November 29, 2012

Maternal Instinct: Prolife Pulp Fiction

Posted by DrK8 under Abortion, Abortion & Religion, Abortion Discussion, Abortion Information, Abortion Stigma
[23] Comments 

Fairy tales, familiar stories to the human family, introduce a world of the marvelous and magical as well as the capricious and the cruel. A princess cannot sleep because of the discomfort of a pea. A boy may become a bird. Even objects can become enchanted like talking mirrors or carriages made from pumpkins. A typical story line includes the idealization of a character, full of fantasy with moral and religious overtones. It is from the subculture of antiabortionists, who euphemistically call themselves prolife, that the fairy tale about motherhood originates. In this fairy tale, their idealization of motherhood is both a feeling of love and hate. While the hate is ignored and kept from consciousness, the love is unrealistic, illusory and distorted. Drawing on work from psychoanalysts, idealization of motherhood is a defense against the consequences of recognizing the antiabortionists’ own ambivalences and failures. So how is this fairy tale realized in the quotidian sidewalk battles of the antiabortionists?

Moving from the position of idealized motherhood, antiabortionists are fond of telling young women that their baby loves them or their baby wants to live. I witnessed the perennial favorite of one protester blather on ad nauseum “You’ll have a beautiful baby who will love you.” While this is more a projection of their personal feelings about babies and the obvious dismissal that some babies are downright ugly, it is nonetheless a consequence of the fabrications inherent in the mindset of these folks. Regardless of gestation, no fetus is capable of expressing emotions such as love or a will to live. I suspect that these sidewalk crusaders know this about a fetus but cannot help but anthropomorphize.

Another aspect of their fractured fairy tale comes from the unsubstantiated concept called maternal instinct. Ignoring science and rationality, typical of this subculture, these antiabortionists make ludicrous claims about abortion going against a woman’s instincts or about men instinctively protecting their women. If that doesn’t sound like a cave man intellect, I’m not sure what would. Sadly, these folks don’t know the difference from social acculturation of humans and instincts found in birds, insects and reptiles. It doesn’t take much to realize that maternal instinct is nothing more than an idealized, Hallmark card version of a world they desire. Women have been abandoning and continue to abandon their newborns across the globe. Newborns, dead and alive, are discovered in streets, garbage containers, train stations and public bathrooms. Research demonstrates that abandonment occurs because the infant is unwanted, the wrong sex, is defective, a liability in a difficult relationship with the biological father or with the mother’s parents or is mental response of disassociation where the woman in unable to see the fetus as human.

Wet nurses provide another view to discredit maternal instinct. For centuries, women turned the care and feeding of their children to wet nurses, often sending them off to live until they were five or six years old. A French historian documented this practice from letters, diaries and health records. As a matter of practicality and not maternal instinct, infants were sent to live in the country, raised by wet nurses until they were capable of caring for themselves, more or less.

In the United States, the response to safe haven laws demonstrated how maternal instinct is a fairy tale. In nearly all states, safe have laws allowed mothers to leave unwanted children. In response, women (and men) left their unwanted, unruly, financially burdensome, socially disruptive, undesirable children ranging in age from newborn to age 17.

A recent British survey about parenting and regret found that one in ten regretted having children. While the good news is that the majority found happiness with parenthood, others did not. They cited financial hardships and negative impact on their careers and their relationship with their partners as key reasons.
I mentioned earlier that the antiabortionists fail to understand how humans are socialized. I can tell you that it’s not instinct. In their imaginary world, an amalgam of Father Knows Best saccharine idealization and Jesus Loves the Little Children church pulp, these folks concoct fairy tales about motherhood that never existed and never will. It’s the prolife version of pulp fiction.

 

November 25, 2012

Abortions Decline – But For the Right Reason?

