Illinois Right to Life Committee
PRO-LIFE BLOG
Wednesday, Sept 30, 2009 -- Bubble zone to come before Chicago City Council I attended this morning's hearing before the Human Relations Committee of the Chicago City Council along with some prominent Pro-Life activists. The committee considered an ordinance amending Disorderly Conduct violations to include "(1) knowingly approaches another person within eight feet of such person, unless such other person consents, for the purpose of passing a leaflet or handbill to, displaying a sign to, or engaging in oral protest, education, or counseling with such other person in the public way within a radius of 50 feet from any entrance door to a hospital, medical clinic or healthcare facility or, (2) by force or threat of force or by physical obstruction, intentionally injures, intimidates or interferes with or attempts to injure, in intimidate or interfere with any person entering or leaving any hospital, medical clinic or healthcare facility." Testimony was given by Peter Breen, Joe and Ann Scheidler, Corrina Gura, Cathy Meiding, and Lynn Benz explaining why this ordinance was not needed and probably unconstitutional, but this information had no impact on members of the Human Relations committee. The result of the hearing was approval of the proposed ordinance. This ordinance will be considered by the full City Council at their October 7th meeting that begins at 10am. If it were to become law, the danger is that sidewalk counselors will be subject to false charges produced by abortion advocates who try to implicate them in so-called violations of the bubble zone. The result would be lost opportunities to save mothers and babies from abortion. Call Mayor Daley's Office at 312-744-3300 to tell them you oppose this unconstitutional restriction on freedom of speech. If you can, join the protest at City Hall Wednesday 10/7/09 at 9 a.m. Come to 121 N. LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago to participate in opposing the bubble zone. Signs will be provided.
Tuesday, Sept 29, 2009 -- Respect Life Sunday coming October 4th Respect Life Sunday occurs on October 4th. The life issues are often the subject of homilies at church services that day. Another prominent feature of Respect Life Sunday is Life Chain. Over 1300 Life Chains are expected to be formed in communities throughout the nation. Check here to find the Illinois Life Chain nearest to you and join in. One unique opportunity is coming at midnight as part of the 40 Days for Life campaign. At 12am Sunday morning October 4th (the moment when Saturday ends and Sunday begins), Fr. Jason Malave, pastor of St. Bartholomew Parish in Chicago, will celebrate Mass at Family Planning Associates (FPA) in Chicago, just as Respect Life Sunday begins. This special Mass will be celebrated outside on the parking lot of the Kananaya Center across the street from the FPA abortuary, located at 5086 N Elston Ave, Chicago (MAP). If you are close enough, take this opportunity to support 40 Days for Life in this fitting start for Respect Life Sunday, standing in solemn communion with Our Lord outside the abortuary where so many of His brothers and sisters are sacrificed.
Monday, Sept 28, 2009 -- The impact of 40 Days for Life is already coming to light Right here in Chicago at Family Planning Associates, Elston and Cicero, we have confirmation of four babies saved from abortion last Friday. Nationally, after six days there are already reports of 38 mothers who changed their minds and chose life. Those 38 known saves do not include the four from Chicago so the actual total is at least 42. How many more mothers have reconsidered, but told no one about it as they left? [By Day 20 the total has reached 219 babies saved!] So far, two abortion clinic employees have quit their jobs. One of these occurred in California and the other at the notorious Hope Clinic in Granite City IL. From that location Angela reported the abortion facility nurse came out and hugged her. "Thank you for praying for me," she told Angela. "Your witness has been powerful to me. This is my last day! I'm going off to do what real nurses should be doing." With that, she walked to her car and drove away.
