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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>First, a quick response to Kris and her heartfelt request for feedback on
late-term abortion. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>My only knowledge on that front has been reports that such an
event is rare, that it is usually to save the life of the woman
who often already has a family -- a husband and children who would be
grieved and bereft the rest of their lives because of a pregnancy gone very
wrong -- and that the pregnancy itself is non-life-sustainable by
nature. And therefore extraordinarily advanced science would be constantly
required to give the child some semblance of "life." Those extreme
circumstances are all I've known about late-term abortion.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>If someone would want a late-term abortion just because she "didn't get
around to it earlier," I can't see adequate justification for it. However,
I have no right to interfere, and I'm glad that I PROBABLY won't face such
a situation in my family.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2>- - -</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>As for the issue of abortion itself, which is usually performed early in a
pregnancy, I have very strong opinions for abortion rights. If anyone
cares to know why, here are my reasons:</DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>As a female who became a teenager in the 1960's, I never thought
about abortion as an issue. I just knew of a certain percentage of
girls and women who went for the procedure to an old lady in a small town
somewhere around here. Fortunately I never heard of any deaths from such a
"back-alley abortion" locally. But later I learned of a whole body of
literature about families who lost their mom/daughter/sister/wife/girlfriend
etc. -- via death due to the illegal and secretive nature of the
operation. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>There was, however, the somewhat whispered mention a few times in my 20's
about my mom's best friend on the neighboring farm, in their
girlhood. The friend hanged herself in the barn due to her
out-of-wedlock pregnancy. Further, it was rumored her condition was due to
a family member's sexual abuse -- and NOT due to the girl's "promiscuity."
</DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>At least the issue of incest is not denied in our society anymore, and
victims can get help if they feel able to seek it. Un-wed pregnancy by
itself is practically a non-issue -- although I'd personally say it's
arguably better if a child could be raised by a loving couple (or "a
village") instead of one struggling parent. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>But despite far less stigma now for the female who's reluctantly
pregnant, if abortion were outlawed again, I'm convinced there are just no
lengths a woman won't go to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, including suicidal
methods. If abortion became illegal, there would once again be the great
grief and losses in families due to the deaths of moms,
daughters, sisters, wives, girlfriends and more. <EM>Many women, for many
good reasons, simply will not go through pregnancy and childbirth against their
will -- laws or no laws. </EM></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Due to a number of work-related moves around the country in the 1970's and
not having any steady newspaper subscription, I never saw an anti-abortion
letter-to-the-editor until around 1980 -- and I was naively astonished! It
was almost incomprehensible to me that some people would go retro
and desire to reinstate laws that interfere with a woman's need to
protect her body and her life. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>And my opinion had been further reinforced by my own experience with
pregnancy. Despite being married and very much wanting a child and having
what some would say was "an easy pregnancy" -- although now I dispute that any
pregnancy is "easy" -- but despite all good conditions, when the day
came, I nevertheless found myself in a 30+ hour labor ordeal, my gyn/ob
resorting to a C-section so my baby and myself would not die, and
then my 106.7 near-death fever that followed. I was very weak and ill for
a year. But at least my baby daughter was robustly healthy.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I recall that as I was being prepped for the C-section, I weakly
asked the nurse, "What did they do in the old days when something like this
happened?" She said, "The used to die, Dear. They still do.
But you and child are going to be fine now." </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I don't have the statistics at hand anymore, like I used to. But I
left off collecting them when it was overwhelmingly demonstrable that women
still do indeed die in this day and age due to pregnancy and
childbirth. And just like what became the end of the draft for men --
you don't join up and go off to war now except voluntarily -- a woman's
accidental pregnancy and facing all the potential ordeals is
something I believe she volunteers for -- or not. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Until the point of what's known as "natural survivalhood after the end of
the second trimester," pregnancy (actually it has always seemed to me) --
pregnancy is a woman's interior condition. Certainly, there is the
<U>unarguable</U> <U>life</U> of the woman -- and therefore there are
the unarguable <U>rights </U>of the woman -- to PROTECT her body and her
life from any interior condition that could threaten, or is threatening,
her well-being.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>It IS a shame when -- as has so often been the case and is a growing
phenomenon in these economic times -- when a woman and/or her mate know
that <EM>an additional child</EM> (often the case) is absolutely
unaffordable. According to reports, abortion is being
increasingly chosen because the existing children will be further
impoverished, and parents feel that is irresponsible. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>And many further feel that adopting out is unthinkable -- to have a child
out there somewhere and to never take responsibility for it and never be
able to help with all that the child may go through, ever again, is just
unthinkable. </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>Like almost all surgical operations, abortion is regarded
as scary and painful. But the thinking is: better to prevent a
pregnancy from developing into a child if the woman seriously can't deal with
the risks and ordeals of pregnancy and parenthood, or additional
parenthood.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>And I don't buy into those silly accounts of "would you abort this
pregnancy?" which then name off some serious birth defects. Once you're
trapped into maybe saying yes, have an abortion -- then you find
out those defects were the same as Beethoven's, for example. To those
people I say: so you're saying a woman should risk or sacrifice her life just so
that you can listen to some music?? </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I say, I don't think so! If you "respect life," then you would
agree that a woman's life is more sacred than great music. And if you
don't agree, then I contend it just shows the vast moral confusion, and
perhaps outright hypocrisy, that is frequently exemplified by "pro-life."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>In conclusion, regarding the spiritual dimension of this issue, it is
amazing to me that anti-abortion forces quote Jeremiah 1:5 from the Bible.
