Saturday, October 30, 2010

A Chicken and Egg Question : The American Catholic

The question above has nothing to do with cooking.  Rather, it has to do with the ongoing debate over the role of government vs. the role of the family, churches, charities, and other voluntary private organizations in assisting vulnerable persons such as the poor, children, the handicapped and the elderly.

Generally speaking, liberals argue that government should take the lead in helping such people because private charities and families cannot be counted upon to have the resources to do so. Conservatives, however, counter that an ever-expanding “nanny state” interferes with the ability of the private sector to fill such needs, and if government got out of the way, private individuals and charities would be better able to meet these needs.

So which came first — the “chicken” of family and societal disintegration or the “egg” of big government? Or is it the other way around — is big government the chicken that laid the egg of societal collapse?

I believe both phenomena perpetuate and feed off one another to an extent, but ultimately, I assert that societal disintegration came first and big government followed.

Many conservatives speak with nostalgia of the pre-Great Society era when people believed in self-reliance, “took care of their own” and didn’t rely on government handouts. The implication is that if expensive social programs (e.g. food stamps, Medicaid, subsidized child care) were discontinued, people would quickly revert to the old ethic and start taking care of themselves and their families again.

While I am no fan of an intrusive nanny state, I have to say that simply shutting off the government spigot won’t necessarily yield the results these people expect, at least not in the short term. There are several factors that have drastically changed the playing field in the last 50 years or so, which will make any attempt to shrink the size of government (necessary though it may be) more complex and more painful than a lot of people realize. Some of those factors (listed in no particular order) are:

1. Divorce and single parenthood. These are the two biggest factors contributing to poverty among women and children, and the resultant demand for cash assistance (welfare/TANF), food assistance, and subsidized child care and preschools. A parent raising one or more children alone without the assistance of a spouse may not have anywhere else to turn, except to the government, for help unless they are blessed with an extended family living nearby or with friends and neighbors they can trust to watch their children or supply other needs when necessary.

Some will argue that the creation of the welfare state exacerbated these problems by making it easier for women to dispense with marriage as a precondition for parenthood. That may be, but let’s not forget the effect of the sexual revolution which was already underway before the Great Society/welfare state began to gather steam. (Certain aspects of the sexual revolution, such as movements to promote easier divorce and greater access to contraception, date back to at least the 1920s.) In this case I believe the sexual revolution was the “chicken” and the welfare state just one of the many bad “eggs” that it produced.

2. Spouses both working outside the home simultaneously. Originally I was going to say “women working outside the home,” but then I realized it goes deeper than that.

Obviously the decline in stay-at-home wives/mothers means more reliance on outside child care, as well as more reliance on adult day care, nursing homes, and other means to care for elderly or disabled relatives. It also means fewer people around in most residential neighborhoods during the day — and particularly during the after-school hours of 3 to 6 p.m. — to monitor what children and teens are doing and with whom they are doing it. This leads to more demand for publicly subsidized youth programs, extended school days and school years, and for more law enforcement aimed at curbing youth crime and drug use.

But it isn’t just women that aren’t around to watch the kids anymore. Men who in past generations might have run their own neighborhood businesses (groceries, taverns, clothing/shoe stores, etc.) with their wives, and allowed their children to participate in maintaining and running those businesses, instead drive or take the train to distant workplaces. This also contributes to the problems mentioned above.

3. Loss of agricultural and manufacturing jobs. In the early to mid 20th-century these jobs were a large part of the economy, and they were available in most communities of any size. Just about any able-bodied man or woman who could read and write (and even many who couldn’t) could find some kind of job on a farm, or in a factory, mine, or store or other facility in their area. The decline of these industries meant 1) people were more frequently forced to move away from their hometowns and families of origin to find work that paid a living wage, and 2)  people were more often required to seek education beyond high school in order to become or remain employable.

Moving away from home, or having to move frequently, means not having extended family or trusted neighbors around to help you out in a crisis, or to watch your kids while you work. More demand for postsecondary education means… you guessed it… more demand for state-funded schools and more reliance on government grants, loans and financial aid to pay for it.

4. Decline in religious vocations and religious practice. One of the unfortunate side effects of the decline in Catholic Religious vocations in recent decades is that it gutted an important social “safety net” for entire communities, not just for Catholics. Hospitals, schools, children’s homes, homes for the elderly, soup kitchens and many other programs were run by clergy or by nuns or monks/friars living under vows of poverty. When vocations began to decline, these institutions had to either close or replace their Religious staff with lay persons who had to be paid a living wage and be provided with health insurance and other benefits. The cost of attempting to operate with lay staff only forced more institutions to close and others to merge, dissolve or consolidate with secular entities. A similar process occurred with some Protestant organizations and institutions such as Lutheran Social Services, the YMCA and YWCA, etc.

Meanwhile, the post-Vatican II decline in the number of practicing lay Catholics cut into organizations such as the Knights of Columbus, Holy Name and Altar and Rosary societies, St. Vincent de Paul Societies, Catholic Youth Organizations, and others that relied upon volunteers. The same thing happened also to Protestant churches’ ladies’ aid societies and other volunteer groups. Who took up the slack they left behind? You know the answer to that by now.

5. More persons with disabilities living longer. Medical advances have enabled many children born prematurely or with health issues such as heart defects, who would have died had they been born 50 or more years ago, to survive. Many thrive and live healthy and normal lives, but others live with significant disabilities throughout life such as mental retardation, cerebral palsy, etc. Also, adults are more likely to survive injuries or diseases that in their grandparents’ time would have killed them.

In the past, families were usually advised to place handicapped children in institutions (some state-operated, others private) or to send them away to special schools. Now, they more often stay at home and attend regular public schools. While I regard this as a good thing, it does of course mean that families who can’t afford to privately pay for the services disabled children or adults need will instead seek government-funded assistance. It also means public schools must seek more funding for special education services, to insure the “free and appropriate public education” in the “least restrictive environment” that federal law guarantees to children with disabilities.

These are just some of the factors that may make returning to the “good old days” of self- and family reliance not as easy or simple as some would like to think.