Friday, Sept 25, 2009 -- Planned Parenthood expanding abortion in Illinois to Springfield Thanks to LifeNews.com we learn today that Planned Parenthood of Illinois (PPIL) intends to begin using the abortion drug RU 486 at their office in Springfield. PPIL's explanation (excuse) is the high birth rate in that county from unintended pregnancies. Here is the story: Planned Parenthood of Illinois is bringing the dangerous RU 486 abortion drug, also known as mifepristone, to the state's capital city. A statement from the abortion business says that the abortion drug, which has been responsible for killing 13 women worldwide and has injured more than 1,100 in the United States alone according to the FDA, will be dispensed in Springfield in the "coming months." The pro-abortion group said, "After a careful assessment of the needs of patients and the community, PPIL decided to expand services to include medication abortion so that women will have more choices available to them." Hundreds of women could get abortions with the drug as PPIL says it administered more than 994 pregnancy tests last year and 28 percent of them were positive. "Sangamon County is home to some of the highest birth rates, including teen birth rates, in Illinois. Nearly half of all pregnancies in Illinois are unintended. And many of the women who come to the Springfield Health Center and find out they are pregnant request help in obtaining abortion services," it said. The group says the abortion drug is good news for women who have to drive to the abortion center in Peoria, the two in Champaign or the abortion business in Granite City for a surgical abortion.
Thursday, Sept 24, 2009 -- Lisbon treaty would put Irish Pro-Life laws at risk Today I received a call from Anne, an IRLC member, who asked for prayer that the people of Ireland again reject the so-called Lisbon Treaty that would expand the authority of the European Union (EU) over Ireland. The vote will take place on October 2nd. Per information received about the potential impact of passage of this treaty, "The (Irish) government has said it has received 'guarantees' from the EU on important issues such as abortion. But the truth is that these so-called guarantees are NOT legally binding in EU law, and will NOT be part of the treaty." Irish laws on issues such as abortion, euthanasia, same-sex 'marriage' and freedom to teach Catholic morality could be threatened by EU courts and the Charter of Fundamental Rights if the Lisbon Treaty is approved on October 2nd. Pray that Irish citizens will vote NO.
Wednesday, Sept 23, 2009 -- Should we have any concerns about organ donation? Today I received a call from David Bosch, Director of Communications for Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network. He had heard the IRLC radio message raising some questions about organ donation and wanted to discuss those concerns. On the issue of brain death, David indicated that anyone who recovered after a brain death diagnosis was misdiagnosed. He noted that Gift of Hope performs the tests multiple times to confirm that brain death has occurred. I do not think he had a good answer for why different hospitals have their own criteria for establishing brain death, but the implication was that the criteria used by Gift of Hope are more reliable. If they cannot convince all hospitals to adopt their criteria, why should I find that reassuring? I raised my concern that the Illinois Organ Donor Registry only records positive responses, but not negative ones. David explained that many people who are willing to be organ donors will say "no" because they are "not willing to put their name on a list." Thus, Gift of Hope relies on their relatives to know their intent to donate their organs, avoiding any problem caused by conflicting information from recording a "no" that does not reflect their true intent. Somehow, I think that approach conveniently discriminates against those who really intended to say "no" and allows Gift of Hope a chance to convince their relatives that their organs should be donated anyway. David observed that my concerns related to donation process issues, but suggested there can be no debate about organ donation itself being a good thing to do. That point raises an interesting question. Is anyone who refuses to become an organ donor just a selfish, self-centered individual because everyone should be willing to be an organ donor? Providentially, I encountered an article "Law Prof: Pro-Abortion Health Care Overhaul Spells Danger for Catholic Hospitals" shortly after my conversation with David. That title would not suggest I would find anything there related to answering a question about the assumed goodness of organ donation. However, the law professor Leonard J. Nelson III, referring to health care legislation in Congress, said the legislation's opposition to Catholic Pro-Life values would have serious implications for Catholic and non-Catholic Americans alike, who face a seismic shift from "a sanctity-of-life ethic in favor of a quality-of-life ethic." Pro-Life principles demand using a "sanctity-of-life ethic" to recognize the respect due to each human person from conception to natural death. Many of the issues of concern to Pro-Life each day involve opposition to the devaluing of human life based on judgments about who "cannot contribute to society" -- in other words a "quality-of-life ethic." When I thought about comparing a "sanctity-of-life ethic" with a "quality-of-life ethic," I questioned whether the process of organ donation, which involves using computerized formulas to find the most suitable candidate for donated organs, actually encourages a "quality-of-life ethic." The dynamics of organ donation require rationed care because of the constant shortage of organs. This fact encourages a perspective at least similar to a "quality-of-life ethic." What other type of health care is rationed because of a shortage of materials? At least in the USA as of right now, health care resources are available so that people who need virtually any treatment can obtain it. The utilitarian approach reflected in the process of distributing donated organs detracts from the concept of gift. Ironically, those waiting for organs seem to develop an attitude of entitlement and begin to develop a critical attitude about why more people are not donating organs so they can get the ones they need. This situation is far different from a case like that of my son's swimming coach. His girlfriend needed a kidney, and he looked into whether he could donate one to her. It turned out that he could and so he gave his girlfriend the gift of extending her life. That was certainly a heroic act. Sometimes, circumstances occur where a person will donate a kidney to someone they do not know, which seems even more heroic. Organ donation raises many challenges. As I mentioned to David, my hope is for the day when organ donation will become obsolete because failing organs can be repaired using stem cells obtained from ethical sources. At that point the mindset for rationed care and a "quality-of-life ethic" stimulated by the current organ donation process will hopefully fade away, if we can survive until then without adopting health care "reform" that incorporates these devaluations of human life for all health care.
