Notre Dame update 5/18, 7:45a: Photo reflections
Click all photos to enlarge.
IMO, this was my best, most clarifying shot of the day…
These good people just showed up at the protest staging area to give away thousands of t-shirts…
Here are a few more photos of the “Notre Dame 15,” as I now jokingly call them, who were arrested for “breaching a secure area,” according to news reports. They got up close and personal to the Joyce Center, where the commencement was held. I came along to document.
Protesters chose a good spot, by which many grad families had to pass…
Then they decided to move closer to the families waiting in line to enter the Joyce Center…
And almost accomplished their goal before being arrested…
… including Sr. Lois Marie Metoraj (this photo courtesy of Leslie Hanks)…
Here is a good shot by Center for Bio-Ethical Reform’s Paul Troiani that encapsulates the activity at ND’s entrance. You see the Truth Truck, the protesters and signs at 3 of the 4 corners, and Alan Keyes at the center of media attention in the middle of the photo. All that is missing is the “abortion plane” flying in the distance…
And finally, dear Joe Scheidler of Pro-Life Action League…
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
Jill – God bless all you do! We were there yesterday with Joe Scheidler’s group. My husband held an “8 week fetus” sign and all three of my boys (11, 9, 6) and myself held up protest signs too. Then we went to the Grotto for the best commencement ceremony I have ever seen! God bless the protesting seniors, who were beacons of light to their families, friends, and supporters, as well as their not-so-brave classmates. White roses will have so much more meaning now.
Awesome! Great work!
Your circus/publicity stunt was an epic fail, but at least you got to mug for your own cameras.
How could anyone want this on demand? I really am failing to understand: how could anyone be so full of hatred? How could anyone truly have that much superiority about himself or herself? What happened to supporting love, acceptance, pacifism, and diplomacy as both an ends and as a means? I can’t help feeling saddened when seeing blatant bigotry like that, as I’m sure that no one here is any different.
For as long as signs such as that are socially acceptable, then we have work to do. Children’s rights are suffering…terribly.
Holy crap Jasper, you were right about your quote of the day being shocking. I wondered what they were chanting… Satan and all his minions were fully present during that commencement. That is beyond shocking.
Re Jasper’s QOTD: “Yes we can” kill our unborn children on demand? Is that how they meant to finish the sentence?
Bobby, I agree–beyond shocking.
Vannah
You have to remember that there are those who are obsessed with sex that doesn’t result in the creation of a new life (which has ALWAYS been the INTENDED end result of sexual intimacy). Its all due to PP and the sexual revolution. That’s why there are those who scoff at families with more than two or three children.
I LOVE JOE!!!!! Just had to say that! The man is a true HERO!!!!!!! (and a class act)
a
How could they say this at a graduation of all places? Where life is supposed to be celebrated for its meaning and its purpose and the good of humankind is supposed to shine through…they’re out there protesting against human rights.
Maybe sometimes I ask that question too often, but why do some of us matter less? Why do some people have to be dehumanized and determined as property of others? It’s not right.
Your circus/publicity stunt was an epic fail, but at least you got to mug for your own cameras.
Posted by: Bystander at May 18, 2009 8:32 AM
Yet you seem so preoccupied with this epic fail. You’ve been commenting about it multiple times a day. You sure have a lot to say about something you find so ineffective and pointless.
Re: QOTD
I read that the ND graduates were chanting “We are ND.” Can someone confirm what they were saying?
Kristen,
I got that quote from the Buffalo news, see link below the QOTD, it was from an AP reporter.
here’s an excellent commentary from Ralph McInerny for those Catholics on the blog:
http://www.thecatholicthing.org/content/view/1602/2/
Out of curiosity, I checked out revcom.us. It calls itself “the voice of the Revolutionary Communist Party” and makes use of Dawn Johnson’s pregnancy-as-slavery mantra. (Or does she make use of theirs? Hard to say.) They embody the extreme position of other pro-abortion groups, but with a refreshing honesty; no sugar-coating about how it’s a difficult decision, etc. I doubt they’ll ever rise to prominence, but if they do, it would be to our advantage.
Elsewhere, they decry torture and demand Obama release torture photos. It’s sad that they don’t make the connection between those photos and the graphic images they saw at Notre Dame.
The Revolutionary Community Party and its egomaniac stooge leader Bob Avakian are a running joke amongst activists on the radical political fringe. Almost every RCP individual I’ve ever met was either an aging hippie or a trust fund college kid.
Good job pro-lifers and great work covering the protests, Jill!
If I didn’t know Amanda Marcotte was just getting back from her yuppie vacation to Europe, I’d reckon a guess that Bystander was her.
” yes we can” likely refers to our President’s goal (and commencement) message that by working together, both sides can reduce unintended pregnancy and abortion. These protesters played right into his message that angry rhetoric from either extreme is non-productive.
