LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report 10/9/08 #4439
LifeNews.com Pro-Life News Report
Thursday, October 9, 2008
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Today's Headlines
• Obama Backer Mark Warner: Pro-Lifers "Threaten" American Values
• Abortion Views May Not Hurt Obama, Americans Say He's Religious
• Pro-Life Advocates Upset Second Debate Didn't Address Abortion
• Quarter of Oregon Assisted Suicide Victims Depressed, but Got Drugs
• Catholic Writer: Church Will Face Abortion Split if Obama Wins
• Tom Brokaw's Filter Prevents Any Abortion Discussion in Debate
• Colorado Gov. Ritter Will Oppose Ballot Vote on Personhood Measure
• Canada CPC Settles Lawsuit After Planned Parenthood Attacks
• Nebraska Man Tries to Hit LifeChain Participants With Vehicle
• New Jersey Catholic School Rejects Pro-Abortion Speaker Whitman
• British Catholic Hospital Under Fire for Allowing Abortion Referrals
• West Virginia Pro-Life Group Takes on State Election Law
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Barack Obama Supporter Mark Warner: Pro-Lifers "Threaten" American Values
Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) -- Mark Warner is a former Virginia governor who is running for a U.S. Senate seat and is a strong supporter of Barack Obama. A new audio recording has surfaced showing Warner saying that pro-life advocates and other conservatives are "threatening to what it means to be an American." The remark is making the rounds of the Internet and reminding pro-life voters of the off-putting comment Obama made in Pennsylvania earlier in the campaign that conservative and pro-life rural voters "cling to guns or religion." The comments feature Warner talking about political opponents at a Democratic Party gathering. "One of the things you're going to see is a coalition that has just about completely taken over the Republican Party in this state, and if they have their way they're going to take over state government," Warner says. "It's made up of the Christian Coalition. It's made up of the right to lifers," Warner continues. "It's made up of a coalition of people that have all sorts of different views that I think most of us in this room would find threatening to what it means to be an American." Full story at LifeNews.com
Abortion Views May Not Hurt Obama Because Americans See Him as Religious
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Barack Obama is arguably the most pro-abortion presidential candidate since Roe v. Wade -- with him supporting a bill to overturn all pro-life laws nationwide and votes appearing to support infanticide in Illinois. So why is it that Obama is doing better in the polls that previous pro-abortion candidates? One explanation, of course, has to do with the difficult economic conditions and Obama's position as the so-called change candidate who doesn't hail from the incumbent presidential party. But a new poll reveals that Obama may be insulating himself from attacks on abortion because of his frequent discussion of religion -- which has endeared some pro-life advocates to his campaign. A survey from Public Religion Research for the liberal religious group Faith in Public Life finds more Americans say Obama is more religion-friendly than McCain, who prefers to downplay his religious focus and focus on doing the right thing. Forty-nine percent of Americans say Obama is friendly to religion, while 45% say McCain is friendly to religion. With 71 percent saying it is important for public officials to be comfortable talking about religious values, that's a handicap for McCain. The shift is seen in the percentage of highly religious Americans who favor Obama. McCain has a lead among voters who attend religious services weekly, but for those who attend religious services once or twice a month have moved from 49 percent for previous candidate John Kerry to 60 percent backing Obama. Full story at LifeNews.com.
