Lumina - a ray of light after abortion

Mutechen Diocese

Father Mariusz Koch, CFR, Br Andrew and I set out for Mutechen NJ to do a priest training in their diocese yesterday.

We are very grateful to Jennifer Ruggiero for having us in to give the day which we felt went really well.
It never fails that I will get a call from someone who spoke to a priest who went to one of these trainings. I am so grateful for the opportunity to bridge the understanding, and so grateful to the priests and lay who attend who desire to reach out to those hurting...

The elephant in the Room

No big surprise here..I may have called it a monster in my article but I am glad he is exposing the elephant...same beast

SUPREME COURT JUSTICE CLARENCE THOMAS DISCUSSES HIS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE LIFE AND SAYS THE REAL ISSUE AT HIS CONFIRMATION HEARINGS WAS ABORTION
Thurs Sept 27 2007 14:41:11 ET

In his first television interview, in which he discusses his childhood, his race, his rise to Supreme Court Justice and his job on the nation's highest court, Clarence Thomas says the real issue at his controversial confirmation hearings 16 years ago was abortion. Saying the issue was "the elephant in the room," Thomas also tells Steve Kroft that the hearings he called at the time a "high tech lynching" harmed the country. The interview will be broadcast on 60 MINUTES, Sunday Sept. 30 (7:30-9:00 PM/ET, 7:00-9:00 PM /PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Thomas, whose Supreme Court positions on abortion issues have been conservative, says the confirmation hearings in which he was accused of sexual harassment by a former employee -- allegations he continues to deny -- were really about abortion. "That was the elephant in the room... That was the issue. That is the issue that people are apparently so upset about," he tells Kroft. "[That is the issue] that you determine the composition of your Supreme Court and your entire federal judiciary, it seems now," says Thomas.

He says the hearings harmed the accuser, Anita Hill, himself, and ultimately the country by setting a precedent manifested in other highly charged, media-infused events such as the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. "The process harmed her. It harmed me and we see sort of the precedent of this kind of thing begin to harm even people like President Clinton," Thomas believes. "Things are out of control. That's not good for the country. It's not good for the court," he continues, "What are we going to look like years from now if we can't get people confirmed because everybody gets to attack them. They get to draw and quarter them," he says.

In the interview, Thomas also expresses an opinion of his accuser for the first time in public, saying of Hill, who waited 10 years to accuse him, "She was not the demure, religious, conservative person that they portrayed. That's not the person I knew," Thomas says. "She could defend herself, let's just put it that way... She did not take slights very kindly and anyone who did anything, she responded very quickly," he says. When Kroft rejoins, "Didn't take 10 years?" Thomas replies, "It didn't take 10 minutes."

http://www.drudgereport.com/flash8.htm

Whose choice is it?

"As we continued talking, I began to believe that she was indeed telling me that abortion was her own choice.  She just did not know how to handle strong feelings without the anger to cover up her fears, her concerns about the baby.  So I answered all of her questions.  All of a sudden, I could see a change in her posture and her demeanor.  Jody started telling me that she wanted to learn to manage her anger better because she wanted to be a nurse practitioner!  She wanted to help people get well (just as she wanted to get well).  So I   accepted her request to have the abortion and we shook hands on it."
Such is a quote from Lou from the web site "Abortion Clinic Days" http://abortionclinicdays.blogs.com/

I wonder what "Lou" told Jody about her baby...that it was a blob of blood or tissue? did she really want it or was she talked into it by being compassionate and manipulative. Did he tell her the risks of abortion physically, emotionally and spiritually?

Seems like Lou is really impressed with himself...sadly. many young girls may be too....

Court Dismisses Appeal on Mandated Reporting of Underage Sex

""This is a great result for teenagers in Kansas, and for all those who care about protecting teen’s health and well-being," said Bonnie Scott Jones"

That is of course, unless they are being abused reportedly, or having abortions and suffering while MS. Magazine continues to deny post abortion stress.

A federal appeals court ended former Kansas Attorney General Phil Kline’s quest to require health care providers and counselors to report all adolescent sexual activity, even kissing. Healthcare and counseling professionals, led by the Center for Reproductive Rights, challenged the constitutionality of the policy, and in 2006 a US district judge blocked its enforcement, ruling that it violated teens’ right to privacy. Undeterred, Kline appealed. But the Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit dismissed the appeal this week on the grounds that the state’s new sexual abuse reporting law instituted in January made the case moot because it does not require reporting all adolescent sexual contact.

