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Missouri Right to Life News
Winter 2002
Crisis Pregnancy Centers Under Attack
Over 3200 pro-life pregnancy counseling services operate in the United States, offering positive solutions for women in difficult pregnancies. Missouri proudly is home to over 50 of these agencies. Most are non-profit and based on the Christian belief in the sanctity of life, and many volunteers give countless hours of service to women and their unborn babies.
But, did you know that, if you are a pro-life pregnancy counselor, you are characterized by National Abortion & Reproductive Action League (NARAL) as a lying schemer attempting to entice unsuspecting women under false pretenses?
In their Step-by-Step Guide Unmasking Fake Clinics, NARAL declares that, "many 'crisis pregnancy centers' - the 'provider' arm of the anti-choice movement - lure women to their facilities under false pretenses, deprive them of accurate information needed to make a fully informed choice, and use fear tactics to dissuade them from choosing legal abortion."
And they are determined to stop you!
NARAL et al are using any tactic to stop the business drain caused by those who serve a culture of life.
In California, they recently succeeded in shutting down one crisis pregnancy program that boasted a 99.3% client satisfaction rate.
NARAL has also found a willing accomplice in their witch hunt from a powerful lackey of the abortion industry, New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. Three years ago, he promised NARAL that his tax-subsidized "reproductive rights unit" would carry on the campaign.
In January, he began his attack in New York City and now over two dozen pro-life counseling services statewide, the latest being Birthright of Victor, New York, have been served subpoenas demanding business documents. Spitzer's office admits that several of these sites have never had specific complaints registered against them, but are under investigation because of so-called "suggestions of a problem."
Spitzer refuses to comment publicly on his taxpayer-funded witch hunt. Even so, the anger sparked by the investigation of the centers has his office now trying to downplay the significance of his probes.
"They seem to be backing off from their rhetoric because of the outpouring of support for centers from across the country," said Chris Slattery of Expectant Mother Care, which operates five centers in New York City and was the target of two of the subpoenas.
World's First Abortion-Breast Cancer Settlement
A landmark case involving the world's first known settlement of an abortion-breast cancer lawsuit was heralded by Australian attorney Charles Francis. Francis revealed that the plaintiff had sued because her physician hadn't told her that researchers had associated abortion with breast cancer. A privacy clause in the agreement prohibits the identification of the plaintiff. It was settled by mediation in August 2001.
Francis revealed that Australian legal precedent requires doctors to inform their patients of any material risks of a recommended surgical procedure because patients have a right to decide whether to assume the risks of the medical treatment.
"In Australia the case of Rogers v. Whitaker in the High Court decided that before any operation a doctor has a duty to warn a patient of any material risks," said Francis. Abortionists give the women concerned little or no information about the many risks of an abortion.
"In 1996 two Australian women commenced legal actions because their abortionists gave them no warning that there might be adverse psychiatric consequences. Both these cases . were eventually settled for undisclosed amounts.
"Since 1998 cases have been commenced which have also claimed the additional failure to warn of an increased risk of breast cancer caused by abortion. Recently one of those cases has been settled for an undisclosed amount. This is believed to be the first case of its kind in the world." "In another case to be heard in New South Wales shortly, 'Mary' is suing a hospital and an abortionist for failure to warn her that she might subsequently have a bad psychiatric reaction and for failure to warn of the increased breast cancer risk."
Karen Malec, president of the Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer, said "We're delighted with the settlement of an abortion-breast cancer case. The abortion industry and its medical experts know that it will be far more challenging for them to lie to women about the abortion-breast cancer research when they are called upon to testify under oath. Scientists know that abortion causes breast cancer, but are afraid to say so publicly in today's hostile political climate."
Thought you'd like to know...
. . . . A poll of Ivy League university professors in the U.S. has found that only one percent want a legal ban on abortion. The disturbing results of the recent poll by Luntz Research Associates found that 84 per cent of the professors supported Al Gore in the elections, with only 9 per cent supporting President Bush. Only one of five professors attended religious services at least once a week. Forty-eight percent said they rarely or never attended a religious service. Zero per cent of the professors polled identified themselves as conservative. Six percent said they were somewhat conservative, 23 percent were moderates, 30 percent somewhat liberal and 34 percent liberal, with a margin of error of 8 percent.
