Due to my heavy speaking schedule as well as my mother-in-law's very poor health, I will not blog here for the next six weeks. As able, I will blog on ProLifeBlogs.com, which is a great pro-life source.

I will continue to send my weekly newsletters with links to my WorldNetDaily.com columns, so please do sign up to receive that.

I will also continue to check and respond to emails sent to jillstanek@comcast.net during this time.

I will return to blogging here on November 7.

Addendum to my previous post...

Hyscience quotes the American Thinker on another point, drawn from a Washington Times piece yesterday that included this:

Given France's egalitarian ideals, the notion of creating perks to attract professional mothers did not go down well with the socialist opposition....

Demographic trends in Muslim and non-Muslim communities are rarely mentioned in public debate. France has the largest Muslim community in Europe, estimated at up to 10 percent of its 60 million population.

"France is facing the problem that dare not speak its name," columnist Barbara Amiel wrote in 2004 for the London Telegraph.

"Though French law prohibits the census from any reference to ethnic background or religion, many demographers estimate that as much as 20 [to] 30 percent of the population under 25 is now Muslim. ...

"Given current birthrates, it is not impossible that in 25 years France will have a Muslim majority. The consequences are dynamic: Is it possible that secular France might become an Islamic state?" Ms. Amiel wrote....

Muslims already living on the continent are having three times as many children as their white, European neighbors," [a 2004] Pew [Research Center] report said.

In a post entitled, "The French are practicing eugenics," the American Thinker wrote:

Unspoken in the policy, though covered in the Washington Times article, is the demographic reality that low income Muslim women in France are having babies at a rate that will make France a predominantly Muslim country in the lifetimes of many of today's children. Tying aid to salary will increasr the incentive for upper income French women to have babies.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports today that France will offer new financial incentives for mothers to have third children. Reports the Sun-Times:

France isn't alone in worrying about the need to encourage births. Across Europe [there is]... a decline in fertility rates that some fear could lead to economic decline.

In the 25-nation European Union, the average fertility rate has sunk below 2.07 children per woman -- the minimum needed to prevent a drop in population without immigration.

"It is a kind of creeping crisis," said Jan Hoem, a director of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Germany, where the fertility rate of around 1.3 is among Europe's lowest....

The family-friendly policies have helped keep France's fertility rate among the highest in Europe -- 1.9 children per woman, second only to Ireland's 2.0 but still below the 2.07 level needed to keep population stable.

The EU average is around 1.5, dropping to less than 1.3 in some countries.

Why aren't headlines screaming about the underpopulation crisis?

Read entire story on page 2.

A Fox News story yesterday reported:

The two vacancies on the Supreme Court have activists on both sides of the abortion debate sounding the death knell of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling overturning state laws that criminalized abortion.

But some legal scholars who support abortion rights say that may not be such a bad thing.

"Roe was terribly reasoned," said Scott Powe, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law. "I think there's some requirement under the Constitution that if you cannot explain a decision and its relationship with legal materials, it's not a valid decision."

Powe, who describes himself as "100 percent pro-choice," is far from alone in his criticism of Roe. Associate Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas have made no secret of their revulsion toward the decision on legal grounds.

Even some who believe abortion should be legal are uncomfortable with the arguments in Roe.

Jack Balkin, a professor at Yale Law School, asked some of the nation's foremost constitutional law scholars to imagine how they might have written Roe. The results are compiled in "What Roe v. Wade Should Have Said: America's Top Legal Experts Rewrite America's Most Controversial Decision."

"Rights are most secure when they are supported by legislative enactment," Balkin told FOXNews.com.

The right to abortion would have been better settled if it had been articulated through congressional channels, Balkin said....

Read entire story on page 2.

Not only pro-life and pro-fiscally responsible government groups are raising red flags about CA's $3 billion ($6 billion with interest) stem cell initiative.

Read Capitol Weekly News' September 15 piece, "Stem cell research: cutting-edge science or corporate subsidies, courtesy of voters?" (reprinted on page 2).

Also read a very strong editorial in the September 18 Sacramento Bee entitled, "Editorial: Stem cell oversight board is flying blind" (also reprinted on page 2).

Also read what finally got the attention of California Democrat legislators: "Panel wants state to waive stem cell product royalties," published in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Abortion marketers have successfully persuaded many Americans who would normally believe otherwise to call themselves "pro-choice" because of their concern about rape and incest victims.

