abortion
ADOLESCENT MALE ATTITUDES: Researchers reviewed 1988 and 1995 National Surveys on Adolescent Males and discovered that “24 percent of US males aged 15-19 agreed that it was all right for a woman to have an abortion ‘for any reason,’ down from 37 percent in 1988. This decrease was driven almost entirely by non-Hispanic white males.”
(Reading: “Trends in Adolescent Males’ Abortion Attitudes, 1988-1995: Differences by Race and Ethnicity,” Family Planning Perspectives, 5-6/00, pp. 118-123)
PROPONENTS TARGET ROCK FOR LIFE: The National Abortion Federation (NAF) is using “underhanded tactics” to target Bryan Kemper, director of Rock for Life, one of American Life League’s youth divisions. In advance of Kemper’s tour, NAF broadcast information to police departments nationwide claiming Kemper “publicly advocate[s] violence against abortion.” Actually, Kemper has never advocated or performed acts of violence against abortionists or the abortion industry. Every RFL chapter nationwide has signed a Proclamation Against Violence.
(Reading: Rock for Life news release, 6/21/00)
birth control pill
DRUG INTERACTION: The AMA Council on Scientific Affairs reports that “women who are prescribed rifampin [an antibiotic] concomitantly with oral contraceptives are faced with a significant risk of oral contraceptive failure and should be counseled about the additional use of non-hormonal contraceptive methods during the course of rifampin therapy.” The question of drug interactions involving the Pill and any antibiotic were addressed during the AMA meeting. (Reading: “Impact of Antibiotics on Pill Worrisome,” American Medical News, 7/2/00)
PULMONARY EMBOLISM: New Zealand researchers have determined that women using oral contraceptives face a risk of early death from pulmonary embolism (median age of deaths reported was 29). They report that “third-generation oral contraceptives seem to carry a higher risk.” Furthermore, “family-physician records could not be found for several cases.” Commentator Neil Poulter observes “the complication is a side-effect of a drug prescribed by the medical profession for young healthy women.”
(Reading: “Oral Contraceptives and Fatal Pulmonary Embolism,” The Lancet, 6/17/00; Risk of Fatal Pulmonary Embolism with Oral Contraceptives,” The Lancet: 6/17/00, pp. 2088)
condoms
NICARAGUA: In Managua, Nicaragua, researchers completed a randomized controlled study involving 19 motels allegedly frequented by participants in commercial and non-commercial sex. The trial was designed to determine how best to make condoms available to “guests.” “Making condoms available in rooms is the most effective strategy to increase condom use, whereas use of health-education material was ineffective,” researchers note.
(Reading: “Promotion of Condom Use in a High-risk Setting in Nicaragua: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” The Lancet:6/17/00, pp. 2101-2105)
eugenics
JOHN MAYNARD SMITH: Smith, described as “the world’s greatest evolutionary biologist,” is also described as a man with a communist background. “Maynard Smith is moderately in favor of eugenics–but he cautions: ‘Before we take eugenic measures, we have to be clear as to our objectives and the diseases we want to eliminate. I hope people would not regard early myopia as a candidate for termination, or I would not be here. Decisions have to be made by the individual parent, not by doctors or nurses nor the government or the state. … But I don’t want to deny that this is something that is free of quite hard moral problems,’ he adds. The problem is where to draw the line: some people might be willing to abort an embryo that has Down’s Syndrome; but what about later-stage illnesses like Huntington’s Chorea (which strikes in the mid-30’s), or Parkinson’s Disease (now affecting the actor Michael J. Fox)? What about schizophrenia, or autism? Maynard Smith refers to this as ‘negative eugenics’ because of its concern with eliminating disease; ‘positive eugenics’ deals with the production of so-called designer babies, with customized traits such as blue eyes or perfect pitch….”
(Reading: “Genes, Machines and Human Beings,” The Independent, 6/9/00)
health care
RELIGION AND PHYSICIANS: An exploration of the relationship between the practice of medicine and religion includes questions about what patients want, whether or not religion is trivialized when attempts are made to incorporate religious activities into medical treatment and why physicians recommend religious activity. The authors comment, “only a clinical trial in which patients were randomly assigned either to receive or not to receive a recommendation to attend religious services could help determine whether such a recommendation would increase church attendance and lead to better health.”
COMMENT: Scary!
