FIND PAST HOMEPAGE TOPICS UNDER "CURRENT HEADLINES/ LIFE MATTERS" IN THE LEFT MENU…
Pro-Life Advocates Unconstitutionally Prohibited from Offering Help to Women: Life Legal Defense Foundation Asks Supreme Court to Strike Down Discriminatory Massachusetts Ruling
40 Days For Life Campaigns Continue to Accomplish Amazing Feats
Publix Mother's Day Commercial Affirms Dignity of Unborn Babies
Earth (is for People) Day (22 April)
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month
Undercover at a Pro-Abortion Conference: They’re Worried They’re Losing
Group Helps People With Depression Whose Siblings Killed in Abortion
Abortion Doctor Uses Bankruptcy to Evade Malpractice Lawsuits
Lawsuit States UAB Study Harmed Premature Babies
Baby Found Abandoned in Dumpster, Umbilical Cord Still Attached
Minnesota Hospital Sends Stillborn Baby’s Body to Laundry Service
Mom With Tumor Credits Her Unborn Baby With Saving Her Life
40 Days For Life Campaigns Close Abortion Businesses
Educating Students and Equipping Pro-Life Leaders
CDC: Annual Age-Adjusted Death Rates for Suicide and Homicide, by Black or White Race, 1999–2010
Doctor: ObamaCare is Causing Me to Retire Early
PLANNED PARENTHOOD
There's Snow Excuse for Planned Parenthood – Any Reason for Abortion is Just Fine
Obama Administration Runs Around Texas Law Defunding Planned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Gets Pro-Life Teacher Removed, Holds Sex Toy Class …
Pro-Life Advocates Unconstitutionally Prohibited from Offering Help to Women:
Life Legal Defense Foundation Asks Supreme Court to Strike Down Discriminatory Massachusetts Ruling
This week Life Legal Defense Foundation is urging the United States Supreme Court to review a First Circuit decision which severely limits free speech of pro-life advocates.
In McCullen v. Coakley, seven Massachusetts residents who engaged in pro-life counseling outside of abortion clinics sued the state for violation of their right to free speech through enactment of a “buffer zone” law.
The statute created a thirty-five-foot fixed buffer zone around driveways and entrances of abortion clinics. The law prohibits everyone—except clinic patients or employees—from “entering or remaining” in the zone. The lower court upheld the buffer zone despite its prejudicial intent and application. Life Legal Defense Foundation has filed an amici curiae (friends of the court) brief arguing that this buffer zone is unconstitutional.
“This is clearly a case of viewpoint discrimination,” stated Dana Cody, Executive Director of Life Legal Defense Foundation. "Activists who make disturbances at military funerals, animal rights protests, and ‘occupy’ demonstrations are not bound by the sort of restrictions applied to peaceful pro-life witnesses who invite women to learn about abortion alternatives," Cody explained, “It’s a true double standard and an unbelievable violation of First Amendment rights.”
Adding insult to injury, the First Circuit justified singling out pro-life speech for disfavored treatment by analogizing it to sexually oriented businesses. Just as “adult” bookstores and theatres have harmful “secondary effects” that allow cities to impose special zoning restrictions, so too, according to the First Circuit, pro-life sidewalk counseling and picketing have harmful “secondary effects” that governments can mitigate by imposing buffer zones and other restrictions.
In fact, what governments most fear about pro-life speech is not any “secondary effect.” It is that women heading into clinics are hearing the truth about abortion.
Life Legal Defense Foundation frequently defends the civil rights of pro-life advocates. The majority of the time, due to these efforts, the discriminatory charges are dismissed, the discriminatory application of the law is set right, and the pro-life advocates’ rights are vindicated. One such case is that of Rev. Walter Hoye, who joins Life Legal Defense Foundation on the brief. Pastor Hoye was convicted of violating Oakland, California’s “bubble zone” ordinance, though no patient or person seeking access to the clinic complained of his conduct. After Hoye served 30 days in jail and paid a large fine, his conviction was overturned as a result of Life Legal Defense Foundation’s efforts.