- LSN.ca January 22, 2002
. . . . Health and law enforcement officials shut down what they called an unlicensed abortion facility in West Hollywood CA, and are investigating whether the owner practiced medicine without a license. Edgar Ruiz, 42, charged $200 in cash for abortions and catered to uninsured women, according to sheriff's and county health department officials. Ruiz told authorities he is licensed in his native Nicaragua, but does not hold a medical license in this country.
- Los Angeles Times February 3, 2002
. . . . Pro-abortion groups are criticizing Catholic hospitals that receive public funds for not providing abortions and abortion referrals. Two pro-abortion groups -- the American Civil Liberties Union and MergerWatch -- say institutions receiving public money should play by public rules. Lois Uttley, spokeswoman of MergerWatch, is concerned that when nonsectarian hospitals merge with religious institutions abortions are eliminated. "Hospitals should either be required to refer a patient elsewhere for a service that's not offered, or if it's an emergency, and there's no other hospital nearby, we think the hospital should have to provide the service," Utley said.
- The Pro-Life Internet Febraury 4, 2002
Morning-After Pill Is Abortifacient
The leading international peer-reviewed pharmacy journal has released an article questioning the claims of morning-after pill advocates which suggest that the drugs "prevent pregnancy" rather than cause abortions. The report in the March issue of The Annals of Pharmacotherapy shows evidence that morning-after pill drug regimens may cause the death of a living embryo by blocking its attempts to attach inside the uterus.
"Postfertilization Effect of Hormonal Emergency Contraception," notes that morning-after pill regimens use the same active ingredients found in birth control pills - hormones such as levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol. It has been widely assumed that these ingredients work mainly by preventing ovulation. However, this report describes evidence that the drugs may sometimes fail to prevent ovulation and rely instead on an after-fertilization effect, causing abortion of the newly formed embryonic life.
The article points out that regardless of the personal beliefs of the physician or providers about the mechanism of these drugs, it is important that patients have information relevant to their own beliefs and value systems.
The authors conclude that based on the data reviewed, an after-fertilization, early-abortion effect of these drugs is probably a more common event than is recognized by most physicians or patients.
Susan G. Komen Foundation Funds Planned Parenthood
In his December 13, 2001, issue of Washington Update, Ken Connor, President of Family Research Council, denounced the Susan G. Komen Foundation policy of funding Planned Parenthood, the largest single purveyor of abortion in the world. The Update points out that, "The Susan G. Komen Foundation has won a reputation fighting breast cancer, but pro-lifers have learned to their chagrin that the Dallas-based group gives money to Planned Parenthood. For many, that is a curious irony since the link between abortion and breast cancer is well documented. It is even more ironic, however, that the foundation gives money on the one hand to save lives, yet funds Planned Parenthood which specializes in taking innocent life. The foundation rejected calls to stop funding Planned Parenthood, saying that abortion does not cause breast cancer. This despite the fact that 27 (ed. note: now 28) out of 35 international studies have found the link."
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Our Special Thanks
The latest editions of Missouri Right to Life News were published with much-appreciated grants from the Salisbury and the Hannibal chapters, and the Mid-State and the Northeast Regions. Thank you so much! What a great educational project for chapters and regions to undertake. For any chapter or region interested in making a similar grant, please contact the MRL state office.
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Missouri Legislature 2002
Other pro-life bills are receiving attention in the fi _$50 ´$6 e$20 >$7 3$) E
One of the goals of Missouri Right to Life is to see enacted legislation which would require abortion businesses to provide all relevant medical facts to women at least 24 hours before an abortion is performed. This legislation, the "Women's Right to Know Act," has been introduced in both houses of the Missouri General Assembly. Sen. John Cauthorn is the primary sponsor of SB 1056 in the Senate, and Reps. Susan Phillips and Bill Luetkenhaus are the primary sponsors of HB 1847 in the House.
