column. See your considerate invitation to find you on Facebook and Twitter? As much as I appreciate the offer, I get enough of you in the funny papers. So politicians intruding outside the world of politics is what you’re mildly outraged about today. How are we poor saps to know that Sarah Palin and Donald Trump are regular folks, just like us, if they didn’t sit down and enjoy a couple slices of Pizza together? A quick note to Trump’s handlers, Real folks don’t have handlers, don’t eat pizza in front of television cameras, and the don’t eat pizza with knives and forks. Seriously how are we to know that Mitt’s the one to save us from the evil socialist, Kenyan usurper if he can’t prove that he’s just a regular multi millionaire just like the rest of us. Kyle you really need to lighten up here. You clearly have no concept of how difficult it is to get stupid people to vote for you. If you did you’d be more considerate. We live in a world with Facebook, Twitter, and twenty-four hour reality TV. It’s just a shame that Snookie didn’t run for president this year. She coulda been a contenda Just like the Donald.
On a lighter note, the gang of five, down at the Supreme court, decided that it’s cool to strip search us for minor offenses. makes sense to me, after all a lot of seemingly normal looking folks admit they’re Kenyan usurpers when they’re water boarded long enough. As much as I hate to see it come to this, it’s clear we can’t enjoy the the blessings of a small unobtrusive government without allowing our police their fundamental rights to strip and torture us.
Lil' Barry Bailout (Unexpectedly Revised Downward)
April 7th, 2012
6:30 am
Road Scholar: with so many attacks on President Obama, and his supporters, what do you expect him to do?
————————-
Cut spending
Reform entitlements
Get people off the dole
Eliminate duplicative, destructive overregulation
Defend America’s interests abroad.
Of course, since he’s failing at all of the above, we’re treated to distractions like his NCAA bracket, women at Augusta National, and what his male child would look like.
You and your Idiot Klown Obozo are failures and are destroying America.
marko
April 7th, 2012
6:40 am
It’s my habit to post and run, but I just thought up a really cool bumper sticker. You can take my underwear, but you’ll never get my guns. Has a nice ring to it doesn’t it?
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
April 7th, 2012
7:03 am
Road, I’d simply like less drama from the Drama Queen-in-Chief, less treating EVERYTHING as political, and more focus on doing what he said he’d do – working with BOTH sides.
On the budget, how do you expect to get votes from Republicans when you can’t even get a single vote from your own party?
Why does he make such a grossly inaccurate statement when attacking the Supreme Court (again): “Ultimately, I’m confident that the Supreme Court will not take what would be an unprecedented extraordinary step of overturning a law that was passed by a strong majority of a democratically elected congress.”
I mean, how does passing the House by a 220-215 margin of just 5 stinking votes constitute a “strong majority”? It’s bad enough when he lies, but it’s downright stupid to lie so transparently yet he does so to continue the POLITICAL nature of his presidency, rather than focusing on the policy.
He’s wasted so much political capital on two major initiatives (stimulus and Obamacare) and two minor ones (Lilly Ledbetter and DADT), and except for Ledbetter, they all have mixed or marginal results at best – all because he wants to be liked so badly.
I’d have far more respect for him if he would just shut up and try to represent the country, rather than just the people he wants to love and adore him.
Joe the Prophet
April 7th, 2012
7:57 am
I would like to wish all my Christian friends a happy Easter and my Jewish friends a peaceful Passover…….
Not sure WHAT to wish my Mormon friends….I guess they celebrate Joseph Smith’s birthday on Decembeer 23, instead of Christmas….so there won’t be a new holiday for that one….Brigham Young was born on June 1, so that will be celebrated with Memorial Day…..
Joe the Prophet
April 7th, 2012
8:00 am
Lil’ Barry Bailout (Unexpectedly Revised Downward)
April 7th, 2012
6:30 am
Get people off the dole
————————————
When you talk about “getting people off the dole”….are you talking about government contractors like Halliburton and Bechtel, or oil and gas companies like Koch Industries and BP…..?!?!?! Because they are the largest gobblers of pork in the US budget…!!!
Or, are you just talking about black people and women…!?!?