I’m guessing that, like me, most people who frequent this blog would like to see the balance of government vs. private largesse shift back in the direction of the private sector, though we may disagree on how far the shift should go and how quickly. But before such a shift is undertaken, we have to consider whether the private “safety net” we are proposing to restore has been weakened, and what can be done to strengthen it, lest more vulnerable people simply fall through those holes as well.

What are your thoughts on how to address this issue? Can you think of any other factors I might have overlooked that caused or accelerated the shift toward government dependency?

This entry was posted on Saturday, October 30th, 2010 at 5:17 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

One thing I know is that the Catholic Church does some great work assisting the poor, the sick, orphans, the elderly, etc. with many of it's Social groups and programs, like the St. Vincent de paul Society, and Blessed Mother Teresa's organization throughout the world. But little by little, the Government wants to impose its secular and immoral views on what these Catholic programs do. This has to stop and let the Church continue feeding, clothing, caring for all peoples or we will soon be a communist country where Government rules and you die if you don't obey them!
Deacon John

Crist's Cross : The American Catholic

It’s unfathomable to think that Charlie Crist could possibly sink any lower in his desperate attempt to cling to power.  Alas, Crist is doing his best to usurp Alan Grayson as the most despicable politician in the state of Florida.

As we have heard, Bill Clinton had evidently worked out an arrangement for Democratic Senate candidate Kendrick Meek to drop out and endorse Crist. Meek changed his mind, but evidently Charlie has kept up the pressure.

Mr. Crist, the Florida governor, had called Mr. Meek, a Miami congressman, earlier that morning, about 4:50 a.m., leaving a voice mail asking if they could meet up at the AIPAC gathering. “I’ll call you later this morning and see if we can work out a time to get together just you and me,” Mr. Crist said in the voice mail, which was played for Washington Wire by Mr. Meek. “Take care, buddy.”

Mr. Meek was scheduled to speak at AIPAC about 8:30 and Mr. Crist at 10, but the governor showed up an hour early in hopes of catching the congressman.

Mr. Meek said he tried to avoid Mr. Crist, but as he left the stage, “there he was, right in front of me.”

“He said, ‘If you were to drop out and work with me and help me we together can beat Marco Rubio,’” Mr. Meek recalled. “I said, ‘Governor, that’s a non-starter.’

“Then he dug down into his pocket and pulled a small cross out,” Mr. Meek continued. “He said his sister gave it to him and he wanted to give it to me so I would think about it.”

Now we should be cautious here as this is simply Meek’s account, though I do tend to believe the veracity of this story.  If true, though, this is one of the most disgusting and cynical ploys I have ever heard of.

Crist’s humiliating defeat on Tuesday is going to be enjoyable.

This entry was posted on Friday, October 29th, 2010 at 9:13 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Go Rubio! The only true Pro-Life candidate here in Florida! I already voted in the early election ballot and voted Pro-Life all the way! The only way to end abortion is to get rid of the one's who are running this country and start anew! With God's grace we will win and save lives too!
Deacon John

14-Year-Old Lia Mills at Pro-Life Conference: "I have learned to embrace conflict"


By Patrick B. Craine

OTTAWA, Ontario, October 29, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Friday sessions at the International Pro-Life Conference in Ottawa, Canada featured a host of powerful and hard-hitting talks from some of the shining lights and rising stars in the US, Canadian and international pro-life movements.

Rev. Johnny Hunter, president of the Life Education and Resource Network (LEARN), described some of the amazing work being done by black pro-lifers across the US.  He highlighted especially the new film Maafa 21, which exposes the black genocide being perpetrated in the US through abortion.  "All around the nation, the people don't want you to know that blacks are getting involved" in the pro-life cause, said Hunter in his characteristic fiery style.  "We are fighting this thing differently."

Canadian MP Rod Bruinooge, chair of the parliamentary pro-life caucus, discussed his private members bill that seeks to ban abortion coercion.  The bill, which has its first debate on Monday, is inspired by the tragic story of Roxanne Fernando, who was brutally beaten and left in a snow bank to die by her boyfriend after she refused to abort their unborn child.

"When you can speak about a young woman standing up for her unborn child and making a choice that ended up costing her life, when you talk about that story, I find that people do have difficulty trying to quash Roxanne's voice," said Bruinooge.  "It's the strongest thing that I have in terms of this bill."

Fourteen-year-old Lia Mills, who became a YouTube sensation after her school speech on abortion got over half a million views, shared how she endured in giving the speech for her school's speaking contest despite her teacher's opposition and a judge who refused to listen.

Lia described the anger she faced after her pro-life speech went viral on YouTube, noting that she even received death threats.  But while we're tempted to avoid conflict, she said, "the truth is that as pro-life people, even if we are Canadian, we cannot avoid conflict, but [we must] embrace it in the right way. … My family and I have learned to embrace conflict."

Rebecca Richmond, executive director of the National Campus Life Network, discussed the censorship pro-life students are facing on Canadian university campuses, evidenced most strongly by the arrests this month at Carleton University as the students attempted to erect a pro-life display.

Richmond said it is "essential to have the [pro-life] message on the campuses."  "The majority of abortions are performed on university-aged women," she noted, so "university pro-life students have a unique opportunity to save lives."  Further, she explained, universities are "where our future leaders in our country are being formed."

Faytene Kryskow of MYCanada shed a light on the evangelical side of the pro-life movement, and stressed the importance of prayer and discipleship.  Kryskow shared how she felt God asking her one day, "Faytene, who is discipling the nation of Canada?  Who's setting the tone, who's setting the standard?"

"I remember thinking 'I really wish I could say the Sunday morning pulpit was discipling the nation of Canada.  I really wished I could say those homilies were discipling the nation of Canada," she explained.  "But in reality when I look at my generation, I have to say in all honesty, probably CBC, CTV, the educational system."

To change the moral direction of our nation, she added, "we need to begin to wake up, get out of the pews, and begin to be the salt and light, … to begin to disciple our nation."

Alex Schadenberg, executive director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, said in the wake of the massive defeat of Canada's Bill C-384, which sought to legalize euthanasia and assisted suicide, we are now faced with changing the culture.  This next phase, he explained, is vastly different than lobbying to defeat a bill, where you can meet with politicians one-on-one.