Tuesday, Sept 22, 2009 -- Does it matter which one? The conversation recorded below has been attributed to the wisdom of a doctor. Whether this conversation did actually take place or not, the message conveyed in favor of giving every human life a chance is unmistakeable, as follows [a web search revealed this was published in a newsletter produced in Pierre SD, but I received it by email from a source in Atlanta GA]: A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said: 'Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help! My baby is not even 1 year old and I'm pregnant again. I don't want kids so close together.' So the doctor said: 'Ok, and what do you want me to do?' She said: 'I want you to end my pregnancy, and I'm counting on your help with this.' The doctor thought for a little, and after some silence he said to the lady: 'I think I have a better solution for your problem. It's less dangerous for you too.' She smiled, thinking that the doctor was going to accept her request. Then he continued: 'You see, in order for you not to have to take care of 2 babies at the same time, let's kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we're going to kill one of them, it doesn't matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms. The lady was horrified and said: 'No doctor! How terrible! It's a crime to kill a child! 'I agree', the doctor replied. 'But you seemed to be ok with it, so I thought maybe that was the best solution. The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point. He convinced the mom that there is no difference in killing a child that's already been born and one that's still in the womb. The crime is the same!
Monday, Sept 21, 2009 -- Lancet editors: more birth control to solve climate change The British medical journal Lancet has been cited as one of the most reputable medical journals in the world (September 2, 2008 LifeSiteNews.com). The Lancet earned this citation by publishing articles that have challenged the politically correct position on various medical topics. A recent Lancet editorial has countered that pattern in a shocking way. In this editorial, the publishers of Lancet said contraception should be distributed on a worldwide basis -- specifically in nations in Africa -- to cut back on the population as a solution for so-called climate change. Lancet editors followed the lead of the London School of Economics in advocating population control as a solution for climate change. A researcher at that school suggested contraception would be more cost effective in reducing global CO2 emissions than use of green technologies. Given the collapsing population already occurring in so many nations, the Lancet should reconsider this serious lapse in common sense to jump on the population control bandwagon when doing so courts disasterous consequences for the future of many nations.
Friday, Sept 18, 2009 -- Keep denying reality until people will believe it? ACORN certainly practices this approach. President Obama learned the same style from Saul Alinsky, founder of the Industrial Areas Foundation, and one of the earliest "community organizers." What practice am I referring to? The end justifies the means--applied as follows: If you are convinced you know what should be, overcome your opposition by whatever means necessary to win, even serious distortions of the facts. After the many Pro-Life complaints about misrepresentations regarding health care reform that appeared in President Obama's speech to a joint session of Congress on September 9th, the same pattern continued during the weekend talk shows. Obama again claimed the health care bill did not cover abortion and Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, agreed that was correct. Did neither of them know anything about the health care bill that Senator Max Baucus would reveal three days later on September 16th? Coverage for abortion in the form of massive abortion subsidies and mandates is found in the Baucus bill. Of course, once born, no person would be denied health care through rationing. Hold on a minute! The Baucus bill pressures doctors to ration health care via financial incentives. How many times will they misrepresent the facts, hoping that the public will fall into line behind their plan for a government takeover of health care, where they get to decide who gets what kind of care and who pays for it?