Read Life Legal Defense Foundation and Walther B. Hoye II's Amici Curiae brief filed in the Supreme Court of the United States.
[26 Apr 13, LLDF]
40 Days For Life
During this last Spring international 40 Days for Life campaign, at least 787 babies have been spared from abortion
During the Spring 2013 worldwide 40 Days for Life campaign, the following summary of the international simultaneous campaigns shows:
* Individual campaigns – 261
* Countries – 11
* Participants – 83,000
* Churches – 5,000
* Babies saved – 787
* Abortion workers quit – 7
&nbs
p; * Abortion workers closed – 7
* Media reports – 250
That brings the comprehensive results of 40 Days for Life over the last five and a half years to:
* Individual campaigns – 2,480
* Cities – 501
* Countries: USA, Canada, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Belize, Denmark, England, Georgia, Germany, Ireland, Nigeria, Northern Ireland, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Spain * Participants – 575,000
* Churches – 16,000
* Babies saved – 7,536
* Abortion workers quit – 83
* Abortion centers closed – 33
* Media reports – 2,800
[www.40daysforlife.com]
Publix Mother’s Day Commercial Affirms Dignity of Unborn Babies
In anticipation of Mother’s Day last year, Publix supermarkets released a commercial that acknowledges the role of a mother both before and after her child is born.
The ad (below) features a young girl helping her mother, who is pregnant with another child, in the kitchen.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/05/05/publix-mothers-day-commercial-affirms-dignity-of-unborn-babies/
Earth (is for People) Day
From the beginning Earth Day has been anti-people. The very first Earth Day, held in 1970, had as its slogan, “People Pollute.” This didn’t merely mean that people tend to litter. It meant that people themselves are a form of pollution.
The Founder of Earth Day, Dixie Cup magnate Hugh Moore, called this “popullution,” short for population pollution.
We at the Population Research Institute will be celebrating Monday, 22 April, as well, but not as “Earth Day.” We will be celebrating it as “Earth is for People Day.”
To celebrate, Steven Mosher, President of the Population Research Institute, will be keynoting an online conference, speaking on “Save the Earth: Get Rid of the People? The Inhumanity of Earth Day.”
His talk was scheduled to begin at Noon (EST) on 22 April.
To register for this important event, and to check out the impressive line-up of speakers, go to:
http://onlineapologeticsconference.com/
We at PRI are conservationists, of course, like all reasonable people. We believe that it is good for humans to care for their surroundings and not waste the gifts of nature. But we also recognize that human beings are part of nature, as Pope Benedict reminded us, and human life, too, must be protected from conception to natural death.
So we’ve renamed Earth Day. Join with us in celebrating, “Earth is for People Day.”
[PRI, 18 Apr 13]
What Makes People Rethink Abortion, Rethink Feminism?
We Know… April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month
"Metamorphosis", the soon to be released 36-page issue of The American Feminist, will give insight into why people become pro-life feminists–after being one or neither.
FFL President Serrin Foster explains why "individual evolutions can start peaceful revolutions" and provides practical tools to help welcome more people to our peaceful, holistic, solution-oriented movement. Serrin also reveals the stunning truth you need to know and share about attorney Sarah "Weddington's Betrayal of Women" when she argued in support of Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court.
Stories from a dozen women will inform you about what triggered their conversions–including FFL's own Vice President Sally Winn and FFL Editor and Speaker Jewels Green, who was pressured into an abortion as a teen and subsequently worked in an abortion clinic for years before her "A-ha" moment.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. So right now LAPSED members and supporters as well as NEW members and GIFT members (including students) will receive two issues of The American Feminist: "Hard Cases, Exceptional Choices" (about pregnancy and rape, incest, life of the mother, life of the child) and "Forward Into Light" (about violence against women, stalking, sexual exploitation and more.) You will want to share FFL Speaker Joyce McCauley-Benner's story and her insights about the most controversial subject of the day.
Renew or become a member of FFL now and you will also receive our newest brochures: "Voices of Our Feminist Foremothers," "You Have Better Choices," and our NEW informational brochure which explains what we do and why!