He highlighted several key points needed to win the battle for the culture, including the need to: focus the discussion on the likely victims, such as the disabled and the elderly; emphasize the danger of euthanasia for those suffering from elder abuse and spousal abuse; work with people from all points of view; and be clear about the issue.

Peter Ryan, executive director of New Brunswick Right to Life and a board member with LifeCanada, talked about the difficulty of polling public opinion on euthanasia given that there is so much confusion and misinformation on the issue.  He highlighted the benefits and results of LifeCanada's recent poll on euthanasia, which revealed (http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/nov/09110301.html) that Canadians are more conflicted on the issue than other polls have shown.  The poll also revealed that Canadians are much more anxious for the government to offer support for the sick and dying than that they be offered death.

Tom Wappel, a former long-time Liberal MP from Scarborough, exhorted pro-lifers to engage the political process and insisted this is only possible by joining a political party.  "If you don't join a political party, you can't affect the history or the direction of that political party," he said.  "If you want to have a say in your political future, you have to be involved at the grassroots level."

"You are not involved in the political life of your country if all you're doing is, every three or four years, casting a single ballot, and the rest of the time whining at home about how stupid these politicians are," he continued.  "You have to get involved, plain and simple."

 

Praying for Miss O'Donnell : The American Catholic

by Joe Hargrave

As I have indicated, I will be happy when dozens of Democrats are swept out of office on Tuesday, and happier still to have played some small part with my vote. Of all the Tea Party challengers, there is one in particular for whom I am praying for victory, and that is Christine O’Donnell. The victory of this outspoken woman who has made no secret of her Christian faith would be icing on the cake as far as I’m concerned. This is all the more true in light of the “Gawker” scandal that has erupted in the last few days. For those who haven’t heard about it, this site published an anonymous account by a man who claims to have had a one-night stand with O’Donnell exactly three Halloweens past.

This absolutely appalling and slanderous piece has been universally condemned on the right and the left, in fact, though the subsequent rationalizations follow from what I would call a left-libertine view of things, for as they state, referring to the alleged incident itself,

Much of the criticism leveled against us is based on the premise that we think hopping into bed, naked and drunk, with men or women whenever one wants is “slutty,” and that therefore our publication of Anonymous’ story was intended to diminish O’Donnell on those terms. Any reader of this site ought to rather quickly gather that we are in fact avid supporters of hopping into bed, naked and drunk, with men or women that one has just met.

They proceed to clarify:

Our problem with O’Donnell—and the reason that the information we published about her is relevant—is that she has repeatedly described herself and her beliefs in terms that suggest that there is something wrong with hopping into bed, naked and drunk, with a man or woman whom one has just met. So that fact that she behaves that way, while publicly condemning similar behavior, in the context of an attempt to win a seat in the United States Senate, is a story we thought people might like to know about.

And they repeat variations on this theme ad nauseum throughout the rest of the piece.

Strange as it may seem, however, I believe that this notion was sincerely held by the editors of this publication. It is reflective of their own moral confusion, which in turn is reflective of the moral confusion that runs rampant throughout our society. And for those readers may find it puzzling that I would refer to the moral confusion of these editors when it appears that it is O’Donnell who is morally confused, I will explain why.

It is certainly true that Christ admonishes the hypocrite who denounces the sins of another while being guilty of the same thing:

Or how canst thou say to thy brother: Brother, let me pull the mote out of thy eye, when thou thyself seest not the beam in thy own eye? Hypocrite, cast first the beam out of thy own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to take out the mote from thy brother’s eye. (Luke 6:42)

However, there are a couple of things to bear in mind. First, Christ is speaking about a person who is speaking to his brother, that is, a person who is a part of their community, one individual to another, one equal to another. Christine O’Donnell, on the other hand, has made very general statements about basic Christian truths regarding sexuality, and as far as I can tell from her public statements, has never judged anyone personally or even spoken of “sinners” in a general and derogatory sort of way, though her comments about homosexuals were interpreted that way – of course, so is the teaching on homosexuality of the Catholic Church, so no surprise there. Secondly, Christ is speaking of a person who cannot see their own faults; once a person does see them, however, it is plausible that he might be able to point out another’s sin.

This is a perfectly sensible teaching, if you consider it. If we were to apply the logic of Gawker’s editors consistently, a mother who had succumb to a drug-addiction would have no moral grounds to try and prevent her children from taking dangerous drugs: this would make her a hypocrite. A father with a sex addiction would have no grounds to try and prevent his teenage daughter from going into pornography or becoming a prostitute: this would make him a hypocrite. A man with a gambling problem would not be able to counsel a friend against betting his whole paycheck at the blackjack table, a woman with 10 cats would be in no position to warn a friend that perhaps 5 is too many, and so on, and so forth.

But we can see that in each of these cases, it is possible, likely even, that one’s experience with the vice or problem puts them in an excellent position to speak on it. Now if any of these hypothetical addicts were completely blind and obstinate in their follies, it would be outrageous for them to tell others that they shouldn’t emulate them. But most people with problems such as these suffer deeply, and even if they have not been able to escape from them, they are moved by compassion even in their degraded state to do what they can to prevent others from following them. How many motivational speakers are themselves barely recovered from the problem that they now speak to high school students about? How many of them slip back into the problem?

None of this, of course, is to suggest that Christine O’Donnell is some sort of alcoholic sex-addict, far from it. But a problem need not rise to the level of habit and obsession to make an impact on one’s life. Perhaps we Christians sometimes take for granted the truth that all are sinners, but Christians who are conscious of their faith, as O’Donnell appears to be, are surely aware of it. Assuming that the story is true – or at least true in part, though I presume innocence until guilt is proven – it is quite possible that she regrets it, as many do regret such things. And to the contrary of the editorial rationalization, it would be wrong if Christine were to stop speaking out against sexual immorality as a public figure.

For in the final analysis, there are far worse things a person can be guilty of than hypocrisy, such as condoning and promoting behavior that is destructive to individuals and society, which this publication apparently does on a regular basis. If it were morally necessary that every person who speaks out against immorality be a saint, there would hardly be a voice left in America to do so. All of us, especially in this age, and this time, struggle with sins within a cultural context that either laughs at the notion of sin or positively embraces it. It is exceedingly difficult to remain pure, but we may loose what little dignity remains if women such as Christine O’Donnell are shamed into silence.