Thursday, Sept 17, 2009 -- Planned Parenthood is against any abortion regulation Planned Parenthood consistently displays an attitude of arrogance. Just recently Planned Parenthood Arizona filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of every provision regulating abortion in new Arizona law, claiming the law "threatens women’s access to health care in Arizona." The law might threaten access to shoddy "health care" at Planned Parenthood! The legislation calls for informed consent before abortions along with a 24-hour waiting period, parental consent requirements, a prohibition on non-doctors doing surgical abortions, and rights of conscience for all health care providers, including pharmacists, on abortion and abortion drugs. All of these provisions are already in effect in many states and are widely supported by the public. One of Planned Parenthood's own staff members, Mary Andrews, a nurse practitioner, motivated the Arizona legislature to pass the prohibition on non-doctors doing surgical abortions when she went public that she was performing "aspiration abortions" at the agency's Tucson clinic since 2001. While they were looking at abortion regulations, they decided to include the other widely supported provisions in the final law they passed. Planned Parenthood was counting on pro-abortion governor Janet Napolitano to veto such legislation. They did not have the foresight to know that Obama would pick her for his cabinet and the new governor of Arizona would be Pro-Life. So now Planned Parenthood is demonstrating their arrogance by using delaying tactics to keep the law from taking effect. How appropriate it is that so many of the 40 Days for Life locations around the nation beginning next week will be taking place at Planned Parenthood abortion clinics. Their commitment to defend abortion so vigorously always betrays their words, claiming that abortion is such a minor portion of their business.
Wednesday, Sept 16, 2009 -- 40 Days for Life starts next Wednesday Sept 23 Now is the time to access the calendar for the 40 Days for Life nearest you and sign up for an hour (or a few hours) at the on-site vigil. Get details here: 40 Days for Life (Aurora, Champaign, Chicago, Downers Grove, Glen Ellyn, Granite City, Peoria)Sign-up for any day from Sept 23 - Nov 1, 2009 or as many days as your schedule allows. Steps to schedule your 40
Days for Life participation on the day you select: 1) To use the calendar, go to: http://www.vigilcalendar.com/chicago/ 2) register using your email
address and a password you create 3) click on "Fall
09" 4) select “view type” of monthly 5) scroll down first so you can scroll to the right to locate the day you select 6) click on sign-up for the
hour(s) you can participate 7) click “sign-up
once” to confirm 8) logout when completed 9) if you need to make a change, go to “My Account” after logging in and scroll down to see the option to cancel a scheduled hour; then return to the above precess to schedule another hour
Tuesday, Sept 15, 2009 -- Euthanasia whether in hospice or hospital? Yesterday I received a call from Mississippi. The callers were brother and sister to a 72-year-old Chicago woman who recently had a stroke. They were seeking any possible help to prevent their sister from being starved to death in the hospital. The doctors said she was in a coma and decided that she could not recover from the stroke so she would become a "vegetable." First, they pulled the respirator, but she kept breathing. Then they stopped providing food and water, except for a morphine drip. That was already 12 days ago, and the woman continues to struggle for her life. A grandchild and an aunt who have visited the patient have reported interaction with her. She opened her eyes in response to things they said to her. At least to them the dire prognosis seems premature, but they were not in a position to affect the treatment decisions already made. The children of the patient, who are located in Chicago, agreed with the steps taken by the doctors. That makes things very difficult because the doctors have approval from the nearest relatives to cause this woman's death. I referred the brother and sister to the Thomas More Society for possible legal intervention, but warned that time would likely be too short. It seems the son and daughter have a motive to see their mother dead. She has an estate of $5 million. She had been living with the daughter and her husband, but they had been abusing her. She managed to escape with help from her son, who even helped her file a police report about the abuse, but then she had the stroke. After that, he and his sister apparently found agreement in the prognosis from the doctors to let her die. Unfortunately, the patient has no advance directive that might dictate more aggressive treatment to see if recovery is possible. This case points to the need for a life-affirming advanced directive and selection of an agent you can trust to carry it out. If she had selected her son or daughter as agent for a durable power of attorney for health care, it is questionable whether it would have been carried out appropriately, so she would have needed the foresight to recognize the need to select someone more reliable as her agent. This is another sad case that reflects the culture of death overtaking the medical profession and the relatives of seriously ill patients. Since such incidents are already happening all too frequently, how much more easily could they occur under provisions of the health care "reform" being considered in Washington, D.C.?