Posted by Pat Richards under Abortion, Abortion Doctor, Abortion Information | Tags: |
[9] Comments 
abortion

Abortion

I read the other day that, according to the Centers for Disease Control, the rate of abortions in the United States fell by 5% in 2009, the largest single-year decrease in a decade.   The CDC noted that about 18% of all pregnancies in the United States end in abortion and “factors from the availability of abortion providers, state laws, the general economy and access to health services including contraception can all influence the abortion rate.”

Although the CDC could not say with certainty which factor or factors were responsible for the decline, the pro-life PR machine was quick to claim credit.  Within hours of the announcement, Americans United for Life President and CEO Doctor Charmaine Yoest called the news “a real cause for giving thanks. For more than 40 years, AUL has been working to advance a culture of life that protects women and children from Big Abortion. And today we celebrate this historic drop in the abortion rate.”  She then added that AUL had “paved the way for this historic drop in abortion by pushing pro-life legislation in the states, such as clinic regulations holding abortion providers to acceptable standards of care.”

Now, in 2009, close to 60 pro-life laws were enacted across the states, a marked increase from 2008 but how the heck can the pro-life movement prove that their laws have resulted in less abortions?  Have they found women who were thinking about having an abortion and then decided not to?   Gimme a break.

And think about this.  In most of the states where they enacted strict clinic regulations, the states required changes like wider hallways (ostensibly so the gurneys for all of those dying women could be wheeled out faster), thermostats set at certain standard temperatures,  and other miscellaneous requirements that really have nothing to do with patient safety.   How do these regulations actually stop women from getting abortions?   Say a woman in Chicago is pregnant and she wants an abortion.  She calls a few clinics, compares prices, counseling, etc. and then makes her decision.  How did the width of the hallway deter her from having an abortion?   What am I missing here?

Now  if the pro-lifers would just admit that the regulations were designed to close the clinics, then they could legitimately argue that there are less abortions because they are making access to a clinic more difficult.  But, no, that is not their reason for pushing for these laws.  They are just oh-so-concerned about those poor innocent women who are being harmed in those clinics.  How nice of them.

Spin, spin, spin.  Of course, the pro-lifers cannot even think about admitting that maybe better sex education has made women a little bit smarter about birth control.  No, we just can’t admit that one, can we?   They just gotta make up some crap so they can beat their chests.

The bottom line is that the decrease is good as long as it’s for the right reasons.  If women are having less abortions because of state law, that means they are being forced to give birth to unwanted children.  And that is not a welcome development.  But if they are just being smarter about sex, then bravo.

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November 21, 2012

Thanks Givings

Posted by DrK8 under Abortion, Abortion Centers, Abortion Clinic, Abortion Information, Abortion lies, Abortion MisInformation, Catholic, Catholic Church Abortion, Catholic Murder, Murder
[13] Comments 

Every Thanksgiving I’m reminded of the fairy tales taught in school about pilgrims and Native Americans. All the little hands who make quaint pilgrim hats and “Indian” headbands made of construction paper in November celebrations belie the tragedies foisted upon Native Americans. It’s our shameful heritage that never makes the elementary history books. Contemporary celebrations have long forgotten the Native American genocide in favor of a gluttonous affair that’s packed into one day. It’s the consumerist approach to all things American.  And speaking of consumerism, despite the underhanded attempts to buy the 2012 election, the GOP, drunk on a weird brew of American virtue and Christian Armageddon, refuse to understand the American majority. So, they got a whopping spanking. And I’m thankful for that.
To those in the GOP who blamed the decline of America on homosexuals, abortion, gay marriage, non-believers, separation of church and state, evolution, science, you should know that you are what is wrong with this country. I’m thankful that your draconian ideology didn’t work. I’m very thankful that President Obama won a second term, despite his many foibles.

On a more regional note, I’m thankful to all those who have donated time and money to those impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Especially, to all the thousands of utility workers from across the nation who left the comfort of their homes, thanks for working such long hours and laboring so diligently to restore power to those without.