Although the number of mothers aborting for rape/incest is no more than 1% according to the research arm of Planned Parenthood, Alan Guttmacher, (13,000 of 1.3 million annually), pro-aborts hold this reason in front of all abortions to stop reasonable people in their tracks from condemning any other abortions, most of which are committed for convenience.

The successful marketing technique is currently being used in California to change public opinion on Proposition 73, that would mandate parents be notified before their minor daughters abort.

As quoted from yesterday's Sacramento Bee (complete article on page 2):

But opponents of the measure told the committee that the initiative could further endanger young girls who are victims of sexual abuse or family violence.

Although Proposition 73 would allow minors to petition a judge to bar a parent or guardian from being notified of their plans to seek an abortion, opponents say the requirement would traumatize already confused and frightened girls.

"I believe it would create profound obstacles to public health," said Dr. Norma Jo Waxman, a family and reproductive health physician at San Francisco General Hospital.

"This initiative will cause frightened young women to delay seeking health care."

Pro-lifers must work harder to educate about the rape/incest rationale.

Tuesday I kicked off my autumn speaking schedule at the annual fundraising banquet for the New Life Pregnancy Center in Decatur, IL, with over 500 people attending.

A reporter from the Decatur Herald & Review covered the event (reprinted on page 2).

Some pro-lifers are afraid to speak with the press. My experience is that reporters, particularly young ones, are not biased on our issue, just perhaps untaught. They really want to cover our issue fairly.

Some pro-lifers also obsess about being misquoted. But it is our responsibility to confine our words into soundbites and not ramble, and to keep repeating the message we want printed.

A September 13 New York Times article set the stage.

March of the Penguins is now the second highest grossing documentary of all time, thanks in large part to its popularity among conservatives.

This intrigued the NYT, I'm sure in no small measure because the highest grossing documentary is Farenheit 911, made so by liberals.

The NYT verged on mocking conservatives for making cultural analogies to the instinctive family routines of penguins, but not quite.

Leave that to tailgating secularist columnists, who can't stand the thought of Christians seeing Intelligent Design and lessons for humans in nature, if the lessons have anything to do with Biblical morality.

Neither can they stand the possbility of us bumping their inventive documentary from its top spot.

And so the ridicule has begun, using in part my column on the movie as fodder.

In "'Penguins' movie dubbed pro-life, other flights of fancy," John MacDonald writes in the Arizona Republic (see page 2 to read entire piece here):

[S]eeing the movie as supporting one side of the abortion debate is an even bigger reach. Jill Stanek, a commentator for WorldNetDaily with far too much time to think, wrote after seeing the movie, "I juxtaposed the willingness of penguins to freeze and starve to death for their babies to the unwillingness of humans to forfeit any indulgence whatsoever for their babies."

Penguins aren't "willing." Penguins are penguins. What's next? A pro-life review of Dumbo?

It's a movie. It's a beautiful movie about God's creatures surviving even when it seems they shouldn't. Just watch, keep quiet and pass the popcorn.

Lenore Skenazy writes, in her New York Daily News piece entitled, "GOP's fowl language is lost on me" (also reprinted in full on page 2):

This documentary is not only the blockbuster of the summer, it has become something bigger - "The Passion of the Iced." Through a quirk of nature stranger than the penguins' own ability to knock flippers at 70 degrees below zero, American conservatives are embracing this sex-drenched film as the epitome of everything they hold dear.

And not just because its waddling stars remind them fondly of Rush Limbaugh....

"Almost every scene," opined anti-abortion activist Jill Stanek, "verified the beauty of life and the rightness of protecting it."

(A movie showing penguins "ripping babies apart," she added, would illustrate the pro-choice side.)

Indeed. Love that she mentioned that.

I imagine MacDonald and Skenazy must have grown up hating Aesop's Fables.

On the other hand, it's interesting that the basis for secular humanism is the theory of evolution. Isn't that based entirely on Darwin's observation that apes and humans have similar characteristics?

My, how some of us have evolved.

Many will be surprised that infamously pro-abortion U.S. Senator Dick Durbin was once a warm-blooded pro-lifer. My column today tracks the demise of one of many political figures who sold their soul to get ahead in the Democrat Party, with an interesting paper trail called the Durbin Abortion Papers provided by National Right to Life.

