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The Erie Echo
"Voice for Life"
Volune XXVI No. 4    --------     July - August 1998
 
 
 
 
Inside this issue . . .
 
 
Pro-Life Convention
 Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
September 19, 1998

The annual PA Pro-Life Federation Convention will take place this year at the Harrisburg Marriott and will feature a special noon time luncheon with U.S. Senator Rick Santorum and his wife Karen. Other speakers include State Rep. Katie True, chairperson of the House Pro-Life Caucus; Bishop Thomas Welsh of the Allentown Catholic Diocese; Dr. Jean Garton, of Lutherans for Life; and Janet Folger of Coral Ridge Ministries' Center for Reclaiming America.

Please mail registrations with checks payable to the PA Pro-Life Federation / 4800 Jonestown Road, Suite 102 / Harrisburg, PA 17109-1701.

For more information about this important event, please feel free to contact People for Life, 814-459-1333 or the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, 717-541-0034. To inquire about car pooling or other group transportation possibilities, please contact People for Life.
 

Convention Schedule:
 

Federal Legislation Child Custody Protection Act
HR 3682 / S. 1645
This bill would make it a federal crime to transport a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion if doing so would circumvent a state law requiring parental involvement when a minor is considering an abortion. The House approved the bill on July 15 by a vote of 276-150, eight votes short, however, of the majority needed to override a possible veto. The Senate will vote in late July or early August.

Please contact Sens. Santorum and Specter and urge them to support "The Child Custody Protection Act."
 

Campaign Reform
The House is also expected to vote on the "Shays-Meehan Amendment" campaign reform proposal. This is the House version of the McCain-Feingold bill, which was blocked in the Senate earlier this year. The NRLC calls Shays-Meehan "a proposal that would severely restrict the right of private citizen groups, including the NRLC and NRLC affiliates, to educate the public regarding the positions and voting records of federal politicians."

Please tell Rep. English how much you value your freedom of speech!
 

Lethal Drug Abuse Prevention Act HR 4006 / S. 2151
This legislation would prohibit the dispensation or distribution of federally controlled substances for "the purpose of causing, or assisting in causing, the suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing of any individual." Attorney General Janet Reno has already announced that she will not interfere with the use of prescription medications as poison under Oregon's new assisted-suicide law. Congressional action is therefore imperative. The House version, H.R. 4006, is sponsored by Rep. Henry Hyde (R-IL) and James Oberstar (D-MN).

The House Judiciary Committee is holding hearings as the Erie Echo goes to press. The NRLC is predicting a vote in the House as soon as late July or the first week of August.

PLEASE contact your entire congressional delegation (your representative and two senators) and ask them to support - and co-sponsor - "The Lethal Drug Abuse Prevention Act"!
 

Partial Birth Abortion Ban
The House is scheduled to vote on whether or not to override Clinton's veto of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act (HR 1122) on July 23. The Senate will vote soon after Labor Day.

 Please contact Sen. Specter and tell him to support the veto override. Please also contact Rep. English (or your particular representative, if outside the 21st Congressional District) and Sen. Santorum to thank them for their continued efforts to stop partial-birth abortion. Encourage friends and family who live in other states to contact their senators, especially those who have previously opposed the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban; three more senate votes are still needed.

 U.S. Capitol 202-224-3121
 Contact the office of any senator or representative

 

Fair exhibits
Please see the "Pro-Life Planner" on the last page of this newsletter for this year's fair schedule. If you would like to get involved with the fair booth project, please call the office at 814-459-1333 or Tim Broderick at 814-587-2873.
 

Partial-birth abortion survivor
A six pound, two ounce baby girl is recovering from injuries suffered when Arizona abortionist John Biskind attempted to kill her by partial birth abortion. The baby's mother is only 17 years old.

Abortionist Biskind fractured the child's skull and lacerated her face. Next he had intended to stab the child somewhere near the base of her skull and suck out her brain -- the more barbaric part of the procedure, skull fractures and lacerations not withstanding. Abortion for absolutely no reason is permitted in Arizona only until viability, which is placed at 24 weeks to make things easy.  The abortion mill had certified the age of this particular baby -- down to an accuracy of one-tenth of a week(!) -- to be 23.6 weeks, remarkably close to the limit established by state law.

In reality, the baby girl was 36 weeks old and weighed 6 1/2 pounds, over three times more than a 24 week old.  Thankfully, abortionist Biskind, spared the child's life -- a good thing for him:  This particular baby was so large that there would have been little chance of convincing the authorities, or anyone else, that this was just another unintentional mis-estimation of a baby's age.