And for all things reproductive, to those clinics that endured difficulties to ensure access to women seeking abortions during and following the hurricane, you are heroes to those of us who respect and trust women. Similarly, I’m thankful to technology that can diagnose pregnancy and fetal anomalies earlier than ever. It’s making the battle against later abortions a shrinking target for protesters. I’m also thankful for the contraceptive revolution causing a steep drop in abortion rates through better prevention. And along those lines, I’m thankful for the open conversations about contraception costs and economic justice. All too often economic and class issues are smothered to death by the onslaught of GOP debris.

And speaking of debris, let’s talk about the rubbish over abortion laws. Let us pause for a moment to remember 31 year old Savita Halappanavar, a 17 week pregnant woman/dentist/daughter/neighbor/wife/citizen/friend, who tragically lost her life because she had the unfortunate circumstance to land in an Irish Catholic hospital. The University Hospital Galway demonstrated utter disregard for this young woman’s life by refusing to provide an abortion, a refusal of treatment that is typical of the global culture war on women. Despite the shameful and horrendous circumstances of her death, women and men from around the world have spoken out and stood up against institutions that allow a woman to die because of their bad faith. It’s ironic that for all their propaganda about prolife, the sanctity of life, it’s the Catholic Church that essentially killed Savita. For their solidarity on behalf of Savita and other women here in America and beyond, I am thankful.

I’m thankful, as well, for the women who are using social media to tell their abortion stories. They poignantly reveal the emotional and physical as well as the pragmatic elements of an unplanned, unwanted pregnancy. Their stories reject other people’s limited perceptions of them and, thus, counter ignorance as a point of view.

And, last, on a local level, I’m thankful to Harrisburg PA city council for recognizing how the seams of respect have been ripped loose by antiabortion activists and for creating a buffer zone for women entering and leaving abortion clinics. While it is well documented that escorts provide a buffer against the protesters’ shameful departure from civilized norms of society, it’s often not enough to facilitate women’s perceptions of a safe passage.  I can only hope that the rest of the state will follow.

And to all those progressive, philanthropic individuals contributing to abortion funds, reproductive health care associations such as the Abortion Care Network and to the building of a new abortion clinic in the Lehigh Valley, thank you, thank you, thank you.

 

November 18, 2012

Where is Lorena Bobbitt When We Need Her?

Posted by Pat Richards under Abortion, Abortion Clinic, Abortion Information | Tags: |
[24] Comments 
abortion

abortion

Representative Scott DesJarlais (pronounced Des-Jar-Lais) is a Republican Tea Partyer who represents the rural portion of Tennessee, i.e., the non-Elvis portion.  If you’ve never been there, it’s beautiful country and the residents are hard working, shoulder to the earth folks who like to mind their own business.  In 2010, DesJarlais was elected in the Republican tide on a platform of tax cuts, spending cuts, fewer hand outs and, yes, family values.

So, it should come as no surprise that his official website notes that “All life should be cherished and protected.  We are pro-life.”  In his short time in Congress, he has compiled a 100 percent pro-life voting record.  Keep that thought for a second.

abortion

abortion

On November 6, the Congressman won re-election with 57 percent of the vote.  Then the proverbial poop hit the fan.  Word started coming out that this oh-so-sanctimonious, family values, save-the-fetus paragon of virtue had gotten himself into a spot of bother a while back.  It seems that, right AFTER the election, court papers were released showing that during DesJarlais’ 2001 divorce trial (family values?) the Congressman had testified that that he slept with two of his patients (he’s a doctor), two co-workers and a drug representative while he was a practicing physician.  And it seemed that, hoping to break the mood with one of those patients, the good doctor also smoked marijuana with her.  As far as I know, Tennessee has not yet legalized marijuana but I’ll check my records lest I unfairly besmirch the Congressman.  Oh, and just for good measure, during one of the affairs, DesJarlais prescribed the woman drugs, gave her an $875 watch and bought her an airplane ticket to Las Vegas.