My column today on WND.com, "Throwing babies out with the floodwater," begins:

The good news is that Hurricane Katrina destroyed five of nine Louisiana abortion mills, although their displaced vermin were scurrying around shelters within 72 hours handing out free morning-after pills and abortions. Here, have a little more death and destruction – no charge!

I go on to wonder what looters might have spotted floating in abandoned mills, and to discuss the plight of pregnancy resource centers.

Read this week's column on WorldNetDaily.com.

In preparation for the rhetoric we've heard and will hear re: President Bush's nomination of John Roberts (or any nomination he would make), please get your Crying Wolf bingo cards ready! This comes courtesy of Senator John Cornyn.

See page 2 for a sample of the Groundhog's Day shenanigans, also courtesy of Cornyn:

Factoids on Judge John Roberts' hearing length and amount of questioning

Judge John Roberts testified for approximately 22 hours before the Senate Judiciary Committee, 10 hours longer than William Rehnquist when he became Chief Justice, 5 hours longer than Ruth Bader Ginsburg , and 4 hours longer than Stephen Breyer.

William Rehnquist:

"In nearly 12 hours of answering Senate Judiciary Committee questions, a confident Rehnquist was praised by Republicans while he parried aggressive questioning from Democrats about his public and private life." (Richard Carelli, "Despite Democratic Questions, Rehnquist's Confirmation Prospects Look Strong," The Associated Press, 8/1/86)

Ruth Bader Ginsburg:

Ruth Bader Ginsburg testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee for approximately 17 hours. (C-SPAN Store Videos Of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Hearing, www.c-spanstore.org, Accessed 9/15/05)

Stephen Breyer:

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS): "Just for reference because people like statistics and records, Judge [Stephen] Breyer was 18 hours and he was through.” (C-SPAN 3’s "Judge Roberts Confirmation Hearings," 9/14/05, 6 p.m.)

John Roberts:

John Roberts testified for approximately 22 hours before the Senate Judiciary Committee. (Committee On The Judiciary, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 9/13-9/15/05)

Judge Roberts has answered many more questions than Justice Ginsburg:

Throughout her Supreme Court nomination hearings, Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg only answered 216 questions. (Transcript Of hearings on the nomination of Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 7/20/93 – 7/22/93)

Throughout his Supreme Court nomination hearings, Judge John G. Roberts answered at least 510 questions. (Transcript Of Fourth Day Of Hearings on the Nomination of Judge John Roberts, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 9/15/05)

Gotta read this column, in today's New York Times. Hysterical!

The column is posted on page 2 if you can't get the NYT online.

Yesterday's New York Times included an article entitled, "March of the Conservatives: Penguin Film as Political Fodder." I am reprinting it on page 2 in case you can't open NYT online.

March of the Penguins is now the second highest grossing documentary ever, behind Farenheit 911.

The first paragraph of the piece stated:

On the conservative Web site WorldNetDaily.com, an opponent of abortion wrote that the movie "verified the beauty of life and the rightness of protecting it."

The unnamed "opponent of abortion" would be me.

Manuel Miranda is former counsel to GOP Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and founder and chairman of the Third Branch Conference, a coalition of grassroots organizations following judicial issues. He writes a thrice-weekly column in the Wall Street Journal. He has three observations on yesterday's US Senate hearings on the confirmation of John Roberts to the Supreme Court. Read them on page 2.

Also, Roberts is a Catholic. Following are transcripts of overt anti-Catholic questions by Senators Specter and Feinstein yesterday with Roberts' responses:

RELEVANT ROBERTS HEARINGS TRANSCRIPTS 9/13/05

SEN. SPECTER: And let me digress from Roe for just a moment because i think this touches on an issue with ought to be settled. When you talk about your personal views, and as they may relate to your own faith, would you say that your views are the same as those expressed by john kennedy when he was a candidate, and he spoke to the greater houston ministerial association on september of 1960, quote, i do not speak for my church on public matters, and the church does not speak for me, closed quote?

ROBERTS: I agree with that, senator, yes.

SPECTER: And did you have that in mind when you said there is nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and faithfully applying the precedent as well as Casey.

ROBERTS: Well, i think people's personal views on this issue derive from a number of sources. And there is nothing in my personal views based on faith or other sources that would prevent me from a fly -- applying the precedent of the court faithfully under principleses of starry decisus.
_______________________________________________________

FEINSTEIN: In 1960, there was much debate about President John F. Kennedy's faith and what role Catholicism would play in his administration. At that time, he pledged to address the issues of conscience out of a focus on the national interests, not out of adherence to the dictates of one's religion. And he even said, I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute. My question is: Do you?

