"Recovering Dissident Catholic" blogger (from St. Joan of Arc, no less!) Cathy of Alex points us to an LATimes article from last week about the South Dakota abortion referendum campaign, and how the pro-life tactics have thrown the other side a bit off balance.

If voters reject the ban, abortion-rights advocates hope it will deter states such as Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Georgia and Rhode Island, which have been considering similar measures. If the ban is upheld, Planned Parenthood will challenge it in court. Antiabortion leaders would welcome that battle. They hope the U.S. Supreme Court will use the case to overturn Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 ruling that found a constitutional right to abortion.

Both sides call this election crucial and are putting out urgent appeals to raise millions of dollars for the fight.

But if this is the frontline of the abortion wars, the guns sound oddly muted.

Attuned to the values of this very conservative state, abortion-rights activists have decided not to make a stand on a woman’s right to choose. The big poster outside their campaign headquarters makes a much milder point: "This law simply goes too far." One of their TV ads starts out: "South Dakotans agree, honor and protect human life." The ad goes on to affirm support for reducing the number of abortions, but argues that the law is too inflexible.