Now, there was something else…Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.  Did I happen to mention that the pro-life Congressman also encouraged his wife to have not one, but two abortions?  Did I mention that he also pressured one of his mistresses to terminate her pregnancy as well?  Before you condemn the Congressman for hypocrisy, understand that these abortions were okay because, as he testified during his divorce proceedings, his wife’s first abortion was “therapeutic” because there were “potential risks.”   And the second one was okay because “things were not going well between us.”

Yep, this oh-so-pompous Congressman who, if it were up to him, would ban abortion (unless, perhaps, if it was a result of a legitimate rape) actually availed himself of this legal medical procedure on at least three occasions.  But, let’s not hold that against him because you see these were extenuating circumstances.  I mean, his former wife and mistress were in tough spots and while those other women who get abortions are sluts, his ex-wife is a fine upstanding woman who, yes, didn’t satisfy him enough, forcing him to go out and screw other women but, well, I’m sure you understand his difficult situation.

I grow weary of these hypocrites, these pompous slobs who can rationalize anything as long as it suits their own purpose.  And I’ve heard these stories before.  On many occasions our abortion doctors would tell me how they had performed an abortion for a pro-life Congressman’s wife, daughter, niece, etc.  But the Congressman would imply that their situation was different – versus that run of the mill, low-life twenty two year old promiscuous slut who could just bear the baby and put it for adoption.

Congressman DeJarlais’ biography starts with “Scott grew up in rural America, where people value hard work and HONESTY.”

Paging Lorena Bobbitt, Paging Lorena Bobbitt…

 

November 14, 2012

Hurt Much?

Posted by DrK8 under Abortion Information
[15] Comments 

An insightful friend of mine named Bill posted on Facebook “One big lesson from the election, regarding the Republican pollsters, is that this is where the Republican propensity to manufacture their own facts when the public, scientific facts don’t match their ideology ran into that brick wall called “reality.”

That brick wall called reality is a mighty stumbling block for Republicans if you consider all the facts they had to swallow—kind of like eating crow. For example, the loss of manufacturing jobs here in the U.S. –jobs so many tea baggers and Romneyacs whined about during the miserable campaign season— were really jobs that they shipped offshore. The good news is that Republican corporate moguls, fellows like Romney or companies like Nike, have created an entire manufacturing industry that produces lies, misinformation and outright poppycock—otherwise known as counterfacts. They hire loads of folks like public relations specialists, lawyers and lobbyists to counter the established harms their companies inflict on children, women and men due to environmental pollution, sleazy banking ethics, pharmaceuticals in a deadly pursuit for the almighty dollar, water contamination from fracking for the petroleum industry, permanent emotional and physical damage for our military engaged in wars they declare and obstructionist legislation targeted against abortion providers that harms women.

And lest you believe these corporate bigshots have moved manufacturing jobs oversees out of some sense of beneficence, think again. Their sole motive is profits. Their presence in other countries, while creating employment opportunities for locals, also creates more of the same—pollution, unethical practices, damage to the environment and to cultural practices. Exporting harm to workers and to their country is what happens. For example, Saipan factories making clothing for Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger employ young women, who often had to pay to get these jobs. They are barred from having boyfriends and certainly barred from having children if they became pregnant. But they know where to go for essential back-alley abortion mills. And that’s where these young Chinese women go in order to keep their jobs. And that’s the deal. That’s part of the situation that was essentially endorsed by Tom DeLay (R), a so-called prolifer, when he fought the laws essentially exempting Saipan, although it is a U.S. territory, from U.S. labor laws. It’s this seamier side of business that doesn’t make the front pages of election campaigning or make the religious push from the pulpit to vote for these yahoos. Even if it did, most of the prolifers would think it was a lie.