Other pro-life bills are receiving attention in the state senate. Recently, the Senate Pensions and General Laws Committee heard testimony on SB 948, which would require reporting to the MO Department of Health by anyone who buys or sells of fetal body parts. If such a business remains in operation in Missouri after enactment of SB 948, it is hoped that the reports required would allow authorities to conduct further investigations into possible violations of laws that ban certain transactions in fetal body parts.
Additional needs are the subject of 2002 legislation. Among them are further funding for alternatives to abortion, tax credits for pregnancy assistance centers, a ban on human cloning, and the controversy over public financing of contraceptive clinics which are also in the abortion business.
Our opponents are not passive, either. Another push for ratification of the old 1972 Equal Rights Amendment to the federal constitution has been initiated, and the use of state funds for anti-life purposes in the "Life Sciences Research" program remains problematical.
All pro-life bills face hostile leadership in the House of Representatives, making it difficult to advance any bill to the floor for consideration. Moreover, any bill that survives will face the veto of a hostile Governor.
The renewed dedication of pro-life citizens, especially Missouri Right to Life members, is needed to overcome these sizable obstacles.
State Supreme Court creates legal snarl for curbs on taxpayers' family planning funds
The latest action, at press time, by the Missouri courts on the question of who may receive taxpayer financed family planning funds left more questions than answers - and challenged MO Atty Gen Jay Nixon to choose sides. He decided! He dropped the case completely, which serves his and Planned Parenthood's (PP) interests very well, thank you!
A lawsuit was filed by Special Assistant Attorney General Jordan Cherrick whom the Missouri General Assembly forced Nixon to hire in 1998 to defend the family planning appropriations language. The Legislature's appropriations language kept PP from receiving state family planning money, unless PP set up a separate subsidiary to receive it that did not obtain financial or other benefits from the parent PP corporation.
Planned Parenthood is the largest purveyor of abortions in Missouri. It was the intention of the legislature to keep PP from subsidizing their abortion business with state taxpayer funded family planning money.
When the state department of health flouted the language in the fall of 1999 by giving contracts for family planning to PP without the necessary separate subsidiary, Cherrick filed suit in state court to declare PP ineligible and to force a refund.
In the state-court lawsuit filed by Cherrick, the Attorney General's office went to bat for the Department of Health, assigning an Assistant Attorney General to defend the director and to fight for giving the money to PP.
Thus, one Special Assistant Attorney General was suing PP to surrender the money received for a few months in 1999 and to stop any more from going to PP, while another Assistant Attorney General was defending the state director of health and arguing that PP should keep the money and get more.
On January 22, 2002, the Supreme Court of Missouri ruled that the Attorney General could not represent two opposing parties in the same lawsuit. The Special Assistant Attorney General is only an assistant of the A.G., according to the Supreme Court. The Attorney General is just one large law firm. For one Assistant A.G. to represent the State of Missouri and another to represent a cabinet-level official of the state government, when each of them takes diametrically opposing positions on the same question, renders suspect any ruling by the courts.
The Supreme Court directed the Attorney General to, "choose a side regarding the legality of the contracts and act consistently with that position in the courts."
The circuit court had twice previously entered judgments that the General Assembly could restrict distribution of state family planning money to those who fulfilled the limitations of the appropriation language. However, the judgment of the circuit court was reversed by the Supreme Court because of the conflict, so it is no longer in effect. The case was remanded to the circuit court for further proceedings.
On the same day he received the decision, Attorney General Nixon fired Special A.G. Cherrick and filed a motion in the circuit court to dismiss the state's lawsuit against PP. However, instead of issuing a routine dismissal order, Judge Byron Kinder of the circuit court set a hearing for the A. G. to show cause why the motion to dismiss is not itself the product of an unacceptable conflict of interest. That hearing had not been held as of press time.
The net result is that the work of several years to keep PP from receiving state family planning money is still unresolved. It is now in the hands of the legislature to construct a legal mechanism to ensure that taxpayers' family planning dollars to not subsidize abortions.
They're young . . . they're smart . . . and they're pro-life
By Ellen Makkai Denver Post Friday, January 25, 2002
Feisty young pro-life advocates are jumping into the abortion battle, and they mean to win. They come from middle schools, high schools, university campuses and coffee shops. Many are clean-cut while others are tattooed and pierced, green-haired marvels. And I say, "Who cares? Welcome!"
