in this issue:
hot button issues: DEADLY DOZEN 2004 / TEXAS
abortion: BRAZILIAN SPIN / IPAS SPIN / PORTUGUESE NAVY
culture of death: MEDICAL BIAS
euthanasia: TERRI SCHIAVO
human cloning: ZAVOS STRIKES AGAIN
personhood: NOT IN TEXAS
postscript: MARK YOUR CALENDAR
reflection for prayer: PSALM 37:39-40
hot button issues
DEADLY DOZEN 2004: American Life League has issued a revised edition of its listing of pro-abortion elected officials who claim the Catholic faith. The group includes four Republicans and eight Democrats. A newspaper ad concludes with the observation: “You can’t be Catholic and pro-abortion.”
(Reading: “The Deadly Dozen,” American Life League, 8/31/04)
TEXAS: The Houston Coalition for Life, an American Life League associate, is gearing up to oppose Planned Parenthood’s proposed expansion plans, which include a new late-term abortion center in downtown Houston. The coalition has written to local construction companies, asking them to “please do the right thing by rejecting this job if Planned Parenthood asks you to participate.”
(Reading: “Abortion proponents prepare to block Planned Parenthood expansion,” Houston Coalition for Life news release, 8/31/04)
abortion
BRAZILIAN SPIN: In a friend of the court brief, a group called the Human Rights, Gender and Bioethics Institute asserts that the termination of a child with anacephaly is not really an abortion, since the baby with an undeveloped brain has no chance of survival. The group says requiring women to carry such a pregnancy to term is akin to torture. Brazil’s supreme court is to decide soon if such abortions should be permitted. Brazil’s Catholic bishops are fighting the effort, noting that the child is a human being, not a “thing.”
(Reading: “Ruling awaited on aborting fetuses with birth defects,” Knight Ridder News Service, 8/30/04)
IPAS SPIN: In an interview at an International Conference on Population and Development follow-up session, Elizabeth Maguire of IPAS said, “Unsafe abortion is really all about human rights and social injustice because those women who are poor and vulnerable do not have access to safe abortion.” IPAS was identified as an organization that “works to protect women from unsafe abortions.” In reality, IPAS manufactures and distributes abortion equipment.
(Reading: “Unsafe abortions kill 70,000 women a year,” Reuters, 9/1/04)
PORTUGUESE NAVY: Portugal says if a Dutch-registered “abortion ship” tries to enter Portuguese waters, it will be met by a naval vessel with orders to turn the boat away. The ship is owned by the Women on Waves Foundation, which attempts to distribute abortion pills to women in countries where abortion on demand is not permitted. Portugal has some of Europe’s toughest abortion laws.
(Reading: “Portugal vows to use force to keep ‘abortion ship’ away,” Agence France-Presse, 8/29/04)
culture of death
MEDICAL BIAS: A recent article in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology states, “the women who are most likely to need emergency contraception — those who are at risk of an unintended pregnancy but not using any method of contraception — have among the lowest levels of knowledge” (about so-called emergency contraception).
COMMENT: Read that and let it sink in. The writers of this article seem to assume that all women should use birth control, that “unintended pregnancy” is something that women who do not use birth control “risk,” and that “emergency contraception” (which they do not admit can cause abortion) is something that these women “need.” This is all stated as unquestionable fact.
(Reading: “Knowledge of emergency contraception among women aged 18 to 44 in California,” American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, (2004) 191, 150-156)
euthanasia
TERRI SCHIAVO: The Florida supreme court heard arguments in a case challenging “Terri’s Law,” the measure that allowed Gov. Jeb Bush to order a feeding tube restored for Terri Schiavo, a disabled woman whose estranged husband obtained court approval to have the tube removed. The hearing centered on whether the governor and legislature exceeded their authority in taking such action. No decision was made at this week’s hearing.
(Reading: “‘Terri’s Law’ faces supreme scrutiny,” Tampa Tribune, 9/1/04)
human cloning
ZAVOS STRIKES AGAIN: The man described in media reports as a “maverick scientist” now claims he has cloned dead persons. It is reported that Panos Zavos created embryos using DNA from an 11-year-old girl and a 33-year-old man who died in car crashes. Zanos once claimed to have implanted a cloned human embryo in a woman’s womb. He later acknowledged the attempt was unsuccessful.
(Reading: “First steps in cloning from dead,” The Daily Telegraph, 8/30/04)
personhood
NOT IN TEXAS: The state supreme court has ruled that the child in the womb is not a person. On an 8-1 vote, the court decided that the parents of a stillborn child had no standing to sue a Fort Worth hospital. The Houston Chronicle reports that 37 states allow wrongful-death claims in cases of stillborn babies, but Texas does not.
(Reading: “Justices: Fetus is not a ‘person,'” Houston Chronicle, 8/30/04)
postscript
MARK YOUR CALENDAR: American Life League is commemorating 25 years of fighting for the babies. ALL’s board of directors and advisory board are planning a dinner with the theme, “American Life League?s silver anniversary tribute to Judie Brown ? her work and times.” The event will take place on Saturday, April 16, 2005 at the Marriott Crystal Gateway in Arlington, Va. (next to Reagan National Airport). More details will be forthcoming. If you have any questions, please e-mail: .
reflection for prayer
PSALM 37:39-40: The salvation of the just is from the Lord, their refuge in time of distress. The Lord helps and rescues them, rescues and saves them from the wicked, because in God they take refuge