 

News Sampler

State abortion rates  The Centers for Disease Control on July 2 released 1995 abortion statistics for each of the 50 states. California, with 289,987 abortions, recorded the highest abortion rate in the nation, 40 per 1000 women. Wyoming, Idaho, and Mississippi recorded the lowest abortion rates with two, four, and six abortions per 1000 women respectively. Pennsylvania recorded 15 abortions per 1000 women, down from 16 in 1994. All but 12 states also recorded declines.

Partial-birth abortion bans  As of July 4, twenty-eight states have passed laws banning partial-birth abortion. Many of these states have seen their laws suspended or overturned by federal judges. During the week of July 4th alone federal judges blocked the duly enacted partial-birth abortion bans of Nebraska, Florida, and Kentucky. Once again, it appears that it is not the "hearts and minds" of the people, but rather the unelected federal judiciary that is in the greatest need of change!

Spend your vacation in Wisconsin  U.S. District Judge John C. Shabaz refused on May 12 to interfere with Wisconsin's partial-birth abortion ban, saying that he had weighed the potential problems with the new law against, "the harm to the parents of those perhaps several hundred living post-first-trimester children who may be unnecessarily killed" [if partial-birth abortion were permitted to continue in Wisconsin]. The law carries the strongest penalty of any ban enacted thus far, life imprisonment. The National Organization for Women, for its part, has decided to menace the State of Wisconsin with a tourist boycott.

Survey of cancer doctors  A survey conducted by the American Society of Clinical Oncology found diminishing support for assisted suicide and euthanasia among cancer doctors. Although 64% have been asked to help a patient commit suicide, only 22% support assisted suicide, down from 45% three years ago. Euthanasia was supported by 6.5% on the physicians surveyed, down from 22% three years earlier. (Reuters / Lutherans for Life)

Australia  The state of Western Australia has become the first Australian jurisdiction to allow abortion on demand. The new law, passed by the state parliament on May 21, requires medical counseling and the approval of two doctors before an abortion can take place.

Military hospitals  The U.S. House of Representatives once again refused, in mid-May, to allow military hospitals to conduct abortions. The vote was 190 to 232.

Fetal rights  The concept of fetal rights was strengthened on May 26, as the U.S. Supreme Court let stand a ruling that upheld the child abuse convictions of two South Carolina women for smoking crack cocaine during pregnancy. Many pro-life individuals, however, question the emphasis on punishment rather than rehabilitation and the seeming lack of equal compassion for both mother and child.

PAS on the ballot  Voters in Michigan will face a ballot initiative for the legalization of physician assisted suicide this November. Patients diagnosed as terminally ill would be permitted, after a seven day waiting period, to fill a prescription for lethal drugs to be taken at a time of their own choosing.

Cleveland, OH  James and Colleen Hogan in nearby Cleveland decided to place a pro-life sign in their front yard on June 3rd because they thought that President "Bill" Clinton might be passing by. Clinton was visiting locally at John Carroll University that day. To their dismay, a city official forced them to take the sign down. The City Council has since responded to complaints from the Hogans and is clarifying the city statutes to avoid similar suppressions of free speech in the future.

England  The June 6th British Medical Journal reported that in 1995, 147,851 abortions occurred among women resident in England compared with 613,257 live births, a ratio of one out of four.

High federal magistrate observed consorting with extortionist / racketeer  Incongruities abound within a society that has officially chosen to pretend that human life begins after nine months in the womb. Here we see [photo currently unavailable] Joseph M. Scheidler the stalwart director of Chicago's Pro-Life Action League, who was recently found liable to the abortion industry for nearly $100,000 in lost revenues under provisions of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) statute. The class action law suit could eventually result in judgments against Scheidler totaling in the millions of dollars. In the above photo, Scheidler appears in the rather unlikely company (for a racketeer) of Antonin Scalia, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court - who, by the way, is also against killing babies.

Chemical abortion  A June 6th e-mail release from Eleanor Smeal's Feminist Majority contained a complaint from an angry feminist demanding insurance coverage so she can be implanted with a human embryo: "Why do I need donor egg? Because my health insurance policy, Cigna Healthcare of Florida gave me a non-FDA approved drug for my ectopic pregnancy. I was given Methotrexate, which subsequently caused me to have an ovulatory dysfunction..." Meanwhile, the Sacramento Bee reports that methotrexate abortions, with the blessing of Clinton's Food and Drug Administration, "are being conducted by Planned Parenthood Federation of America, which is gathering data from 27 affiliates in 17 states. After 18 to 24 months, the organization hopes to submit results from 3,000 patients to the Food and Drug Administration for approval."

