abortion
BREAST CANCER LINK: In debating the fate of Food and Drug Administration approval for RU-486, members of Congress pointed out the clinical proof that there is a relationship between abortion and breast cancer. Said Congressman Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), a physician, “I have reviewed the studies on this issue and they are very, very compelling that there really is a link between abortion and breast cancer. The statement released by the NCI (National Cancer Institute), I believe, is a very disingenuous statement. It really ignores the facts on this issue.”
In debating the fate of Food and Drug Administration approval for RU-486, members of Congress pointed out the clinical proof that there is a relationship between abortion and breast cancer. Said Congressman Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), a physician, “I have reviewed the studies on this issue and they are very, very compelling that there really is a link between abortion and breast cancer. The statement released by the NCI (National Cancer Institute), I believe, is a very disingenuous statement. It really ignores the facts on this issue.”
(Reading: Republican National Coalition for Life 6/22/99 FaxNotes; Weldon quote taken from a press release by “>Joel Brind, Ph.D.; for details on the abortion/breast cancer link)
activism
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
(Reading: e-mail from “>Aoife Ni Aodain, Youth Defence, 6/15/99)
birth control pill
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
COMMENT: Or, he could have said, our study is meaningless because the results are uncertain. Too bad the media didn’t read the study.
(Reading: “The Pill Cleared of Causing Heart Attacks,” BBC News, 6/14/99, e-mail from Nick Dunn to Jane Wilks, 6/11/99; “Oral Contraceptives and Myocardial Infarction: Results of the MICA Case-Control Study,” British Medical Journal, 6/12/99)
chemical abortion
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
(Reading: “Nurses Quit Rather Than Agree to Dispense ‘Morning-After’ Pill,” Associated Press, 6/20/99; ALL background material on scientific facts relating to these pills)
SEXUAL SENSIBILITY: The American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) is launching a campaign to promote emergency “contraception” because “sensible use of emergency contraception to help reduce unintended pregnancies and abortions” is preferable. The spokesperson for this campaign is Drew Pinsky, M.D., of the television program Loveline.
COMMENT: The fact that a human being’s life begins at fertilization and that such chemicals abort these little ones is intentionally ignored.
(Reading: “‘Sex and Sensibility’ Campaign Targets Millions of Women at Risk of Unintended Pregnancies,” AMWApress release, 6/15/99)
cloning
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
(Reading: “Scientists Clone Human Embryos,” Agence France-Presse, 6/17/99, “Cloning Raises Specter of Human Harvesting,” Washington Post, 6/14/99, p. A1, “Company Denies Human Embryos Are Cloned In Its Research,” New York Times, 6/15/99. For the ethical arguments against the cloning of human beings or lethal experimentation on embryonic babies, consult the American Bioethics Advisory Commission.)
ETHICS JOURNAL: The April 1999 issue of Journal of Medical Ethics is devoted to the questions of cloning, human embryo research, genetics and stem cell research. As Dianne Irving, Ph.D. commented regarding a specific article by Jeff McMahon, “The logic and arguments are precisely those of Peter Singer.” McMahon argues that a fetus may become a person in the future, but is not one during pregnancy. He argues, “there is no point at which killing a fetus immediately shifts from being innocuous to being gravely wrong. In the early stages of pregnancy, before one of us begins to exist in association with the developing organism, there is no one who would be affected for the worse if the organism were killed.”
(Reading: Jeff McMahan, “Cloning, killing and identity,” Journal of Medical Ethics, 4/99, pp. 77-86)
condom
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
(Reading: “Proposal to Increase Teen Condom Use, Reduce STDS Wins Top Prize in HHS Secretary’s award for Health Innovations,” HRSA news brief, 6/9/99)
culture of death
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
(Reading: Seeing the disabled as Lab Rats,” The Edmonton (Canada) Journal, 5/3/99)
disability rights
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
(Reading: “Dillery Hopes to Move from Sandusky,” Sandusky [Ohio] Register, 6/19/99. The text of Dillery’s lawsuit, citing violations of her civil rights and harassment, is available at the site.)
patenting human beings
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
(Reading: “Contested Patent Raises Issues,” Associated Press, 6/18/99; Jeremy Rifkin’s homepage; “U.S. Ruling aids opponent of patents for life forms,” Washington Post, 6/17/99)
population control
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
(Letter from Cluett to Dwyer, 6/7/99; contact: “>)
victory
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “it is too costly to operate,” according to Teddie Storey of Planned Parenthood. But Delaware County Right to Life is cheering, regardless of the reason, and credits STOPP (Stop Planned Parenthood International) tactics and strategy for the closure.