(Reading: “Should Physicians Prescribe Religious Activities?” New England Journal of Medicine, 6/22/00, requires paid subscription for full text access)
imposed death
INFANTICIDE: Researchers funded by the European Commission studied end-of-life decisions in neonatal intensive care units in seven European nations. “Practices such as continuation of current treatment without intensification and withholding of emergency maneuvers were widespread, but withdrawal of mechanical ventilation was reported by variable proportions (28-90 percent). Only in France (73 percent) and the Netherlands (47 percent) was the administration of drugs with the aim of ending life reported with substantial frequency.”
(Reading: “End-of-life Decisions in Neonatal Intensive Care: Physicians’ Self-reported Practices in Seven European Countries,” The Lancet, 6/17/00, pp. 2112-2118)
LIVING WILLS: Discussing the process in which a living will plays a part, Linda Emanuel, M.D., writes, “A good process had to deal with several more things: the patients having a chance to consider and have some control over their last chapter of life; the proxy decision makers being ready for their roles; and the families having a chance to talk about issues relating to end of life and to resolve personal matters. Dying, it emerged, was a taboo topic that patients and families wanted to repossess.” But Nancy Valko, R.N., who is a nurse dealing daily with the dying, points out, “The ‘living will,’ as a vehicle to avoid heroic measures at the end of life, is what the average person assumes without realizing the real purpose is to induce people to avoid expensive or life-prolonging care when disability–not death–is anticipated. When someone is truly dying, it would be a rare health care provider who would insist on any heroic measures.”
(Reading: “How Living Wills Can Help Doctors and Patients Talk About Dying,” British Medical Journal, 6/17/00, pp. 1618-1619, 6/19/00 e-mail from Nancy Valko, R.N.)
in vitro fertilization
EUGENICS I: Researchers have identified a process by which blastocysts can be quality-control tested prior to placement in the mother’s womb. By doing this, they provide “the ability to transfer one high-scoring blastocyst” which “should lead to pregnancy rates greater than 60 percent, without the complication of twins.”
(Reading: “Blastocyst Score Affects Implantation and Pregnancy Outcome: Towards a Single Blastocyst Transfer,” Fertility and Sterility, 6/6/00, pp.1155-1158)
EUGENCIS II: Researchers have shown that, by using preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), only “normal embryos” can be transferred while other are set aside. For the purpose of conducting this particular study, “embryos donated for research were used as blastomere controls.”
(Reading: “Outcome of Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis of Translocations,” Fertility and Sterility, 6/6/00, pp.1209-1218)
life of the mother
CERVICAL CANCER: A case control study conducted at the University of Iowa found that “pregnant women with cervical cancer should deliver by caesarian section.”
(Reading: “Caesarians Recommended for All Pregnant Women with Cervical Cancer,” The Lancet news update, 6/17/00, p. 2141; see Obstetrics and Gynecology: 2000:95:832-38 for study details; visit the website of the Society of Gynecological Oncologists; also see background on Joel Sorosky, M.D., and his work in this field)
personhood
NEW JERSEY: A ruling in the case of two female children born 18 months after their father’s death through their mother’s use of frozen sperm resulted, according to reports, in the following: “Discerning, however, a basic legislative intent to enable children to take property from their parents and through their parents; and noting that the two girls in this case, once they came into existence, are full-fledged human beings entitled to all of the love, respect, dignity and legal protection which that status requires, the Judge declares them to be their father’s legal heirs under the intestate laws of this state.”
(Reading: E-mail report from attorney Richard Collier citing 38-4-4187 I/M/O Estate of Kolacy, Deceased, decided 3/31/00, opinion issued 4/19/00, approved for publication 6/20/00; see New Jersey state courts)
politics
GORE PRINCIPLED? Pro-abortion supporters, wondering about Gore’s true dedication to abortion, are suggesting Senator Evan Bayh as his running mate. Margie Kelly of the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy argues that “you cannot support choice and support the partial-birth abortion ban at the same time. They are not compatible.” It seems Bayh, who claims he is “pro-choice,” did vote for the measure. And, NOW Executive Vice President Kim Gandy argues, “Selecting a running mate who does not support reproductive freedom for women would be disastrous to [Gore’s] standing among women who care about women’s rights-and that applies to Evan Bayh.”
COMMENT: Pro-aborts do not compromise! And pro-lifers in the political arena.
(Reading: “Al Gore: Abortion-rights Advocates Warn Against Tapping Indiana Senator for Veep,” Kaiser Report, 6/26/00)
pregnancy
INTENTION: UNWANTED: Researchers have shown that the support for the argument that “unintended pregnancy is associated with ‘adverse maternal behavior'” is weak. Further, there is “no support for any link between unintended pregnancy and children’s cognitive development or birth weight.”