Monday, Sept 14, 2009 -- Hope you made it to Kiddieland this one last time The last IRLC Family Fun Night at Kiddieland lived up to its name. Many families came and they had lots of fun. IRLC would continue sponsoring this annual event for many more years if we could, but Kiddieland will be closing forever after the last weekend in September. How sad!
Friday, Sept 11, 2009 -- Pro-Lifer murdered for educating the public on abortion Early this morning in the small town of Owosso, Michigan the unthinkable happened. A Pro-Life activist named James Pouilion was murdered in front of students on their way to class at the local high school because he was displaying a picture showing what abortion actually does to a baby. Harlan Drake of Owosso, the accused gunman, admitted his motivation to police. Owosso Police Director of Public Safety Michael Compeau stated, “I don’t think he knew him personally. (Drake) was aware of him, and was offended by the material that Mr. Pouillon carried with him.” Drake had a hit list and also murdered a second victim, but was arrested before he was able to reach his potential third victim. His motivation for attacking the other victims was apparently related to other business dealings and was not related to Pro-Life activity. There is no reason to suggest this was a conspiracy or that abortion supporters are responsible for this murder. Of course, the reverse situation when abortionist George Tiller was murdered led to all kinds of accusations that Pro-Lifers were responsible, even though there is no evidence to support such a claim. Eric Scheidler of Pro-Life Action League knew Jim Pouillon. He commented, "Jim's murder is deeply disturbing for all of us in the Pro-Life movement, especially activists out on the front lines, publicly fighting against abortion. Not only have we lost a brother activist, but we have to reflect on our own safety out there on the streets. Should we back down from public protest of abortion? I know that Jim would say NO. He had faced verbal attacks and even assault over the years. One time a driver tried to run him down. But Jim stood his ground. And now, he is with the Lord." Eric continued, "Despite the horror of today's murder of a Pro-Lifer, we must also remember that such violence is extremely rare, and never before has an activist been shot and killed like this. We cannot allow this violent attack to intimidate us. On the contrary, we must honor Jim's memory by recommitting ourselves to actively fight abortion like he did."
Thursday, Sept 10, 2009 -- More distortion of the facts on health care reform Last night President Obama gave a speech on health care reform to a joint session of Congress. He made a number of statements that suggested either a change in his position on controversial items, or a claim that opponents of reform had it wrong all along. Tony Perkins of Family Research Council provided this assessment of the President's claims about health care reform: The President threatened those who oppose him that "[i]f you
misrepresent what's in the plan, we will call you out." So in that vein, let us look
at the President's speech with the same microscope he would apply to those he perceives as
"partisan bickerers." On the issue of abortion, even the New York Times called the President on his assertion
that "under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions, and Federal
conscience laws will remain in place." The liberal media mainstay joins FactCheck.org,
reporters and columnists at the Associated Press, Time
Magazine It's also very clear that the President's call for a 'new insurance exchange' will be the vehicle for taxpayer funded abortion. The President also knows very well that pro-abortion House and Senate Committees rejected every single amendment to keep abortion funding out of the health care overhaul. Instead, the House Energy and Commerce Committee adopted the Capps Amendments, which allows abortion coverage in the public health plan, and subsidizes health plans that cover abortion. The Times also called "falsehood" on the President's assertions that you would be able to keep your doctor and that Medicare would not be affected. In addition, President Obama made the unprecedented and un-presidential move of calling former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin a liar for insisting that the President's health care bill would lead to bureaucrats rationing care. The President needs to reread his bill, H.R. 3200, Section 1401 which establishes the Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research. This Center is set up to decide based on effectiveness and cost. Commentator J. Matt Barber made the following observation: During his speech the President assured us: "Under our plan no Federal dollars will be used to fund abortions, and federal conscience laws will remain in place." So, naturally, Planned Parenthood, NOW, NARAL and all the other lefty pro-abort activist groups are up in arms today, decrying the President for discriminating against women and setting back "reproductive rights" by decades. Yeah, right. Not a peep. And the silence is deafening. The current health care "reform" under consideration is problematic on abortion, conscience rights, rationing of care, discrimination against those who "cannot contribute to society" (based on whose judgment?), government control of health care, etc. What is the President's solution to these concerns? Just misrepresent the facts by denying that any of these provisions are in the plan.