Abortion in the People's Republic  Chinese defector, Gao Xiao Duan, who was formerly involved in the enforcement of the Chinese population control program testified before a U.S. House subcommittee in early June. She confirmed that violators of the one child policy received forced abortions, even in the ninth month of pregnancy. On the same day, White House spokesman Mike McCurry announced that Clinton would discuss abortion during his upcoming China visit. (U.S. News) Comment: Unfortunately, it seems all too likely -- in view of the Clinton record -- that any such "discussions" would focus on strategies for channeling MORE U.S. funds into the Chinese population control program through the United Nations and International Planned Parenthood.

Spina Bifida Operation  Little Noah Kipfmiller and his doctors at Children's Hospital in Philadelphia set a medical milestone on March 21. Noah became the youngest person to receive surgical treatment for spina bifida -- at a gestational age of only 23 weeks. Spina bifida is a condition that occurs when the developing child's backbone fails to fuse around the spinal cord. Noah's condition was discovered during an ultrasound examination about 14 weeks after his conception (16 weeks, LMP). Although the condition is not usually life threatening, the exposed nerves can be damaged, resulting in serious life long debilities. Doctor's won't know for sure for two or three more years, but the surgery in utero was apparently a complete success! Noah was born early, weighing only two pounds seven ounces. However, by early July, at a very feisty four pounds even, he was reported to be ready to leave the hospital and return home to Michigan with his mom and dad. Approximately 1500 babies in the U.S., one in every 2000, develop spina bifida during their early development.
 
 

For the Record

This column usually contains a mixture of the positive and the negative, the wise and foolish - samples of pro-life wisdom, but also samples of some of the perfectly hideous comments from our opponents, the Keepers of the Culture of Death. The present column, however, dispenses with the usual "death quotes" and hopefully accentuates the positive. That's because this month's column consists of quotations which have been presented on the PFL web site.

Since early June, a new feature, "Today's Quote," has been available to our Internet visitors. Gems of pro-abortion thinking are avoided so as not to confuse anyone. A new quotation is placed on-line every 24 hours and the previous day's quotation is removed. This assures that something new is always available to repeat visitors, while offering some extra incentive for visitors to return on a regular basis.

If you are as fond of quotations as your editor / webmaster is, you might like to suggest some of your favorite pro-life quotations for future use on the web site. If so, please send them -- with as much documentation as possible -- to People for Life, Inc., attention: Erie Echo Editor. Or send them via e-mail to: pfl @ toolcity.net

A Declaration... "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." UNITED STATES DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, July 4, 1776

Moral Issues "The denial of human rights is a moral issue, but it is not only an issue of personal conscience. If I am denied the right to a fair trial by a lynch mob, each person who joins in the lynching may make the personal judgment that what he does is right. Nonetheless, the law, and the public authorities sworn to uphold it, are required to take action against such vigilantes and in support of the public morality which guarantees due process to every individual." U.S. AMBASSADOR ALAN KEYES, PH.D.

God's Opinion "A baby is God's opinion that life should go on." CARL SANDBURG

The Test  "These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.... What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value." TOM PAINE, The American Crisis, 1780

A Crime  "It seems to me as clear as daylight that abortion would be a crime." THE MAHATMA GANDHI

Mind without emotion  "Every man who will not have softening of the heart must at last have softening of the brain." GILBERT K. CHESTERTON, Orthodoxy

Equal protection  ". . . nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT, U.S. CONSTITUTION

Five weeks pregnant  "I am now five weeks pregnant. Today Daddy and I saw your little heart beating and heard it on the sonogram machine! It was the most beautiful sight! Your little heart looked like a star twinkling in the night sky." KAREN GARVER SANTORUM, Letters to Gabriel

With impunity  "It does not seem possible to study assisted suicide and euthanasia without looking at the Netherlands, where doctors can with impunity and with public acceptance practice euthanasia and assisted suicide provided they follow certain guidelines." HERBERT HENDIN, M.D., Seduced by Death

Silence  "Silence in the face of evil is evil itself. God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act." DIETRICH BONHOEFFER (Lutheran minister hanged in the Nazi concentration camp at Flossenburg by the special orders of Adolph Hitler, 9 April, 1945)

Pain  "Lip tactile response may be evoked by the end of the 7th week. At 11 weeks, the face and all parts of the upper and lower extremities are sensitive to touch. By 13.5 to 14 weeks, the entire body surface, except for the back and the top of the head, is sensitive to pain." S. REINIS & J. GOLDMAN The Development of the Brain