Jack
April 7th, 2012
8:23 am
Electing Obama as president is the worst thing that has ever happened to this country. Those that voted for him know that and are trying to cover their embarrassment and disappointment with empty and meaningless excuses for his dismal performance.
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
8:33 am
@liberal trash
April 6th, 2012
11:15 pm
Nothing like a stupid Ol’ Timer wondering fool.
*******************************************************************************
THIS BLOGGER IS THE TYPICAL REPUBLICAN.
That is why THEY ARE GOING TO LOOOOOOOOOSE IN NOVEMBER.
God don’t like UGLY.
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
8:34 am
@Jack
April 7th, 2012
8:23 am
Electing Obama as president is the worst thing that has ever happened to this country. Those that voted for him know that and are trying to cover their embarrassment and disappointment with empty and meaningless excuses for his dismal performance.
******************************************************
YOU don’t speak for us.
WE are PROUD that we voted for OBAMA.
Annndd we are going to VOTE for HIM AGAIN.
man behind the curtain
April 7th, 2012
8:37 am
Will the poutrage never end?
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
8:39 am
WHITE women are going to BURY the REPUBLICANS in November.
Looks like they WANT Obama in the “WHITE” house and REPUBLICANS don’t like it.
Tooooooo Bad.
Its a done deal.
heeheeheeheeheeheeheeheehee
hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
carlosgvv
April 7th, 2012
8:42 am
I’ve often wondered why politicians fight so desperately to hold onto their offices. In the past, I just thought it was because of their passon for politics. Now, I’m beginning to think it’s because the perks of the office, thanks to Big Business sponsors, are so generous that insane greed pushes them to fight to keep on this gravy train any way they can.
David Green
April 7th, 2012
9:07 am
Kyle…
When the health club Curves stops discriminating against the male gender then and only then will the feminists and their male lap dogs have a point in their fight to have wimmin admitted as members to Augusta National.
Now what I really want to see you explain is why as a Christian you insist on promoting the atheistic ideology of conservatism whose focus is on the self centeredness of the individual and is opposed to the theology of Christianity. Isn’t it odd that as a Catholic {professed Christian} Paul Ryan is obsessed with an atheist {Ayn Rand} and her Satanic inspired ideology?
In Matt. 6:24 Christ stated: “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” {- The Holy Bible : King James Version. electronic ed. of the 1769 edition of the 1611 Authorized Version. Bellingham WA : Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1995, S. Mt 6:24}
The Bible is very clear on this issue: One can be either a Christian or a Conservative but not both and so I ask you Kyle who do you serve the Father Above or Mammon?
liberal trash
April 7th, 2012
9:10 am
We human race hating stupid liberals don’t believe in God, you Ol’ fool.
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
9:11 am
@Joel Edge
April 7th, 2012
6:02 am
“Obama seems like a genuinely good father and family man.”
Now if he was worth something as a president.
***************************************************************************************
BUSH seemed like a genuinely good father and family man.
BUT he was a TERRIBLE president and how much was he worth?.
Uncle Billy
April 7th, 2012
9:14 am
It seems odd for a person who is paid to dispense his opinions to criticize others for dispensing opinions. Kyle might not care about the membership policy of Augusta National, but this does not mean that no one else should. Kyle is not the standard by which we should all judge ourselves.
liberal trash
April 7th, 2012
9:26 am
Why do we secular humanist liberals need the opiate of religion when we have the reincarnate son of Karl Marx to deliver us from the grasp of the evil Christian rich and their wicked capitalism?
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
9:27 am
You know there is something amiss when spellcheck does not recognize a word.
OmniTopical, scatterbrained, interchangeable indeed. Flighty, thats another most treasured compliments, truly it is.
And it is treasured because I redefine that to mean free.
Each day brings a new experience, a different perspective.
Because life is an adventure.
Obama is INDEED the OMNITOPICAL PRESIDENT with a different PERSPECTIVE.
