This column by Cecily Kellogg ran in my newspaper today. It spells out why late-term abortions, as those performed by the late Dr. Goerge Tiller, are important and necessary.
The pro-life movement would argue that these women are the most selfish. But it really is needed as a life-saving procedure.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
"A dangerous fantasy land"
That's how U.S. Holocaust Museum Fellow Deborah Lipstadt described where Holocaust deniers like James von Brunn live: "A dangerous fantasy land."
These people make up their own reasons to hate. It is almost impossible to be rational with them. All we can do is remain vigilant, stand up to them when we need to and demonstrate that they have nothing to offer but hate and violence.
These people make up their own reasons to hate. It is almost impossible to be rational with them. All we can do is remain vigilant, stand up to them when we need to and demonstrate that they have nothing to offer but hate and violence.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Breaking news: Slain Kansas Abortion Provider's Clinic To Close
AP, June 9, 2009 · The family of slain abortion provider George Tiller said Tuesday that his Wichita clinic will be "permanently closed," effective immediately.
In a statement released by Tiller's attorneys, his family said it is ceasing operation of Women's Health Care Services Inc. and any involvement by family members in any other similar clinic.
"We are proud of the service and courage shown by our husband and father and know that women's health care needs have been met because of his dedication and service," the family said.
- "Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun."
He writes with the power of a spinning crescent kick
So, I opened my local newspaper yesterday and read a column by Chuck Norris about a pastor and his wife who were cited by San Diego County for holding a Bible study in their home.
After getting over my shock that 1) Chuck Norris is a writer and 2) He is writing for my paper, I actually found the story worthwhile. [OK, let me get this bit of sarcasm out of my system: Chuck Norris once shot down an airplane by pointing his finger at it and saying, "Bang!"]
After a major backlash against the government by conservative Web sites and stories reported on Fox News, the county has backed down and said they did not need a permit for a Bible study after all. Here's the full news story by the San Diego Union Tribune.
I have to back Chuck on this one. As a college senior, I took a class on Freedom of Religion. It was an intensive class that focused on reading and writing on case law. We wrote legal briefs and argued them before a mock Supreme Court for our final project. From what I've heard, it was very similar to what you might experience at law school. Throughout the semester, our professor kept on quoting the one line in the Constitution that sums up all we needed to understand about religious freedom, from the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
That's it. Done and done.
To create a situation in which a government official comes to your home to ask whether you are saying "Amen" or "Praise the Lord" is intrusive and misguided. So long as you are not committing a crime or hurting someone else, the government can't even come to the door and ask if you are saying, "Praise Satan." It's your business.
Bottom line, this was a parking issue that was botched by the county. A car belonging to a neighbor's visitor was dinged. The pastor paid to fix it, but he feels that sparked the complaint. I lived in Southern California for nine years, and I remember how neighbors usually felt no qualms about reporting each other to the government. Parking is a big deal in SoCal, and anyone who seems to be taking more than his fair share is going to draw attention to himself.
The solution would have been for the pastor to work with his visitors to ensure they know where they can park, to be respectful and maybe even have them share rides.
Amen.
After getting over my shock that 1) Chuck Norris is a writer and 2) He is writing for my paper, I actually found the story worthwhile. [OK, let me get this bit of sarcasm out of my system: Chuck Norris once shot down an airplane by pointing his finger at it and saying, "Bang!"]
After a major backlash against the government by conservative Web sites and stories reported on Fox News, the county has backed down and said they did not need a permit for a Bible study after all. Here's the full news story by the San Diego Union Tribune.
I have to back Chuck on this one. As a college senior, I took a class on Freedom of Religion. It was an intensive class that focused on reading and writing on case law. We wrote legal briefs and argued them before a mock Supreme Court for our final project. From what I've heard, it was very similar to what you might experience at law school. Throughout the semester, our professor kept on quoting the one line in the Constitution that sums up all we needed to understand about religious freedom, from the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
That's it. Done and done.
To create a situation in which a government official comes to your home to ask whether you are saying "Amen" or "Praise the Lord" is intrusive and misguided. So long as you are not committing a crime or hurting someone else, the government can't even come to the door and ask if you are saying, "Praise Satan." It's your business.
Bottom line, this was a parking issue that was botched by the county. A car belonging to a neighbor's visitor was dinged. The pastor paid to fix it, but he feels that sparked the complaint. I lived in Southern California for nine years, and I remember how neighbors usually felt no qualms about reporting each other to the government. Parking is a big deal in SoCal, and anyone who seems to be taking more than his fair share is going to draw attention to himself.
The solution would have been for the pastor to work with his visitors to ensure they know where they can park, to be respectful and maybe even have them share rides.
Amen.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Bank Accused of Pushing Mortgage Deals on Blacks
“They referred to subprime loans made in minority communities as ghetto loans and minority customers as ‘those people have bad credit’, ‘those people don’t pay their bills’ and ‘mud people.’”