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Pro-Life Advocates Upset Second Presidential Debate Didn't Address Abortion
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Most political observers were disappointed by the second presidential debate -- with much of the blame placed on moderator Tom Brokaw. Pro-life advocates were disappointed Brokaw didn't allow any questions related to pro-life issues when the candidates have huge differences on abortion. Analysis shows the town hall debate format allowed just 15 percent of the questions to focus on social issues, and Brokaw never allowed an abortion question. Day Gardner, president of the National Black Pro-Life Union, told LifeNews.com the debate was "boring" and that even the post-debate coverage failed to point out the differences between the candidates on abortion. "So, where were all the difficult questions? Where were the questions about embryonic stem cell research?" Gardner asked. The African-American pro-life leader also blamed Brokaw and the media for ignoring the issue of Barack Obama's votes against bills in the Illinois legislature to provide medical care for newborns who survive abortions. "Sadly, I have come to the conclusion that due to the blatant effort by the liberal media to cover up the outlandish stand of Barack Obama on infants born alive and the cowardice of Mr. Obama, who folds under the pressure of the nation's largest abortion chain, [babies] will continue to die these horrible deaths," Gardner said. Full story at LifeNews.com
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A new study shows about one-fourth of the people killed in assisted suicides in Oregon were depressed, yet they received lethal cocktails anyway. Researchers at the Oregon Health and Science University conducted the study and skeptic say it shows the guidelines in the assisted suicide law don't work. Psychiatrist Linda Ganzini, the lead author of the study, says the results show doctors need to do a better job of screening for depression before allowing an assisted suicide to go forward. But Wesley J. Smith, an author and attorney who is a leading euthanasia watchdog, says the guidelines in the law only a way for assisted suicide proponents to make citizens feel safeguards are in place. "As I have repeatedly pointed out, the guidelines are not actually there to protect the vulnerable, but merely to give the appearance of control," he said in response to the study. "And if one doctor says no, the patient just goes doctor shopping until one is found who will prescribe--usually referred by [pro-euthanasia] Compassion and Choices," Smith says. "So, there is no protection of depressed patients in Oregon, and none is really intended." Full story at LifeNews.com| Powerful Video, Christmas Cards |
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Catholic Writer: Church Will Face Huge Abortion Split if Barack Obama Wins
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A prominent Catholic writer says he's concerned the Catholic Church will experience a huge split on abortion should Barack Obama win. Deal Hudson also believes an Obama win would wake up pro-life Catholics to the growing pro-abortion dissident presence within Catholic society. Should Obama win, Hudson writes that, "Many Catholics will finally realize, and admit to, the power of the political left in their Church. This will lead to a stark red state, blue state divide among Catholics in the U.S., which will be wider and deeper than what we presently see." "The average Catholic has always been resistant to seeing the instutionalized dissent, political liberalism, and Democratic Party alignment that exists throughout the Church in this country," he says. Hudson says that dissent comes in the form of a network that "extends through chanceries, universities (especially Jesuit), Catholic organizations, and Catholic media." "This network has become very adept at cloaking its dissent, its political intentions, and its disdain for the agenda of John Paul II and Benedict XVI," he explains. "There are a growing number of Catholics willing to believe it because of this election." Full story at LifeNews.comTom Brokaw's Filter Prevents Any Abortion Discussion in Town Hall Debate
by Maria Vitale
The day after the second Presidential debate of the season, the Drudge Report ran a headline with a one-word description of the proceedings: “dull.” This was the Town Hall debate, the one where real folks were going to pose the questions that real folks care about. Unfortunately, there was still a media filter in the form of the moderator, and the questions simply gave the candidates a forum to repeat the talking points from the campaign trail and from the last debate. Not surprisingly, the economy was the number one topic of discussion. With the meltdown on Wall Street, people are worried about their very survival. When we feel our well-being is threatened, we naturally speak up. But there is a far graver threat to our survival as a nation than a recession—or even a depression. In an hour and a half of talk time, not one minute was devoted to the most important issue in this election: abortion. I realize that public opinion polls do not register abortion as the top issue this election cycle. This is because abortion is frequently hidden from view. There’s no equivalent of the Dow Jones Industrial average for abortion casualties. We do not hear daily reports of how much blood was shed at the abortion facility down the street. Full story at LifeNews.com
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Denver, CO (LifeNews.com) -- Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter announced on Tuesday that he will oppose the measure that will appear on the November ballot defining unborn children as persons under law. The measure could set off a debate over abortion and lead to banning abortions and other practices that destroy human life before birth. Ritter says he opposes Amendment 48 and called it "bad policy, bad medicine and bad law." Ritter also claimed the amendment would create a "legal nightmare" by tying up the courts to define when human life begins and what ramifications the proposal would have on abortion and bioethics practices. Backers of the proposal were upset by the news and Kristi Burton, initiative sponsor of Amendment 48, told LifeNews.com that Ritter's statement was more evidence "of his continued allegiance to the abortion industry." "Governor Ritter's stand against Amendment 48 is typical of the stale abortion politics of the past that have gotten away from the will of the people," she said. Full story at LifeNews.comCanada Pregnancy Center Settles Lawsuit After Planned Parenthood Attacks