Thus my earnest prayers are with her, and I will toast her victory if God sees fit to grant it to her.

This entry was posted on Saturday, October 30th, 2010 at 2:58 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Lifeissues Newsletter #498

Lifeissues.net: clear thinking about crucial issues

For clear thinking about crucial issues, visit LifeIssues.net: http://www.lifeissues.net/.

Dear Friends for Life, this week I share with you an email from Bradley Mattes concerning China's one-child policy:

Dear Fr. Novotny,

The timing of this just-released news story is ironic. I recently taped a TV episode in Washington, DC on forced abortion in China. One of my guests, Reggie Littlejohn, is an attorney seeking asylum for the victims of China's brutal one-child policy. She sent me a link to this 2-minute video. Please take a moment to watch.

A brave news reporter slipped unnoticed into a Chinese hospital to speak with a "detained" woman who was eight months pregnant. Her crime? Being pregnant and already having a child. Later, the reporter interviewed the woman's husband who was waiting outside in a car. So terrified of retribution, the pregnant woman consented to being filmed only if her face wasn't shown.

The video shows her with huge bruises on her arm. Her husband described what happened when she was captured. "They held her arms behind her back, pushed her head against the door, kicked her stomach." The footage shows the jail cell where she was held as they killed her near-term unborn baby by lethal injection.

China's trying to give the impression that they've eased up on their cruel one-child policy. This video is compelling evidence that's not true. Thousands of women are literally being dragged into abortion mills, strapped down and forced to endure the horrors of an unwanted, late-term abortion - babies they desperately love and want. Forced sterilizations are also part of the ugly process. By its own admission, the Chinese Communist Party has reported killing more than 13 million babies each year - more than 35,000 abortions a day.

This woman's fate isn't unusual or rare. It was done in one of China's most modern cities. Fines for having an unauthorized pregnancy can result in 10 times a person's annual salary and most can't afford to save their babies' lives by paying them.

Just imagine how many women fall prey to China's cruel population program. You can help protect them by sharing this news with others and speaking out against such horrors.

Sincerely for the women and their babies,
Bradley Mattes. [Executive Director, Life Issues Institute]

God Bless,
Jerry Novotny, OMI

(Quote) "It is with the smallest brushes that the artist paints the most beautiful pictures." - Saint Andre of Montreal

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Lifeissues.net Newsletter #498
October 31, 2010

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(TABLE OF CONTENTS):

1. Wear A White Ribbon To Fight Pornography
2. Pornography Still an Ignored Social Ill
3. Shut Out: Fathers Of Unborn Children
4. EllaOne An Abortifacient - Not 'birth Control'
5. Countries Slam UN Attempts To Create New "Right" To Sexual Ed
6. Human Life Itself Has No Value: Britain's Leading Bioethicist
7. Planned Parenthood's business model depends on delivering death
8. Cell technique works without embryos
9. Difficult Pregnancies and the Absolute Value of Innocent Live
10. Think Again: Global Aging
11. The Incredible, Profitable Egg: "Eggsploitation"
12. Catholic websites help those struggling with pornography


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(Focus on Asia): "Death toll from Indonesian disasters nears 430" => The death toll from the 10-foot-high (three-meter-high) tsunami that slammed into islands off western Indonesia rose to 370 on Friday as officials found more bodies, although hundreds of people remained missing. Harmensyah, head of the West Sumatra provincial disaster management center, said rescue teams "believe many, many of the bodies were swept to sea."

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ITEM #1: Wear A White Ribbon To Fight Pornography

Addiction to porn contributes to broken marriages, sexual harassment, declines in worker productivity, exploitation and the degradation of women. Pornography presents a distorted, debased, often-violent image of human sexuality, absent of love and commitment.

View full article at Duluth News Tribune:

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/182079/group/Opinion/

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ITEM #2: Pornography Still an Ignored Social Ill

According to the American Family Association Journal, every year the porn industry creates 11,000 new movies, compared to the 400 mainstream videos created by Hollywood. Many of those videos are published online for the public to access.

View full article at Christian Post: 

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20101028/pornography-still-an-ignored-social-ill/

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ITEM #3: Shut Out: Fathers Of Unborn Children Have No Legal Say Whether Their Children Live Or Die

Between the legal non-status of abortion and the legal non-existence of the unborn child, the question in the Daigle case that was under debate at the time, was, "should a father have any rights?" In Canada, the Supreme Court decided, No.

View full article at LifeSiteNews.com: 

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/oct/10102801.html

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ITEM #4: EllaOne An Abortifacient - Not 'birth Control'

RU-486, the "parent drug" of ellaOne, has led to the deaths of 12 women and serious side effects, so Hawkins believes the same results can be expected of ellaOne. The drug is currently available by prescription only, but the pro-lifer points out that Planned Parenthood is working to make birth control free for every woman under federal healthcare reform. Also, the FDA is heading toward over-the-counter sale of ellaOne, even though there is no research on the effects of repeated use or its potential impact on children.

View full article at OneNewsNow: 

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=1216074

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ITEM #5: Countries Slam Attempts To Create New "Right" To Sexual Education At UN

Angry delegates took to the UN floor this week to denounce a report that promotes a new human right to explicit sexual education for young children.

View full article at C-FAM: 

http://lifeissues.net/news.php?newsID=00029298&topic=


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ITEM #6: Human Life Itself Has No Value: Britain's Leading Bioethicist And Assisted Suicide Campaigner

Mary Warnock is known as Britain's leading bioethicist and proponent of assisted suicide. She recently commented that the refusal of doctors to participate in assisted suicide is "genuinely wicked." Her books include "Easeful Death: Is there a case for assisted dying?" and "Making Babies: Is there a right to have children?"

View full article at LifeSiteNews.com: 

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/oct/10102709.html


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ITEM #7: Planned Parenthood's business model depends on delivering death

The numbers paint the grisly picture of an organization beset by financial problems yet determined to increase income by killing more preborn human beings. But that's not the surprising part. The shocking thing about these numbers is that they are finally dispelling the ubiquitous Planned Parenthood lie that the organization is about something other than abortion.