The common thread in our pro-life patchwork quilt is a conviction that abortion is unjustifiable homicide.
For four days beginning Jan. 19, youth rallies joined traditional demonstrations in Washington, D.C., to protest the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, 4,400 mini-Americans die daily. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 42 million aborted babies since the Court's ruling.
These fresh troops are members of the "abortion generation" - born since the 1973 verdict. They consider themselves "survivors of Roe v. Wade," says Derrick Jones, former president of Teens for Life, a national group established in 1985.
"Twenty-nine years ago, the Supreme Court declared war on a group of people," says Bryan Kemper, director of RockForLife.org, a division of the Youth Outreach Program of American Life League. "The very persons who survived the Roe decision are coming here to protest. Medical advances make what happens (during abortion) obvious."
"A third of our generation is gone," Jones adds. Holly Miller, former president of National College Students for Life (with affiliates coast to coast and throughout the Ivy League) says, "We should leave every third seat empty in our classrooms as a reminder."
Both Miller and Jones are now working with National Right to Life and its 3,000 chapters nationwide, educating others on abortion alternatives and on the emotional and physical damage done to mothers who undergo abortions.
Miller often places crisis-pregnancy clinic cards in women's restrooms for those contemplating abortion.
Over the last three decades, attempts were made to stop the carnage. Twice Congress approved the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act (a procedure in which late-term infants are partially withdrawn from the mother, lanced and discarded).
President Clinton vetoed both bills, which stunned the pro-life community. So we welcome this determined young cohort. And it is bold.
Andrea Lawyer, 15, was told to change her t-shirt or face suspension from Prosser High School in Tennessee. It read, "Abortion is Homicide - You will not silence my message. You will not mock my God. You will hear my cry and stop killing my generation." She refused - and the district backed down.
At age 12, Kara Crawford - now a 21-year-old Catholic University student and intern at the Northwest Pregnancy Center in Washington, D.C., - tried unsuccessfully to introduce an ultra-sound video into her sex-ed class.
"There was a lot of information on the pill and abortion, but I was really irked at the complete lack of information on prenatal development," she says.
University of Notre Dame students annually erect 4,400 white crosses in a "cemetery for the innocent." Georgetown University students place 4,400 pink and blue flags on campus to lament the dead.
Adoptee John Paul Karliak, 20, of the University of Southern California is "thankful I made it" onto the planet intact. His parents were unmarried college students.
These savvy young pro-lifers use 21st-century technology. "Veritas vincit omnia" (truth conquers all) is the motto of American Collegians for Life, one of many student groups that maintain sophisticated websites. The Stanford University site begins with "A person's a person, no matter how small," from the Dr. Seuss favorite, "Horton Hears a Who." All the websites are replete with abortion-related data.
A national spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of America - the nation's top abortionist - sees pro-life youth as pipsqueaks, "marginal and poorly educated on issues. I don't give them credence." Clearly, she's ignorant of their numbers and knowledge.
The pro-lifers agree with a 1963 Planned Parenthood pamphlet that states, "An abortion kills the life of the baby after it has begun" - whereas the group now denies the personhood of unborn children.
They are not a bunch of idealistic airheads, but astute young colleagues. They are not hoodwinked by pro-abortion rhetoric or by the legal arguments used to con a morally compromised Supreme Court 42 million deaths ago.
TURN, TURN, TURN. . . Nearly Half Of State Legislature To Change Hands
by Dave Plemmons, Missouri Right to Life PAC Chairman
With the November 2002 elections, our state will see the largest influx of new representatives and senators ever. About 45 % of the current General Assembly will face term limits, and many will not seek higher offices. Although some experience will be lost, there will be unequalled opportunities for pro-life citizens like you to help get many more like-minded allies elected.
Redistricting also presents some new challenges and interesting dynamics in the coming months. The sheer number of open races will make it more important than ever to be informed about which candidates are pro-life and which are not. In many contests, there will be voting records to help decide which candidate to support. In some races, there will be pro-life candidates running against one another.