The "kiss and tell" policy was "part of a trend by the anti-choice movement to use child-abuse reporting laws to scare adolescents away from reproductive health care," according to the Center for Reproductive Rights. In 2003, as part of his crusade against abortion, Kline issued an interpretation of the state’s child abuse reporting law, claiming that it required abortion clinics to report teen pregnancies as evidence of criminal sexual abuse. He then extended the “kiss and tell” policy to require other health care professionals, teachers, and others to report any evidence of underage sexual activity, the Wichita Eagle reports. During his time as Attorney General, Kline became notorious for bringing charges against Wichita abortion provider Dr. George Tiller, which the Kansas Supreme Court dismissed.   

"This is a great result for teenagers in Kansas, and for all those who care about protecting teen’s health and well-being," said Bonnie Scott Jones, the lead trial attorney in the case. "Reporting suspected child abuse is one thing. But reporting all intimate conduct between adolescents simply drives a wedge between those young people and the professionals who are there to help them."

                  

Media Resources: The Wichita Eagle 9/19/07, 6/19/03; Center for Reproductive Rights Press Release 9/18/07; Feminist Daily News Wire 2/15/07

     

http://www.msmagazine.com/news/printnews.asp?id=10531

Court: Clinic need not tell parents about emergency contraception

Another case of not caring about minor girls. It is appalling...so it continues, no aspirin from the school nurse, but the morning after pill? no problem...

By MARYCLAIRE DALE

A city health clinic did not violate a 16-year-old's rights or those of her parents when it gave her emergency contraception without notifying the couple, a federal appeals court said.

   

The state is not obligated to encourage a minor to seek parental advice, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in the 47-page ruling. The judges noted that the girl went to the city-run health center voluntarily and could have called her parents before or during the visit.

   

"The Constitution does not impose an affirmative obligation on (the) defendants to ensure that children abide by their parents wishes, values, or religious beliefs," Judge Theodore A. McKee wrote in Friday's ruling.

   

The ruling appears to be a first among federal circuits involving teen access to the morning-after pill at public health centers, lawyers on both sides said. However, the judges relied on long-standing Supreme Court precedent that minors enjoy privacy rights even if they must sometimes be weighed against a parent's.

   

"The parents are being removed from the equation, which doesn't bode well. It's only one case, but the message is not a good one for the family," said lawyer Joseph P. Stanton, who represents Melissa Anspach and her parents, Kurt and Karen Anspach, of Philadelphia.

   

Melissa Anspach visited the clinic in January 2004 for a pregnancy test, which was not available that day. At a friend's suggestion, she returned a short time later and asked for the morning-after pill, also known as Plan B. She spoke briefly with a social worker before a nurse gave her one dose at the clinic and a second dose to take 12 hours later.

   

After taking the second dose, Anspach experienced severe abdominal pains and vomiting. She told her parents about the medication and they took her to a hospital, where she was treated and released.

   

Plan B, a high dose of a drug found in many regular birth-control pills, can lower the risk of pregnancy by up to 89 percent if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex. Some critics _ including Roman Catholic leaders _ consider the pill tantamount to abortion, although the manufacturer says it has no effect on women who are already pregnant.

   

The 3rd Circuit contrasted the Anspach case to others in which a teacher or coach actively directed minors to take a pregnancy test or seek an abortion _ actions the courts found intrusive.

   

"Here, the center, a public health clinic, had no authority over Melissa, nor did center staff become involved in Melissa's reproductive health decisions without invitation," the court said. "Melissa was only given the pills because she asked for them."

   

The Anspachs, who said they oppose abortion, also raised religious objections to the clinic's actions. The court rejected that argument on grounds their daughter had not expressed those views during the visit.

   

The Food and Drug Administration, after three years of bitter debate, ruled last year that Plan B could be sold over-the-counter to women 18 and older. Minors can obtain it at some clinics or with a prescription.

   

"We're obviously very pleased. There was no dissent. It's a very strong, clear decision," said Susan Frietsche, senior staff attorney of the Women's Law Project in Pittsburgh, which filed an amicus brief in support of the city.

   

A possible telephone listing for the Anspachs, who live in Philadelphia, rang unanswered Monday.

http://www.timesleader.com/news/ap?articleID=112166

            

College student charged in death of newborn

As horrifying as this i s, I must admit, when I saw them discussing this case on the Nancy Grace show, I was even more horrified. Nancy, more than once denounced the act stating in words similar to these ...if she did not want the baby she could have had an abortion....