Something the REPUBLICANS DONT HAVE.
heeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheehee
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
9:32 am
Oblama is all smoke and mirrors. He paints himself as moderate. Don’t be fooled. Oblama is far left of center. Today he praises Ronald Reagan in effort to make himself look moderate but in a book he wrote in 1995 Oblama referred to Reagan as a doer of dirty deeds. The fact is that Oblama has expanded the Fed government at a greater rate than any president in modern history. Oblama is a big government Socialist with a big government plan to run every inch of our lives. He never met a liberal he didn’t love. His “plan” to reduce the Fed debt is to spend trillions more and cut nothing major but the military.. How dos that make him moderate? Smoke and mirrors = Oblama.
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
9:36 am
@liberal trash
April 7th, 2012
9:26 am
Why do we secular humanist liberals need the opiate of religion when we have the reincarnate son of Karl Marx to deliver us from the grasp of the evil Christian rich and their wicked capitalism?
***************************************************************
Look Out “LIBERAL TRASH” I am calling for your PICKUP.
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(877) 831-2574
Southern Waste and Recycling
(770) 751-7797
Save On Garbage
Serving the Atlanta Area.
(888) 732-3218
Trash Valet, Inc.
(770) 399-6602
heeheeheeheeheeheeheehee
Rafe Hollister
April 7th, 2012
9:36 am
test
liberal trash
April 7th, 2012
9:37 am
Ah a fellow comrade needs a ride.
Rafe Hollister
April 7th, 2012
9:40 am
I am not sure why I can’t respond to David Greene but I have written a response three times and can’t get it through. If you can not print the truth, it can not set you free. Needless to say, he is way off the track.
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
9:40 am
@Oblama
April 7th, 2012
9:32 am
Oblama is all smoke and mirrors. He paints himself as moderate. Don’t be fooled.
How dos that make him moderate? Smoke and mirrors = Oblama.
*************************************************************************
How “DOS” that make him a moderate?
How “dos”?
At least Obama graduated from high school and Harvard and he
can speak CORRECT ENGLISH.
heeheeheeheeheeheehee
Republicans Believe Its OK If Obama Built The White House - But How Dare He Live In The White House
April 7th, 2012
9:41 am
@liberal trash
April 7th, 2012
9:37 am
Ah a fellow comrade needs a ride
********************************************************************
See you at noon.
liberal trash
April 7th, 2012
9:42 am
After the election when the Son of Karl Marx has more flexibility he will make you evil Christian rich fully fund MARTA too and we liberals will no longer have to catch a ride on the back of these department of sanitation trucks.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
9:44 am
As much as you on the weird left would like to make this about race, women, gays blah blah blah – this election is about the ECONOMY, jobs and reducing the federal debt. Oblama is all smoke and mirrors. He is a long time believer in big Fed government ideas to solve all problems. He has no logical plan to reduce the debt but he does have a plan to increase the size of government.
Rafe Hollister
April 7th, 2012
9:46 am
David Greene
Individual responsibility is the focus of the book of which you speak. Individuals have the responsibility to love their fellow man, help the sick and poor, and to be charitable to their fellow man. This is not a responsibility that can be passed off to the government, to do for you. Individual responsibility is the supreme conservative attribute.
Dividing people into groups and pitting those groups against one another is not what is taught in that book. Parsing one verse of this book and using it as a weapon is also not something taught in that book. There are many teachings of obligations and responsibilities incumbent on the followers. No where does it say that if you live in a country that is a socialist state, you are exempt from doing your duty.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
10:07 am
So you can use spell check – congratulations on small accomplishments my SMALL minded friend. I have a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from UGA, a PHD in Physics from The Albert Einstein School Of Medicine NYC and a M.A. in Business Finance from Duke University. Does that qualify me to be President? I never accused Oblama of being stupid – just inept and naive when it comes to being President. Having a law degree qualifies Oblama to be a lawyer – not President of the USA. This election is about the economy, jobs and reducing the federal deficit. It’s not about increasing the size of the federal government and Oblama’s Socialist Health Care System (Oblamacare) – Oblama is all smoke and mirrors. Oblamacare is an ObamaNation.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
10:10 am
No time for Small Minds —- gone today – here tomorrow.