The aim of MRL PAC is to identify races with candidates who will help increase the pro-life majority in the legislature and to fortify the base in areas where a pro-life person is running against a pro-abortion candidate. Increasing our representation in the legislature accomplishes many things.
First, it provides a shield against the efforts of the pro-abortion lobby. Second, it fortifies the solid veto-proof majority in cases where Governor Holden will try to derail the passage of pro-life bills. Third, it gives pause to those in leadership positions who might not want to allow a vote on a pro-life bill. It's hard to stop the 800-pound gorilla! And we want to make sure that WE, THE PRO-LIFE MAJORITY, are the 800-pound gorilla that is not unnoticed when the votes are counted.
While there is a huge focus on the General Assembly, let's also commit to doing everything in our power to support pro-life candidates in the U.S. Senate and the congressional races. They are our voices in Washington, and it's critical that we gain pro-life seats. We must be firm in our goal to once again have TWO pro-life U.S. Senators from Missouri.
Human cloning, abortion funding, and ensuring free speech during election years are just a few issues with which our federal officials deal. Our adversaries know how close they are to losing the fight for abortion on demand. Let's make sure they get even closer.
Lives are at stake! And we must guide public policy by helping to elect so many pro-life candidates that Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and Missourians for Choice will rack their brains after Election Day asking themselves, "What happened?!?
TOP 10 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP PRO-LIFE CANDIDATES
1. VOLUNTEER, VOLUNTEER, VOLUNTEER! We need folks statewide to help make calls, distribute literature, write letters, and help candidates.
2. Know your 3 legislative districts - congressional, state senate, state house. County clerks have this information, or will soon be sending voter ID cards.
3. Stress the importance of political action in meetings with other pro-lifers. Remember that Missouri Right to Life chapters cannot endorse the election or defeat of candidates - something only the MRL PAC can do. For instance, a chapter MRL officer cannot write a newsletter or public statement calling for someone's election or defeat and then sign it, "Joe Schmoe, MRL chapter chairman." This is VERY important.
4. Keep political parties from being a focus. There are those on both sides in the major parties -- don't presume a pro-life or pro-abortion position.
5. Obtain maps of districts in your area. Again, your county clerk will be helpful. You can download less detailed maps from the website of the Secretary of State. Maps help concentrate on the areas where help is needed, especially in cities with many districts.
6. File for office! Perhaps you are in a position to run on the local level or even for the General Assembly. Campaigns are hard work, but if you have the time and desire, nothing is impossible!
7. Contact the MRL state office if you know of candidates planning campaigns. This helps MRL PAC plan and strategize early.
8. Once you have identified new candidates, call them to ask their thoughts on life issues. To get the most straightforward answer, it's a good idea not to volunteer your position. Let our state office know what you discover.
9. Have an up-to-date phone and/or e-mail list of local pro-life people. If you are not in a leadership position, let the MRL state office know you will help make calls.
10. Help our state MRL- PAC with funds - call the state office for instructions.
The time is NOW to make it count! We are winning, but the battle is far from over -- will you enlist, or will you be on the sidelines? Proverbs 24:11-12 was not written in vain. Let's pray that God will use us mightily this year to help his children live!
Missouri Right to Life PAC endorsement process
As the 2002 election cycle begins in earnest, Missouri Right to Life Political Action Committee is preparing to begin the biennial endorsement process. With term limits taking effect in earnest this year and redistricting shuffling the deck for both sitting legislators and for new candidates, the PAC will be challenged as never before.
Six Factors
The endorsement process begins with candidates being surveyed by Missouri Right to Life on their views on pro-life issues. Surveys are sent to all candidates after filing closes.
When surveys have been returned, interviews are conducted if necessary. In addition, research is done, often including talking with MRL members in the candidate's district. When the candidate is an incumbent legiator or has previously held office, the voting record on pro-life issues is strongly considered.
Once the pro-life views of a candidate are determined, the PAC considers the viability of that campaign to be an important component for endorsement. Does the candidate have a campaign manager and a plan in place? Is he/she raising the funds to wage an effective effort? Are other groups and individuals supporting the candidate?