Maquiladoras working in Mexico for an American corporation earn, on average, an annual salary of $2,471, well below the poverty line. In Ciudad Juarez, girls as young as 13 or 14 work for companies like General Electric, Alcoa, and DuPont and are subjected to sexual advances from male managers and to chemicals and toxins that are toxic to their skin and eyes and, for some, to a growing fetus. But the CEOs of these American companies, these bastions of Republican conservatism and family values, are willingly oblivious to these horrific labor practices that impact other people and their families.

Despite all the election campaign hype, Republican corporate types don’t really worry about offshoring or job losses. They don’t worry about abortion or prolife issues. They talk about small government because they don’t want government messing with their business but will demand government mess with women’s reproductive business.

As my friend Bill said, the Republicans’ manufacture of their own facts ran into that proverbial brick wall called “reality” during this election season. We witnessed millions of women and men voting for sensible, moral, responsible leaders while the Republicans hit the wall. All I can say is “Hurt much?”

 

November 11, 2012

They Just Never Give Up, Do They?

Posted by Pat Richards under Abortion, Abortion Blog, Abortion Clinic, Abortion Doctor, Abortion Information | Tags: , |
[32] Comments 
Abortion

Abortion

On Election Day, I was standing outside my polling place minding my own business.  I’m a pretty staunch Democrat and everyone in my area knows it.  But, on this day, I was not handing out literature to voters.  I was just sitting in the background and leaving that work to other younger poll watchers.  There were about seven of us Democrats and just about 30 feet away the Republican Party had their table and their workers were doing the same.  As usual, everything was generally rather civil.

Then, suddenly, over near the Republican table I hear some woman at the top of her lungs say “I know you, Pat Richards, you’re a baby killer!”

Now, as a staff person for the National Coalition of Abortion Providers for 13 years, I had gotten somewhat used to being called names during protests, rallies, etc.  It came with the territory.  I even kind of enjoyed it – it meant they knew who I was.  But it’s been about 8 years since I’ve been in that movement and this was the first time in many years that I had been confronted with something like this in public.

Abortion

Abortion

Her screech cut through the chilly wind and pierced my ears.  Interestingly, I found that my heart started palpitating wildly.  I couldn’t believe I was hearing that crap again.  I looked over and made eye contact with this woman, who then yelled out “Yes, Pat, we know you teach people how to perform abortions.”   This absolutely ridiculous statement brought me back down to Earth because now I knew she wasn’t dealing with a full deck.  And now I was intrigued.

I quietly walked over towards her and just said “what are you talking about?”

“Oh, we know who you are and what you do.”

Abortion

Abortion

Fair enough, I thought.  I mean, this world famous blog is a public document so in a funny way I was actually flattered that she knew who I was.  So now I really wanted to converse with her, to see if I still had those ole debating skills.  You see, in the years I represented abortion providers, I loved engaging the pro-lifers and enjoyed trying to have a civil conversation about the issue.  I may have been delusional, but I always thought that if I just had a chance to explain why women have abortions and why the doctors put their lives on the line every day, then that person might understand just a little more and be less angry.  I never thought I would convert them, I just wanted them to understand.  But the person I was talking to now felt a little different.

“I know you write that blog where you teach people how to perform abortions.”  I asked her if she had ever read my blog and she said “no, but they have,” and she pointed to a group of 3 or 4 fellow Republicans who were peering at me, as if I had horns.  “If you haven’t read my blog, how do you know what I say?  You know, I do look at things rather objectively and there are times I don’t even agree with the pro-choice folks.  You should really read my stuff.”   No answer.

By this time, others were joining in on both sides.  There was no shouting (my friend did shout but I found out later she was hearing impaired) but it was tense and everyone was just talking over each other.  But my new “friend” and I just kept “talking” (she talked and I listened) and we ultimately learned we had another non-abortion connection in the community.  She then segued into asking me questions about Obama:  “Please tell me, I really want to know, how can you be voting for Obama?”  When I started to answer, she interrupted with “no, really, I really want to try to understand, I want to learn, I want to…..”   And she kept going on and on.  It was a constant monologue.