[19 Apr 2013, FFLA.org]
Undercover at a Pro-Abortion Conference: They’re Worried They’re Losing
A panel of women line the table in front of a vibrant crowd. The room is abuzz with excitement as women come clapping and chanting down the aisle.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/27/undercover-at-a-pro-abortion-conference-theyre-worried-theyre-losing/
Group Helps People With Depression Whose Siblings Killed in Abortion
Are you the sibling of one of the 55 million children who have been aborted in America since 1973? According to Dr. Philip Ney, there is probably at least a 50% chance that you are.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/27/group-helps-people-with-depression-whose-siblings-killed-in-abortion/
Abortion Doctor Uses Bankruptcy to Evade Malpractice Lawsuits
As many abortionists are found to be over the course of time, abortionist Reginald Sharpe is a menace to society. http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/26/abortion-doctor-uses-bankruptcy-to-evade-malpractice-lawsuits/
Lawsuit States UAB Study Harmed Premature Babies
preemies .JPG
UAB is the subject of a lawsuit claiming a study involving premature babies was negligent. (FILE)
Parents of premature babies involved in a University of Alabama at Birmingham-led study to determine the best level of oxygen to sustain the tiny infants filed suit today, claiming negligence and failure to properly inform them of the risks.
The lawsuit was brought by the parents of five Alabama children, who allege that wrongdoing by overseers of the study led to a range of severe health issues, including eyesight disorders, respiratory disease, and permanent brain damage.
"As a result of the careless, negligent, and reckless conduct of the defendants the plaintiffs and the class were caused to suffer excruciating and agonizing pain, physical discomfort and emotional distress," alleges the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Birmingham.
The suit seeks class action status to represent all who participated in the study. Damages would exceed $5 million, it said.
The study, called the Surfactant, Positive Pressure and Oxygenation Randomized Trial (SUPPORT), involved 1,300 premature infants and was conducted at 23 hospitals between 2004 and 2009.
The study sought to determine oxygen saturation levels ideal for sustaining extremely premature infants. Higher levels of oxygen lead to retinopathy of prematurity, which can cause blindness, but too little can risk brain damage and death.
As a supporting document, the lawsuit includes a March 7 letter to UAB from a federal office overseeing human-subjects research. The letter criticized UAB for failing to
warn parents of the risks involved in the study.
"It would have been appropriate for the consent form to explain that the study involves substantial risks, and that there is significant evidence from past research indicating that the level of oxygen provided to an infant can have an important effect on many outcomes, including whether the infant becomes blind, develops serious brain injury, and even possibly whether the infant dies," the letter states.
That letter, from the Office for Human Research Protections under the Department of Health and Human Services, was obtained and released last week by the citizen watchdog group Public Citizen, which called the study unethical and demanded action be taken against the study's investigators.
The medical community, however, has fired back at criticism of the study.
Today, the New England Journal of Medicine published an op-ed from authors representing the Center for Biomedical Ethics at Stanford University and the Division of Medical Ethics, New York University Langone Medical Center which called the federal office wrong for "suggesting that the parents were duped into enrolling their frail infants in dangerous research."
"Not only is that not true, but it also poses substantial risk to the conduct of valuable comparative effectiveness research both for premature infants and for the general publicwho continue to face too many treatments where uncertainty prevails about what is best," the op-ed piece stated.
On Wednesday, the journal published an editorial that invoked the premature baby of a Kennedy in praising the study.
"The results of (the study) have been critical in informing treatment decisions for extremely preterm infants," the editorial stated. "We are dismayed by the response of the OHRP and consider the SUPPORT trial a model of how to make medical progress."
In a letter to the journal, earlier this week, UAB's Dr. Waldemar Carlo, the SUPPORT study's principal investigator, joined other investigators in writing: "Ill-informed allegations create unwarranted apprehension that serves no one. Our consent forms were conscientiously drafted according to the Code of Federal Regulations and were based on the best available evidence."
Carlo is a defendant in the lawsuit filed today by attorney Reginald McDaniel of Birmingham. Other defendants include members of the university Institutional Review Board, which oversee ethical guidelines for such studies.