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “it is too costly to operate,” according to Teddie Storey of Planned Parenthood. But Delaware County Right to Life is cheering, regardless of the reason, and credits STOPP (Stop Planned Parenthood International) tactics and strategy for the closure.
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “it is too costly to operate,” according to Teddie Storey of Planned Parenthood. But Delaware County Right to Life is cheering, regardless of the reason, and credits STOPP (Stop Planned Parenthood International) tactics and strategy for the closure.
(Reading: “Group: Hancock Women’s Clinic Too Costly,” Press and Sun-Bulletin (Binghamton, N.Y.), 6/11/99; contact: “>Ed Szymkowiak, Delaware County Right to Life)
WISCONSIN: The Assembly GOP caucus passed three budget amendments: parental notice required for prescription birth control for teens; elimination of funding for family planning; 2nd state funds prohibited from going to any organization involved in abortion or abortion-related activities.
(Reading: “Pro-Life Wisconsin Lauds Three Budget Amendments Passed by Assembly GOP Caucus;” Pro-Life Wisconsin news release, 6/22/99; e-mail: “>Jon Paul)
you
NEWS FOR PRO-FAMILY ADVOCATES: A group of pro-family leaders, in cooperation with the Pontifical Council for the Family, have started the Vinculum web site providing updated material for those working in defense of the family.
NEWS FOR PRO-FAMILY ADVOCATES: A group of pro-family leaders, in cooperation with the Pontifical Council for the Family, have started the Vinculum web site providing updated material for those working in defense of the family.
NEWS FOR PRO-FAMILY ADVOCATES: A group of pro-family leaders, in cooperation with the Pontifical Council for the Family, have started the Vinculum web site providing updated material for those working in defense of the family.
RESEARCH TOOL: Culture of Life Foundation has an easily navigated web site that features documents on a variety if topics including breast cancer and abortion.
SO HOW ARE WE DOING? Four months ago, American Life League began offering Communique via e-mail. We’re eager for feedback from you, our subscribers. Please let us know what you think of the new electronic version of our newsletter. We’ll be glad to entertain any suggestions on how we might improve this service. Thank you!
spiritual thought as we pray and fast:
“In the sphere of action, a right thought is one ruled by the will of God, and intentions are holy when directed singlemindedly toward him.”
-Baldwin of Canterbury, bishop
BREAST CANCER LINK: In debating the fate of Food and Drug Administration approval for RU-486, members of Congress pointed out the clinical proof that there is a relationship between abortion and breast cancer. Said Congressman Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), a physician, “I have reviewed the studies on this issue and they are very, very compelling that there really is a link between abortion and breast cancer. The statement released by the NCI (National Cancer Institute), I believe, is a very disingenuous statement. It really ignores the facts on this issue.”
In debating the fate of Food and Drug Administration approval for RU-486, members of Congress pointed out the clinical proof that there is a relationship between abortion and breast cancer. Said Congressman Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), a physician, “I have reviewed the studies on this issue and they are very, very compelling that there really is a link between abortion and breast cancer. The statement released by the NCI (National Cancer Institute), I believe, is a very disingenuous statement. It really ignores the facts on this issue.”
(Reading: Republican National Coalition for Life 6/22/99 FaxNotes; Weldon quote taken from a press release by “>Joel Brind, Ph.D.; for details on the abortion/breast cancer link)
activism
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
(Reading: e-mail from “>Aoife Ni Aodain, Youth Defence, 6/15/99)
birth control pill
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
COMMENT: Or, he could have said, our study is meaningless because the results are uncertain. Too bad the media didn’t read the study.