I had to get away so I told her I had to leave.  I came back about two hours later and she ran up to me and said “Pat, let me ask another question.  You’re really the only one here that I can talk to….”

Huh?

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November 7, 2012

Charity or Justice

Posted by DrK8 under Abortion, Birth Control, Lies, Republican Party | Tags: , |
[15] Comments 

The expression “Charity pulls people out of the river, Justice jumps in, 
swims up stream and stops the people throwing them in” certainly connects to war against women. While Charity attempts to deal with the short term, Justice takes a longitudinal approach to addressing the root causes of personal and social problems. This expression succinctly captures the essence of the Charity types outside abortion clinics who offer free pregnancy tests and free ultrasounds, free prenatal care and baby showers. It is the Charity-minded, curbside anti abortion activists who demonstrate their own short-sightedness and sense of urgency (and futility) to save someone’s unwanted fetus for their own personal glory. Meanwhile, the Justice workers strive to ensure access to family planning services, abortion services, childcare, early education, fair housing, job training and an environmentally sound world.

This election season illustrated the folly of those who claim to be prolife Republicans. Their platform preached to the choir about their views on abortion while ignoring the bigger picture that illustrates the multitude of reasons women choose abortion like poverty, too many kids, not the right time to have a child, not the right person with which to share parenting responsibilities. Some of their cronies, with seriously offensive and deeply disturbing comments about contraception and abortion, illustrated how out of touch they are with women.

In particular, the Romney/Ryan duo surely showed the nation how they would expect privatized Charity workers to throw crumbs at those who were unable to resolve their social problems or were too lazy to achieve the American Dream like they did with government support.  Meanwhile, these two rich guys would dismantle the very infrastructure of Justice, AKA, Planned Parenthood, Social Security, Affordable Care Act, public education, the EPA, the FDA and other institutions.Their worship of corporatism— whether through direct handouts, corporate bailouts, eminent domain, licensing laws, antitrust regulations, or environmental edicts — inflicts a measurable degree of harm on Americans. For example, the fact that measurable levels of hundreds of corporate manufactured chemicals are routinely found in the bodies of all Americans, including newborns sheds a sinister light on their shiny prolife platform.

Fortunately, despite the blitz of propaganda and outright lies, Americans were able to see the deceptions and malevolent intentions of the anti life, pro corporations Romney/Ryan team and told them to go back home.

And best of all, the global news media shared a huge sigh of relief when learning that Obama was re-elected. Across the world, there was a collective Phew! I agree.

 

November 4, 2012

Close the Blinds!

Posted by Pat Richards under Abortion, Abortion Clinic, Abortion Information | Tags: |
[20] Comments 
Abortion

Abortion

Doctor Bart Slepian was cooking his soup in his kitchen when a bullet went through his back and punctured his aorta.  He died two hours later.

He and his family had just returned from the synagogue where they were attending a memorial service for his father.  His two youngest sons were asleep upstairs.  Downstairs, the two older boys, 13 and 15, were watching a Buffalo Sabres hockey game in the family room adjacent to the kitchen.  At the same time, hidden amongst the trees in the backyard, anti-abortion zealot James Kopp was watching the family with binoculars.  At about 10 p.m., he put his SKS rifle on his shoulder, peered through the scope and fired.  The bullet crashed through the window and shattered Slepian’s spine.  As it exited his body, it barely missed his son’s head in the other room.  Later, Slepian’s wife, Lynne, recalled that he had said “I think I’ve been shot,” and then he fell to the floor.

It was October 23, 1998.  Earlier that year, Eric Rudolph had planted his bomb in front of a clinic in Alabama, killing the security guard and severely injuring a nurse.  And now, once again, the campaign of domestic violence against abortion providers had gone to a new level.  Now, you weren’t even safe in your own home.