The five children listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit were born between 2005 and 2009 at UAB Hospital and are living with parents in Alabama, except for one who now lives in Ohio.
"The experiment exclusively targeted those who are among the most vulnerable members of the population: very premature, extremely low-birth-weight neonates, many of whom come from difficult economic backgrounds," the lawsuit alleges.
UAB spokesman Jim Bakken said the university does not comment on pending litigation.
[Mike Oliver, April 18, 2013, Birmingham, AL, http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2013/04/lawsuit_says_uab_study_harmed.html ]
Baby Found Abandoned in Dumpster, Umbilical Cord Still Attached
As expected a Houston judge on Monday granted ongoing custody of Baby Chloe to Child Protective Services (CPS).
Chloe, who was given her nickname by doctors, was found abandoned in a dumpster February 19, wrapped in Walmart plastic bag with about three inches of umbilical cord attacked to her stomach.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/26/baby-found-abandoned-in-dumpster-umbilical-cord-still-attached/
Minnesota Hospital Sends Stillborn Baby’s Body to Laundry Service
A Minnesota hospital has been forced to apologize for mishandling the body of a stillborn baby who was discovered at the laundry service facility it uses.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/04/17/minnesota-hospital-sends-stillborn-babys-body-to-laundry-service/
Mom With Tumor Credits Her Unborn Baby With Saving Her Life
From the UK comes the kind of heartwarming story that shows the preciousness of human life.
When Jane Heffey began to experience heavy bleeding associated with her 20 week pregnancy, she found out from her physicians that she had a tumor on her cervix. Heffey’s unborn baby was putting pressure on her cervix as her child grew in her womb and that pressure was causing the substantial bleeding.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/27/mom-with-tumor-credits-her-unborn-baby-with-saving-her-life/
40 Days For Life Campaigns Close Abortion Businesses
This makes the 32nd abortion center to shut down following a 40 Days for Life campaign — six this campaign alone!
Life-saving victories at the local level continue to gain momentum, and are providing a BEACON OF HOPE in the midst of cultural darkness. Two sites to close were located in Sacramento, California and Sugar Land, Texas.
[www.40daysforlife.com]
Educating Students and Equipping Pro-Life Leaders
Dana Cody, President of Life Legal Defense Foundation, was privileged to be part of the National Law Tour sponsored by Students for Life of America. The tour, entitled 40 Years of a Deadly Legal Anomaly and the Downfall of Planned Parenthood, included presentations by an impressive array of attorneys and others active in the pro-life legal arena. Michael Acquilano, the National Coordinator of Law Students for Life, worked with pro-life students at five universities to bring the message of life to their campuses. (Michael is a law student, who will graduate with his Juris Doctorate in May of this year. Michael did his undergraduate studies at Bentley University, and has developed impressive and skills as an event planner, managing the tour admirably.)
Students from Ave Maria School of Law, Columbus School of Law, Northeastern University School of Law, Dartmouth College and Bentley University heard the message of life during the tour.
“The opportunity to present the pro-life viewpoint on college campuses known to be notoriously pro-abortion (with the exception of Ave Maria, of course) was epic,” Dana Cody commented after the tour. “The presentations had a measurable impact on students’ understanding of the law relating to abortion.”
A show of hands at each location demonstrated that for many students, this was the first time they had been informed that because of Roe v. Wade and its companion case, Doe v. Bolton, abortion is legal for any reason, or no reason at all, the entire nine months of pregnancy. Most were under the impression that abortion was allowed only in the first trimester, a myth commonly propagated on the college campus and in the media. But in learning that Doe defines health as “physical or mental, in light of all factors, including physical, emotional, familial, psychological and the woman’s age,” even the cleverest of abortion advocates could not come up with a circumstance that would not fall under the Court’s definition.
Pro-life students were emboldened after having their viewpoint supported by the legal experts that presented at each university. The result was renewed commitment to share the
message of life and to establish Law Students for Life chapters on the students’ respective campuses.