Gimme Gimme Gimme
April 7th, 2012
10:23 am
Obama – “The Great Demonizer”
Ronnie Raygun
April 7th, 2012
10:26 am
It’s not like this is a recent phenomena. I seem to remember old Dick Nixon doing a cameo on Laugh-in in the late 60s or early 70s.
brad
April 7th, 2012
10:33 am
Fun to see the conservatives sh*tting themselves as it becomes clear that Romney is their candidate.
Attack Dog
April 7th, 2012
10:33 am
1. TV Talk Shows haven’t been around that long. 2. On Easter egg hunts, conservative would have kids work at below minimum wage at a 35% tax rate, overcharge them to buy eggs, and charge them a fee to hunt. 3. It is funny hearing a fan of Palin call Obama a “Rock Star. 4. Before citing Wiki on the number of National Parks, find out how many areas are under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. 5. The same people who think GWB was a great President are the same ones who said we weren’t in a recession and not change Presidents in the middle of a war.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
10:37 am
Oblama is a millionaire class action suit lawyer that owns 4 mansions in four different states and you think he relates to the common man? He relates more to the members of the privately run Masters Golf Club. In fact Oblama belongs to an exclusive private golf club himself and there is nothing wrong with that is there?
ragnar danneskjold
April 7th, 2012
10:49 am
The unfortunate truth is that our political class is better-suited for Oprah than for economics, more competent to pick basketball than to properly fund and manage our defense forces. Welcome to Kardashistan, the former United States.
Steve Dunbar
April 7th, 2012
10:59 am
Kyle, can you write a column that does not open the door for the on-going, right-wing attach on the President by your bloggers? Sure, you mention Rommey and McCain, but the underlying theme of the column is to critize the President and let the Republican faithful have at it. Is that what you are paid to do?
GT
April 7th, 2012
11:05 am
I watch CNN Wolf Blitzer and that annoying nasal high pitch voice as he glues his eyes on the teleprompter and lectures the audience on what is important as if he is the supreme judge of what our attention is suppose to be focused on. Notes are draped out of his hands so if the life supporting teleprompter should fail him he can immediately pick up the boring lecture without losing a decibel in his monotone delivery. He then switches over to Anderson Cooper who stumbles over his speech as he tries to intimidate an interviewee, not one sentence comes out smooth, they are moving that teleprompter too fast or someone is screaming in his ear distracting him from unloading on a poor fool that has volunteer for this duty of being interviewed or is trying to get air time and desires the mockery of a teenage voice changing Cooper trying to look like an adult. “You know you pulled that girls hair in church, now why did you do it? We have pictures of you doing it or we did I can’t seem to get them on the screen but trust us you pulled that girl’s hair. Now we have a staff of world wide expects on hair pulling and they all agree you are a sick man.” At that point there are 12 of the most fake looking smiles across my television and they never stop smiling as they all are in agreement the hair puller is a sick man. Try a fake smile for 15 minutes as you get talking points out of that cramped mouth that never hear nor care what the question is the answer was thought out an hour ago, I even wonder if they don’t tape it earlier and these people are now getting a face message after all that smiling, leaving Cooper to fight his teleprompter and ear piece not noticing the real human is not on the screen, he is talking to a tape.
The press has made trivia news, and have been so hard on candidates that the results are Mitt Romneys who are as dull as dish water knowing their slips are bigger news than the point they are trying to make. In fact you don’t have to make points just be smooth while being interview by a stuttering over caffeined interviewer, who is working so hard to catch you off you game that the cure for cancer becomes secondary to the fact you scratched yourself inappropriately and the world wants to know why.
Now comes Obama. He is very good in all this got ya game. He is not afraid to stroll around common people even let them get him every once in awhile, it is part of being human. It also off sets the characterizations of a bias press, they see he doesn’t speak with an accent, he is not crazy and he is entertaining, quick witted. In these polls they look at what O is suppose to be about against a public relations machine that is trying to clean up a clumsy Mitt. Comparing the two next to each other the next few months will blow up a lot of money spent on PR by Romney, he is too up tight to get the support of the American people, and the media will make it even worse. Every time O appears on national television and looks the equal of an entertainer paid to do this kind of work he will pick up votes. If old Wolf couldn’t control the bush league GOP debates wait till he gets a load of Obama who actually knows what he is talking about.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
11:12 am
THIS election is about the economy, jobs and reducing the national debt. It’s not about increasing the Dems socialist programs. And for you liars trying to say that Oblama is the Dem equivalent of Ronald Reagan – huh? Oblama wrote in 1995 that Reagan did “dirty deeds” in the White House. Oblama is all smoke and mirrors – no substance. Oblama is a far left of center socialist liberal controlled by socialists in Congress. He is a class action law suit, millionaire lawyer with four mansions – not your so called common man. I know Ronald Reagan and Oblama has more in common with Fidel Castro and Vladimer Putin than Ronald Reagan.
