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Comment by SketchySeaBeast | Hacker News Reader

Is this one of those deals where they "sell" the company to a trust to avoid taxes and then use the organization's power to allow he and his family to effect the course of politics for generations, like the Patagonia founder did?

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Given that the company has already been deeply involved in key litigation around reproductive rights in the U.S., I’d venture to guess it will be more of the same.

Is the term “abortion” completely off the table these days? I keep seeing “reproductive rights” and I’m not sure how that’s different other than the marketing. Is there something else included in that term that is inclusive of abortion?

I thought the famous Hobby Lobby SCOTUS case wasn't abortion, it was contraceptive coverage in the health plan?

They fought all the way to the supreme court against having to pay for the pill for their employees, so no, in this case the term "reproductive rights" is not a difference of marketing.

For those who may not know, 'the pill' refers to birth control.

Good call on clarifying. To add, it's hormonal birth control for women that is also used to help with a number of other medical conditions, so it's also not solely used for contraception.

That's right. And using hormonal birth control for other things is not some rare edge case either. It's very common.

Off the top of my head, birth control. Hobby Lobby et al have tried to get a religious exemption to avoid having birth control covered by their employees' health insurance.

Abortion may be the most politically prominent among reproductive rights, but "Women's reproductive rights may include some or all of the following: abortion-rights movements; birth control; freedom from coerced sterilization and contraception; the right to access good-quality reproductive healthcare; and the right to education and access in order to make free and informed reproductive choices." (per https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reproductive_rights, which cites https://web.archive.org/web/20080120140923/http://www.amnest...)

It's almost as if this hugely complex issue being summarised as "abortion - pro-life vs pro-choice" doesn't lead to a good outcome.

Slight of words, the goal is to make it a “right” so that when someone disagrees, there is a Mott and Bailey to throw out.

No doubt. But this one will probably focus on religious causes given this company's history.

Also, the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) is a "tax dodge now, donate later" vehicle more than a philanthropic nonprofit. Big time tax lawyers plus a gradually rigged system find the biggest tax "minimizations" possible.

Love this comment as I'm a total believer in how if you have billions and opinions ..you're gonna use your money to shape the entire world/change culture towards your opinions.

One thing I think someone's money has been used is the rise of the trans movement (awesome please be yourself and identify as who you feel best suits you).

It's abhorrent to me. It's the most blatant example of replacing democracy with a plutocracy.

I'm not for it but money rules the world and if you have billions to more some are gonna definitely use it to shape culture to how they see fit..nothing I'd personally do if I had billions but surely some do as you can see when jack Dorsey recently said he left twitter when an activist billionaire or investor pushed their agenda. When I read that from Dorsey who seems apolitical I was like that for me helps solidify this thought I've had for a few years that we share.

Hmm getting downvoted for agreeing with OP and providing an example where I'm all for ppl wanting to live the way they want .. idk

Yeah..the voting is a sham anyways. Opinions matter more than a down vote.

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