(Reading: “The Pill Cleared of Causing Heart Attacks,” BBC News, 6/14/99, e-mail from Nick Dunn to Jane Wilks, 6/11/99; “Oral Contraceptives and Myocardial Infarction: Results of the MICA Case-Control Study,” British Medical Journal, 6/12/99)
chemical abortion
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
(Reading: “Nurses Quit Rather Than Agree to Dispense ‘Morning-After’ Pill,” Associated Press, 6/20/99; ALL background material on scientific facts relating to these pills)
SEXUAL SENSIBILITY: The American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) is launching a campaign to promote emergency “contraception” because “sensible use of emergency contraception to help reduce unintended pregnancies and abortions” is preferable. The spokesperson for this campaign is Drew Pinsky, M.D., of the television program Loveline.
COMMENT: The fact that a human being’s life begins at fertilization and that such chemicals abort these little ones is intentionally ignored.
(Reading: “‘Sex and Sensibility’ Campaign Targets Millions of Women at Risk of Unintended Pregnancies,” AMWApress release, 6/15/99)
cloning
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
(Reading: “Scientists Clone Human Embryos,” Agence France-Presse, 6/17/99, “Cloning Raises Specter of Human Harvesting,” Washington Post, 6/14/99, p. A1, “Company Denies Human Embryos Are Cloned In Its Research,” New York Times, 6/15/99. For the ethical arguments against the cloning of human beings or lethal experimentation on embryonic babies, consult the American Bioethics Advisory Commission.)
ETHICS JOURNAL: The April 1999 issue of Journal of Medical Ethics is devoted to the questions of cloning, human embryo research, genetics and stem cell research. As Dianne Irving, Ph.D. commented regarding a specific article by Jeff McMahon, “The logic and arguments are precisely those of Peter Singer.” McMahon argues that a fetus may become a person in the future, but is not one during pregnancy. He argues, “there is no point at which killing a fetus immediately shifts from being innocuous to being gravely wrong. In the early stages of pregnancy, before one of us begins to exist in association with the developing organism, there is no one who would be affected for the worse if the organism were killed.”
(Reading: Jeff McMahan, “Cloning, killing and identity,” Journal of Medical Ethics, 4/99, pp. 77-86)
condom
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
(Reading: “Proposal to Increase Teen Condom Use, Reduce STDS Wins Top Prize in HHS Secretary’s award for Health Innovations,” HRSA news brief, 6/9/99)
culture of death
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
(Reading: Seeing the disabled as Lab Rats,” The Edmonton (Canada) Journal, 5/3/99)
disability rights
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
(Reading: “Dillery Hopes to Move from Sandusky,” Sandusky [Ohio] Register, 6/19/99. The text of Dillery’s lawsuit, citing violations of her civil rights and harassment, is available at the site.)
patenting human beings
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
(Reading: “Contested Patent Raises Issues,” Associated Press, 6/18/99; Jeremy Rifkin’s homepage; “U.S. Ruling aids opponent of patents for life forms,” Washington Post, 6/17/99)
population control
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
(Letter from Cluett to Dwyer, 6/7/99; contact: “>)
victory
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “it is too costly to operate,” according to Teddie Storey of Planned Parenthood. But Delaware County Right to Life is cheering, regardless of the reason, and credits STOPP (Stop Planned Parenthood International) tactics and strategy for the closure.
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “it is too costly to operate,” according to Teddie Storey of Planned Parenthood. But Delaware County Right to Life is cheering, regardless of the reason, and credits STOPP (Stop Planned Parenthood International) tactics and strategy for the closure.
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “it is too costly to operate,” according to Teddie Storey of Planned Parenthood. But Delaware County Right to Life is cheering, regardless of the reason, and credits STOPP (Stop Planned Parenthood International) tactics and strategy for the closure.
(Reading: “Group: Hancock Women’s Clinic Too Costly,” Press and Sun-Bulletin (Binghamton, N.Y.), 6/11/99; contact: “>Ed Szymkowiak, Delaware County Right to Life)
WISCONSIN: The Assembly GOP caucus passed three budget amendments: parental notice required for prescription birth control for teens; elimination of funding for family planning; 2nd state funds prohibited from going to any organization involved in abortion or abortion-related activities.
(Reading: “Pro-Life Wisconsin Lauds Three Budget Amendments Passed by Assembly GOP Caucus;” Pro-Life Wisconsin news release, 6/22/99; e-mail: “>Jon Paul)
you
NEWS FOR PRO-FAMILY ADVOCATES: A group of pro-family leaders, in cooperation with the Pontifical Council for the Family, have started the Vinculum web site providing updated material for those working in defense of the family.