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
April 7th, 2012
11:17 am
“The Bible is very clear on this issue: One can be either a Christian or a Conservative but not both and so I ask you Kyle who do you serve the Father Above or Mammon?”
David Green, unless you have a Doctorate of Divinity from an accredited university I suggest you keep your opinions as to what you believe the Bible says to yourself.
And if you do have that Doctorate, I’d suggest getting your money back, ’cause you got ripped off, son.
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
April 7th, 2012
11:22 am
“It’s not like this is a recent phenomena. I seem to remember old Dick Nixon doing a cameo on Laugh-in in the late 60s or early 70s.”
Your memory is a bit off, Ronnie.
Nixon was a candidate for President, not yet elected. And it was a one-line cameo, not an full-fledged appearance. Very different than the current Disaster-in-Chief.
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
April 7th, 2012
11:34 am
“1. TV Talk Shows haven’t been around that long.”
Yeah, only since just after the inception of television, Attack Dog.
Ever hear of The Tonight Show? Started in 1954.
You say DAYTIME talk shows? Merv Griffin and Mike Douglas in 1965. Dinah Shore and Phil Donohue in 1970. Oprah in 1984.
Facts. They’re such tenuous things for liberals.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
11:36 am
Oblama is ALL smoke and mirrors. He has more in common with Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Bonnie Fwank, Fidel Castro and Vlad Putin than Ronald Reagan. What does Oblama have on common with Bonnie, Vlad, Fidel, Harry and Nancy? The dream off big government control of the economy. Socialism/communism. Oblama is no Ronald Reagan. Reagan favored freedom for the common man – not government oppression.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
11:54 am
God doesn’t need D G to interpret the Bible to us. God is the TRUTH. God is LOVE. Two things the Dems aren’t in favor of. Dems believe in tactics of class warfare, sex warfare and race warfare to win elections. Ronald Reagan was the “uniter “- Oblama is the divider. This election is about the economy, jobs and reducing the national debt. Oblama and the Dems are trying to turn Oblama in to a moderate! Get serious! Oblama is smoke and mirrors. He is playing women. Killing female babies on demand is pro women? How? Women have lost more jobs under Oblama than men have. How is that pro women?
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
11:59 am
OblamaNation…. one world government by the government and for the government. Ronald Reagan…. government for the people by the people.
Tiberius - Your lightning rod of hate!
April 7th, 2012
12:02 pm
“God is the TRUTH. God is LOVE.”
Not to be too cheeky here, Oblama, but until God shows his face to the cameras, He remains a belief to many and a figment of the imagination to many as well.
Just a little balance and perspective for you this afternoon. Your other comments were quite well grounded in reality.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
12:13 pm
If you want lies and misinformation, if you want pie in the sky nonsense – go to Bookman’s blog. If you don’t like reality then go to Bookman.
Oblama
April 7th, 2012
12:18 pm
Tiberius – God does not pose for photo ops. God is real and He is every where. If you want God in your life He is waiting but you have to INVITE Him in. The Bible says that no one is to physically see God for that would be sure death. I do not hate non believers, I do not criticize them for not believing – I pray for them.
carlosgvv
April 7th, 2012
12:27 pm
Oblama
15 to 20% of all pregnacies end in miscarriages. The New Testament says God knows even when a sparrow falls to the ground. Therefore, God must know about these spontaneous abortions. And yet, He does nothing about them. Does that make God an abortion provider? If so, how can He be be a “God of love” and those who provide abortions here on Earth murderers?