In the first place, no one in America is legally obligated to adhere to the
Bible. According to Article VI in the Constitution, even a U.S. President
can be any religion in the world or no religion at
all. <EM>Constitutional law specifies that "no religious test
shall ever be required" for federal office. So certainly no citizen either
can be subjected to any biblical dictate.</EM> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>American laws are based on the premises of many religions -- and
beyond religion -- upon simple ethics and common sense. Fundamentally
that is the universal Golden Rule which pertains to respecting
others as you yourself wish to be respected. Respect would
certainly <EM>not</EM> be interfering in a woman's decision about her
health and well-being, her entire future!</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>And for those who are literal biblical, I actually see Jeremiah 1:5 as
a good basis FOR abortion rights. There, God says: "Before I formed
thee in the womb, I knew thee." This is a clear implication that
souls exist before pregnancy occurs. It means that the essential
person or soul exists before a body is ever created, and therefore
life doesn't "begin at conception." </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>These biblical words are in alignment with a number of ancient and
current religious beliefs and "new age" teachings about the eternal nature
of each one of us<STRONG>:</STRONG> we always have existed and we always
will, with life on Earth likely being one of many options. (Which
perhaps explains Jesus' remarks about "My father's house has many
mansions.")</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>It's safe to say that billions of people believe life on Earth is a brief
experience, or a series of experiences (as in reincarnation) -- and that if we
are not born to one family for whatever reason (birth control, abortion,
miscarriage, lack of fertility, etc), then we may very well be born to
another family. Or -- perhaps be born in one of the other "many
mansions."</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Even some scientists are attracted to this idea that we have always existed
and always will exist, and that's because each one of us in essence is
Energy -- and "Energy never dies, it only transforms." From a
we-are-essentially-energy perspective, existence before birth and after
life are thus seen by many as something that is <EM>logical.</EM></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>This of course in no way implies that a person's life on Earth, once
attained via birth, is not sacred. This does not mean, "Well, if
everyone is eternal, then so what if I kill somebody -- they'll still
exist!" No. Another's body, once it is unarguably a separate
life out of the womb, is as sacred and inviolable as your own
body. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>But here's the fuzziness on late-term abortion. Although most
would not, some premature births could survive without extreme
medical intervention. But who knows which ones? And why do late-term
abortions exist, anyway, except for the hard reasons mentioned at the beginning
of this opinion-piece. I personally see late-terms as extremely rare --
and then, only because they are extremely necessary.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>And Dr. George Tiller of Kansas was there for women and families in
those hard circumstances. His murder exemplies what I see, to
repeat, as the vast moral confusion and occasional outright hypocrisy of
anti-abortion forces. I think if they truly care about babies, ALL of
their money and all of their efforts would turn away from giving women
hardship -- and go instead towards solid support for the
countless born children who are hungry, neglected, and abused.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Connie</DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=futurenotwritten@yahoo.com
href="mailto:futurenotwritten@yahoo.com">Jay Becker</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=citizenstruth@six.pairlist.net
href="mailto:citizenstruth@six.pairlist.net">Citizens Truth</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Monday, June 01, 2009 11:06
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [CitizensTruth] On the Murder of
Dr. George Tiller</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
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<TD vAlign=top>
<P class=kicker><EM><A
href="http://www.revcom.us/a/167/Tiller-en.html">http://www.revcom.us/a/167/Tiller-en.html</A></EM></P>
<P class=kicker><EM><BR></EM></P>
<P class=kicker><EM>As We Go to Press: </EM></P>
<H1><FONT size=4>On the Assassination of Caring, Courageous, Abortion
Provider, Dr. George Tiller</FONT></H1><!-- ===========PASTE COPY ================= -->