NEWS FOR PRO-FAMILY ADVOCATES: A group of pro-family leaders, in cooperation with the Pontifical Council for the Family, have started the Vinculum web site providing updated material for those working in defense of the family.
NEWS FOR PRO-FAMILY ADVOCATES: A group of pro-family leaders, in cooperation with the Pontifical Council for the Family, have started the Vinculum web site providing updated material for those working in defense of the family.
RESEARCH TOOL: Culture of Life Foundation has an easily navigated web site that features documents on a variety if topics including breast cancer and abortion.
SO HOW ARE WE DOING? Four months ago, American Life League began offering Communique via e-mail. We’re eager for feedback from you, our subscribers. Please let us know what you think of the new electronic version of our newsletter. We’ll be glad to entertain any suggestions on how we might improve this service. Thank you!
spiritual thought as we pray and fast:
“In the sphere of action, a right thought is one ruled by the will of God, and intentions are holy when directed singlemindedly toward him.”
-Baldwin of Canterbury, bishop
BREAST CANCER LINK: In debating the fate of Food and Drug Administration approval for RU-486, members of Congress pointed out the clinical proof that there is a relationship between abortion and breast cancer. Said Congressman Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), a physician, “I have reviewed the studies on this issue and they are very, very compelling that there really is a link between abortion and breast cancer. The statement released by the NCI (National Cancer Institute), I believe, is a very disingenuous statement. It really ignores the facts on this issue.”
(Reading: Republican National Coalition for Life 6/22/99 FaxNotes; Weldon quote taken from a press release by “>Joel Brind, Ph.D.; for details on the abortion/breast cancer link)
activism
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
IRELAND: Pro-life activist Conor Maguire of County Cavan was arrested and sentenced to jail for praying the rosary outside a British abortion referral agency, Marie Stopes, in Dublin. He was denied a phone call, a glass of water and a visit from a doctor.
(Reading: e-mail from “>Aoife Ni Aodain, Youth Defence, 6/15/99)
birth control pill
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
RISKS: A British Medical Journal study indicates that women on the pill were not at greater risk of heart attack. Pharmaceutical giants Schering and Organon funded the study, which was lead by senior research fellow Nicholas Dunn. In a surprising response to the report, when Jane Wilks e-mailed “>Dunn, Dunn responded: “we cannot be statistically certain that the true population estimate does not indicate no effect at all, or even a decreased risk!”
COMMENT: Or, he could have said, our study is meaningless because the results are uncertain. Too bad the media didn’t read the study.
(Reading: “The Pill Cleared of Causing Heart Attacks,” BBC News, 6/14/99, e-mail from Nick Dunn to Jane Wilks, 6/11/99; “Oral Contraceptives and Myocardial Infarction: Results of the MICA Case-Control Study,” British Medical Journal, 6/12/99)
chemical abortion
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
NURSES QUIT: Five Christian nurses have quit their jobs at the Riverside (California) Neighborhood Health Clinic because they did not want to be required to dispense medication that “goes against their religious beliefs.” Their refusal to dispense emergency “contraception” (morning after pill) prompted an Associated Press misstatement that “It’s not the same as RU-486, which can be used to induce an abortion.”
(Reading: “Nurses Quit Rather Than Agree to Dispense ‘Morning-After’ Pill,” Associated Press, 6/20/99; ALL background material on scientific facts relating to these pills)
SEXUAL SENSIBILITY: The American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) is launching a campaign to promote emergency “contraception” because “sensible use of emergency contraception to help reduce unintended pregnancies and abortions” is preferable. The spokesperson for this campaign is Drew Pinsky, M.D., of the television program Loveline.
COMMENT: The fact that a human being’s life begins at fertilization and that such chemicals abort these little ones is intentionally ignored.