(Reading: “Unwanted Children Not Better Off Dead,” The Family in America, 4/2/00, “Effect of Pregnancy Intention on Child Development,” pp. 83-94)
stem cell research
GERMANY & JAPAN EYE U.S.A.: In separate news reports, it became clear that foreign nations that prohibit the destruction of human embryonic babies for the purpose of acquiring totipotent stem cells will purchase them from the United States. The Japanese Gynecology and Obstetrics Society “does not allow the use of fertilized eggs for anything other than infertility treatment.” This means that Japan will have to go elsewhere for stem cells. German scientists plan to import human embryo stem cells from the United States because “Germany has banned the killing of embryos for scientific research.”
(Reading: “Japan May Seek Embryos Cells from Overseas,” Nature, 6/22/00; “German Scientists Plan to Import U.S. Embryo Cells,” Reuters, 6/20/97)
web news
WORLD LIFE LEAGUE: New site!
zinger
WILLIAM F. BUCKLEY ON THE WRONG: On his “On the Right” column, Buckley opines about AIDS in Africa, “Recruit an army of missionaries. This is not a Pentagon project, never mind the cant about national security being involved. The challenge is to the humanitarian resources of those who have learned what it is that needs to be done.” Buckley says that we must mobilize the Salvation Army to send people to Africa to preach the need for condoms.
COMMENT: Oh Bill, how wrong can you get!
(Reading: “In Pursuit of AIDS in Africa,” National Review, 6/5/00)
reflection for prayer
Keep thyself with Jesus both in life and death and commit thyself to His care, who alone can help thee when all others fail. Thy Beloved is of such a nature that He will admit of no other, but will have thy heart to Himself, and sit there like a king upon his own throne. If thou couldst but purge thyself well from affection to creatures, Jesus would willingly dwell with thee. Thou wilt find all that in a manner lost, which thou hast placed in men apart from Jesus. Do not trust or rely upon a frail reed; “for all flesh is grass and all the glory thereof shall fade as the flower of the field” (Isaiah 40:6).
-Thomas a Kempis, Imitation of Christ, Book II, Chapter 7
ADOLESCENT MALE ATTITUDES: Researchers reviewed 1988 and 1995 National Surveys on Adolescent Males and discovered that “24 percent of US males aged 15-19 agreed that it was all right for a woman to have an abortion ‘for any reason,’ down from 37 percent in 1988. This decrease was driven almost entirely by non-Hispanic white males.”
(Reading: “Trends in Adolescent Males’ Abortion Attitudes, 1988-1995: Differences by Race and Ethnicity,” Family Planning Perspectives, 5-6/00, pp. 118-123)
PROPONENTS TARGET ROCK FOR LIFE: The National Abortion Federation (NAF) is using “underhanded tactics” to target Bryan Kemper, director of Rock for Life, one of American Life League’s youth divisions. In advance of Kemper’s tour, NAF broadcast information to police departments nationwide claiming Kemper “publicly advocate[s] violence against abortion.” Actually, Kemper has never advocated or performed acts of violence against abortionists or the abortion industry. Every RFL chapter nationwide has signed a Proclamation Against Violence.
(Reading: Rock for Life news release, 6/21/00)
birth control pill
DRUG INTERACTION: The AMA Council on Scientific Affairs reports that “women who are prescribed rifampin [an antibiotic] concomitantly with oral contraceptives are faced with a significant risk of oral contraceptive failure and should be counseled about the additional use of non-hormonal contraceptive methods during the course of rifampin therapy.” The question of drug interactions involving the Pill and any antibiotic were addressed during the AMA meeting. (Reading: “Impact of Antibiotics on Pill Worrisome,” American Medical News, 7/2/00)
PULMONARY EMBOLISM: New Zealand researchers have determined that women using oral contraceptives face a risk of early death from pulmonary embolism (median age of deaths reported was 29). They report that “third-generation oral contraceptives seem to carry a higher risk.” Furthermore, “family-physician records could not be found for several cases.” Commentator Neil Poulter observes “the complication is a side-effect of a drug prescribed by the medical profession for young healthy women.”