Anti Abortion Christian Terrorist

Anti Abortion Christian Terrorist

Doctor Bart Slepian worked at the Buffalo GYN Womenservices providing abortions for members of the local community.  He also ran his own private OB-GYN practice in Amherst, New York.  Slepian was rather outspoken about his belief in abortion rights and he was very candid about what he was doing.  At one point he was quoted as saying “Abortion is undeniably the taking of potential life. It is not pretty. It is not easy. And in a perfect world, it would not be necessary.”   I had met Bart when he drove to Washington, D.C. to attend the annual meeting of the National Coalition of Abortion Providers earlier that year.  He had called me a few weeks earlier to say how much he appreciated the way I spoke candidly about abortion and, during that conversation, I learned that he did not like to fly.  So, he drove all the way from upstate New York to attend our gathering.

Soon after his murder, supporters of legal abortion started taking an interesting approach in the media.  They seemed almost anxious to emphasize that Doctor Slepian “also delivered babies!”   It was as if they were trying to distance themselves from the fact that he also performed abortions (indeed, that’s why he was killed).  During the next few weeks, I got a number of calls from Bart’s colleagues who felt both options were of equal importance but, as had happened many times over the years, it was as if pro-choicers were anxious to distance themselves from the performance of abortions.

At the same time, for good reasons our community became more paranoid than ever.  Always security conscience, they were now not safe in their homes.  Also, the killer had not been caught.  So, abortion providers started closing the blinds in their house.  Indeed, I recall my own children being very concerned that a bullet could pierce the evening and hit its target right and they begged me to keep our blinds closed – which I did.  They (and I) became particularly observant, looking for strange cars in our heavily wooded neighborhood.  I asked my neighbors to be on the alert as well.

James Kopp was eventually caught in France, was extradited to the United States and was tried and convicted of second-degree murder in Buffalo.  He is currently serving a 25 years to life term of imprisonment.

And then the murders of abortion doctors stopped for a number of years – until they got George.

.

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November 1, 2012

Slipping into a theocracy

Posted by DrK8 under Abortion, Abortion & Religion
[11] Comments 

A few years ago, I wrote about Adam Hamilton’s When Christians Get It Wrong. It seems especially important to talk about his book again in light of current political events and the election.

In a particularly lyrical passage, Hamilton writes “scientists act as God’s docents, whether they believe in God or not. By helping us understand God’s handiwork, they add to the majesty and glory of creation that, as a believer, leaves me with a greater sense of awe about the One who created all things.” Witnessing the behavior of self-proclaimed Christian legislators and candidates for public office, I have to say that they are not doing a very good job of telling the glory of God, not doing a good job at all sharing the majesty of human beings. In fact, I believe that the assaults on women’s reproductive health care demonstrate the ugly, depraved side of these so-called Christians.

Men like Richard Mourdock, John Koster, Todd Akin, Paul Ryan, and by extension Mitt Romney, lacking any human empathy (Christian compassion?), believe that women who suffer unimaginable violence from rape and incest should be further victimized by taking away their freedom of choice. But one’s faith shouldn’t be an issue that voters need to be wary of when it comes to choosing a candidate to support. What a person believes personally and what is legal, what is constitutional, and frankly, what is fair and just, is how a politician needs to promise to govern.  But such a concept doesn’t exist within the Republican party of NO. Their attempts to cut off funds needed to implement Title X family planning funds, allows employers to opt-out of covering contraception or pretty much any other medical care are written on the basis of their religious beliefs or moral convictions.

Another point that Hamilton makes is about the new testament of the Bible, which was an attempt to correct “self-righteousness, hypocrisy, judgmentalism, spiritual pride, moral compromise and a host of other issues” through one simple concept called LOVE.  Yet, every time I hear an antiabortion protester invoke the name of Jesus, I cringe. There’s nothing Christ-like in that invocation, particularly because it lacks love and is full of rage and contempt for any woman who enters an abortion clinic. Every time I hear the arrogant Paul Ryan’s conservative Catholic, staunch antiabortion mouth open about ending abortion, I gasp at his hubris and worry that he could one day be sitting in the oval office. His views are not about love or compassion. They’re about his right to impose policies based on his religion to mandate policies that impact women.

