Thought for Today

"It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish."

~~~~~ Mother Teresa (on abortion)

Thought for Today

"America needs no words from me to see how your decision in Roe v. Wade has deformed a great nation. The so-called right to abortion has pitted mothers against their children and women against men. It has sown violence and discord at the heart of the most intimate human relationships. It has aggravated the derogation of the father's role in an increasingly fatherless society. It has portrayed the greatest of gifts – a child – as a competitor, an intrusion, and an inconvenience. It has nominally accorded mothers unfettered dominion over the independent lives of their physically dependent sons and daughters. And, in granting this unconscionable power, it has exposed many women to unjust and selfish demands from their husbands or other sexual partners. Human rights are not a privilege conferred by government. They are every human being's entitlement by virtue of his humanity. The right to life does not depend, and must not be declared to be contingent, on the pleasure of anyone else, not even a parent or a sovereign."

~~~~~ Mother Teresa

Thought for Today

"Abortion is inherently different from other medical procedures because no other procedure involves the purposeful termination of a potential life."

~~~~~ Justice Potter Stewart

Thought for Today

"I do not believe in abortion at will. I do not believe that if a woman just wants to have an abortion she should... I do believe if you have an abortion you are committing murder."

~~~~ Nancy Reagan

Thought for Today

"I've noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born."

~~~~~~~ Ronald Reagan

Why They Hate Sarah Palin So Much

This new post at House of Eratosthenes on the subject of Why They Hate Sarah Palin So Much is absolutely brilliant, and spot on. Go read it – you won't be sorry. Be sure to check out the comments, too. The early ones, anyway, are most promising. Let's hope the left-wing vultures don't find it for a while, but that's probably a forlorn hope.

BIG hat tip to Gerard Van der Leun at American Digest for calling attention to Morgan Freeberg's outstanding post.

Something to Think About ...

Hat tip: Townhall.com

Just Look

From Gerald Van der Leun at the incomparable American Digest:

Just Look

From His Own Mouth

If, God forbid, The Obamessiah succeeds in his attempt to fool some of the people enough of the time to become the next president, what's the first thing he'll do? In this ad, we hear the truth from his own mouth. The excerpts are from a speech he gave to Planned Parenthood a little over one year ago.

For more information about this ad and its origin, read this short post by Kyle-Anne Shiver, Amer. Fam. Council Fights Obama. Great Ad, at her website Common Sense Regained.

10/26/08 Update: See From His Own Mouth II

Gov. Palin Makes the Pro-Life Case

Earlier today. Sarah Palin gave a remarkable speech in Johnstown, Pennsylvania in which she movingly and eloquently made the case for the pro-life point of view. Here is a partial transcript:

“In this same spirit, as defenders of the culture of life, John McCain and I believe in the goodness and potential of every innocent life. I believe the truest measure of any society is how it treats those who are least able to defend and speak for themselves. And who is more vulnerable, or more innocent, than a child?

When I learned that my son Trig would have special needs, I had to prepare my heart for the challenges to come. At first I was scared, and Todd and I had to ask for strength and understanding. But I can tell you a few things I’ve learned already.

Yes, every innocent life matters. Everyone belongs in the circle of protection. Every child has something to contribute to the world, if we give them that chance. There are the world’s standards of perfection … and then there are God’s, and these are the final measure. Every child is beautiful before God, and dear to Him for their own sake.

As for our beautiful baby boy, for Todd and me, he is only more precious because he is vulnerable. In some ways, I think we stand to learn more from him than he does from us. When we hold Trig and care for him, we don’t feel scared anymore. We feel blessed.

It’s hard to think of many issues that could possibly be more important than who is protected in law and who isn’t – who is granted life and who is denied it. So when our opponent, Senator Obama, speaks about questions of life, I listen very carefully.

I listened when he defended his unconditional support for unlimited abortions. He said that a woman shouldn’t have to be – quote – “punished with a baby.” He said that right here in Johnstown –“punished with a baby” – and it’s about time we called him on it. The more I hear from Senator Obama, the more I understand why he is so vague and evasive on the subject. Americans need to see his record for what it is. It’s not negative or mean-spirited to talk to about his record. Whatever party you belong to, there are facts you need to know.