Pro-abortion students, as well as those not used to hearing the pro-life viewpoint, also learned that Roe was a legal anomaly based on half-truths and outright lies. “The reaction to reasoned legal analysis and documentation proving Roe was litigated with one half-truth and lie upon another would have been comical if the issue wasn’t a matter of the lives of over 55 million unborn children,” states Dana Cody.
After hearing at least a dozen quotes from pro-abortion legal scholars and political analysts who condemned the legal reasoning of Roe, the only logical conclusion to be drawn was that Roe, Doe, and its progeny are bad law. Justice Scalia said it best years later in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, where he dissented from the majority opinion which upheld the “central ruling of Roe.” He stated:
The issue is whether it [abortion] is a liberty interest protected by the Constitution of the United States. I am sure it is not. I reach that conclusion, not because of anything so exalted as my views concerning the “concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life.” [Quoting the rhetoric in the majority opinion.] Rather, I reach it for the same reason I reach the conclusion that bigamy is not constitutionally protected – because of two simple facts: 1) the Constitution says absolutely nothing about it, and 2) the longstanding traditions of American society have permitted it to be legally proscribed.
Cody’s presentation concluded with evidence exposing Planned Parenthood’s founder, Margaret Sanger, as a proponent of eugenics, a celebrated Klu Klux Klan speaker and one of the architects of the now infamous 1939 Negro Project, the goal of which was to reduce birth rate of Black Americans. Planned Parenthood naturally denies that its policies remain the same as those of their founder. However, additional documentation was presented showing that 79% of Planned Parenthood’s clinics are “conveniently” located in minority communities.
The presentation ended with this question: If abortion is a legal anomaly based on half-truths and lies, why does Planned Parenthood support abortion rights? Answer: Follow the money. Students learned that Planned Parenthood has provided one million abortions in 3 years, that it is a "nonprofit" with $1.2 billion assets, and that it receives a half-billion in tax dollars annually.
The pro-life students who attended the presentations were encouraged by the tour, if their positive comments are any indication. In addition when presented with the facts about abortion, several students who support abortion rights stated they are reconsidering their position.
“The immediate results made the tour worth all the time and effort, and while the long-term results are yet to be seen, encouraging the next generation of pro-life advocates and leaders is vital to LLDF’s mission of protecting the innocent and defenseless,” Cody stated. “Perhaps this generation will be the generation responsible for seeing Roe overturned. Any part LLDF may have played in that is of immeasurable value.”
[5 Apr 13, LLDF]
CDC QuickStats: Annual Age-Adjusted Death Rates*† for Suicide and Homicide, by Black or White Race — United States,§ 1999–2010
The figure shows the annual age-adjusted death rates for suicide and homicide, by race (black or white) in the United States, during 1999-2010. From 1999 to 2010, annual age-adjusted homicide rates for blacks were at least four times the rates for whites. In contrast, suicide rates for whites were twice as high as the rates for blacks. From 1999 to 2010, homicide rates decreased 13.2% among whites, from 3.8 deaths per 100,000 population to 3.3, and suicide rates increased 20.4%, from 11.3 deaths per 100,000 population to 13.6.
Among blacks, homicide rates increased 7.0%, from 20.1 deaths per 100,000 population in 1999 to 21.5 in 2006, then decreased 17.7%, from 21.5 deaths per 100,000 population in 2006 to 17.7 in 2010. Suicide rates decreased 7.1% among blacks, from 5.6 deaths per 100,000 population in 1999 to 5.2 in 2010.
* Deaths are coded as *U03, X60–X84, and Y87.0 for suicide, and *U01–*U02, X85–Y09, and Y87.1 for homicide, as underlying causes of death, according to the International Classification of Diseases 10th Revision. Rates include deaths related to the events of September 11, 2001.
From 1999 to 2010, annual age-adjusted homicide death rates for blacks were at least four times the rates for whites. In contrast, suicide rates for whites were twice as high as the rates for blacks.
From 1999 to 2010, homicide death rates decreased 13.2% among whites, from 3.8 deaths per 100,000 population to 3.3, and suicide rates increased 20.4%, from 11.3 deaths per 100,000 population to 13.6.