“We have worked extremely hard to make homeownership possible for more African-American borrowers. We absolutely do not tolerate team members treating our customers or others disrespectfully or unfairly, or who violate our ethics and lending practices.”
This is a troubling story about how Wells Fargo may have targeted minorities for sub-prime loans even in situations when a white applicant would receive a prime loan. If true, Wells Fargo needs to do much more than have its employees attend cultural sensitivity training. If true, Wells Fargo may have been harboring some of the most dangerous forms of racist ideology.
I'm referring to the term "mud people." It is a code word used by the worst of racists. It is not just a slip of a tongue -- "Oops I didn't mean to offend." It is used by groups like the Aryan Nations as part of their twisted world view that whites are superior to other races and are destined to rule the world following an apocalyptic race war.
I found this blog called Real Eyes Realize Real Lies, which summed up a lot of the history:
"In the mid-1980s, many Aryan Nations members teamed up with other racists to form “The Order” — which is still memorialized on the Aryan Nations Web site. The Order robbed banks, counterfeited money, ambushed armored cars — and murdered — to finance a planned overthrow of the U.S. government."
I wish the NAACP luck in their class action lawsuit against Wells Fargo and other banks. Let us hope the truth comes out, that hidden racism is dragged into the sunlight and exposed for what it is.
Tony Paschal
former Wells Fargo loan officer
former Wells Fargo loan officer
“We have worked extremely hard to make homeownership possible for more African-American borrowers. We absolutely do not tolerate team members treating our customers or others disrespectfully or unfairly, or who violate our ethics and lending practices.”
Kevin Waetke
spokesman for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage.
spokesman for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage.
This is a troubling story about how Wells Fargo may have targeted minorities for sub-prime loans even in situations when a white applicant would receive a prime loan. If true, Wells Fargo needs to do much more than have its employees attend cultural sensitivity training. If true, Wells Fargo may have been harboring some of the most dangerous forms of racist ideology.
I'm referring to the term "mud people." It is a code word used by the worst of racists. It is not just a slip of a tongue -- "Oops I didn't mean to offend." It is used by groups like the Aryan Nations as part of their twisted world view that whites are superior to other races and are destined to rule the world following an apocalyptic race war.
I found this blog called Real Eyes Realize Real Lies, which summed up a lot of the history:
"In the mid-1980s, many Aryan Nations members teamed up with other racists to form “The Order” — which is still memorialized on the Aryan Nations Web site. The Order robbed banks, counterfeited money, ambushed armored cars — and murdered — to finance a planned overthrow of the U.S. government."
I wish the NAACP luck in their class action lawsuit against Wells Fargo and other banks. Let us hope the truth comes out, that hidden racism is dragged into the sunlight and exposed for what it is.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Obama in Notre Dame
After watching the president's speech in Cairo, where he traveled into one of the centers of a potentially hostile Muslim world, I decided to take another look at the president's speech at Notre Dame, where he ventured into the heart of the potentially hostile Catholic world.
Unlike in Cairo, Obama was occasionally jeered at by protesters at Notre Dame. "Abortion is murder! Stop killing children!" But then the audience at large shouted down the jeer with "We are ND! We are ND!" and "Yes, we can! Yes, we can!"
There are many parallels between the two events. Both were steeped in religious controversy, and Obama sought to do what he does best -- find common ground. In both situations, the actions and beliefs of religious extremists weighed heavily on the venue. But at Notre Dame, Obama sought a cease-fire with the extremists:
"A few days after I won the Democratic nomination, I received an e-mail from a doctor who told me that while he voted for me in the Illinois primary, he had a serious concern that might prevent him from voting for me in the general election. He described himself as a Christian who was strongly pro-life -- but that was not what was preventing him potentially from voting for me. What bothered the doctor was an entry that my campaign staff had posted on my website -- an entry that said I would fight 'right-wing ideologues who want to take away a woman’s right to choose.' The doctor said he had assumed I was a reasonable person, he supported my policy initiatives to help the poor and to lift up our educational system, but that if I truly believed that every pro-life individual was simply an ideologue who wanted to inflict suffering on women, then I was not very reasonable. He wrote, 'I do not ask at this point that you oppose abortion, only that you speak about this issue in fair-minded words.'"
Obama had the 'right-wing idealogue' language taken down from his Web site. And he seemed to have done so to stop the escalation of dangerous rhetoric. He allowed that a reasonable, thinking person could conclude that abortion was wrong. To paint all opponents on an issue as 'right-wing idealogues' is insulting and can inflame the passions, and result in such as things as hecklers in the audience at Notre Dame.
He talked about more than abortion. He touched on the need for all of us to come together as one human family. He practically made Father Ted Hesburgh, president emeritus of Notre Dame, teary when he related how Hesburgh played a key role in the civil rights movement through a fishing trip. (Obama had dropped the emeritus in his speech.)
The biggest news out of the speech was when he called for "a sensible conscience clause."