ROBERTS: Senator, I think the reason we have the two clauses in the Constitution in the First Amendment reflects the framers' experience. Many of them or their immediate ancestors were fleeing religious persecution. They were fleeing established churches. And it makes perfect sense to put those two provisions together: no establishment of religion and guaranteeing free exercise. That reflected the framers' experience.

FEINSTEIN: You can't answer my question yes or no?

ROBERTS: Well, I don't know what you mean by absolute separation of church and state. For example, recently in the Ten Commandments case, the court upheld a monument on the Texas Capitol grounds that had the Ten Commandments in it. They struck down the posting of the Ten Commandments in a Kentucky courthouse. Is it correct to call the monument on the Texas Capitol grounds with the Ten Commandments, is that an absolute separation or is that an accommodation of a particular monument along with others that five of the justices found was consistent with the First Amendment?

So I don't know what that means when you say absolute separation. I do know this: that my faith and my religious beliefs do not play a role in judging. When it comes to judging, I look to the law books and always have. I don't look to the Bible or any other religious source.

To the left is a photo of the Slidell, LA, pregnancy resource center, sent to me by Cindy Collins, its executive director. She writes:

Our CPC has been serving the Slidell and surrounding area for 20 years. We averaged between 100 to 160 clients per month... over 20,000 since 1986... over 8500 babies born.

Slidell is a suburb of New Orleans that sits on 3 interstates - and Lake Pontchartrain.

Many of our volunteer staff has also been displaced. Their work throughout the years has been a sacrifice of love. Please let your email list know that it is not only the CPC facilities and services that have been effected, it is also the staff and volunteers, many who have supported the work of the CPCs over the years. Homes and businesses where washed away and family members displaced.

Cindy asks for our prayers and thanks us for our help.

Speaking of thanks, I'd like to thank Jerry for volunteering to go with the semi truck today to Louisiana.

Many of you have also written to help. As the hurricane dust begins to settle, following are the pregnancy resource center immediate volunteer needs in the Baton Rouge prc disaster relief organizational center.

If possible, please plan to stay for at least two weeks, although one week is ok. Volunteers will be needed to fill these posts for at least the next couple of months:

~ Disaster relief receptionist to field emails, calls
~ Webmaster, proficient in Flash, to keep up with website/Internet needs and problems
~ Disaster relief prc volunteers coordinator
~ Disaster relief clerical/secretarial help
~ Disaster relief warehouse distribution/inventory administrator

All the aforementioned positions require good organizational skills, particularly since you will be creating something from nothing. Please email me if interested, along with your available dates. Volunteers for these positions are needed beginning NOW.

Also, housing in Baton Rouge is needed for these volunteers. Please email me if you can provide a room.

Thanks very much.

As for physical giving needs...

The focus today is shifting toward giving destroyed prcs the tools to begin again. Latest needs are:

~ Pregnancy tests
~ Brochures, particularly multicultural
~ Urine cups with covers
~ 8-1/2 x 11 white paper
~ Clipboards
~ Office supplies

Ship these to:

Caring Pregnancy Center
3813 N. Flannery Rd.
Baton Rouge, LA 70814

Financial giving...

I'm told that the paypal link on www.ctlm.org is giving some people trouble. Keep trying, or send checks to:

Caring Pregnancy Center
3813 N. Flannery Rd.
Baton Rouge, LA 70814

Donations are tax deductible. In notation section of check mark where you would like your contribution to help either "mobile medical units," or "rebuilding prcs."

A News.telegraph.com article reports on a Spanish abortion mill offering financial kickbacks to late-term pregnant mothers to circumvent UK abortion laws and come to Spain to terminate. The mill is also offering financial incentives to pregnancy help lines for referrals. States the article:

The law in Spain states that pregnancies over 22 weeks can only be terminated if the mother's mental or physical health is at "serious risk". Dr. Leonardo Llorente, who is one of the abortionists working at Mediterrània Mèdica, told an undercover reporter that despite the stipulations of Spanish abortion law his clinic would never refuse a six-month pregnant woman a termination since "probably all women wanting to get an abortion at this stage will be psychologically affected."

He added: "Always it can be proved that the patient at this moment had serious mental problems even though later on the patients can be completely normal." Asked whether this meant that the woman could be given an abortion "whatever the situation," he answered: "Definitely."...