Wednesday, Sept 9, 2009 -- ND president wants Pro-Lifers to be jailed & fined Notre Dame pressed charges against 88 Pro-Life activists they had arrested and jailed for trespassing on campus in response to President Obama's speech at the Notre Dame graduation ceremony. Four months later the charges are still pending. Efforts to get Notre Dame to drop the charges have been ignored or rejected so far. (Get details at: FreeTheND88.org) The apparent vindictiveness of University of Notre Dame president Rev. John Jenkins shines through as he refuses to relent. The irony is crystal clear when one recognizes that Obama supporters, not associated with the graduates, were allowed to demonstrate on campus in favor of Obama while Pro-Life advocates were arrested for trespassing as soon as they stepped onto campus. They did not even need to hold a protest sign. Carrying a picture of Mary and a cross was sufficient grounds to arrest a priest based on who he was associated with. The mission of Notre Dame continues to be turned upside down with this insistence on pressing charges against people who were simply expressing defense of all human life without doing any damage or interfering with anyone's movement or with any graduation events.
Tuesday, Sept 8, 2009 -- Another tragic case of premature death in hospice A caller from Virginia today told me how her father died prematurely when a doctor and hospice decided 89 years was enough for him since his quality of life had declined. This case begins on a positive note. A caring doctor and nurses helped this man overcome pneumonia successfully. He was ready to go home and the family was ready to take him home when another doctor raised the issue of food asperation, suggesting they could not take care of him on their own. The medical basis for this concern is unclear, but it created fear that affected the family's decisions. Even though this patient had no terminal illness, the family ultimately accepted getting hospice involved. Hospice wanted to give the patient morphine, even though he told them he was not in pain. Family members did not allow use of morphine at that time. With severe restrictions on food and water intake by mouth, he began showing symptoms of dehydration. Rather than offering a IV or feeding tube, hospice pushed morphine as the solution. When the dehydration began causing serious external symptoms, the family gave in to allow the morphine. Between the dehydration and the morphine, the patient died rather quickly. The doctor and hospice justified the denial of sufficient food and water as observing the patient's durable power of attorney for health care, which indicated he did not want to be kept alive by "extraordinary means." That generic phrase allowed this patient to be denied food and water, leading to his death even though he had no underlying terminal illness or condition.
Friday, Sept 4, 2009 -- After "improvement", IVF is still problematic One of the controversies surrounding in vitro fertilization (IVF) has been whether any embryos are killed even when parents request that all of them be implanted. Those embryos to be killed are found to be defective when the created embryos are evaluated for viability. Such embryos are never counted as embryos with the potential to be implanted, but they are living human beings created by IVF that are destroyed. A new egg-screening technique has been developed in Britain as an enhancement to IVF effectiveness. The new technique, called array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH), reportedly doubles the odds that an IVF embryo will be able to implant in the uterus so the pregnancy can continue to birth. With this new process, eggs are tested before fertilization for chromosomal abnormality. By finding defective eggs before fertilization, the number of embryos subject to the death sentence for lack of viability should be reduced. With greater confidence embryos can implant successfully, the number of embryos created can be reduced to the number desired without extras just in case. Simon Fisher, managing director of the CARE Fertility Group, which oversaw the procedure, explained that "Up to half of the eggs in younger women and up to 75% in women over 39 are chromosomally abnormal." CGH allows selection of eggs with a normal number of chromosomes. Even with such an improvement, IVF still has many risks, beginning with the dangerous procedures to harvest the eggs. Additionally, there are other potential causes of embryo defects and implantation failure. Finally, there is the unnatural process of creating a child in the laboratory. Even with this improvement, IVF should still be avoided. The much better alternative is NaProTechnology which allows babies to enter the world naturally. NaProTechnology works to resolve the underlying causes of infertility rather than trying to bypass them.