Although Obama did not define it in his remarks, "Conscience clauses protect doctors, nurses and pharmacists who refuse to participate in abortions or dispense abortion pills from being threatened or fired."
Obama has announced his intention to end Bush-era conscience-protection rules by the Department of Health and Human Services. So, the president seems to be saying he wants to replace the Bush rules with something that makes sense. However, it doesn't appear that he's clarified his remarks any more and there's been a lot of comments on the blogosphere about the word "sensible" and what that word is supposed to mean.
But whatever words he used in South Bend or in Cairo, one is reminded that while words can be powerful, they take time for their effects to be felt.
At the beginning of the speech, Obama asked "How does each of us remain firm in our principles, and fight for what we consider right, without, as Father John said, demonetizing (demonizing?) those with just as strongly held convictions on the other side?"
Sadly the demonization of opposing sides on abortion continues. Two weeks after this speech, Dr. George Tiller was shot dead at his church in Kansas.
And so many on the "pro-life" side cheered.
Obama will have to wait a while longer for a cease-fire on abortion.
Unlike in Cairo, Obama was occasionally jeered at by protesters at Notre Dame. "Abortion is murder! Stop killing children!" But then the audience at large shouted down the jeer with "We are ND! We are ND!" and "Yes, we can! Yes, we can!"
There are many parallels between the two events. Both were steeped in religious controversy, and Obama sought to do what he does best -- find common ground. In both situations, the actions and beliefs of religious extremists weighed heavily on the venue. But at Notre Dame, Obama sought a cease-fire with the extremists:
"A few days after I won the Democratic nomination, I received an e-mail from a doctor who told me that while he voted for me in the Illinois primary, he had a serious concern that might prevent him from voting for me in the general election. He described himself as a Christian who was strongly pro-life -- but that was not what was preventing him potentially from voting for me. What bothered the doctor was an entry that my campaign staff had posted on my website -- an entry that said I would fight 'right-wing ideologues who want to take away a woman’s right to choose.' The doctor said he had assumed I was a reasonable person, he supported my policy initiatives to help the poor and to lift up our educational system, but that if I truly believed that every pro-life individual was simply an ideologue who wanted to inflict suffering on women, then I was not very reasonable. He wrote, 'I do not ask at this point that you oppose abortion, only that you speak about this issue in fair-minded words.'"
Obama had the 'right-wing idealogue' language taken down from his Web site. And he seemed to have done so to stop the escalation of dangerous rhetoric. He allowed that a reasonable, thinking person could conclude that abortion was wrong. To paint all opponents on an issue as 'right-wing idealogues' is insulting and can inflame the passions, and result in such as things as hecklers in the audience at Notre Dame.
He talked about more than abortion. He touched on the need for all of us to come together as one human family. He practically made Father Ted Hesburgh, president emeritus of Notre Dame, teary when he related how Hesburgh played a key role in the civil rights movement through a fishing trip. (Obama had dropped the emeritus in his speech.)
The biggest news out of the speech was when he called for "a sensible conscience clause."
Although Obama did not define it in his remarks, "Conscience clauses protect doctors, nurses and pharmacists who refuse to participate in abortions or dispense abortion pills from being threatened or fired."
Obama has announced his intention to end Bush-era conscience-protection rules by the Department of Health and Human Services. So, the president seems to be saying he wants to replace the Bush rules with something that makes sense. However, it doesn't appear that he's clarified his remarks any more and there's been a lot of comments on the blogosphere about the word "sensible" and what that word is supposed to mean.
But whatever words he used in South Bend or in Cairo, one is reminded that while words can be powerful, they take time for their effects to be felt.
At the beginning of the speech, Obama asked "How does each of us remain firm in our principles, and fight for what we consider right, without, as Father John said, demonetizing (demonizing?) those with just as strongly held convictions on the other side?"
Sadly the demonization of opposing sides on abortion continues. Two weeks after this speech, Dr. George Tiller was shot dead at his church in Kansas.
And so many on the "pro-life" side cheered.
Obama will have to wait a while longer for a cease-fire on abortion.
Friday, June 5, 2009
President Obama Speaks to the Muslim World from Cairo, Egypt
This was a brilliant speech. It is probably the best attempt by an American president to defuse the hatred between the U.S. and the Muslim world. He made an open and honest assessment of the conflicts and did not back away from the difficult issues such as the subjugation of women. He made it clear that we backed Israel, but he pointed out that Israel had a responsibility for the injustices that the Palestinians have suffered. In short, he seems to understand one of my favorite quotes: "If you want peace, work for justice."
Hate is the fuel that empowers our enemies. If the U.S. is to defeat our enemy, we must conduct a strategy that goes not give our enemy more firepower, more recruits to their cause, more human bombs. This is what Obama is trying to do.
This is probably one of Obama's best speeches since the early stages of his campaign. It was a chance to explain the big picture and show us the path to peace.
Let us hope he has sowed the seeds of understanding.
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