Article is located at The Washington Times: 
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/sep/28/quietly-racking-up-the-abortion-toll/


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ITEM #8: Cell technique works without embryos

Scientists have invented an efficient way to produce apparently safe alternatives to human embryonic stem cells without destroying embryos, a long-sought step toward bypassing the moral morass surrounding one of the most promising fields in medicine.

Article can be found at The Washington Post: 
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/30/AR2010093007199.html


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ITEM #9: Difficult Pregnancies, Precarious Choices, and the Absolute Value of Innocent Live

Directly killing an innocent human being, even in the hopes of saving his or her mother, is an instance of engaging in an intrinsic – or absolute – evil, even if good may follow. By always repudiating the direct killing of the innocent, and acknowledging that this represents an exceptionless norm, we set in place the framework to safeguard human dignity at its root. Affirming this most basic norm leads us away from the injustice of playing God with other people's lives. These challenging "life of the mother" cases allow us to begin acknowledging some of our own limitations, and the mystery of God's greater Providence, in the realization that we may not be able to "manage" or "correct" every difficult medical situation we face.

View entire article at CERC: 
http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/medical_ethics/me0158.htm


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ITEM #10. Think Again: Global Aging

A gray tsunami is sweeping the planet -- and not just in the places you expect. How did the world get so old, so fast?

View entire article at Foreign Policy: 
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/10/11/think_again_global_aging


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ITEM #11. The Incredible, Profitable Egg: "Eggsploitation" Uncovers Dark Side of Infertility Industry

Egg-harvesting has gone on now for 40 years. But the field of egg-donation is still entirely unregulated and so these stories go unreported and unexplored. Experts themselves admit that there are no adequate studies on the long-term risks of these powerful and commonly used fertility drugs, and yet the casualties they cause aren't hard to find. Some studies even suggest they might increase a woman's risk for developing ovarian cancer later in life; and anecdotal evidence, as illustrated above, suggests a connection to breast cancer; but solid data has yet to be collected.

Why? Why does the proud scion of the laureate Robert Edwards -- the infertility industry -- routinely place women at risk and deprive them of adequately informed consent? With questions such as these left unanswered, women considering egg donation might want to think again.

View full article at Culture of Life Foundation: 
http://culture-of-life.org//content/view/669/1/

 


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ITEM #12. Catholic websites help those struggling with pornography

"Porn is not just naughty  -  it's evil," said Fradd, a 27-year-old Australian living in Ottawa, Ontario. "It emasculates men, degrades women and destroys marriages."

View full article at NCR: 
http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/porn-free-vision1

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YOU CAN CHANGE SOCIETY:

1. BE INFORMED: "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge." Hosea 4:6. Visit Lifeissues.net Website for insights into current Life Issues www.lifeissues.net. Access to all prior Newsletters is located in the Archives on main page.

2. PRAY DAILY: for the courage to be God's presence in society and to strongly support those who are deemed "unworthy of life". "If My people who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

3. BECOME INVOLVED: Several years ago Fr. Jerry created a project entitled, "Journey for Life into the Heart of Asia". The project appeals for donations to help finance plane travel for lectures and seminars to developing countries in Asia. Strong focus is centered on reaching Asian Catholic Major Seminaries, Universities, Parishes, Hospitals and Family/Pro Life related groups. The lectures place emphasis on "The Asian Family at Crossroads: Life Issues, Trends and Challenges".

For information about no-cost Pro Life Talks to your group in Asia: contact Fr. Jerry at jerry@shirt.ocn.ne.jp.

To become a supportive Missionary participant for this Asian project, kindly send your donations to:

** Fr. Jerry Novotny, OMI

** LifeIssues.net, Editor

** Akebono-cho 1-15-9

** Kochi City, Japan, 780-8072

(or transfer donation directly to ProLife bank account: Jerome Novotny, Shikoku Bank, Asakura Branch, No. 102-1-0080824)

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------------------------------

Contact EDITOR:

Jerry Novotny, OMI

Akebono-cho 1-15-9

Kochi City, Japan, 780-8072

[tel/fax: 088-843-0406]

[email: jerry@shirt.ocn.ne.jp]

["Due to volume of spam received, we're asking you not to reply to this message but instead send all correspondence to jerry@shirt.ocn.ne.jp. Thank you! Editor"]

------------------------------

Websites by Editor:

English LifeIssues Site: http://www.lifeissues.net,

Japanese LifeIssues Site: http://www.japan-lifeissues.net,

OMI Site: http://www.omijapankorea.net/index.html

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Chester : The American Catholic

Something for the weekend. Chester by William Billings. During the American Revolution, this was the unofficial national anthem for the new United States. As we participate in elections it is good to recall the struggles throughout our history that bequeathed to us the freedoms we enjoy today. We stand on the shoulders of the giants who preceded us, and we should never forget that.
And I add we should never forget that God gave us this great Nation for Life, Liberty and Happiness. Woe to us if we deny God and fail to thank Him for this Gift!

Let tyrants shake their iron rod,
And Slav’ry clank her galling chains,
We fear them not, we trust in God,
New England’s God forever reigns.

Howe and Burgoyne and Clinton too,
With Prescot and Cornwallis join’d,
Together plot our Overthrow,
In one Infernal league combin’d.

When God inspir’d us for the fight,
Their ranks were broke, their lines were forc’d,
Their ships were Shatter’d in our sight,
Or swiftly driven from our Coast.

The Foe comes on with haughty Stride;
Our troops advance with martial noise,
Their Vet’rans flee before our Youth,
And Gen’rals yield to beardless Boys.

What grateful Off’ring shall we bring?
What shall we render to the Lord?
Loud Halleluiahs let us Sing,
And praise his name on ev’ry Chord.

Friday, October 29, 2010

LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report 10/30/10

LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Saturday, October 30, 2010

For pro-life news updated throughout the day, visit LifeNews.com.