They also express horror that she looked up herbal abortion techniques...guess she should have just looked up abortion and that would have been ok...geez....
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.obituaries/msg/2ddc67dd5de11c0c

How these people can be so horrified at what this girl did and then have no problem if she had walked into a clinic the day before amazes me...the illogical thinking of abortion...the baby is no different from one day to the next...when will we begin to admit that? In no way do I condone what she did, but I can certainly understand that in her mind one thing is no different than the other, and to be sure, she would have been right. Very sad...

Ex-Mercyhurst Student Charged With Homicide
in Infant's Death

Police: College Sophomore Took Shower
While Baby Was in Plastic Bag

FROM:  The Erie Times-News ~
By Kara Rhodes and Lisa Thompson

Police said Teri Rhodes never told anyone she
was expecting.

But they said the 18-year-old, then a Mercyhurst
College sophomore, was thinking about how to
terminate her pregnancy.

They said she researched the topic on the Internet,
using her laptop computer to look up information
on "herbal abortion techniques," "what can kill a
fetus," and "alternative methods of ending
pregnancy."

Erie police and the District Attorney's Office spent
the five weeks since the infant girl's death building
a case against Rhodes, using records from Rhodes'
laptop computer and cell phone. Investigators also
reviewed medical records, including a sports
physical that Rhodes, who had been on the
Mercyhurst women's volleyball team, underwent two
days before she gave birth in the bathroom of her
on-campus apartment.

But either the Mercyhurst volleyball player never
tried, or she failed to end her unwanted pregnancy.

Instead, she was nine months pregnant when she
arrived back at Mercyhurst after summer break.

Two days later, on Aug. 12, Rhodes gave birth to a
6-pound baby girl in the bathroom of her apartment.

The baby died 10 minutes after she was born. Erie
County Coroner Lyell Cook said she had been
suffocated.

Rhodes on Tuesday was charged with criminal
homicide, accused of killing her child.

She also was charged with concealing the death of
a child, endangering the welfare of a child,
recklessly endangering another person, and abuse
of a corpse. If convicted, she could face a
maximum of life in prison, plus another 16 years.

"She somehow managed to hide her pregnancy from
everyone she came in contact with," Erie County
District Attorney Brad Foulk said. "But Ms. Rhodes
knew all along she was carrying an unborn child."

"The defendant made no attempt to seek medical care
and even went so far as to deny to medical personnel
that she had even given birth," according to the
complaint.

Rhodes was arraigned on the charges Tuesday
afternoon.

She sat alone and weeping at a table in the middle of
a small courtroom as Erie 5th Ward District Judge
Joseph Lefaiver read aloud every line of the four-page
criminal complaint describing the events that led to
her arrest.

Rhodes, her shoulders hunched and her arms
crossed over her stomach, followed along with a copy
of the complaint lying on the table in front of her.

Her parents, Mark and Mary Rhodes, sat in chairs
against the wall behind her.

Throughout the proceeding, Rhodes' mother looked
down, holding her head in her hands. After, she moved
to the table and hugged her daughter for a long time.
Then her daughter was led away in handcuffs.

"These are very serious charges you are being
accused of," Lefaiver told Rhodes.

Lefaiver asked Rhodes if she understood the charges.

"Yes, sir," she said.

Rhodes was taken to Erie County Prison, but less
than two hours later -- at 6 p.m. -- she was released
to her parents.

Erie County Judge John A. Bozza said she must post
$25,000 bond within 10 days or report to Erie County
Prison. He also ordered that she continue to reside
with her parents at their home in Commerce, Mich.,
near Detroit, and that she either obtain employment or
enroll in college there.

Police said Rhodes is no longer enrolled at Mercyhurst.

Rhodes' lawyer, Phil Friedman, did not return phone
calls seeking comment.

While Rhodes was awaiting her arraignment at
Lefaiver's office, Foulk outlined the case against her
at a news conference at the Erie County Courthouse.
He went over the criminal complaint, prepared by Erie
police Detective Lt. Ken Merchant and Detective
Lt. Daniel Spizarny.

The complaint indicates that Rhodes was asked before
giving birth whether she was pregnant.