(Reading: “Oral Contraceptives and Fatal Pulmonary Embolism,” The Lancet, 6/17/00; Risk of Fatal Pulmonary Embolism with Oral Contraceptives,” The Lancet: 6/17/00, pp. 2088)
condoms
NICARAGUA: In Managua, Nicaragua, researchers completed a randomized controlled study involving 19 motels allegedly frequented by participants in commercial and non-commercial sex. The trial was designed to determine how best to make condoms available to “guests.” “Making condoms available in rooms is the most effective strategy to increase condom use, whereas use of health-education material was ineffective,” researchers note.
(Reading: “Promotion of Condom Use in a High-risk Setting in Nicaragua: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” The Lancet:6/17/00, pp. 2101-2105)
eugenics
JOHN MAYNARD SMITH: Smith, described as “the world’s greatest evolutionary biologist,” is also described as a man with a communist background. “Maynard Smith is moderately in favor of eugenics–but he cautions: ‘Before we take eugenic measures, we have to be clear as to our objectives and the diseases we want to eliminate. I hope people would not regard early myopia as a candidate for termination, or I would not be here. Decisions have to be made by the individual parent, not by doctors or nurses nor the government or the state. … But I don’t want to deny that this is something that is free of quite hard moral problems,’ he adds. The problem is where to draw the line: some people might be willing to abort an embryo that has Down’s Syndrome; but what about later-stage illnesses like Huntington’s Chorea (which strikes in the mid-30’s), or Parkinson’s Disease (now affecting the actor Michael J. Fox)? What about schizophrenia, or autism? Maynard Smith refers to this as ‘negative eugenics’ because of its concern with eliminating disease; ‘positive eugenics’ deals with the production of so-called designer babies, with customized traits such as blue eyes or perfect pitch….”
(Reading: “Genes, Machines and Human Beings,” The Independent, 6/9/00)
health care
RELIGION AND PHYSICIANS: An exploration of the relationship between the practice of medicine and religion includes questions about what patients want, whether or not religion is trivialized when attempts are made to incorporate religious activities into medical treatment and why physicians recommend religious activity. The authors comment, “only a clinical trial in which patients were randomly assigned either to receive or not to receive a recommendation to attend religious services could help determine whether such a recommendation would increase church attendance and lead to better health.”
COMMENT: Scary!
(Reading: “Should Physicians Prescribe Religious Activities?” New England Journal of Medicine, 6/22/00, requires paid subscription for full text access)
imposed death
INFANTICIDE: Researchers funded by the European Commission studied end-of-life decisions in neonatal intensive care units in seven European nations. “Practices such as continuation of current treatment without intensification and withholding of emergency maneuvers were widespread, but withdrawal of mechanical ventilation was reported by variable proportions (28-90 percent). Only in France (73 percent) and the Netherlands (47 percent) was the administration of drugs with the aim of ending life reported with substantial frequency.”
(Reading: “End-of-life Decisions in Neonatal Intensive Care: Physicians’ Self-reported Practices in Seven European Countries,” The Lancet, 6/17/00, pp. 2112-2118)
LIVING WILLS: Discussing the process in which a living will plays a part, Linda Emanuel, M.D., writes, “A good process had to deal with several more things: the patients having a chance to consider and have some control over their last chapter of life; the proxy decision makers being ready for their roles; and the families having a chance to talk about issues relating to end of life and to resolve personal matters. Dying, it emerged, was a taboo topic that patients and families wanted to repossess.” But Nancy Valko, R.N., who is a nurse dealing daily with the dying, points out, “The ‘living will,’ as a vehicle to avoid heroic measures at the end of life, is what the average person assumes without realizing the real purpose is to induce people to avoid expensive or life-prolonging care when disability–not death–is anticipated. When someone is truly dying, it would be a rare health care provider who would insist on any heroic measures.”
(Reading: “How Living Wills Can Help Doctors and Patients Talk About Dying,” British Medical Journal, 6/17/00, pp. 1618-1619, 6/19/00 e-mail from Nancy Valko, R.N.)
in vitro fertilization
EUGENICS I: Researchers have identified a process by which blastocysts can be quality-control tested prior to placement in the mother’s womb. By doing this, they provide “the ability to transfer one high-scoring blastocyst” which “should lead to pregnancy rates greater than 60 percent, without the complication of twins.”
(Reading: “Blastocyst Score Affects Implantation and Pregnancy Outcome: Towards a Single Blastocyst Transfer,” Fertility and Sterility, 6/6/00, pp.1155-1158)
EUGENCIS II: Researchers have shown that, by using preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), only “normal embryos” can be transferred while other are set aside. For the purpose of conducting this particular study, “embryos donated for research were used as blastomere controls.”