Among blacks, homicide death rates increased 7.0%, from 20.1 deaths per 100,000 population in 1999 to 21.5 in 2006, then decreased 17.7%, from 21.5 deaths per 100,000 population in 2006 to 17.7 in 2010. Suicide rates decreased 7.1% among blacks, from 5.6 deaths per 100,000 population in 1999 to 5.2 in 2010.
Source: National Vital Statistics System. Mortality public use data files, 1999–2010. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data_access/vitalstatsonline.htm.
[CDC, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), April 5, 2013 / 62(13);257; Reported by: Jiaquan Xu, MD; http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6213a7.htm?s_cid=mm6213a7_e ]
Doctor: ObamaCare is Causing Me to Retire Early
Yet another doctor has decided to quit practicing medicine due to ObamaCare’s onerous burdens.
“I am in my mid-70s and have both the capacity and willingness to care for patients for another decade. But I am retiring,” Dr. John Curry of Fairfax, VA, wrote to one of his patients, columnist Cal Thomas, in an explanation of how the Affordable Care Act (ACA), more commonly known as ObamaCare, is leading him to retire early.
“I cannot stand it anymore. More than half of my time in the office is spent filling out forms, writing letters, responding to inquiries, and attending to ‘urgent’ matters that did not exist 10 years ago. And every year my income is less,” he wrote. “At this point I would rather be paid nothing and have the freedom to decide what is right for my patients."
“ACA is only another straw, but for this tired camel, it will break my back,” wrote Curry.
This is consistent with The Deloitte Center for Health Solutions survey of more than 600 physicians, which found “Six in 10 physicians (62 percent) said it is likely many of their colleagues will retire earlier than planned in the next one to three years.”
Curry emphasized that ObamaCare will make medicine far more impersonal, reduce choice, and significantly increase costs:
The monstrosity has been birthed, and soon you will look in vain if you are seeking a personal physician who knows you, cares about you, and to whom you have ready access. You will find only systems, ready to suck you up, give you a number, and provide you with federally approved accountable care in a sterile environment populated by highly regulated strangers. And it will cost you a lot! (Whatever anyone says, prepare for a future where your health costs will be higher and your choices fewer!)
As Thomas explains, the country can&rsq
uo;t afford to lose good doctors like Curry, but having fewer doctors is one of many side effects of Obamacare. While a physician shortage was predicted before Obamacare, too, the law just makes things worse. The American Association of Medical Colleges estimates the U.S. faces a shortage of 91,500 physicians by 2020.
[4 Apr 13, T. Elliot Gaiser, FAIRFAX, VA, Heritage Foundation, This article originally appeared on the Heritage Foundation and is reprinted with permission.]
PLANNED PARENTHOOD
There's Snow Excuse for Planned Parenthood – Any Reason for Abortion is Just Fine
Location, location, location. It's not just the mantra of real estate agents but of the pro-abortion movement. As far as Planned Parenthood is concerned, where you're born ought to determine if you live. In a sickening testimony before the Florida legislature, a representative of Cecile Richards's group actually argued that a baby born alive on an abortion clinic table doesn't have the same rights as a baby born in a delivery room.
Medical care is only for wanted children, Planned Parenthood lobbyist Alisa LaPolt Snow argued to leaders. Helping a newborn who's survived a botched abortion "inserts politics where it doesn't belong," Snow insisted, before suggesting that infanticide is part of "a woman's ability to make her own personal medical decisions." (See the video for yourself, starting at the 39-minute mark, here.)
Snow's jaw-dropping statements were part of a Florida House debate over a state Infants Born Alive Act, which was introduced by a doctor specializing in emergency medicine. Snow, who is a lobbyist for the Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, stunned state leaders when she argued for a right to "post-birth abortion."
"So, um, it is just really hard for me to even ask you this question because I'm almost in disbelief," said Rep. Jim Boyd. "If a baby is born on a table as a result of a botched abortion, what would Planned Parenthood want to have happen to that child who is struggling for life?"
Without even blinking, Snow replied, "We believe that any decision that's made should be left up to the woman, her family, and the physician." "What happens," Boyd fired back, "in a situation where a baby is alive, breathing on a table, moving. What do your physicians do at that point?" "I do not have that information," Snow said. "I am not a physician. I am not an abortion provider."