In the first instance, a doctor giving Rhodes a
pre-sports physical Aug. 10 noticed that she appeared
pregnant.

"The Saint Vincent Sports Medicine doctor asked her if
she was pregnant," the complaint read. "She responded
that she didn't think so."

The doctor cleared her to play, and she practiced with
the team that same day, according to the complaint.

Rhodes also told investigators that she took a pregnancy
test at the urging of her volleyball coach.

Rhodes told police she took the test Aug. 11 and that
it was negative.

The next day, at about 1:30 p.m. Aug. 12, she gave birth
to the 6-pound baby girl in the bathroom of Apartment
No. 6 at 3810 Briggs Ave.

Police said Rhodes put the baby in a plastic bag and
placed it in the bathtub. They said she then took a
shower, with the baby lying at her feet.

By then, her roommate, concerned about the noises
Rhodes was making in the bathroom, had contacted
assistant volleyball coach Sarah King.

Rhodes told King that she was suffering from heavy
menstrual bleeding.

But King insisted on taking Rhodes to Saint Vincent
Health Center, where, despite repeated questions from
both hospital personnel and police, Rhodes at first
denied having given birth.

Eventually she admitted to having had a baby. But, she
told police, she had thrown the baby in a Dumpster on
Briggs Avenue.

Police said Rhodes finally admitted at 6:30 p.m. --
two hours after the baby was discovered by campus
police and the school's head volleyball coach -- that
she had left the baby in a plastic bag in the tub.

She said "that she'd thrown the baby in a Dumpster
when in fact the baby was still laying in the bloody
tub," the criminal complaint reads.

"She just tried to continue to hide it," Foulk said.
---
College Statement

Mercyhurst College Statement About Teri Rhodes:

"As the Mercyhurst College community continues to
cope with this terrible tragedy, our thoughts and
prayers go out to all those who have suffered as a
result. Now that the authorities have reached their
decision, we feel it only prudent to direct any further
comment relative to the case to the Erie County District
Attorney's Office. As is the Mercyhurst way, however,
we will look for ways to learn from this distressing
experience. We are home to more than 4,000 students
and we are committed not only to providing them the
best education possible, but to maximizing our
resources to ensure their overall well-being. Never can
we avert every tragedy. They are a part of life. But we
can and should learn from them, deal compassionately
with those who are hurting and double our efforts to
offer support to those who are in crisis."

Mercyhurst College issued this written statement Tuesday
through media relations manager Debbie Morton
---
The Charges

The Erie police, after consultation with the Erie
County District Attorney's Office, charged
Teri Rhodes with a general count of homicide.

The charge allows the prosecution to seek a range
of convictions, from involuntary manslaughter to
first-degree murder.

Rhodes is also accused of a series of other
charges. If convicted of all the most serious
charges, she would face a maximum sentence of
life in prison, plus another 16 years, according to
court records.

The sentencing judge can give a defendant less
than the maximum, except in cases where a
sentence is mandatory.

A summary of the charges against Rhodes:

-- General count of homicide

Can include:

First-degree murder, a premeditated killing.
A conviction is punishable by a mandatory sentence
of life in prison with no chance for parole. The
prosecution can also seek the death penalty, though
the District Attorney's Office has given no indication
that it is considering doing so in the Rhodes case.

Second-degree murder, or a murder committed
during a felony, likely does not apply to the Rhodes
case. It carries a mandatory life sentence.

Third-degree murder, an intentional killing with malice.
A conviction is punishable by a maximum of 20 to
40 years in a state prison.

Voluntary manslaughter, a first-degree felony that is
an unlawful killing committed with serious
provocation. It likely does not apply to the Rhodes
case. Conviction punishable by a maximum of 20 to
40 years in a state prison.

Involuntary manslaughter, an unlawful killing due
to gross negligence. In the Rhodes case, the charge
would be a second-degree felony because the victim
was younger than 12 years old. A conviction for a
second-degree felony carries a maximum sentence of
five to 10 years. Otherwise, involuntary manslaughter
is a first-degree misdemeanor, and a conviction carries
a maximum sentence of two and a half to five years.

-- Other charges

Concealing the death of a child -- first-degree
misdemeanor. Maximum sentence of two and a half
to five years.

Endangering the welfare of a child -- first-degree
misdemeanor or a third-degree felony, if the
allegations involve a course of conduct. Maximum
sentence of three and a half to seven years as a
third-degree felony. Maximum sentence of two and
a half to five years as a first-degree misdemeanor.