This country was founded on a separation of church and state. But we’re slipping into a theocracy that does not bode well for women. Think carefully when you vote next week.

 

October 28, 2012

President Romney, Abortion, and the March for Life

Posted by Pat Richards under Abortion, Abortion Blog, Abortion Clinic, Abortion Information | Tags: |
[11] Comments 
Romney Abortion

Romney Abortion

January 22, 2013 – Washington, D.C.

President Romney steps up to the podium, surrounded by tens of thousands of pro-life activists who have come to the nation’s capital to participate in the annual “March for Life.”   It is the first time a president has been physically present to address the crowd:

“I want to thank all of you for coming to Washington, D.C. to fight for the unborn.  I look forward to meeting with your leadership later this afternoon and I relish the prospect of working with all of you in outlawing abortion throughout the country.  It is time for the killing to stop!

Mormon and Christian Anti Abortion

Mormon and Christian Anti Abortion

As many of you know, within hours of being sworn in as your President I signed an Executive Order re-instating the Mexico City policy which requires that all non-governmental organizations that receive federal funding refrain from performing or promoting abortion services as a method of family planning. And I was thrilled that several of you could join me and Ann in the Oval Office when I signed that document.

Abortion

Abortion

I am pleased to report that my Deputy for Congressional Affairs has already met with members of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus to discuss an ambitious legislative agenda designed to reduce the number of abortions in this country.  Of course, the first item that we will pursue is the insertion of language in the HHS Appropriations bill cutting off all federal funding for Planned Parenthood clinics.  I was very clear during the campaign that this would be a priority and I’m pleased that we are pursuing this important measure.

Meanwhile, while we prepare for votes to repeal Obamacare, as a contingency we will pass a law as soon as possible making it extremely clear that NO federal funds may be used for abortions.  The lawyers at the National Right to Life Committee are working feverishly to provide me with the exact language necessary to accomplish this important goal.

Of course, if the Congress decides to pursue a constitutional amendment banning abortion I will use my bully pulpit to get that measure passed in the House and Senate.  Then, if it passes, I will criss-cross the country to ensure that we garner the requisite number of states to ratify the amendment.  That battle will not be easy, but you can rest assured that I will work extremely hard to reverse the disastrous Roe v. Wade decision.

I will also instruct the Department of Justice to aggressively review the reports of violence against pro-life sidewalk counselors.  These saints are out there exercising their right to free speech, saving lives every day and they deserve the protection of the federal government against those that would thwart their efforts through intimidation or violence.

As you know, in several states the legislatures have enacted laws imposing stricter regulations on abortion clinics in an effort to protect women from unscrupulous practitioners who are just interested in making money.  Just recall the horrors that took place in Doctor Gosnell’s clinic in Pennsylvania.  This should not be a state-by-state effort, we must pass national regulations on abortion clinics so all women are protected!

I mentioned earlier a possible constitutional amendment banning abortion.  As I said, that is a tough task but there’s another way to go about reaching the same goal.  And that is the Supreme Court.  At this point, constitutional scholars suggest that the Court is only two and maybe even one vote away from overturning Roe v Wade.  While I wish no ill upon any sitting justice, it is quite possible that during my first administration – and certainly my second – I will have the opportunity to appoint several new justices to the court and I pledge to you today that those justices will strictly interpret the Constitution and work to overturn that most heinous case of judicial activism that has caused the death of millions of babies – Roe V. Wade.

So, we have our work cut out for us.  But you have my word that my door will always be open to you and I will put the full weight of the Oval Office behind any initiative that is designed to stop the slaughter.  God Bless You and God Bless the United States of America.”

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