Current Headlines

Top Stories
Poll: Pro-Abortion Senate Leader Harry Reid Likely Losing
Majority of Americans Don t Want Pro-Abortion Barack Obama Re-Elected
Catholics Swing 34% to Pro-Life GOP, But Priest Says Abortion Not Priority
• Sarah Palin Stumps for Joe Miller in Alaska, Murkowski Write-In Campaign Hit

More Pro-Life News
• Minnesota Governor Race Sees Pro-Life Tom Emmer Tying Pro-Abortion Dayton

Colorado: Tom Tancredo Would Tie Hickenlooper Without Dan Maes in Race
Delaware: Pro-Life Christine O Donnell Cuts Lead Amid Personal Attacks
Democrats for Life Keeps Trashing Pro-Life Groups on ObamaCare, Abortion

Texas Parents Retreat, Won t Force Daughter to Have Abortion

Only Abortion Practitioner in Wyoming Seeks County Coroner Position
Brazil Voters Should be Careful of Rousseff Abortion Pledge, Pro-Lifer Says
Manhattan Declaration a Year Later: Half a Million Support Pro-Life Values

---> LifeNews.com is pleased to present our comprehensive pro-life voting guide for the 2010 congressional elections. The guide contains a list of both national and state-by-state information linking to you endorsements and voting information from pro-life and pro-family groups.

The Brag Book iPhone photo wallet lets you easily show off favorite photos of your children! Slide your favorite photos into order, and add photo captions! Flip through Brag Book and remember why life s worth living! Developed by Dorinda Bordlee, a pro-life lawyer/mom, to benefit pregnancy resource centers.

Poll: Pro-Abortion Senate Leader Harry Reid Likely Losing
When voters head to the polls on Tuesday, they appear likely to kick out the number one Democrat in the Senate and the man who sets the agenda for that congressional chamber, pro-abortion Nevada Sen. Harry Reid.

Early in his career, Nevada Sen. Harry Reid took a pro-life position and once issued a defense of adding a human life amendment to protect the rights of unborn children.

But his watering down of his pro-life views to the point of spearheading the effort to pass a government takeover of the health care system that allows for abortion funding and prompts concerns about rationing, may ultimately prove to be his career s undoing.

A new poll shows GOP challenger Sharron Angle heads into Election Day with the potential of pulling off the single biggest upset of the election cycle.

The Mason-Dixon Polling & Research survey shows Angle with the support of 49 percent of Nevada voters compared with 45 percent who say they back Reid. Momentum has moved in Angle s direction as she has expanded her lead from 47-45 percent in the last poll the firm released. Full story at LifeNews.com

Majority of Americans Don t Want Pro-Abortion Barack Obama Re-Elected
As the fever pitch of the 2010 mid-term election campaign hits its zenith, a new poll conducted by U.S. News and World Report indicates a majority of Americans don t want to see pro-abortion President Barack Obama re-elected.

Some 42% approve of the way Obama is performing his job as president, while 57% disapprove.

According to pollster Doug Schoen, half the nation still likes the president personally they still find him to be a likable person who cares. But they disapprove of his job performance in a way that is opposite of the ratings of pro-abortion ex-President Bill Clinton, who voters now find not likable but they think he did a fairly good job as president on the whole.

In fact, the poll finds 48 percent of Americans like Obama, but just 42 percent say he s done a good job as president.

Despite voters feelings toward Obama personally, 56 percent say he does not deserve to be re-elected, while 38 percent say he does deserve to be re-elected president, he notes. Full story at LifeNews.com

Catholics Swing 34% to Pro-Life GOP, But Priest Says Abortion Not Priority
A prominent dissident Catholic priest has launched an assault against Catholic bishops are who are saying pro-life issues are the most important in the upcoming election.
But new polling data of Catholics makes it appear they re not listening to him, as a New York Times/CBS poll shows a shocking 34 point swing of Catholic voters switching from pro-abortion Barack Obama to pro-life Republican candidates.

Father Charles Curran, in a speech on Thursday, attacked the Church s rationale that abortion must be illegal because it is intrinsically evil.

According to Patrick Reilly of the Cardinal Newman Society, Curran claimed that Catholic voters should not give priority to abortion over issues like health care.

Reilly notes that Curran provoked a response from Dallas Bishop Kevin Farrell, who said that on the taking of innocent human life there is no room for ambiguity.

The Times poll shows 62% said they were voting Republican in the upcoming midterm elections and 38% said they were voting Democratic, a gap of 24 points much stronger than the 10 point margin Catholics gave to pro-abortion Barack Obama over John McCain in 2008. Full story at LifeNews.com

Sarah Palin Stumps for Joe Miller in Alaska, Murkowski Write-In Campaign Hit
Sarah Palin attended a rally on Thursday night to support the Senate bid of pro-life candidate Joe Miller over pro-abortion Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who is waging a write-in campaign.
Meanwhile, conservative activists in the state have undertaken a last-minute barrage of write-in campaigns designed to hurt Murkowski s efforts.

Let s send Joe Miller to the United States Senate to shake it up, Palin said at the Miller event in Anchorage, the largest city in the state where she served as governor.

I read his resume, I read his accomplishments, I read his passion for America, and I think, Are we even fit to tie his combat boots? Palin said to cheers from the large crowd.

Palin s endorsement, and the abortion issue as well as Miller s support for the parental notification initiative that passed, was critical for Miller defeating Murkowski in the primary. Full story at LifeNews.com

Minnesota Governor Race Sees Pro-Life Tom Emmer Tying Pro-Abortion Dayton
The Minnesota governor s race is a dead heat again as the latest poll finds pro-life Republican Tom Emmer almost tying pro-abortion DFL candidate Mary Dayton.
According to SurveyUSA s final pre-election tracking poll for KSTP-TV in Minneapolis Dayton has 39 percent of the vote to 38 percent for Emmer and Independence Party candidate Tom Horner grabs 13 percent.

Horner complicates any analysis of the race, the firm says. The one point difference between Dayton and Emmer reported here does not have statistical significance. The contest should be reported as even. Each of the two leading candidates has a chance to win.