Recklessly endangering another person --
second-degree misdemeanor. Maximum sentence
of one to two years.

Abuse of a corpse -- second-degree misdemeanor.
Maximum sentence of one to two years.

Sources: Court records, state sentencing guidelines
---
Mercyhurst Volleyball Player Charged With Suffocating Newborn Baby

FROM:  ESPN.com ~
By The Associated press

ERIE, Pa., Sept. 19

A Mercyhurst College volleyball player was charged
Tuesday with killing the baby she secretly gave birth
to in her campus apartment bathroom.

Teri Rhodes hid the pregnancy from friends and
teammates, told a doctor two days before the
Aug. 12 birth that she didn't think she was pregnant
and did Internet research on topics including "what
can kill a fetus," Erie police said.

After giving birth, the 18-year-old Rhodes put the
newborn in a plastic bag and left it on the floor of a
bathtub as she showered, according to the criminal
complaint.

Among other counts, Rhodes was charged with
homicide, abusing a corpse and concealing the death
of a child. Her attorney, Philip Friedman, declined
to comment.

The sophomore has been living at her parents'
house in Commerce, Mich., near Detroit. She was
freed on $25,000 bond Tuesday afternoon.

"The defendant made no attempt to seek medical
care and even went so far as to deny to medical
personnel that she had even given birth," the
complaint said. Rhodes "intentionally, knowingly,
recklessly or negligently caused the death of her
newborn baby girl."

The baby was full term, police said. A coroner
ruled the death a homicide, saying the infant girl had
been alive for about 10 minutes before being
suffocated.

A short time after Rhodes gave birth, the volleyball
team's assistant coach, Sarah King, took the
teenager to a hospital, unaware she had just
delivered a baby, police said in an affidavit.

Rhodes initially denied to hospital personnel that
she had given birth, but later admitted it after being
examined by a doctor, according to the complaint.
She told police she realized she was giving birth
when she went to the bathroom and saw the baby's
leg.

Rhodes first told police the baby was in a trash bin,
according to the criminal complaint. Later, she told
them the baby could be found on the floor of her
apartment bathroom.

Rhodes passed a sports physical that cleared her
to play volleyball two days before she gave birth,
police said. Rhodes told investigators the doctor
asked her if she was pregnant and she responded
that "she didn't think so."

A day later, Aug. 11, King asked Rhodes to get a
pregnancy test, Rhodes told police. On the day of
the birth, Aug. 12, Rhodes went to morning
volleyball practice, but didn't feel well and returned
to her apartment, police said. Within hours, she
gave birth, authorities said.

A search of Rhodes' laptop computer found that
she had done research on the Internet on topics
including "what can kill a fetus," "alternative methods
of ending pregnancy" and "herbal abortion
techniques," according to the criminal complaint.

Erie County District Attorney Brad Foulk said
investigators know when Rhodes conducted the
searches, but would only say they were done "fairly
close to the incident."

Mercyhurst is a private, Catholic liberal arts college
with about 3,000 students located in Erie, PA.
 

 

Ellen Burstyn Says Abortion was the Worst Thing in Her Life

It makes me sad to read things like this...I am sure she has suffered for many years and Hollywood would be the last place to accept her pain. I admire her courage in speaking out and pray she gets to one of the many resources for help out there.

http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/sep/07092002.html

          

LifeSiteNews.com

Thursday September 20, 2007

Academy Award winning actress Ellen Burstyn Says Abortion was the Worst Thing in Her Life

By John-Henry Westen

TORONTO, September 19, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Academy Award winning actress Ellen Burstyn known for her roles in  'Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore' and 'The Exorcist' was interviewed by CFRB radio in Toronto while she was in town promoting her new book - Lessons in Becoming Myself. 

CFRB spoke at length about the long and eventful career of the highly acclaimed 74-year-old actress after which the interviewer asked Burstyn "what was the lowest moment" of her life.

After a pause during which the interviewer prompted with her single motherhood, struggles with her son and more, Burstyn said, "You know, I guess, I hate to talk about this on the air, but having an abortion."

Burstyn continued, "You know that was really an extremely painful experience."

"Did you feel you didn't have a choice?," asked the interviewer.  "At the time I was just young and dumb, I didn't really want to have a baby then," she replied.

"It was the wrong thing to do and I really didn't understand that till later," said the actress.

