Annie McCallum The Ledger-Enquirer

Annie McCallum
The Ledger-Enquirer
17 West 12th Street
Columbus, GA 31901

RE: What’s her name? Some questions on the story about the arrest of a “35 year old woman” for performing an infant cliteroidectomy deep in the heart of Dixie - as reported by you today.

Ms. McCallum,

Talk about getting the loony ladies outraged! Or so you would think.

Speaking of Georgia, there was universal outrage when the ladies found out in 2003 that they couldn’t play golf at the Masters. Nobody tried to take out their G-Spot with a butter knife as a condition for teeing up. The distaff silence on child chopping is both deafening and revealing.

Your story says that an infant, 2 months shy of her first birthday, had part of her genitals removed in less than sterile conditions. The child was treated as an outpatient. It is not known if the proposed health care bill would cover such elective surgery.

Those who favor abortion are called “pro-choice”. At some point in the procedure the woman in the stirrups should say “Let it rip”. I don’t know what that age is in Georgia but I can safely assume it is not 10 months.

#1 – “It’s kind of unusual. We don’t see it too often at all.” That is the quote you attribute to Sgt. Chad Munn of the Troup County Sheriff’s Office. How many times have they seen “it”? Once? 36 times? Never? 4 times a week for 12 years? What are the statistics for crimes of infant female genital mutilation in your city, your county, your state? What are the common characteristics of those involved in the crime?

It’s bad Logic to construct a universal from a particular or any number of particulars. On the other hand it would not be offensive to Logic to assume that if all those crimes were committed by members of the same religion the first place to look should the crime be committed again would in be their place of worship, no? Crudely put, someone who liked pulled pork sandwiches, beer, and sometimes yelling Allah Akbar my Ass would not be high on the list of suspects, right?







#2 – A 35 year old woman was arrested for this crime. I presume she was booked and possibly arraigned. Those documents are part of the public record. Anyone, and particularly a member of the press, can access those documents. Finding the name is simple. Your obligation to release that name trumps the alleged perpetrator’s claim to privacy. You have broken the rules of journalism, what ever they may be. Would I be far out of line if I were to suggest that the 35 year old woman did not have Lutheran grandparents for Finland?

#3 – You quote Professor Michele Luo of LaGrange College as saying “Don’t blame the mother”. The college website told me that Professor Luo teaches Sociology and Anthropology. That explains how someone with advanced degrees can spew such clap trap. Somewhere around the 9th Circle Margaret Mead is smiling.

The LaGrange website says that a production of “The Laramie Project” will be presented at the college. “The Laramie Project” is about the murder, universally proclaimed as a hate crime, of Matthew Shepherd, a 21 year old homosexual. Two men were arrested, tried, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison. Their names were announced about 4 nanoseconds after they were arrested. Would you know if Professor Luo said, “Don’t blame them”?

In re Matthew Shepherd, Google the name Jesse Dirkhising and tell me if your paper covered the events surrounding him. I would be much in your debt if you could tell me if Professor Luo had any public comments on it.

For the record…if the woman who used the knife can’t be blamed who can?

Did we all do it?

Should we all be sent to Gitmo?

Madness.




Kevin Smith


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