Ottawa, Canada (LifeNews.com) -- A Canadian pregnancy center that came under attack from Planned Parenthood after the wives of the Ottawa Senators hockey team designated it as a charity recipient has settled a lawsuit it filed against the abortion business. The suit came after Planned Parenthood attacked First Place Pregnancy Centre. The hockey players' wives formed a charitable group called "The Better Halves" and named the pregnancy center as one of three groups to receive proceeds from a raffle of players' items and memorabilia. Planned Parenthood officials objected to the group that helps pregnant women and publicly attacked First Place with claims that it misleads women. The center voluntarily withdrew from the fundraiser -- forfeiting $25,000 -- but filed a claim against Planned Parenthood Ottawa and two of its representatives before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in May. First Place alleged Planned Parenthood Ottawa interfered with critical funding and defamed their charity putting the charity and the women they serve at risk. The two sides have reportedly settled the lawsuit out of court, according to a joint press release. Full story at LifeNews.com
Nebraska Pro-Abortion Man Tries to Hit Pro-Life LifeChain Participants With Vehicle
Nebraska City, NE (LifeNews.com) -- A pro-abortion Nebraska man upset that pro-life advocates were lining the streets of this eastern city drove his vehicle on the sidewalk and nearly came in contact with participants. The pro-life people were participating the in the annual Life Chain, silently holding pro-life signs opposing abortion. Rex Peterson, 25, faces charges of terroristic threats after attacking the pro-life advocates with his vehicle. Officials say Peterson drove his vehicle on the sidewalk, forcing three women to scurry away from where they were standing to avoid injury. According to court records police filed, Peterson hit the accelerator to jump the curb and continued for a half a block -- nearly hitting nine people total before slamming his brakes. The Nebraska City News Press indicates Peterson told police he had been drinking and did not intend to drive on the sidewalk, but witnesses say he and friends in his vehicle drove by the LifeChain 20 minute earlier honking and shouting obscenities. Full story at LifeNews.com
New Jersey Catholic School Rejects Pro-Abortion Speaker Christie Whitman
Trenton, NJ (LifeNews.com) -- A Catholic school in New Jersey has stuck with the directions of the nation's Catholic bishops and has rejected a pro-abortion former politician from speaking. Stuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic girls school in Princeton Township denied former governor Christie Whitman a platform. Whitman is a rare Republican elected official who supports abortion. She was booked for an event at the school called the "Women in Leadership Forum." The event was scheduled for Monday night but the school eventually canceled Whitman after a request from Diocese of Trenton Bishop John M. Smith. Bishop Smith wrote the school last month and told officials that Whitman is a long-time abortion advocate and her pro-abortion position is "totally contrary" to Catholic teachings promoting the right to life. Smith wrote that her speaking could mislead students, teachers and parents about where the Catholic Church stands on pro-life issues. School headmistress Sister Frances de la Chapelle wrote to Bishop Smith and said the school would comply with his request. Full story at LifeNews.com
| Where Do the Presidential Candidates Stand? |
 Keeping track of the candidates can be hard—that's why National Right to Life has put together this comparison of the candidates on the issue of abortion in both Spanish and English. Download and copy, or buy online! |
British Catholic Hospital Under Fire for Policy Allowing Abortion Referrals
London, England (LifeNews.com) -- A Catholic hospital in northern London is coming under fire for a new policy that allows doctors there to refer women for abortions. Pro-life groups say the hospital is violating Catholic teaching that opposes abortion and even comments from the Pope who recently urged Catholic medical professionals to have no involvement in abortion. St John and St Elizabeth hospital has been operating for 150 years and it has a National Health Service practice that occupies part of the building and has 9,000 patients. Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, the new chairman of the hospital has ushered in the new abortion referral policy, which also allows distribution of birth control drugs that could cause abortions in some circumstances. Helen Watt, the director of the Linacre Centre, told the London Guardian she is opposed to the new policy and said it violated Catholic teachings. Full story at LifeNews.com
West Virginia Pro-Life Group Takes on State Election Law Limiting Free Speech
Charleston, WV (LifeNews.com) -- The leading pro-life group in West Virginia is taking on a campaign finance law that it says makes it harder to get out the pro-life message. West Virginians for Life is asking a federal court to prevent West Virginia from enforcing unconstitutional parts of the law. A hearing on a preliminary-injunction motion is set for this morning at the federal courthouse in Charleston. Between now and Election Day, the pro-life group plans to run a radio ad, mass mailing, and petition about a 1993 West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals decision requiring West Virginia to pay for abortions for Medicaid recipients. Yet the communications mention the author of the decision, who is a candidate in the 2008 election for a seat on the court. So WVFL fears the communications will bring serious consequences under West Virginia law. West Virginia law bans corporations from doing “express advocacy.” Because the express-advocacy definition is vague, WVFL cannot know for sure whether its communications are banned. Full story at LifeNews.com
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