Independent voters split 37% for Dayton, 37% for Emmer, and 17 % for Horner. Emmer has a slight advantage among men and Dayton has a slight advantage among women. Emmer does better with younger voters, winning the 18-34 and 35-49 demographics, while Dayton wins the 50-up categories. Full story at LifeNews.com

Colorado: Tom Tancredo Would Tie Hickenlooper Without Dan Maes in Race
Tom Tancredo, the pro-life candidate for governor against pro-abortion John Hickenlooper, would be tied with the Denver mayor if not for the presence of candidate Dan Maes.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely voters in Colorado shows Hickenlooper with a 47% to 42% lead over Tancredo, a former GOP congressman.

Maes, the failed Republican candidate whose campaign has died due to scandals and other problems, gets the support of 5 percent of voters just enough to prevent Tancredo from tying Hickenlooper.


The poll found 6 percent of Colorado residents like another candidate in the race, though that figure is not expected to hold up in the final numbers. Another one percent of voters are undecided. Full story at LifeNews.com

Delaware: Pro-Life Christine O Donnell Cuts Lead Amid Personal Attacks
As pro-life Senate candidate Christine O Donnell weathers the latest personal attack, a new poll shows her cutting the gap between herself and pro-abortion candidate Chris Coons, the Democrat.
A new Monmouth University Poll in Delaware finds O Donnell, the Republican, has narrowed Coon s lead from 19 points to 10 points, 51% to 41%. The poll was conducted prior to the publication of a story on O Donnell s personal life that created a backlash of sympathy for her.

The story, about an alleged one-night stand, has drawn strong condemnation including from the pro-abortion feminist group NOW.

While Coons still has the advantage, it has to be uncomfortable knowing that O Donnell was able to shave 9 points off his lead in just two weeks, pollster Patrick Murray said. The interesting thing is that while her vote total has risen, the majority of Delaware voters still say she is unqualified for the post. Full story at LifeNews.com

Democrats for Life Keeps Trashing Pro-Life Groups on ObamaCare, Abortion
In the wake over the defection of pro-life Democrats from voting against the abortion-funding ObamaCare bill, Democrats for Life of America has ruined its reputation within the pro-life community.

The organization has mounted a vigorous defense of Congressman Bart Stupak and the Democrats who ran as pro-life but shirked their views to support a bill that contains virtually no limits on taxpayer funding of abortions.

DFLA began with a criticism of the National Right to Life Committee, accusing the organization of promoting violence. Later it went against the Susan B. Anthony List and joined the effort of Ohio Rep. Steve Driehaus to subject its president to fines and potential jail time for holding him accountable for his pro-ObamaCare vote.

Now DFLA director Kristen Day has accused pro-life groups of not caring about the unborn by making abortion merely a campaign issue, not wanting pro-life Democrats to play a role within the Democratic Party, and claiming they are in league with the abortion industry. Full story at LifeNews.com


Texas Parents Retreat, Won t Force Daughter to Have Abortion
The parents of a 16-year-old girl have backed down and are retreating from their attempt to force their daughter to have an abortion.
They signed a court order Wednesday agreeing to not force their daughter to have an abortion against her will after she obtained legal help from the Alliance Defense Fund pro-life legal group.

Their decision came a week after ADF s allied attorneys in Texas secured a temporary restraining order a Texas court to block the parents from making their daughter go to an abortion facility to terminate the life of their pre-born grandchild.

The teenager s mother forcefully brought her on two occasions to local abortion facilities, demanding that her daughter terminate the life of her child. Though she refused, and the child s father also does not want an abortion, her parents insisted that she have the abortion. Full story at LifeNews.com

Only Abortion Practitioner in Wyoming Seeks County Coroner Position
The only abortion practitioner in the state of Wyoming is seeking the officer of county coroner in Teton County, amid speculation he may be attempting to cover up irregularities at his abortion business.

Brent Blue, a Democratic contender in the general election, runs the Emerg-A-Care abortion business. Located in this liberal tourist town in the northwest corner of the state, it is the only abortion center in Wyoming.

That makes his Republican opponent, pro-life candidate Kiley Campbell, wonder why he is seeking the position a personal vendetta against his father, who beat him twice before in successful races for the post, or because he wants to cover up problems in the abortion business.

For reasons not known by me, Dr. Blue really wants the Coroner s Office and has uses bad-mouth tactics to try and win, twice with my father and now with me, he told LifeNews.com in an exclusive interview.Full story at LifeNews.com

Looking for a Low-Cost Pro-Life Speaker?
Looking for a pro-life speaker for your next banquet, conference or convention? LifeNews.com editor Steven Ertelt is a low-cost speaker who can entertain and educate your audience as well as help you with a fundraising pitch if necessary. For more information: news@LifeNews.com.

Brazil Voters Should be Careful of Rousseff Abortion Pledge, Pro-Lifer Says
Brazilian voters get their final say in what has become a contention presidential election over the issue of abortion when they head to the polls on Sunday.
The race has seen candidates battle over who will really uphold the current pro-life law that prohibits virtually all abortions.

Runnoff elections are scheduled for Sunday pitting centrist candidate Jose Serra against Dilma Rousseff of the ruling Workers Party. Over the last two weeks, they have battled over the current abortion law, which protects unborn children from abortion and only allows it in the cases of rape or to save the life of the mother.

Pope Benedict XVI has told Brazil s bishops to emphasize the Catholic Church s opposition to abortion. he said yesterday that priests should remind their congregations to use their votes to uphold the respect of human life and that democracy itself is undermined and betrayed at its very roots when abortion is allowed.Full story at LifeNews.com

Manhattan Declaration a Year Later: Half a Million Support Pro-Life Values
The authors penned their declaration a year ago not knowing it would spur an international movement.

Now, nearly a half million backers have signed the Manhattan Declaration, a call of Christian conscience originally spurred by concern that U.S. leaders had lost sight of the meaning of religious freedom. In the months since, the declaration has not only reaffirmed Christian values, but has spawned similar movements on two other continents and an unprecedented display of ecumenical unity.