When asked if the foetuses had to be abnormal for the clinic to terminate them, he said "not necessarily" before going on to explain how they interpreted the law on "serious risk to a mother's mental health." Anyone who was motivated to ask for a late abortion in the first place must be distressed enough to qualify, he said.

Sound familiar? This is pretty much the definition of "health" the US Supreme Court determined to condone late-term abortions, i.e., abortion throughout all 40 weeks of pregnancy on demand.

I'll be on Wiley Drake's radio show at 11a CST today to discuss the needs of hurricane-devastated pregnancy resource centers. The show can be listened to live via the Internet at www.crusaderadio.com.

Thanks very much to Catholic Exchange for posting information on the financial plight of hurricane-devastated pregnancy resource centers. CE asked me to write an article, which is posted as its top story today.

Please donate at www.ctlm.org.

Update on FINANCIAL status of LA/MS pregnancy resource centers

Help! Pro-lifers must come to the aid of the pregnancy resource centers in Mississippi and Louisiana.

Donations are going everywhere – except prcs!

I spoke with Dorothy Wallis of the Caring to Love prc in Baton Rouge this morning, and she reported having only received $5,000 in online donations since setting up an online hurricane prc relief fund.

This is frankly abysmal, it pains me deeply to say. These prcs need
hundreds of thousands of dollars not only to rebuild but also to serve an extremely abortion vulnerable population in the coming weeks.

The sicko pro-aborts are giving away morning after pills and free abortions.

Have you donated to their pro-life counterparts - the devastated hurricane area pregnancy resource centers?

Update on VOLUNTEER status of LA/MS pregnancy resource centers

Many of you have written to volunteer, which is great.

I have further information:

~ Volunteers are needed in Shreveport to help sift through the volumes of donations pouring in. Summer Grove Baptist Church purchased an empty mall last year for their congregation, and their unused space has become Shreveport's disaster relief goods destination. Call Karen at 318-349-9566, and she will work with you to provide housing if you can come for a week or two or longer. They need help sorting. Karen is also the nurse liaison to the local Shreveport prc and may be able to plug you in there as well.

~ Medical professionals and male protectors wishing to work on the prc medical mobile units in Baton Rouge will need to hang loose until late next week, which is the earliest they will be able to put together a time table for going into the devastated area.

~ No one still has heard from the Morning Star Pregnancy Care Center in Gulfport, MS, but now the police have been contacted by the local Catholic diocese to check on it. Pregnancy Resources of Mississippi in Ocean Springs lost half its roof, but it is a rental facility, and the landlord will repair it.

Update on PHYSICAL DONATIONS status of LA/MS pregnancy resource centers

I am told that LA and MS have been inundated with donations like adult clothes and housewares. The churches are "swollen" with items, according to Dorothy.

If your church or group really wants to help hurricane victims at this point, please focus on baby items.

Email me, and I will give you names of prcs that need these items. In order of urgency, the needs are:

• Formula (dry, concentrated, ready to use, anything)


• Diapers, especially newborn


• Car seats


• Pedialyte


• Bassinets


• Baby wipes

Other needs are disposable baby bottles, baby wash, and baby shampoo.

Parkview Christian Church, located at 11100 Orland Parkway, Orland Park, IL, is by the grace of God filling a semi truck trailer this weekend with the aforementioned to go directly to two LA prcs Monday or Tuesday. Please take items there through Sunday evening.

Also, donations are being collected in Springfield, IL. Email me if you want contact information. The semi is stopping to pick up those collections on its way.

Read a list by Manuel Miranda of conservative-approved Supreme Court nominees in today's Wall Street Journal.

Dear Pro-lifers,

Louisiana and Mississippi pregnancy resource centers are in desperate need of our help. Four New Orleans area pregnancy resource centers were destroyed by Katrina, and it is unclear how incapacitated the Mississippi PRCs are, because no one has been able to get through to any of their directors.

That's the bad news. The good news is that five of eight Louisiana abortion clinics were also destroyed.

The PRCs in Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and other outer Louisiana areas have been inundated by families needing diapers and formula. Area hospitals are also asking the centers to recover post-partum patients.

The formula companies say they have sent huge shipments to the area, but they're not getting to the PRCs.

I spoke with three PRC directors in Louisiana yesterday, and they gave me a list of their greatest needs. We are going to collect donations in the Chicago area over the weekend at Parkview Christian Church (11100 Orland Parkway, Orland Park, Illinois 60467), and a semi is going to deliver them to Louisiana on Monday (September 12).