(Reading: “Outcome of Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis of Translocations,” Fertility and Sterility, 6/6/00, pp.1209-1218)
life of the mother
CERVICAL CANCER: A case control study conducted at the University of Iowa found that “pregnant women with cervical cancer should deliver by caesarian section.”
(Reading: “Caesarians Recommended for All Pregnant Women with Cervical Cancer,” The Lancet news update, 6/17/00, p. 2141; see Obstetrics and Gynecology: 2000:95:832-38 for study details; visit the website of the Society of Gynecological Oncologists; also see background on Joel Sorosky, M.D., and his work in this field)
personhood
NEW JERSEY: A ruling in the case of two female children born 18 months after their father’s death through their mother’s use of frozen sperm resulted, according to reports, in the following: “Discerning, however, a basic legislative intent to enable children to take property from their parents and through their parents; and noting that the two girls in this case, once they came into existence, are full-fledged human beings entitled to all of the love, respect, dignity and legal protection which that status requires, the Judge declares them to be their father’s legal heirs under the intestate laws of this state.”
(Reading: E-mail report from attorney Richard Collier citing 38-4-4187 I/M/O Estate of Kolacy, Deceased, decided 3/31/00, opinion issued 4/19/00, approved for publication 6/20/00; see New Jersey state courts)
politics
GORE PRINCIPLED? Pro-abortion supporters, wondering about Gore’s true dedication to abortion, are suggesting Senator Evan Bayh as his running mate. Margie Kelly of the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy argues that “you cannot support choice and support the partial-birth abortion ban at the same time. They are not compatible.” It seems Bayh, who claims he is “pro-choice,” did vote for the measure. And, NOW Executive Vice President Kim Gandy argues, “Selecting a running mate who does not support reproductive freedom for women would be disastrous to [Gore’s] standing among women who care about women’s rights-and that applies to Evan Bayh.”
COMMENT: Pro-aborts do not compromise! And pro-lifers in the political arena.
(Reading: “Al Gore: Abortion-rights Advocates Warn Against Tapping Indiana Senator for Veep,” Kaiser Report, 6/26/00)
pregnancy
INTENTION: UNWANTED: Researchers have shown that the support for the argument that “unintended pregnancy is associated with ‘adverse maternal behavior'” is weak. Further, there is “no support for any link between unintended pregnancy and children’s cognitive development or birth weight.”
(Reading: “Unwanted Children Not Better Off Dead,” The Family in America, 4/2/00, “Effect of Pregnancy Intention on Child Development,” pp. 83-94)
stem cell research
GERMANY & JAPAN EYE U.S.A.: In separate news reports, it became clear that foreign nations that prohibit the destruction of human embryonic babies for the purpose of acquiring totipotent stem cells will purchase them from the United States. The Japanese Gynecology and Obstetrics Society “does not allow the use of fertilized eggs for anything other than infertility treatment.” This means that Japan will have to go elsewhere for stem cells. German scientists plan to import human embryo stem cells from the United States because “Germany has banned the killing of embryos for scientific research.”
(Reading: “Japan May Seek Embryos Cells from Overseas,” Nature, 6/22/00; “German Scientists Plan to Import U.S. Embryo Cells,” Reuters, 6/20/97)
web news
WORLD LIFE LEAGUE: New site!
zinger
WILLIAM F. BUCKLEY ON THE WRONG: On his “On the Right” column, Buckley opines about AIDS in Africa, “Recruit an army of missionaries. This is not a Pentagon project, never mind the cant about national security being involved. The challenge is to the humanitarian resources of those who have learned what it is that needs to be done.” Buckley says that we must mobilize the Salvation Army to send people to Africa to preach the need for condoms.
COMMENT: Oh Bill, how wrong can you get!
(Reading: “In Pursuit of AIDS in Africa,” National Review, 6/5/00)
reflection for prayer
Keep thyself with Jesus both in life and death and commit thyself to His care, who alone can help thee when all others fail. Thy Beloved is of such a nature that He will admit of no other, but will have thy heart to Himself, and sit there like a king upon his own throne. If thou couldst but purge thyself well from affection to creatures, Jesus would willingly dwell with thee. Thou wilt find all that in a manner lost, which thou hast placed in men apart from Jesus. Do not trust or rely upon a frail reed; “for all flesh is grass and all the glory thereof shall fade as the flower of the field” (Isaiah 40:6).
-Thomas a Kempis, Imitation of Christ, Book II, Chapter 7