It was President Obama s description of religious freedom as a right to worship privately as opposed to freedom of religion that particularly worried the authors, says Robert George, one of three men who formed the declaration s drafting committee. The three agreed that religious freedom should include a robust right to witness to their Christian faith in public, and set about drafting a declaration that reaffirms the Christian understanding of life, religious liberty, and marriage. Full story at LifeNews.com

 

Encourage Friends to Sign Up for Free Pro-Life News From LifeNews.com

ALL Pro-life Today: 120 Millon-Smacker Smackdown

Pro-Life Today Header

Friday, October 29, 2010
COMMENTARY
Blue Bar
120 MILLION-SMACKER SMACKDOWN
Judie Brownby Judie Brown
After Notre Dame's much-protested invitation to Obama last year to speak at its graduation ceremony, alumni and donors are making their voices heard. Protecting the Catholic identity of a sacred Catholic institution is of utmost importance. Maybe these voices are loud enough to finally be heard-and heeded-by Father Jenkins.

[ Read Judie's commentary by clicking here. ]

Forward to a Friend
If you know of someone who could benefit from receiving Pro-Life Today, we ask that you please forward this message and ask them to subscribe.  American Life League works hard on a daily basis to provide relevant news which is made possible by your donations.

HEADLINES
Blue Bar
Only abortion practitioner in Wyoming seeks county coroner position
Life News
The only abortion practitioner in the state of Wyoming is seeking the officer of county coroner in Teton County, amid speculation he may be attempting to cover up irregularities at his abortion business.

Respecting life - and the truth
The Hill
Over in Ohio a candidate for Congress named Steve Driehaus has filed a complaint against a pro-life group, the Susan B. Anthony List, over billboards it erected that questioned Driehaus's vote for the Obama-Reid-Pelosi health care bill. The billboard decried the vote as having the effect of forcing taxpayers to pay for elective abortions.

Abortion: How many is too many?
Movement for a Better America

It's amazing how people react when they hear the latest report on the abortion toll, which is about to reach 53,495,167 as of October 31, 2010.

Some get angry. Others yawn. Still others react in horror and breathe a silent prayer. Then there are those who recognize an overwhelming tragedy that will decide the future of our nation, the church, and the world.

L'INNOCENCE, STOP PLANNED PARENTHOOD (SIGN)
Blue Bar

L'Innocence
These beautiful signs will help you bring Our Blessed Mother to your local Planned Parenthood facility. On the back are prayers to STOP Planned Parenthood, approved by Bishop Emeritus John W. Yanta. The signs impact those who are inside the facility as well as those on the streets. Join us in consecrating the fight against PP to Jesus, through our Blessed Mother, who will deliver the victory!

18" x 24" Coroplast sign - Stock Code: PSHM

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Finish Strong for Life

SBA List - Advancing, Mobilizing and Representing Pro-Life Women
 
Dear John,

One year and eleven months ago, President Obama took office backed by a radical pro-abortion Congress like we’ve never seen.

It is an understatement to say that the results have been nothing short of catastrophic for the unborn.

The casualties from the assault on innocent human life include:

...the biggest expansion of abortion on-demand since Roe v. Wade with the passage of Obamacare.

...a global exportation of the abortion agenda with the reversal of the Mexico City Policy, sending our tax dollars to overseas abortion providers.

...nomination and confirmation of two avidly pro-abortion judges to the Supreme Court as well as other levels of the federal judiciary system.

...expansion of taxpayer funding of embryo-destructive stem cell research.

As a former member of Congress who is passionately pro-life, I couldn’t sit back any longer and watch as the conscience of the nation I cherish is stained by the blood of unborn children. Not on my watch.

That’s why like you, I joined the SBA List family. Our hearts tug at us to be involved in this war between good and evil, a war between Life and death.

This upcoming Tuesday, we have a big battle in what has been a long 37-year war since the disastrous Roe v. Wade decision.

Together, John, we’ve been preparing for this battle since the day after the 2008 elections.

We’ve done two bus tours with 35 stops in 19 Congressional Districts. We’ve run television commercials across the country, we’ve run micro-targeted web ads, we’ve saturated the radio waves, we’ve stuffed mailboxes, we’ve clogged the phone lines, and so much more.

All to educate voters across the country about who will defend Life, and who will destroy it.

And now, we are just 72 hours away from the polls opening. 72 hours away from stopping anti-life agenda in its tracks.

It’s time for us to Finish Strong for Life, John. Please Donate one last time toward our 72 hour Get Out the Pro-Life Vote efforts.

  • We need to Finish Strong for our pro-life women. We need to be the margin of victory for those women who are authentic voices of pro-life feminism like Carly Fiorina, Sharron Angle, Christine O’Donnell, and Rep. Michele Bachmann.
  • We need to Finish Strong in our vow to defeat those self-described pro-life Democrats who betrayed the unborn and voted for Obamacare such as Reps. Steve Driehaus, Kathy Dahlkemper, Brad Ellsworth, and Joe Donnelly.
  • We need to Finish Strong for our pro-life men who are running against pro-abortion women such as Joe Miller, Roy Blunt, Joe Pitts, and Adam Kinzinger.

We’re emptying the war chest. Every dollar will be spent on the closest races, the races where our help can make the biggest difference in ensuring a pro-life candidate beats an anti-life candidate.

Pro-life Friend, Finish Strong and Donate one last time 

I look forward to celebrating victory with you on Tuesday.

 

Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave
Project Director, Votes Have Consequences

PS: The war to protect innocent human life and mothers from the violence of abortion has been raging for 37 years. Tuesday will be one of the biggest battles we’ve ever seen in this fight and one we’ve been preparing for since the day President Obama was elected, backed by a radical pro-abortion Congress led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Harry Reid. It is time to Finish Strong. In 72 hours, the polls will open. From now until then, we are emptying our war chest in the nation’s closest races between an advocate for life and an advocate for death. We must win these races. Finish Strong for Life, Donate Right Now.

 
Contact CongressContribute Now!
  Contributions or gifts to Susan B. Anthony List, Inc., a 501(c)(4) organization, are not tax-deductible for Federal income tax purposes. Donations may be used for political purposes such as supporting or opposing candidates. All donations are made to the general treasury of the Susan B. Anthony List, Inc., and are not designated for any particular purpose. Donation will be used in the sole discretion of the Officers and/or Board of Directors in accordance with the mission and purposes of the SBA List.