Alarm Bells  "A society doesn't arrive at Auschwitz overnight. There are always perilous portents--laws, judicial decisions, popular prejudices--which should sound an alarm in the minds of all but the most impervious." DON FEDOR, Boston Globe editorialist, "Fetal Rights Loose a Few Rounds" Taken from his 1993 book, A Conservative Jew Looks at Pagan America

The Law  "The law must take hold of the abortionists, as it very easily can, and public opinion must set its seal of emphatic condemnation upon every agency which aids and abets the shameful trade." THE NEW YORK TIMES, August 30, 1871

Liberty  "The Revolution of the United States was the result of a mature and reflecting preference for freedom, and not a vague or illdefined craving for independence.... It was never assumed in the United States that the citizen of a free country has a right to do whatever he pleases; on the contrary, more social obligations were there imposed..." ALEXIS DE TOCQUEVILLE, Democracy in America, Vol. I, January, 1835

 
1998 High School Oratory Contest
On Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide
By Joel Dombrowski

A member of my family lived to be 104 years of age and right up to the last few days before her 104 birthday she was living at her home with some assistance. When her health dramatically declined she was moved to a nursing home. There she was bedridden and most times was unable to respond or communicate with anyone. Her family visited her daily. After several months she died a peaceful and natural death.

Why must we kill in order to heal? Are we benefiting the patient by legalizing medical killing, or euthanasia? Or are we just finding a cheap easy way to end the life of a terminally ill patient? Presently we have the threat of euthanasia being administered to the sick and dying members of our society as a way of controlling suffering.

Should one who is no longer a so-called "productive member of society" be euthanized? Should a person who is suffering be "medically terminated"? My family didn't think so. We were fortunate that this person was able to be with us as long as she was and that she died naturally according to God's time and choice.

Presently society is starting to have a different viewpoint towards death and suffering by finding quicker means to better manage it. The Netherlands in recent years has allowed involuntary euthanasia to take place. This has become a major concern. Half the doctors there have killed conscious patients without their consent. The Remmelink Report on euthanasia in Holland claimed that between the years 1990 and 1995 there were 8100 cases of reported euthanasia. In 5000 of these, in which doctors intended to kill their patients, the patients had not requested the hastening of death.

On the other hand, the Washington State Medical Association House of Delegates in 1996 voted 98-2 to oppose Initiative 119, which allows for euthanasia to take place. Their first claim for opposition against euthanasia was that we don't need to kill to compassionately manage or treat pain or suffering. Dr. Cecilia Saunders, founder of the modern hospice movement, insists that 97% of cancer patients can get virtually total control of their pain through administered morphine and other analgesics. Secondly, the Washington delegates insist that we don't need to kill in order to control high costs.

Everyone has the right to refuse all sorts of unwanted treatment, such as ventilators, CPR, ICU care and other forms of extraordinary medical or technical intervention. It's already illegal to prolong the act of dying against the patient's will. We don't need Initiative 119 or similar statutes that give us rights we already have. Also, the patient is not morally obliged to use extraordinary medical treatment -- treatments or technical interventions which the patient judges either futile or excessively burdensome. The patient has a right to die his or her own death -- a natural death -- without the undue imposition of medical technology.

Dying patients may not generally refuse ordinary care. But we cannot simply abandon a dying person. According to Fr. Ed Krause, Professor of Ethics at Gannon University, "We are not obliged to impose a technical intervention, which in the estimation of the patient is virtually futile, i.e., it can neither cure nor effectively circumvent a lethal pathology. [In these kinds of cases, the eventual] Death is caused by a lethal pathology, when it is no longer necessary or merciful to resist." A good and peaceful death must be more than cheap, quick, and painless. Doctors also state that no human being should be given the burden of having to kill other human beings. It is too much to ask of anyone. It is also particularly ironic that the same society which distrusts doctors in their exercise of their existing powers in daily practice considers them the ultimate power over life and death. The basic moral principles on the ethics of dying have been around for centuries, in the Ten Commandments as well as the Hippocratic Oath, which doctors have adhered to for millennia.

In the Vatican's Declaration on Euthanasia, it affirms that life is uniquely sacred. The right to life and corresponding duties to respect life, are basic, inalienable, and the condition for affirming all other rights. A dying patient, like everyone else, has a right to privacy and integrity. In two states, Washington and California, attempts to legalize physician assisted suicide were brought before the voters in 1991 and 1992. Both were defeated. Neither bill mandated safeguards.