Here are the needs, in order of urgency:

1. Formula: Advanced Similac with iron; Enfamil with iron; any other formulas - dry, condensed, or ready to serve

2. Diapers, especially newborn

3. Infant car seats

4. Pedialyte

5. Bassinets

6. Baby wipes

More than that, the PRCs desperately need money. They need to finance mobile medical units to go into the devastated areas as they are accessible. A director told me that there is lots of giving going on to churches and relief agencies, but the PRCs are being overlooked.

Donate directly online to: www.ctlm.org. These funds will go to finance mobile medical units and restore pregnancy care centers.

We also need money to pay for the semi truck gas. (The truck and driver's time are being donated.) Donations for gas can be made to Concerned Women for America of IL, P. O. Box 188, Palos Heights, IL 60463.

There is also a need for volunteers to go to Louisiana and stay for a week or two or longer, particularly men for protection. A nurse at the Shreveport PRC says she will help find housing.

Dorothy Wallis, director of Caring to Love Ministries in Baton Rouge, told me that Planned Parenthood was on the ground within 72 hours, handing out morning-after-pills at the shelters.

The only things standing in the way of spreading God's truth and love to these abortion-vulnerable familes are money and hands. Please help.

Thank you very much,

Jill Stanek

As reported by Australia's ABC Online last night:

Britain's famous science broadcaster and expert on reproductive technology, Lord [Robert] Winston, [Professor of Fertility Studies at Imperial College, London and science broadcaster for his BBC television programs], says the potential benefits of embryonic stem cell research are being hyped.

He says scientists have been talking up their work, and the possibility of curing diseases in the near future, to push through more flexible laws on embryonic stem cell research....

Lord Winston says there are many problems with embryonic stem cell research and believes part of the reason the work may be hyped by scientists is so they can convince politicians to introduce less restrictive laws in order to source more embryos for their research....

And there are scientific problems associated with embryonic stem cell research aside from the ethical question of having to sacrifice embryos, as Professor [Peter] Rathjen, [Executive Dean of the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Adelaide], explains.

"They're to do with things like the fact that we have to learn how to grow lots and lots of the cells, probably billions of the cells.

"Once we've learnt how to grow them, we've then got to learn how to control their differentiation, that is, how do we turn the stem cells into the kind of cell that we want to transplant.

"And there's another very important limitation there, which is that the embryonic stem cells themselves are carcinogenic. That is, if you transplant them, you give rise to a particular kind of cancer.

"And then the final thing, and this is probably the greatest single hurdle, we need to find a way to overcome the immuno-rejection barrier, that is if you transplant cells into someone's body, then most of the time they're going to reject those cells as foreign...."

From today's News@nature.com:

Embryonic stem cells that are cultured in the lab accumulate an alarming array of genetic changes, including mutations known to be linked to cancer. The finding throws into question whether such cells could eventually be used for therapy, unless they can be kept fresh and checked for mutations before use....

In January, researchers announced that most human embryonic stem-cell lines... have been contaminated by animal cells used as a growth medium in lab dishes. Any cell containing such foreign proteins would presumably trigger a damaging immune response if transplanted into a human patient. Researchers realized they would have to grow their cells differently in order to use them for therapy.

Now another difficulty has come to light. The longer the cells are kept, and the more they divide, the more errors they build up in their genetic code. "These mutations we are finding are a much bigger problem," says Aravinda Chakravarti of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.

Chakravarti and his colleagues decided to take a closer look.... Out of nine cell lines, eight developed one or more genetic changes commonly observed in human cancers, the team reports in Nature Genetics.

The finding undermines a general assumption that stem cells remain unblemished until they are programmed to become a certain type of cell. "This is not good news. It suggests that the biological properties of the cells before and after replicating could be different," says Chakravarti....

This was an email alert sent by Tom Glessner, President of NIFLA, this morning:

From: NIFLAMbrSvcs@aol.com Sent: Friday, September 02, 2005 8:40 AM To: NIFLAMember@aol.com Subject: NIFLA: URGENT PLEA!

Dear NIFLA Member,

I am writing to you to ask for your immediate help for our sister pregnancy centers that have been devastated by the recent hurricane that engulfed Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabamba.