Finally, consideration is given to the candidate's opponents. Preference is typically given to pro-life incumbent officeholders. And factors such as the makeup of the race are important. Are the other candidates pro-life, pro-abortion, unknown? Are there three pro-life candidates and only one pro-abortion challenger, which could split the pro-life vote and give the edge to the one abortion supporter?
All of these factors are very important to backing a candidate who can win for life!
Endorsements
PAC congressional district representatives, who are MRL members who have volunteered their time to the PAC and who serve on the PAC board, invest many hours in evaluating, interviewing and discussing candidates and their campaigns. The PAC board then votes to endorse those candidates who, in their estimation, fulfill the criteria for endorsement. This process occurs prior to both the August and the November elections, although candidates are only surveyed one time per election cycle.
The PAC considers it a privilege to be part of the election process. They know, though, that endorsement is only the beginning. It then depends on all of us to work for pro-life candidates in their campaigns and to volunteer for the many PAC projects that will take place for the August primary and the November general elections.
Legislative Alert
Vote on Human Cloning Ban
One of the most important pro-life debates ever will occur in the U.S. Senate in March. The Senate will debate whether to approve legislation to ban the cloning of human embryos.
Action Required - Beginning immediately, pro-life citizens should phone, fax, or e-mail the office of both Missouri U.S. Senators. Because of security on Capitol Hill, regular mail is delayed and SHOULD NOT BE used.
KEY MESSAGE POINTS
 | Urge senators to vote for legislation sponsored by Sen. Brownback (R-KS) to ban the cloning of human embryos (S. 1899). Senator Bond is a sponsor of this bill. |
| Urge the senators to oppose the counterproposals, sponsored by Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) (S. 1893) and Diane Feinstein (D-CA) (S. 1758). These bills are falsely labels as bans on "human cloning", but are worded in a manner that allows human embryos to be created by cloning, while making it a crime to allow any such human embryos to live by implanting him or her in a womb. What they actually do is allow the establishment of human embryo farms. These "clone and kill" shames must be defeated before the Senate can pass a true ban on human cloning. |
Senator Kit Bond
Washington DC telephone 202-224-5721
No Fax number listed
E-mail form at: http://bond.senate.gov/contact/contactme.cfm
Senator Jean Carnahan
Washington DC telephone 202-224-6154
Fax: 202-228-1518
E-mail form at: http://carnahan.senate.gov/webform.html
On the Web - Further information on human cloning is available on the NRLC web site at http://www.nrlc.org under "Federal Legislation: Killing Human Embryos." In addition, Americans to Ban Cloning, a recently-formed coalition of anti-cloning groups, has launched a web site that contains useful information: www.cloninginformation.org.
Life - A Gift Only God Can Give
Missouri Right to Life State Conference
Comfort Inn 4200 South Noland Road Independence, MO
- March 15 - 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
- March 16 - 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
- Annual Membership Meeting 8:45 a.m.
Power Packed Discussions on:
| The real Planned parenthood |
| The ethics of bioethics |
| The truth about the Kinsey Report |
| The Abortion / Breast Cancer Link |
| U.S. Attorney General Ashcroft's ruling on federally-controlled drugs |
Presenting Angela Franks....
....a young and promising scholar who is completing a doctorate in theology at Boston College. She is an expert on Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, and her connections to eugenics. Angela has been published in Mendel Newsletter, a trade newsletter for researchers in the history of eugenics, Crisis and National Right to Life News.
Angela's interest in eugenics was inspired in part by her work with Mother Teresa's order in Harlem, which irrevocably shaper her humanitarianism and feminist vision.
She is married to David and has a baby, Caterina.
Plus....Appreciation Reception on Friday evening, and the annual Oratory Contest on Saturday with the winner presented at the luncheon.
"Yes, I'll Be there!"
Fill out the following information, print the page, and Mail reservations to: MRL - Western Region, 9504 E. 63rd St. Kansas City, MO 64133-4933.
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For Comfort Inn room reservations, call: 816-373-8856
For Conference Information, call MRL - Western Region: 816-353-4113.