On the other hand, virtually every state in the union has some sort of law which makes assisted suicide a crime. In Pennsylvania, for example, the Criminal Code, Section 1505, reads, "A person who intentionally aids in or solicits another to commit suicide is guilty of a felony of the second degree." The state has a valid interest in respect for the sacredness of human life, and in the moral integrity of the medical profession. Decriminalizing euthanasia would predictably produce more harm and confusion than good. The unique spiritual tasks and opportunities that commonly surface in the last stages of life would be ignored or short-circuited. We are duty bound to die in ways that promote and sustain faith in those moral standards that make humane communion possible.

 Today the unique sacredness of human life is ignored and overlooked. The healthy, strong, and well off dominate and abuse the weak, vulnerable, and defenseless. Current media sensations like Dr. Kevorkian are not arguing for a right to die but for a right to kill and be killed. People like Dr. Kevorkian and his followers have no respect for moral and wise principles -- and have a reckless contempt for moral tradition -- as they continue to promote medical killing. They will create a climate where we will have large numbers of weak and vulnerable people who will be categorized once again as able to be "medically terminated."

 Because we as a society have little regard for human life, we would then have a massive killing of elderly and terminally ill patients, much like the case of abortion. Like abortion, killing at the end of life will likely be proven to be as indiscriminate and tragic as abortion has at the beginning of life. Large numbers of innocent, weak, disabled, and defenseless people will be further marginalized and put at serious risk.

It is phony to think that we have to kill in order to control suffering. We ought not cross the boundary between healing and killing. One of the most awesome things in life is to die, and it is critical that we learn to die well. As Wendy Zobra states in her article on death in Christianity Today, "We are still left to wonder why death must be preceded by so many twists and turns before finally having its way with us. But in all the wondering, when we surrender how we die into the hands of the One who gave us life, we are freed from the limitation of human definitions of dignity, and the worthiness, and beauty, and quality of life." Also, as Paul states in I Corinthians on God's final triumph over death, "He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces. There shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain."

Joel Dombrowski is a 1998 graduate of Cathedral Prep High School. After receiving first place honors in the Pennsylvania Northwest Region High School Oratory Contest hosted by People for Life, Joel traveled to Harrisburg to represent this area at the PA Pro-Life Federation's statewide Oratory Contest in Harrisburg. Joel deserves the thanks and appreciation of the pro-life community. All the hard work invested in researching his topic and synthesizing his presentation says much about the depth of Joel's convictions and his personal concern about these critical issues of physician assisted suicide and euthanasia. - The Editor
 

A Banner for the Cause of Life!

Very attractive and colorful pro-life banners are available from the People for Life Pro-Life Resource Center at an extra-special low price of $8.95 for readers of the Erie Echo! The banners are suitable for both indoor and outdoor display. To receive yours by mail please add $3.00 per banner for postage.

OTHER POPULAR ITEMS

Precious Feet / Precious Hands

Bumper Stickers  Books Pamphlets Cost of shipping not included

 

Classroom Presentations
 PFL Education Director Ann Wingerter, her daughter Susan and her 17 month old grandson Isaac John Paul teamed up to present the pro-life message at Cathedral Prep High School in early May. The wonders of fetal development, the realities of abortion, and abortion alternatives were discussed with three separate classes, about 90 students in all, most of them seniors.

Ann reports that the response from the students was definitely positive, and encouraging. A typical reaction from the students was one of amazement that the things they were hearing about are actually LEGAL in the United States of America. At least one student indicated that the presentation was especially effective coming, as it did, directly from members of the fairer sex.

Ann, Susan, and Isaac too, are anxious to share the pro-life story with many more students, in many more classrooms and schools. If you can help in any way to put Ann and Susan in touch with a teacher, a youth group leader, or a student-leader (such as the president of an extracurricular student organization), please call People for Life at 814-459-1333. Presentations can be tailored to fit any situation and age group.
 

New Books and Videos
Recent additions to the PFL lending library

ALL TITLES AVAILABLE TO BORROW FREE OF CHARGE
(offer limited to visitors to PFL's Resource Center in Erie, Pennsylvania)

 ______________________

Books

Assisted Suicide & Euthanasia past & present By J.C. Willke, M.D., et al

Death As A Salesman: What's Wrong With Assisted Suicide By Brian P. Johnston

Forced Exit: The slippery slope from assisted suicide to legalized murder By Wesley J. Smith, legal counsel for the International Anti-Euthanasia Task Force

Seduced by Death: Doctors, Patients, and Assisted Suicide By Herbert Hendin, M.D. Considers the Dutch experience with euthanasia.

