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Volume 20, Number 1
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January/February 2009
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Kenya — Muslims Join Catholics Against Abortion
There has been much publicity about a proposed law in Kenya that would legalize abortions. Now we hear that the chief Muslim cleric is
joining the Catholic bishops to oppose such a law.
Animal/Human Clones Don't Work
At least not to date: Dr. R. Lanza of Advanced Cell Technology has been trying, but in his words “we got beautiful little hybrid embryos but it didn’t work no matter how hard we tried.” So he states in the February 2009 issue
of Cloning and Stem Cells, and according to the lengthy description in his published article,
it just could be that they will never work.
Bolivia — New Constitution is Bad
Bolivia’s new constitution, just passed in the polls, contains pro-abortion and pro-homosexual language. It threatens the autonomy of families, and gives sharply increased powers to the central government. It passed by a popular vote of 60-40. We are informed that Premier Morales, who has pushed for this, may not be able to enforce it. It cannot be enforced without the consent of the legislature which must pass new laws to implement it. At present, the upper chamber of the Bolivian Congress is controlled by pro-life forces,
so we will wait and see.
Victory in Brazil
Proposed legislation which would have required abortion-on-demand throughout Brazil was defeated in its Commission on Constitution and
Justice by a resounding vote of 36-4.
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Another Irish E.U. Treaty Referendum:
Last June the Irish rejected the Lisbon Treaty 53-46. The European Union had a fit, because in order for the treaty to become a reality, it needed unanimous support from
all of the members of the European Union.
So now they are going to try again. Ireland’s prime minister has committed his country to vote a second time on the ratification of the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty. We note that the reason it failed last time was that it would probably have forced Ireland to legalized abortion. That being true, we question whether a
second referendum will have a different outcome.
Sweden — More Morning-After Pills, More Abortion
Directly contrary to earlier predictions by pro-abortion authorities, the number of abortions in Sweden has increased 17% from 2000 to 2007. During this same period, sales of the morning-after pill also increased dramatically. This pill was legally sold over the counter after 2001 with the assurance that it would reduce abortions.
But as has happened in other nations, exactly the opposite has occurred.
Costa Rica — No Abortifacients
In October, the Costa Rica government issued an order prohibiting a pro-abortion campaign that urged women to use the abortifacient, morning-after pill.
Pro-abortion forces there are trying to legalize it.
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Parental Involvement Saves Lives
Dr. Michael New at the University of Alabama has published the results of parental notification prior to their teen’s abortion.
His study has found the following:
- If a state passes a pro-life parental notification law it reduces the minor abortion rate by 13%.
- If this law also requires parental consent, it reduces the minor’s abortion rate by 19%.
- If it involves both parents rather than one, it reduces the rate by 31%.
- These findings are true for age groups, 15, 16, and 17 year-olds.
Washington March for Life Largest Yet
Organizer, Nellie Gray, stated, that there were “definitely over 200,000 participants,” while one TV station reported 300,000. Gray stated that the March normally takes 1 1/2 hours to pass a point.
This year it took over 2 1/2 hours.
The Federal District of Mexico City
The Federal district of Mexico City legalized abortion two years ago. Abortion is not legal in the other Mexican States and pro-abortion people are calling for legalization throughout the country. They have published a “study” done by Planned Parenthood’s Guttmacher Institute and the Population Council, both of them aggressive proponents of abortion on demand. These two organizations are now claiming that in 2006 there were an estimated 875,000 illegal abortions in Mexico.
First of all, since illegal abortions are not reported, there are no firm statistics in any country. Anything you hear is an estimate. Since legalization in the Federal District there have been 12,262 abortions or approximately 8,000 abortions in a twelve month period. The total population of the Federal District is about 10 million people compared to the total population of the nation of Mexico which has 110 million. If abortion were legal nationwide and the same percentages would apply, then there would be a total of 88,000 abortions in the entire nation. Compare this to the wild and unsubstantiated claim of 875,000 above. Sadly, this is the type of total falsehoods that we have seen in other countries around the globe.
This claim of the number of illegal abortions is wildly beyond any remote possibility.