"That was very very painful, that was probably the worst."

Concluding the matter she said, "I try not to allow regret to settle over me like a shroud, because I think its an unhealthy way to live."

To listen to the CFRB interview click here:
http://www.cfrb.com/player/ondemand/files/srimedia/ellen%202...

Abortion Rights for Men

Abortion law would give fathers a say State legislators propose change; opponents blast bill as 'extreme'

Mike Hixenbaugh

July 30, 2007

 

By Mike Hixenbaugh

Record-Courier staff writer

Several Ohio state representatives who normally take an anti-abortion stance are now pushing pro-choice legislation - sort of.

Led by Rep. John Adams, a group of state legislators have submitted a bill that would give fathers of unborn children a final say in whether or not an abortion can take place.

It's a measure that, supporters say, would finally give fathers a choice.

"This is important because there are always two parents and fathers should have a say in the birth or the destruction of that child," said Adams, a Republican from Sidney. "I didn't bring it up to draw attention to myself or to be controversial. In most cases, when a child is born the father has financial responsibility for that child, so he should have a say."

As written, the bill would ban women from seeking an abortion without written consent from the father of the fetus. In cases where the identity of the father is unknown, women would be required to submit a list of possible fathers. The physician would be forced to conduct a paternity test from the provided list and then seek paternal permission to abort.

Claiming to not know the father's identity is not a viable excuse, according to the proposed legislation. Simply put: no father means no abortion.

"I'm really pleased that this has been proposed for one reason - it draws attention to the fact that many men are concerned and care for their unborn children," said Denise Mackura, the director of the Ohio Right to Life Society. "You have no idea how many men call telling me about their girlfriends who plan to abort, asking what they can do to help her. They do want to help and they should have a voice."

With the proposal, men would be guaranteed that voice under penalty of law. First time violators would by tried for abortion fraud, a first degree misdemeanor. The same would be the case for men who falsely claim to be fathers and for medical workers who knowingly perform an abortion without paternal consent.

In addition, women would be required to present a police report in order to prove a pregnancy is the result of rape or incest.

As is the case whenever abortion is the topic, sharp opposition has come from members of the House, along with multiple activist groups. The National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Activist League and the Ohio Right to Life Society have both spoken out against the legislation.

"This extreme bill shows just how far some of our state legislators are willing to go to rally a far-right base that is frustrated with the pro-choice gains made in the last election," said NARAL Pro-choice Ohio executive director Kellie Copeland. "It is completely out of touch with Ohio's mainstream values. This measure is a clear attack on a woman's freedom and privacy."

The proposal came less than two weeks after Rep. Tom Brinkman proposed legislation that would ban all abortions in Ohio. Brinkman, a Republican from Cincinnati, was one of eight representatives to co-sponsor Adams' bill.

With the recent liberal swing in Ohio state government, neither bill is likely to come to fruition. However, Adams' less extreme proposal has an outside chance of becoming law - a law that would have a major impact in Portage County and surrounding areas.

Portage has been among the leading Ohio counties in abortion-to-birth ratios since abortion was legalized in 1973. Since 1996, about 20 percent of Portage County pregnancies have been aborted - the seventh highest percentage in the state according to information from the Ohio Department of Health. The total comes to more than 4,300 abortions in 10 years.

Cuyahoga County has the highest abortion percentage with more than 30 percent of its residents' pregnancies being terminated. Summit County is also near the top of the list with a 21 percent termination rate.

Mackura doesn't think those numbers are likely to change anytime soon, though. Precedent from the U.S. Supreme Court indicates that, even if Adams' bill passed, it would likely be ruled unconstitutional by the courts.

"Simply taking a look at this as a possibility is a step in the right direction," Mackura said. "Pregnancy is a unique human condition and obviously a woman is affected differently than a man. As a woman, I can sympathize. However, to completely take rights away from the father is unfair.

"Currently, even in a marriage situation, a man has no right to even be informed of an abortion. But if a woman doesn't have an abortion, men sure have a lot of responsibility then. It's really not fair."

It i s interesting to see all the twists of the abortion laws and new ideas people have. This i snot much different from the guy who

sued because he wanted his GF to have an abortion and she would not. He did not have a choice so he felt like he should not be required to pay . He lost as did the girl who used Roe vs wade as a defense when she cut a baby out of the mother...what is next????

http://www.recordpub.com/news/article/2327981

Silent No More NYC

“You’re in the wrong town”. Such was one of the shout outs from passers by as we did our fifth Silent No More in the middle of midtown Manhattan on  6^th Avenue and 49^th Street on September 18^th.