Dorothy Wallis, NIFLA board member and pregnancy center director in Baton Rouge has reported of the devastation. Baton Rouge has become a refuge camp and Dorothy's pregnancy center is now a distribution center for the many needy. She writes the following plea to me:

Tom,

This is beyond belief! I have never seen anything like this in my life. Military helicopters flying by constantly (like the old MASH incoming wounded copters), destitute people stopped by the interstate, no food, no home and many have lost loved ones who failed to heed the warning to comply with a mandatory evacuation. All I can say is Help!!!! We need help.

They are calling New Orleans a "Black Hole." Since five Pregnancy Resources Centers in the Greater New Orleans and Slidell areas have become virtual black holes, and all of St. Tammany Parish is closed, Pregnancy Resource Centers in those areas are no longer available to meet the needs of their abortion vulnerable population who have evacuated to greater Baton Rouge. The cell phones are dead or either jammed. I have desperately been trying to call my fellow directors to make sure that they are okay.

I have heard from Kay, the director in New Orleans who fled to Houston. Her three clinics are under water. The La Place center has water damage and I still have not been able to reach Emily. In New Orleans, Susan nor her staff can be reached.

I have connected with Browne's daughter and she said that they are awaiting news on how bad their damage is.

As for Covington and Slidell, I have been trying to call Cindy and Rachel via cells since Monday to no avail.

As for Tangipahoa, there is certain wind, tree and flood damage that could prevent any assistance in these areas for at least eight weeks.

New Orleans refugees are being told that the city is completely submerged, and the earliest they will be allowed back in the city is three months. Even then, their will be no home or sentimental possessions to return to. Tom, I will keep you abreast when I hear from everyone.

Ona side note, please pray for me. In our local maternity wards mothers are delivering in the hall ways. The hospitals are sending their post delivery patients to us for care. The American Red Cross sent 8 families today. The Crisis Pregnancy Centers of Baton Rouge are now responsible for meeting the needs of refugee women and children.

Caring to Love Ministries and the Care Pregnancy Clinic is quickly supplying the demands of many of the families seeking the much needed assistance. But we cannot do it without your help! I am grateful to Michelle Sigler who called me today from New Beginnings CPC in West Virginia. She is in the process of sending 2 empty semi's with diapers, formulas, wipes and water to us. Thank God for her!

I felt the need to ask you and NIFLA for help! I have set up a special Hurricane Relief Fund for on line donations via paypal at www.ctlm.org.

In addition to the Hurricane crisis, in six weeks many will be experiencing a crisis pregnancy and we need to be there for them. The abortion clinics prey on the young girls that are vulnerable in crisis situations. New Orleans had 5 Abortion clinics, with us having one and a half. We need to make our presence known to a dislocated population in excess of 1 million. Again, please pray for me as we rise to the occasion. Help!

Again, donations for the Hurricane Relief Fund are setup through our website at www.ctlm.org. Donated funds can be paid via paypal. Our physical address is 3813 N. Flannery Rd., Baton Rouge, LA 70814.

Thank you,

Dorothy Wallis
President CEO
Caring to Love Ministries
dwallis@ctlm.org
225-275-4961

Side note: The paypal site is experiencing a lot of problems right now because the phone lines are down in most of the area. They are working with paypal and encouraging us to continue trying. You can also mail a check to the physical address or give it to me to mail in the package.

An op ed writer in yesterday's TimesHerald.com justified the need to continue aborting due to the fiscal drain these children would otherwise cause us. They would be financial burdens to our taxes, insurance, and foster care system, so the writer postulates.

She does spin one point I say great to:

If legally-recognized "life" begins at conception, there will be serious economic ramifications. Currently, dependent exemptions on taxes are only permitted for children that are alive outside the womb. But if life starts at conception, so too should "dependent" status.

However, she glaringly overlooks our dried-up Social Security system, precisely so because the payers have been killed by abortion.

She also overlooks the growing crisis of young medical workers to care for the old, fat-cat pro-aborts. Etc., etc., etc.

Dr. Allan Carlson of the Howard Center estimated last year that the cumulative lost income of 45 million aborted children is nearly $4 trillion. He estimated the lost net Social Security income will be $118 billion in 2010. See page 2 to access his paper, including endnotes.

In response to my ProLifeBlogs.com post on the Miami Herald editorial blasting the FDA's decision not to approve over-the-counter status of the morning after pill (and there are now many more likewise MSM editorials), I was asked this in the comments section:

A hypothetical question: if there were a MAP as safe as, say, aspirin, should the FDA approve it?