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Morning-After Pills Abortive? — Vatican Speaks
In December, the Vatican published a document, Dignitatis Personae, which condemned the use of morning-after pills as being “gravely immoral and falling within the sin of abortion.” We note that certain Catholic hospitals do give this to women who are victims of rape. The statement which legally only applies to Catholic as a moral issue, nevertheless, speaks to the scientific facts of the matter. The morning-after pill it states, if taken within 72 hours after intercourse, can inhibit a future ovulation, but it also thins the lining of the uterus. This can cause an already conceived human embryo to fail to implant, and therefore die. It calls this use of the pill “interceptive.” It further states, to justify such use, some have stated that this function is not sufficiently understood. It is true that there is not always complete knowledge of the way different pharmaceuticals operate, but scientific studies indicate that the effect of inhibiting implantation is certainly present, even if not in every instance. It is also noted that conception also does not occur after every sex act. So, this is a word to loyal Catholics
but also is information that is relevant to all people.
World Metting of Families in Mexico City
This sixth World Meeting was a massive international gathering celebrating and promoting intact family values. It featured the importance of parents as primary educators of children, particularly regarding moral values. Mexico’s President Felipe Calderon linked the fragmentation of families to the nation’s rising level of violence. The meeting brought together 20 Catholic cardinals, 200 bishops,
300 members of the press, and approximately 9,000 participants.
Brazil — Abortion Unconstitutional
A major Circuit Court decision in the Brazilian state of Rio Verde has ruled that abortion in case of rape is unconstitutional, noting that the Brazil Constitution guarantees the protection of the right to life. He noted that the rape exception, currently in the Penal Code, effectively decriminalizes all abortion because
it does not require that the crime be proven in a court of law.
Paris March for Life is Huge
On January 28, almost 20,000 peaceful demonstrators participated in the
fifth annual March for Life in Paris.
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Leading Researcher — Now Only Adult Stem Cells
Wisconsin’s James Thomson, who isolated the first embryonic stem cells a decade ago, now has announced that his two research companies plan to focus only on adult and the new pluripotent stem cells.
They will no longer be experimenting on embryonic stem cells.
Abortion and Crime Rate
In 1995, a study was published claiming that abortion, eliminating unwanted babies, has cut down on the crime rate.
But, we have a new book by John Lott, Freedomnomics. The early claim was that as many as half of the overall crime reduction during the 1980s was a result of legal abortion. This new and much more comprehensive study concludes that legal abortion has actually increased the overall violent crime rate by .5 - 7%. It notes that legal abortion contributes to a coarsening of society that might in and of itself lead to more crime. But principally the higher crime rate has occurred partly because a higher percentage of children grow up in single parent homes. The Supreme Court decision ultimately resulted in more out of wedlock births, a reduction in the number of children adopted and fewer married parents.
All of these add up to more turbulence in society and an increased crime rate.
Also increased is child abuse. Now we have yet another study comparing women who have had abortions with others.
The Internet Journal of Pediatrics and Neonatology investigated women who had physically mistreated or neglected at least one of their children. Among those who had had abortions, this investigation found that there were more frequent acts of physical violence such as slapping, hitting or beating their children. The author, Dr. Priscilla Coleman explained this as “Unresolved bereavement, disruption of mother-child attachment mechanisms, feelings of abortion, related
guilt and/or negative mental health effects of the abortion.”
Shanghai Population Drops
We have been watching Shanghai’s population. It has been steadily aging, but last year saw the first actual decline in its working age population.
There is no sign of an uptick in its birthrate.
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Teens Suffer More from Abortions
In a study entitled, “Detrimental Effects of Adolescent Abortions,” by A. Sobie and D. Reardon, comparing them to adult women, teens are:
- Two to four times more likely to commit suicide.
- More likely to develop psychological problems, including paranoia, drug abuse, psychotic delusions, projection of their problems into others, and “acting out” strategies.
- More likely to have trouble in relationships.
- Are generally in need of more counseling and guidance regarding abortions.
- Are nearly three times more likely to be admitted to a mental health hospital.
