Was Todd Akin Actually Right?

Jane M. Orient, M.D. tells WND.com that "medical science is being replaced by political demagoguery about the issue of rape." Orient made the statement in reference to Congressman Todd Akin's now infamous statements that "the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down," in cases of forcible rape and that conception, in these cases is "really rare."

We're not doctors, and unlike the pundits, politicians and journalists who (apparently relying on their vast medical knowledge... or was it arrogance) pounced on Akin and left him bloody and bruised, this poster doesn't presume to know anything about the practice of medicine.

However, the opinions Orient expresses in the article closely mirror the opinions expressed by a very good friend (a retired OB/GYN who has practiced medicine for approximately 40 years) who this poster consulted immediately after the Akin statement hit the news cycle. Moreover, it has already been established that Akin was actually repeating a claim made by Dr. John C. Willke, a well-known figure in the pro-life movement, back in 1999. Were the mainstream media and the GOP establishment too quick to crucify Akin? Are the pundits and politicians, as usual, the true idiots here? We don't have the data or the knowledge to answer that question, but right or wrong, Orient's testimony would indicate that, at the very least, there is legitimate dispute in the medical community on the issue. Read the Rest of the Story