Abortion and Healing: A cry to be whole By Michael T. Mannion

Letters to Gabriel: The true story of Gabriel Michael Santorum By Karen Garver Santorum, foreword by Mother Teresa, introduction by Dr. Laura Schlessinger

Prolife Feminism: Yesterday and Today Edited by Rachel MacNair, past president, Feminists for Life, et al

Who Broke the Baby? By Jean Staker Garton

Lime 5 By Mark Crutcher Exposes - and documents - malpractice in the abortion industry. Shows women to be the second victims of abortion.

Videos

Eclipse of Reason Produced by Adelle Roban Nathanson and Bernard Nathanson, M.D., introduction by Charlton Heston The sequel to the pro-life classic, The Silent Scream, this video concentrates on late-term abortion.

Pro-Life Doctors Speak Out Features Jack Willke, M.D., Bernard Nathanson, M.D., and Surgeon General C. Everett Koop

Saving Lives: 1973 - 1998 A Quarter Century of Unconditional Love A brief overview of the origins of the modern American pro-life movement and the history of the National Right to Life Committee. Explains the mission of the NRLC and its local grass roots affiliates such as People for Life. Effectively conveys a sense of the importance and necessity of our three primary pro-life specialties, education, legislation, and political action.
 
 

NRL Convention Audio Tapes
...are available to borrow from People for Life.
 

Life Chain
A Life Chain is once again being planned for the first Sunday in October. Success will depend on the hard work of many individual volunteers, as well as the "buy-in" of a substantial portion of the Erie area religious community, including, of course, the clergy. Everyone interested in helping (you are needed!) with the event is encouraged to contact John Bliley at 874-9563 - the sooner the better!
 

Sources for pro-life news and information

 

Congressman "Tom" Ridge . . .
and the taking of human lives prior to birth

As a U.S. congressman, Pennsylvania's current governor established solid pro-abortion* credentials. To emphasize this fact, a compilation very similar to the one presented here was published as a paid advertisement in the Altoona Mirror just prior to Ridge's May 8, 1998 speaking appearance at a benefit dinner for the Foundation for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown. The advertisement in the Mirror was titled "Governor Ridge's Voting Record of Death."

The record, as they say, speaks for itself. However, Ridge spokesman Tim Reeves, just prior to Ridge's engagement in Altoona, hammered home the obvious. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Reeves stated that "THE GOVERNOR HAS A PROFOUND RESPECT FOR THE RIGHT OF ABORTION."

This was already quite obvious to the Erie area March of Life delegation that met with Congressman Ridge in Washington way back on January 23, 1984. During that meeting, Ridge displayed a -- to say the least -- peculiar attitude toward motherhood, as well as a "profoundly" pro-abortion bias. The March 1984 issue of the Erie Echo reports that after the marchers had shown him pictures of aborted babies Ridge retorted: "DOES GOVERNMENT HAVE A RIGHT TO FORCE A WOMAN TO BE AN INCUBATOR FOR NINE MONTHS FOR ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL?" And so, it seems there are two kinds of women out there, those who choose abortion for their unborn children... and "incubators."

What follows are questions addressed by various pieces of abortion related legislation during Ridge's term in Congress. Each question is followed by the response implicit in the vote he cast.

 _________________

6/26/87 and 6/28/88  Should federal funds be used to pay for abortion on demand in the District of Columbia? YES NRL NEWS 7/16/87 p.8 and NRL NEWS 8/20/88 p.16

7/9/88  Should Medicaid pay for abortion on demand, not only for abortions "where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term"? YES NRL NEWS 7/26/88 p.7

6/22/89  Should the United States fund organizations that provide abortions in other countries"? YES NRL NEWS 1/22/90 pp.13-17

8/2/89 and 11/15/89  Should federal funds be used to pay for abortion on demand in the District of Columbia? YES NRL NEWS 1/22/90 pp.13-17

10/11/89  Should Medicaid pay for abortion on demand, not just abortions "where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term"? YES NRL NEWS 1/22/90 pp.13-17

10/25/89  Should President Bush's veto of the above measure be overridden? YES NRL NEWS 1/22/90 pp.13-17

8/3/90  Should U.S. military bases provide abortion on demand? YES NRL NEWS 1/8/91 pp.11-14

10/25/90  Should federal funds be used to pay for abortion on demand in the District of Columbia? YES NRL NEWS 1/8/91 pp.11-14