Poland IVF a "Type of Refined Abortion"
In an open letter in December, the Polish bishops stated that the current government’s support for in-vitro fertilization undermines the current pro-life policy of the government. They noted “many embryos die during the procedure,” calling it a type of “refined abortion” as well as being
“inadmissible and undignified.”
IVF Effectiveness
The number of people seeking in-vitro fertilization continues to rise, and this also now includes more mature women. However, recent studies would discourage this. The percentage of patients, age 40 - 45 seeking IVF has risen from 10 - 15% of the total, jumping from about 600 in 1991 to over 6,000 last year. The success rate for women from age 40 - 42 is 9% on the first cycle, but for women 44 and above it is 1%. Further for those over 40, the risk of miscarriage, if conception occurs, is double what it was when they were 20 years old. Also there is an increase of tubal pregnancy, premature births, stillbirths, neonatal deaths,
and birth defects for these more mature women.
Autism Screening Test Ignites Controversy
In London, this announcement set off quite a debate over whether such tests will open the door to a search and destroy mission for autistic children in a manner similar to what is being done to
children suspected of having Down syndrome.
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Switzerland, Health Discounts
Five health insurance companies in Switzerland give discounts of 10 to 40 percent to women who refuse abortions,
in-vitro fertilization and prenatal diagnosis testing.
Do Pluripotent Stem Cells Cause Tumors?
We know that embryonic stem cells do cause tumors. Now we know that ordinary skin cells, in effect backed up in time, can form a pluripotent cell that seems identical to embryonic stem cells. The question has arisen, “Will these new ones also form tumors?” Research in the September issue of
Science is the latest among several recent studies showing that such a potential problem with these reprogrammed adult stem cells is rapidly being solved. This is another way of saying that very soon such newly
reprogrammed cells can be used without the threat of tumor formation.
Stem Cells from Teeth?
At the University of Adelaide in Australia, the Center for Stem Cell Research is using adult stem cells from teeth in an attempt to repair stroke damaged brains. Using dental pulp stem cells
they hope to achieve some results within the coming year.
Spain — Morning-After-Pill
In Southern Spain a daily newspaper, La Opinion Dala Coruna, reports that the practice of turning these pills into the principal or only “contraception” used is spreading among adolescents. It is out of control in some schools
and being used by some young women up to seven times a month.
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Stem Cells Aid Multiple Sclerosis?
Northwestern Medical School in Chicago reports a possible treatment for MS. They have used adult stem cells and treated 21 adults. To date, three years later, all of them experienced improvement and none have relapsed. Doctors had removed adult stem cells from the patient’s bone marrow then with chemo-therapy killed all existing immune cells in the body. The bone marrow stem cells were re-injected and apparently developed into new immune cells that are not attacking the
myelin sheath on nerves which is the problem with MS.
Brazil — Embryonic Stem Cell Research
By vote of 6 - 5, Brazil’s Supreme Court held that killing five-day-old embryos to obtain embryonic stem cells for research was to be permitted in that country. In recent months there has been a move in Brazil to legalize abortion; however, opinion polls show that
almost 70% of the nation opposes decriminalization.
New Zealand — Abortion and Risks to Mental Health
Research on over 500 women in a continuing study from birth to age 30, shows that women who have had an abortion face a 30% increase in the risk of developing depression, anxiety, and other common mental health problems. This was by Professors D.
Ferguson, J. Horwood, and J. Boden at the University of Otago.
Stem Cells for Liver Disease
Imperial College doctors in London have used the patient’s own adult stem cells to treat alcoholic liver cirrhosis.
Published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology,
they report substantial improvement.
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www.internationalrighttolife.com
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J.C. Willke, President,
International Right to Life Fed.
1821 West Galbraith Road
Cincinnati,
Ohio 45239 USA
Phone +1 (513) 729-3600
Fax +1 (513) 729-3636
e-mail:
IRTLF@lifeissues.org
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International
Right to Life Fed., International Office
Ruitersweg 35-37 1211 KT Hilversum
The Netherlands
Phone +31 35 624-4352
Fax +31 35 624-9141
e-mail:
info@schreeuwomleven.nl
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