<P>As we go to press, the news has broken that Dr. George Tiller, one of
the few doctors in the country to openly and publicly perform late-term
abortions, was assassinated while attending Sunday services in Wichita,
Kansas. His wife, Jeanne Tiller, was in the choir at the time of the
murder.</P>
<P><BR></P>
<P>Dr. Tiller was a courageous, caring doctor who risked his life every
day to make it possible for women to have late-term abortions. He had
every understanding of what risks he was taking in doing so. He survived
a previous assassination attempt in 1993 when he was shot in both arms
by Shelly Shannon, a so-called “pro-life” activist. Dr. Tiller returned
to work the next day. Over three plus decades of providing abortions,
his church was picketed and he was harassed at home. His clinic was
bombed. He was hounded by a grand jury investigation, and faced criminal
prosecution. In March of this year a Wichita jury took just 45 minutes
to acquit Dr. Tiller of charges that he performed 19 illegal late-term
abortions in 2003.</P>
<P><BR></P>
<P>In the face of all this, Dr. Tiller never bent in his commitment to
the right of any woman, in any circumstance, to choose whether or not to
have an abortion. In 1993, Dr. Tiller said in a statement: “It is not
unplanned pregnancy, it is unwanted motherhood that shipwrecks people’s
lives. Make no mistake, this battle is about self-determination by women
of the direction and course of their lives and their family’s lives.
Abortion is about women’s hopes and dreams. Abortion is a matter of
survival for women.”</P>
<P><BR></P>
<P>Debra Sweet, Director of World Can’t Wait, told <EM>Revolution</EM>
that Dr. Tiller was “someone who women could go to in very stressful
circumstances, and not find him judgmental.” And she said, “This is a
huge blow. Nobody’s doing what he was doing. I’ve known people from all
over the country who have gone to him, and doctors from all over the
country refer to him because there is no one else. This was the place
women could go, as a last resort, even into the third trimester. This is
the single most important doctor doing abortions in the country. His
view was that he was saving women’s lives by doing this, and he
continued doing it even knowing that his own life was at risk.”</P>
<P><BR></P>
<P>At a pro-choice rally in 2001 in Wichita, Emily Lyons—a nurse who was
seriously injured in an anti-abortion bombing of a Birmingham abortion
clinic in 1998—spoke about the inspiration she got from Dr. Tiller: “Not
only have I been in a war, but gone to hell and come back,” she told the
rally. “There are heroes in every war,” she continued, “and Dr. Tiller
is one of mine. Many would not have the courage to do what he has
accomplished.”</P>
<P><BR></P>
<P>Mary Lou Greenberg, of the Revolutionary Communist Party, met Dr.
Tiller when she helped organize the Wichita protests to defend his
clinic and abortion rights in 1995 and again in 2001. She described him
as “a very gentle person, who was determined to assist women, and very
warm in his manner.” She told <EM>Revolution </EM>about the impact of
seeing the walls of his clinic, lined with framed letters of
appreciation, from women of all ages and circumstances. She remembers
one, which read, “Thank you for giving me back my life.”</P>
<P><BR></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Dr. Tiller’s defiance, his caring
spirit, his commitment to a woman’s right to an abortion, and his
sacrifice must serve as a challenge to all those who would not see women
reduced to enslavement as forced child-breeders. </SPAN><EM>Revolution
</EM>will have more to say about the murder of Dr. Tiller and the battle
for abortion rights in future issues. But today, we mourn with outrage
the loss of this heroic, compassionate abortion doctor.</P>
<P> </P>
<P><STRONG><EM>People should attend vigils, protests, and other events
that are being planned to remember George Tiller and speak out against
his murder.</EM></STRONG></P>
<P><BR><STRONG><EM></EM></STRONG></P>
<P><STRONG><EM>[For those in or near Chicago, that's 4 pm at the State
of Illinois Building, Clark & Randolph,
today.]</EM></STRONG></P><BR><BR>
<DIV id=RTEContent>
<DIV id=RTEContent>
<DIV><STRONG></STRONG><EM></EM><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><SPAN
style="FONT-STYLE: italic"><SPAN style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)">Stop</SPAN>
thinking like an American, <BR>Start thinking about
humanity!<BR></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN
style="COLOR: rgb(0,127,64); FONT-WEIGHT: bold"></SPAN></DIV></DIV></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR>
<P>
<HR>
<P></P>_______________________________________________<BR>CitizensTruth
mailing
list<BR>CitizensTruth@six.pairlist.net<BR>http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/citizenstruth<BR>website:
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