5/22/91  Should U.S. military bases provide abortion on demand? YES NRL NEWS 1/92 pp.12-20

6/12/91  Should United States taxpayers fund organizations that "perform and actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in foreign nations"? YES NRL NEWS 1/92 pp.12-20

 7/25/91  Should the federal government (taxpayers) be required to fund experiments involving the transplantation of tissue from aborted babies? YES NRL NEWS 1/92 pp.12-20

11/6/91  Should routine counseling and referral for abortion, not necessarily provided by a physician, be required in clinics that receive federal "family planning" funds? YES NRL NEWS 1/92 pp.12-20

5/12/92  Should the federally funded Legal Services Corporation be in the business of suing and lobbying on behalf of abortion on demand? YES NRL NEWS 6/2/92 pp.14-15

5/28/92  Should the federal government be required to fund experiments involving the transplantation of tissue from aborted babies? YES NRL NEWS 6/2/92 pp.14-15

5/30/92  Should routine counseling and referral for abortion be required in clinics that receive federal "family planning" funds? YES NRL NEWS 5/12/92 pp.8-9

6/4/92  Should abortion be provided "in the same manner as any other medical care [sic]" on U.S. military bases? YES NRL NEWS 6/23/92 pp.18-19

6/23/92  Should President Bush's veto of a bill authorizing federal funds for research on fetal tissue from elective abortions be overridden? YES NRL NEWS (Bush's veto was, nevertheless, sustained.)

3/25/93  Should federally funded family planning clinics be required to give 48 hour parental notification before a minor is subjected to abortion, except in cases of medical emergency? NO NRL NEWS 7/14/93 pp.10-11

6/16/93  Should U.S. taxpayers subsidize the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) despite its extensive involvement in the Chinese forced abortion program? YES NRL NEWS 7/14/93 pp.24-25

6/30/93  Should federal funding of abortion be permitted? YES (On this day, Ridge cast three separate votes against the measures by which the 1993 Hyde Amendment, was enacted into law.) NRL NEWS 7/14/93 pp.10-11

10/27/93  Should the District of Columbia be permitted to pay for abortions with so-called "local funding" supplied in part by United States taxpayers? YES NRL NEWS 11/5/93 pp.18-19

11/18/93  Should a substitute amendment that would have distinguished violent criminal activities from nonviolent civil disobedience be attached to the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE)? NO NRL NEWS 12/7/93 pp.22-23

11/18/93  Should the infamous Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) -- which would have gone even farther than Roe v. Wade, nullifying such modest regulations on abortion as those contained in Pennsylvania's Abortion Control Act -- be returned to committee or become the law of the land immediately? IMMEDIATELY NRL NEWS 12/7/93 pp.22-23

5/5/94  Should the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE) be enacted? YES NRL NEWS 5/24/94 pp.22-23 (This federal law singles out pro-life activists for very severe penalties. It can even apply to peaceful demonstrators if they are merely perceived as a deterrent by someone seeking to enter an abortion facility.)

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* Of course, no realistic distinction between the terms pro-choice and pro-abortion is possible. Support for the right to choose abortion is meaningless in the absence of support for abortion as a public institution. This entails a public policy which treats abortion as a routine medical procedure and the maintenance of a vast infrastructure of facilities and technicians capable of providing the service to all who choose it. And, as in the case of Congressman Ridge, this can also entail government funding and special government protection from the opposition of a morally outraged citizenry. Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide Joel

 

LOOK WHAT'S POSSIBLE ...when we pool our resources! [Photo of pro-life billboard currently unavailable]

Contributions to the People for Life Sustaining Media Campaign get results. Donations to the Media Campaign are earmarked for special pro-life advertising such as last winter's billboard campaign. Combined resources made the billboards a reality, and made it possible to secure them at a significant quantity discount!

Please consider a extra-special donation to the:

SUSTAINING MEDIA CAMPAIGN
People for Life, Inc.
P.O. Box 1126
Erie, PA 16512
 

National Right to Life Convention Report
 By ANN WINGERTER

ORLANDO  Four PFL members, Jean Hammer, Ed Hammer, Lee Boyes, and myself, traveled to Orlando, Florida to attend the 26th annual National Right to Life Convention, June 18th, 19th, and 20th.

Jean Garton, author of Who Broke the Baby, was a very motivational keynote speaker. During the next three days fifty-four conferences were held from which we had the option to choose. The conferences included Communicating Pro-Life Values to our Youth, We are the Sheep... Where are the Shepherds?, Keeping a Pro-Life Congress, A Discussion on the Link Between Abortion and Breast Cancer, and Abortion Trauma on the Family.