Senator Obama has voted against bills to end partial-birth abortion. In the Illinois Senate, a bipartisan majority passed legislation against that practice. Senator Obama opposed that bill. He voted against it in committee, and voted “present” on the Senate floor. In that legislature, “present” is how you vote when you’re against something, but don’t want to be held to account.

Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a Democrat, described partial-birth abortion as “too close to infanticide.” Barack Obama thinks it’s a constitutional right, but he is wrong.

Most troubling, as a state senator, Barack Obama wouldn’t even stand up for the rights of infants born alive during an abortion. These infants – often babies with special needs – are simply left to die.

In 2002, Congress unanimously passed a federal law to require medical care for those babies who survive an abortion. They’re living, breathing babies, but Senator Obama describes them as “pre-viable.” This merciful law was called the Born Alive Infants Protection Act. Illinois had a version of the same law. Obama voted against it.

Asked about this vote, Senator Obama assured a reporter that he’d have voted “yes” on that bill if it had contained language similar to the federal version of the Born Alive Act. There’s just one little problem with that story: the language of both the state and federal bills was identical.

In short, Senator Obama is a politician who has long since left behind even the middle ground on the issue of life. He has sided with those who won’t even protect a child born alive. And this exposes the emptiness of his promises to move beyond the “old politics.”

In both parties, Americans have many concerns to be weighed in the votes they cast on November fourth. In times like these, with wars and a financial crisis, it’s easy to forget even as deep and abiding a concern as the right to life. And it seems our opponent hopes that you will forget. Like so much else in his agenda, he hopes you won’t notice how radical his ideas and record are until it’s too late.

But let there be no misunderstanding about the stakes.

A vote for Barack Obama is a vote for activist courts that will continue to smother the open and democratic debate we need on this issue, at both the state and federal level. A vote for Barack Obama would give the ultimate power over the issue of life to a politician who has never once done anything to protect the unborn. As Senator Obama told Pastor Rick Warren, it’s above his pay grade.

For a candidate who talks so often about “hope,” he offers no hope at all in meeting this great challenge to the conscience of America. There is a growing consensus in our country that we can overcome narrow partisanship on this issue, and bring all the resources of a generous country to the aid of both women in need and the child waiting to be born. We need more of the compassion and idealism that our opponent’s own party, at its best, once stood for. We need the clarity and conviction of leaders like the late Governor Bob Casey.

He represented a humanity that speaks to all of us – no matter what our party, our background, our faith, or our gender. And no matter your position on this sensitive subject, I hope that spirit will guide you on Election Day. I ask you to vote for McCain-Palin on the November fourth, and help us to bring this country together in the rational discussion of compassion and life.”

Hat tip: Kathryn Jean Lopez in NRO's The Corner

You can watch the C-SPAN video of the entire 30-minute speech here:
Palin Campaign Speech in Johnstown, PA.

A Pleasant Surprise

If last night's debate has you feeling a little glum, here's a video that'll cheer you right up again. Watch this – then spread it around. Truly outstanding!



Hat tip: Jay Nordlinger of NRO

A Comparison: Pro-Life vs. Pro-Death

The National Right to Life Committee has produced a comparison chart which clearly and succinctly summarizes our two major candidates' respective positions on the issue of legalized infanticide. Take a look:

 

(Click on picture to enlarge.)

You can download a full-color PDF version of this chart here (633 Kb).

Along those same lines, take a look at this gripping and powerful video, "Therefore Choose Life," produced by Catholicvote.com. One does not need to be Catholic to recognize that as a group, they are stalwart and uncompromising on the issue of the sanctity of life. I'm Jewish myself, but on this question, it makes no difference. Those of us who agree that all life is precious must unite on this issue, while we respectfully disagree on many others.

If you agree that the taking of an innocent life is murder, then let's lay aside our doctrinal differences long enough to make sure that the pro-life team wins, while the pro-death candidates taste the bitterness of defeat.

Hat tips: Stuart Smith for the National Right to Life chart, and Gerald Vanderleun of American Digest (FWIW, also not a Catholic – but who cares?) for the video.