When Rep. Jose Oliva asked her to restate Planned Parenthood's position, Snow repeated, "The decision should be between the patient and the health care provider." "I think at that point," Oliva pushed, "the patient would be the child struggling on the table, wouldn't you agree?" Snow did not. Instead, she mumbled, "Uh, that's a very good question. I really don't know how to answer that."
State Rep. Mike Clelland, a Democrat, was astonished. "I've been pro-choice my whole life, and I can't think of a more sensible bill in this regard." "Does Planned Parenthood have an objection," he asked, "to a doctor being obligated to provide advanced life support in an abortion clinic setting to a child born alive? I mean, I guess you do or you wouldn't be here, right?"
Rep. Ross Spano, who said Planned Parenthood's policy "makes me sick to my stomach, frankly," just shook his head. "…[I]f we can't take a stand to protect the most vulnerable, God forbid who we are and where we're headed." Where we're headed, warns bioethicist Wesley Smith, is a world where "If a baby born during a botched abortion can be killed, why not also an unwanted baby…?"
Meanwhile, if you're wondering who could possibly oppose something like born-alive protections, try our current President. In the greatest of ironies, the man known for the largest expansion of health care fought to deny it from tiny children as a member of the Illinois state senate. Barack Obama (who once referred to babies as "punishment") voted three times against a similar bill to save children who survived abortions.
Unfortunately, this "they're only alive when we say they are" philosophy is not new for Planned Parenthood–and they're well compensated by taxpayers for their radicalism.
According to Planned Parenthood's most recent IRS report, its President Cecile Richards rakes in a taxpayer-subsidized salary of over a half-million dollars per year. Keep that in mind the next time you hear Planned Parenthood advocating against parental involvement laws, opposing statutory rape reporting, begging for more government funding, or testifying that a baby born alive is still a "choice" women deserve to make.
[1 Apr 13, Family Research Council Washington Update]
Planned Parenthood official defends post-birth abortions
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/planned-parenthood-official-defends-post-birth-abortions?utm_source=LifeSiteNews.com+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=e5d51d2efe-LifeSiteNews_com_US_Headlines_04_01_2013&utm_medium=email
Obama Administration Runs Around Texas Law Defunding Planned Parenthood
…Obama seems determined to fund Planned Parenthood any way he can. After Texas passed a law forbidding state Medicaid funds to be used at facilities that perform abortions, the Obama administration cut off federal funding for the program in the state.
Rather than cave in to get the money back, Texas formed its own state health program for the poor, a program that offers health care, but not abortion.
Now, the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has sidestepped the state’s efforts to defund abortion shops in Title X, giving $13 million in Title X money — that would normally go to the state — directly to the Women’s Health and Family Planning Association of Texas (WHFPT), a coalition of abortion and women’s health care providers which includes Planned Parenthood.
The Obama administration’s decision to give the money directly to the “family planning” organizations was made after Texas introduced rules that prioritized the Title X funding, putting organizations that provide abortions at the bottom of the list. Federal law prohibits states from excluding abortion-providing organizations from Title X funding altogether, but the prioritization had the practical effect of stripping abortion-providers of the funding…
[ed. So much for States' Rights…]
[28 Mar 13, Kirsten Andersen, AUSTIN,
For remainder of article — http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/obama-administration-does-end-run-around-texas-law-defunding-planned-parent?utm_source=LifeSiteNews.com+Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=8803ef0d85-LifeSiteNews_com_US_Headlines_03_26_2013&utm_medium=email ]
Planned Parenthood Gets Pro-Life Teacher Removed, Holds Sex Toy Class
Last week, a Portland, Oregon math teacher was led out of his classroom by police and is expected to be fired for his opposition to Planned Parenthood. For years, Benson High School teacher Bill Diss has protested Planned Parenthood of Columbia Willamette (PPCW) building an abortion facility as well as their infiltration into the city’s schools.
http://www.lifenews.com/2013/03/26/planned-parenthood-gets-pro-life-teacher-removed-holds-sex-toy-class/