Thursday, Sept 3, 2009 -- This is an improvement in health care? A report from Britain foreshadows the negative effects on end-of-life care that are likely to occur in the USA if government-controlled heath care is adopted. With or without "death panels" the denial of health care to seniors and the disabled is a very real threat. In Britain, 16.5% of all deaths are hastened by the use of terminal sedation, and twice as many die that way in Belgium and the Netherlands, where assisted suicide and euthanasia are legal. Even without government intevention, some health care providers in the USA are already moving in the same direction. I can refer back to the call I received on July 30th from a hospice volunteer who encountered assembly line use of terminal sedation when she was asked to help at an in-patient hospice unit in Albuquerque, NM. Beyond this extremely serious impact, looking at other results from government-controlled health care suggests that delays in receiving needed health care are pervasive. How can such adverse effects on the timeliness of receiving treatment be considered an improvement in health care? Both Britain and Canada generate many incidents of long delays that have adverse effects on the health and recovery of patients seeking needed care. In Britain, waiting lists prevent pregnant women from seeing a doctor until the seventh month of their pregnancy. That does not sound like improved health care to me, even if everyone is then covered. Pregnant women without insurance in the USA can do better than that right now. Virtually, every surgical procedure requires a wait of 3-9 months. Good luck with pain control for 6 months or more if you need repair of a slipped disk Government-controlled health care would create many more problems than it would solve while supporting radical agendas for taxpayer-funded abortion, rationed care and even euthanasia for "non-productive" citizens (seniors and the disabled), and big brother oversite of everyone.
Wednesday, Sept 2, 2009 -- The radicals at the UN have come out of the closet The radical abortion agenda is again revealed by the work of an agency of the United Nations. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has released a 94-page document that effectively calls for children to promote abortions across the globe. The report, entitled International Guidelines on Sexual Education, is filled with advice for sex education instructors to advance the abortion agenda. It provides for making children as young as 9-year-old aware of abortion and its legal status “locally and globally.” By the age of 12, the report encourages teaching children where they can obtain a legal abortion. Once children reach 15-18 years of age, they should be taught “advocacy to promote the right to and access to safe abortion.” The Global Outreach arm of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life reviewed the UNESCO report. Their executive director, Scott Fischbach, observed, "Two stated goals of the Guidelines are to provide a clear understanding of what comprises sex education, and to help build support in communities for sex education." Apparently, that means that sex education is now deemed to have the purpose of teaching children to both advocate and obtain abortions. The population control crowd at the UN must be lurking somewhere behind this agenda.
Tuesday, Sept 1, 2009 -- Lack of Illinois parental notice strikes again Today I received a call from a legal assistance organization in Kentucky. The caller was investigating the status of the parental involvement law in Illinois. She is trying to help a mother whose daughter was taken to Planned Parenthood in Peoria for an abortion by her boyfriend and his mother. When the 16-year-old girl's mother learned that her daughter was absent, she called her on her cell phone, only to learn that the deed was done. When she told her daughter she was coming to get her, the boyfriend and his mother abandoned her and left her sitting on a park bench for six hours before her mother could drive there from Kentucky. This mother's inquires were snubbed by Planned Parenthood, confirming once again they have no concern for parents or family. They did tell her that they had no obligation to notify her before her daughter's abortion because the abortion took place on August 3rd, while the parental notice law did not take effect until August 4th. I confirmed that fact for the caller from Kentucky, but I also noted that the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation has given abortion providers another 90 days to figure out how to implement (subvert?) the law. What would Planned Parenthood tell a mother whose daughter received a secret abortion on August 5th or 26th? What are the chances that they would have complied with the required notification? This situation stresses the importance of the action taken yesterday by the Thomas More Society seeking immediate enforcement of the Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act.
|