(Reading: “‘Sex and Sensibility’ Campaign Targets Millions of Women at Risk of Unintended Pregnancies,” AMWApress release, 6/15/99)
cloning
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
MAKING HUMAN BEINGS: News reports indicate that American researchers are cloning human beings, using them for destructive research, and robbing them of their stem cells-which causes their death. Geron Corporation of Menlo Park, California, has denied the report. However, Geron has acquired Roslin Institute, which is reported by the London Daily Mail to have “produced a male embryo comprising nearly 400 cells.” Meanwhile Geron is using embryonic babies, described as “human eggs rejected by fertility clinics because they were not viable” in an effort to understand how these tiny human beings’ cells reprogram themselves. Geron claims the goal of such destructive research is “to combat aging.” The New York Times report indicates that such stem cells “are likely to be rejected by most patients.”
(Reading: “Scientists Clone Human Embryos,” Agence France-Presse, 6/17/99, “Cloning Raises Specter of Human Harvesting,” Washington Post, 6/14/99, p. A1, “Company Denies Human Embryos Are Cloned In Its Research,” New York Times, 6/15/99. For the ethical arguments against the cloning of human beings or lethal experimentation on embryonic babies, consult the American Bioethics Advisory Commission.)
ETHICS JOURNAL: The April 1999 issue of Journal of Medical Ethics is devoted to the questions of cloning, human embryo research, genetics and stem cell research. As Dianne Irving, Ph.D. commented regarding a specific article by Jeff McMahon, “The logic and arguments are precisely those of Peter Singer.” McMahon argues that a fetus may become a person in the future, but is not one during pregnancy. He argues, “there is no point at which killing a fetus immediately shifts from being innocuous to being gravely wrong. In the early stages of pregnancy, before one of us begins to exist in association with the developing organism, there is no one who would be affected for the worse if the organism were killed.”
(Reading: Jeff McMahan, “Cloning, killing and identity,” Journal of Medical Ethics, 4/99, pp. 77-86)
condom
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
WINNERS! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a prize to two University of Michigan students for their proposal to increase condom use and reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted disease. The $7,500 prize went for the paper, “Increasing condom use by users of Depo-Provera.”
(Reading: “Proposal to Increase Teen Condom Use, Reduce STDS Wins Top Prize in HHS Secretary’s award for Health Innovations,” HRSA news brief, 6/9/99)
culture of death
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE: Mark Pickup, incurably ill and disabled with multiple sclerosis, writes: “There is great poverty to a society that surrenders its weakest to the tyranny of bioethics and the madness of inhuman experimentation in the name of scientific progress. And if the ethical standard bar is to be lowered or removed for the sake of Canada getting its share of pharmaceutical research and development money, the weakest people will be sacrificed. In doing so, our nation will sacrifice something akin to ‘soul.’ Perhaps it doesn’t matter in a brave new century. Soul has no ‘i’ to dot nor ‘t’ to cross.”
(Reading: Seeing the disabled as Lab Rats,” The Edmonton (Canada) Journal, 5/3/99)
disability rights
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
OHIO: Young mother Kelly Dillery faces an uphill battle in her lawsuit against the city of Sandusky, which brought charges against her for child endangerment because she carried her daughter in her lap while traveling on city streets in her wheelchair. Dillery was acquitted.
(Reading: “Dillery Hopes to Move from Sandusky,” Sandusky [Ohio] Register, 6/19/99. The text of Dillery’s lawsuit, citing violations of her civil rights and harassment, is available at the site.)
patenting human beings
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
RIFKIN: Jeremy Rifkin, well known for his opposition to much of what occurs under the title “biotechnology,” has challenged the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office to address the question: what is a human being? Rifkin has applied for a patent “to claim rights to all laboratory processes involving the combined use of human and animal cells.” A previous application was rejected; Rifkin expects the question to ultimately go to the federal courts.
(Reading: “Contested Patent Raises Issues,” Associated Press, 6/18/99; Jeremy Rifkin’s homepage; “U.S. Ruling aids opponent of patents for life forms,” Washington Post, 6/17/99)
population control
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
BILL GATES: Suzanne Cluett of the William H. Gates Foundation writes to pro-life American Robert Dwyer “We are sorry that you hold such a biased view of the Planned Parenthood Federation. . . . While we may not agree with every program Planned Parenthood undertakes, we have every confidence in their capacity to carry out the projects which the Foundation funds.”
(Letter from Cluett to Dwyer, 6/7/99; contact: “>)
victory
HANCOCK, NEW YORK SAYS NO! A “once-a-month” Planned Parenthood clinic in Hancock is being closed because “