 Thanks to the hard work of our coordinator, Colleen Barry, and Janet Morano of Priests for Life, we once again managed to bring our message into the streets of Manhattan to literally hundreds of ears in a short span of time.

I have been involved in Silent No More from its beginnings and have participated before the Supreme Court after the January, March for Life in Washington, DC. I have been doing post abortion work for over fifteen years, and have given my witness at countless venues; churches, schools, college campuses, you name it. But no matter how many places I have spoken, or how much hostility has come my way, witnessing on the streets of

Manhattan, the capital of the world, is always a unique experience.

 Days before we venture out, I find myself thinking of a million excuses as to why I can not go. Gitters never fail to form in my stomach the morning of the event, and as I have told many people I know, I actually have to do violence to myself to get there.

 There is something about standing on the streets of New   York City in the middle of a lunch hour with literally hundreds and hundreds of people walking by, while holding a sign that says “I Regret My Abortion”.  In a town where people are rushing around and everyone seems to be a stranger, many stop, as we grab their attention and share our most intimate sin. People look in shock, some nodding their heads as we speak of our sorrow and thanking us, others tell us to “shut up” or “mind your own business.” I have heard people make phone calls telling others, “You are not going to believe what is going on down here”, and I have seen those shedding a tear because we remind them of their own abortion pain or the pain of someone they love.

 It is both intense and humbling.

I may never figure out why exactly it is that I hate doing Silent No More in New York so much, but it really does not matter. All that matters is that I continue to go in spite of myself so the message gets out there that abortion hurts women and men, that God heals, and there is hope and healing after abortion.

In my opinion New York   City is just the “right town” to do this.

Theresa

 

A Grand Jury for Tiller

I am very happy to hear that this will proceed. Tiller has manipulated things to his advantage for far too long..praying he finally is put out of business

Federal Judge Rules That Attorneys For Abortion Provider Tiller Cannot Prevent Grand Jury From Being Formed To Investigate Tiller

17 Sep 2007   

U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten on Tuesday ruled against a motion to prevent a grand jury from convening in Sedgwick County, Kan., to investigate abortion provider George Tiller, the Wichita Eagle reports (Lefler, Wichita Eagle, 9/12). The antiabortion group Kansans for Life last week delivered a petition that contained 7,857 signatures asking the Sedgwick County District Court to convene a grand jury and appoint an independent prosecutor to investigate Tiller. Petitioners want the grand jury to examine late-term abortions that Tiller performed during the past five years and the reasons cited for the abortions (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 9/7).

Sedgwick County Election Commissioner Bill Gale on Tuesday certified the petition and sent it to Sedgwick County Administrative Judge Michael Corrigan. Gale said the petitioners submitted 6,683 valid signatures, more than the 2,449 needed to convene a grand jury.

  Tiller Motion, Reaction 
Tiller's attorneys filed a motion requesting that the grand jury not be convened, claiming that Tiller has been investigated several times in the past year and that another grand jury investigation would be "unfair, harassing and bad faith." According to the Eagle, if the grand jury is seated, it will conduct at least the fifth investigation of Tiller since 2006, including a pending case in which state Attorney General Paul Morrison (D) has charged Tiller with 19 misdemeanors for allegedly violating a state law that requires an independent, consulting physician to approve some late-term abortions.

Tiller's attorneys in the motion said the petition to convene a grand jury is "part of a repeated, persistent and harassing effort to induce criminal prosecution" of Tiller "by those who oppose lawful abortion." Marten said that Tiller's lawyers made a strong case, but added, "Frankly, I'm reluctant to jump into the middle of something that is essentially a state matter." Marten suggested that Tiller's attorneys re-file the motion in state court, and Tiller's attorneys said they plan to do so (Wichita Eagle, 9/12).

Kansans for Life leaders said they were unaware that Tiller's attorneys had sought to prevent state courts from convening a grand jury. David Gittrich, development director of Kansans for Life, said that if the motion had been granted, it would have been an insult to those who signed the petition and to state lawmakers seeking to change abortion policy. He added that the group hopes the grand jury will file charges against Tiller similar to those filed by former Attorney General Phill Kline (R) (Wichita Eagle, 9/12). 

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