I expect by "safe" the reader means physically safe to use. Even if the MAP were found to be so, the FDA should still not approve it.

The FDA's mission is to "promote and protect the public health" when approving food and drugs for consumption.

Over-the-counter MAPs would be harmful to the public health, particularly young rape and incest victims, whose perpetrators would be more greatly enabled and emboldened to commit their crimes courtesy of the MAP.

Additionally, OTC MAPs would be convenient for men in general to abuse. See the fascinating article, "Morning after blues," on the aftermath of MAP legality in Taiwan.

The potential for abuse must also be taken into consideration. All drugs do have that potential, but the FDA is charged with determining which are the worst possible offenders. That is why codeine isn't available over-the-counter, for instance.

In that regard, there is great risk for MAP abuse, to be used as a primary form of birth control. Again, we are talking about megadoses of female hormones - one, two, three times a month? That is assuredly going to happen, particularly with irresponsible youth.

Speaking of, having MAPs available will lessen the perceived need for condoms, and it is also a fact that STDs skyrocket in countries with MAPs available OTC.

Gotcha again. Last February, Kansans for Life uncovered an abuse of medical privacy on the website of late-term Wichita abortionist George Tiller.

Kansans for Life distributed a press release yesterday outting Planned Parenthood of Kansas/Mid-Missouri for the same thing:

Planned Parenthood of Kansas/Mid-Missouriand Wichita late-term abortionist George Tiller are contesting whether certain abortion records must be produced for judicial review, as requested by Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline. Oral arguments are scheduled for Sept.8 at the Kansas Supreme Court.

PPKM claims that they are the safe-keepers of medical information from an "inquisition" by the Kansas Attorney General. Yet PPKM has also decided that they are free to use patient records for their own private fundraising needs. In a reversal of common sense, PPKM contends that privileged medical records are safe in the hands of transitory marketing staff but not in the custody of sworn officers of the court.

See for yourself.

This certainly weakens PP's claim that abortion records are "about a covenant between a doctor and his/her patient... a covenant of confidentiality that all citizens expect and deserve. We will do everything we can to protect the medical privacy of women, including those who seek abortion care."

They'll do everything they can unless they see a way to make money from a breach of privacy. Perhaps AG Kline should offer to pay PP for its fundraising list, I mean, "covenant[s] of confidentiality."

Hat tip: Reader Kathy.

Yesterday's Miami Herald included a scorching editorial against the FDA's decision to delay approval of the morning-after pill for over-the-counter sales. Read my guest blog on ProLifeBlogs.com.

We enter into the world of celebrity blogging for this encouraging tidbit, from Jossip:

While Lindsay Lohan tries to form a friendship with Hilary Duff, we have some newsies on their upcoming film together, Bad Girls.

MTV is still lagging in its search for a director while Nip/Tuck's Sean McNamara is a no-go. But on to more interesting news.

Producers are still rolling ahead with negotiations with the girls, despite what their reps might tell you. Hilary's camp is in a huff over mentions of drugs and abortion in Alex McAuley's book that the film is based on, which means MTV is busy stripping the script of any references.

Wacotrib.com reports:

Doctors who perform illegal abortions in Texas could be prosecuted for capital murder and face a death sentence under recent changes in Texas law that have resulted in apparent unintended consequences....

[A] bill signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry in June at a Fort Worth church school... requires parental consent before minors can have abortions and places additional restrictions on late-term abortions.

In relation to those changes... the Legislature two years ago altered the definition of an individual in homicide statutes from “a human being who has been born and is alive” to “a human being who is alive, including an unborn child at every stage of gestation, from fertilization until birth.”

There was debate when the definition of individual was changed about whether the effect would make abortion the equivalent of murder. So lawmakers took particular care to write into the homicide statute that a lawful medical procedure performed with consent by a physician or other licensed health-care provider, if the death of the unborn child was the intended result, is an abortion. That provided a lawful defense or exception to homicide laws.

Continuing to connect the statutory dots, however, [Lindsey] Roberts, [director of training for the Texas District and County Attorneys Association], told local prosecutors that there is no such defense provided for a doctor who performs an unlawful medical procedure, such as an abortion on a minor without parental consent.

So, in effect, the doctor would have killed a child younger than 6 in an illegal abortion and thereby subjected himself or herself to potential prosecution for capital murder, Roberts told the dumbfounded audience....

Hat tip: Reader Andrew