But definitely the main thrust of this conference was given during the two-hour Friday afternoon discussion presented by James Bopp, Jr., J.D.; Wesley Smith, J.D.; Carolyn Gerster, M.D.; Brian Johnston; David O'Steen, NRLC executive director; and Burke Balch. The title was A Helping Hand Into the Grave - Assisted Suicide and How to Fight It.

It seems as if we were just getting the abortion debate down pat: numbers beginning to turn in our favor - people really beginning to realize that those are babies we are killing. Yes, there is still a lot of work to be done, but the pendulum appeared to be reversing a bit. When WHUMP!! We get hit with the realization that we have the grass roots fight of our lives knocking at the door.

The deaths of 35 million babies have been mostly hidden in the womb. But now we have to mobilize pro-lifers from state to state to keep proposals for more conspicuous forms of legalized killing, euthanasia and physician assisted suicide, off our ballots come election time. On the federal level, we have to confront Attorney General Janet Reno, who thinks that providing lethal doses of drugs for assisted suicide is OK.

Many people already see the handwriting on the wall. There will be no way to control this mass killing of all ages, all conditions -- all races, colors, and creeds -- once the door has been opened... and it has been opened in Oregon! So now we must pray, pray, pray - and then work like crazy to move Americans back toward a culture of life!

Ann Wingerter is People for Life's education director. She frequently makes presentations on human life topics in Erie area classrooms. Ann is available to speak to students of all ages and grade levels, elementary school through college. For more information, please contact People for Life, 814-459-1333.
 

 
PEOPLE FOR LIFE, INC.
814.459.1333
 
 People for Life, Inc. is an all-volunteer, non-profit, citizen's organization committed to the intrinsic value of human life. People for Life is dedicated to advancing true justice by working for the protection of all innocent human life, whatever the age, race, sex, physical condition, economic status, or place of residence (including the womb). People for Life encourages local i nvolvement through education, political awareness, and the promotion of loving alternatives to the primitive and violent "solutions" of abortion, infanticide, and euthanasia. Together, we can create a society in which all human lives are held sacred.
The Erie Echo is published bimonthly in Erie by People for Life.
Timothy Broderick, President  |  Rose Ann Yadeski, First V.P.
 Please Join People for Life

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The official registration statement and financial information of People for Life, Inc. may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling toll-free in Pennsylvania, 1-800-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.
Due to IRS regulations, donations to People for Life, Inc. are not tax-deductible.


 

PFL Resource Center
P.O. Box 1126
1625 W. 26th St.
Erie, PA  16512
In the Oakwood Plaza
814-459-1333

Please drop in to see all of the new...
Books...  Videos...  Pamphlets...  Bumper stickers...  and other educational items
____________________
HOURS
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday   11:00 - 2:00
Tuesday   11:00 - 5:30
Friday & Saturday   10:00 - 2:00


Our common biography
24 days Heart was beating. 
43 days Brain waves. 
45 days Spontaneous movements.
7 wks. Lips sensitive to touch.
8 1/2 wks. Fingerprints
9 wks. Grasping and thumb sucking
11 wks. Complex facial expressions
12 wks. Breathing amniotic fluid
4 mos. Grasping with hands
4-5 mos. Mother finally felt her baby move!



1998     PRO-LIFE PLANNER    1998
July 30  Shield of Roses, 7:00 PM - St. Stanislas, Erie, PA 
Aug. 5   Fair Booth planning and orientation, 7:00 PM - PFL Resource Ctr.
Aug. 13 - 16  Pro-Life informational exhibit -- We Love Erie Days 
Aug. 24  Shield of Roses, 7:00 PM - O.L. of Mt. Carmel Chapel, Ashtabula 
Sept. 1 - 6 Pro-Life informational exhibit -- Wattsburg Erie County Fair
Sept. 7 - 12 Pro-Life informational exhibit -- Waterford Fair
Sept. 15 - 19 Pro-Life informational exhibit -- Albion Fair
Sept. 29 Shield of Roses, 7:00 PM - Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Fairview
Sept. 19 PA Pro-Life Convention -- Harrisburg, PA
Oct. 4 Greater Erie Life Chain
Oct. 4 WELS Lutherans for Life National Convention -- Rochester, MN
Oct. 26 Shield of Roses, 7:00 PM - St. Patrick, Erie, PA
Nov. 3 Fall General Elections
Please tell us about YOUR pro-life events!!



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