PL athiest, are you the same PLA from ohio?
the pink sign..Fetuses are not babies. I take it a few pro-deathers were there.
For those Christians (and non-Christians) who were wondering why the Pope didn’t speak out against this, Mark Shea from the blog “Catholic and Enjoying it!” writes the following post http://markshea.blogspot.com/ . He first quotes from a reader who wrote in a question and then addresses it. I think it makes some good sense:
“A reader complains:
As a Protestant seeking reconciliation with the church what happened at ND with the pro Obama chanting and finding out the majority of Catholics voted this evil man in is appalling to me. If the authority of the Pope is the crown jewel of the Catholic church why do so many rebel, even bulwarks like Notre Dame. THis is all making me think twice about such authority. Why didnt the Pope speak out against this(no disrespect intended). He congratulated Barack on winning the Presidency? I hear Mark and other conservative Catholics thinking this is Catholicism when Iam saddened to say it is a very small minority based upon the support of Barack and response to this gross mockery. I liken Baracks honorary degree at a Catholic University to giving a famous arsonist an honorary degree at a Firefighters convention.
You may as well ask why, “If the authority of the Pope is the crown jewel of the Catholic church why were there so many Judaizers after Peter spoke in Acts 15. How on earth does rebellion against the teaching of the Church show that the Church’s teaching is wrong?
You ask why the Pope didn’t speak out against this. Because it’s not the Pope’s job to micromanage Notre Dame University. You complain that he congratulated Barack on winning the Presidency. What do you expect? The man’s the head of state of the most powerful nation on earth. Benedict fulfilled the command to “honor the king” and pay normal respects to civil authority. That doesn’t mean he pronounced a blessing on Obama’s pro-choice policies. Unless you are going to complain that Jesus and Peter were insincere for failing to conduct letter-writing campaigns of advice and rebuke to Pilate or Caligula for their egregious sins against the rights of their countrymen, I don’t see what your point is.
You might as well read 1 and 2 Corinthians and conclude that, since Paul’s flock in Corinth was all screwed up, it’s safe to just ignore Paul’s gospel.”
Heather,
” the pink sign..Fetuses are not babies. I take it a few pro-deathers were there. ”
There is also the giant sign in the background saying “abortion on demand without apology.”
Bobby, thank you.
..yes. i see it now…….
If I didn’t know Amanda Marcotte was just getting back from her yuppie vacation to Europe, I’d reckon a guess that Bystander was her.
Are you stalking Amanda?
Posted by: Jasper at May 18, 2009 9:49 AM
This is the article I saw. Although it does say that the person yelled “You are a baby killer.” So maybe it was at a different point.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20090517/pl_politico/22611;_ylt=AjATdH5DHbN2z0bfWUTKJzUazJV4
In any event both “chants” are just pathetic.
Jasper, Kel(at 8:55), Bobby ………………
the operative word is ‘can’. Obviously, they ‘can’, but the moral word is ‘should’. At times this seems like only restriction …. but I do remember a time: when the winners of the arms race could (theoretically) nuke every square inch of the earth 8oo times; the ‘losers’ (Russians) could only do it 400 times. Just figured both were silly … a human being just dies once. We certainly are not like the cartoon characters who live-over in each episode!
Bobby, thank you for your comments @ 10:54.
Regarding the QOTD, I heard yesterday that before the ceremony, grads were instructed to chant down protestors. The reporter didn’t say whether the students were given suggested phrases to chant. It was all so scripted by ND that nothing would surprise me. Also heard that faculty opposing the PBHO invitation were seated out of view of TV cameras. Can anyone confirm if that’s true?
Don’t thank me- thank Mark Shea!
“In any event both “chants” are just pathetic.”
No they are not. The ND graduates are the pathetic bunch.
I like the “Fetuses are not Babies” sign. Because it certainly is true.
I’d be the one holding a sign next to her that says, “Teenagers are not Babies, Babies are not Fetuses and Fetuses are not Embryos. Yet once, we were all of these.”
Angele, Thanks. I needed that. My black suit was a gift from a very kind nun who thought I needed a new suit and bought me a “priest” suit at a religious goods store. She also bought us a whole set of vestments for our chapel masses. Say a prayer for her: Sister Christine.
yes we can” likely refers to our President’s goal (and commencement) message that by working together, both sides can reduce unintended pregnancy and abortion. These protesters played right into his message that angry rhetoric from either extreme is non-productive.
Posted by: emma at May 18, 2009 10:08 AM
a lot of applause when he spoke of working together to reduce abortion. He is very two faced because in his first 100 days, he sent out moneys to the world to fund abortion and also raised funding here. He puts his money exactly where his heart is.
Pumping dollars into abortion is the opposite of reducing abortion.
I love the monstrance on Joe’s tie :)
I love the monstrance on Joe’s tie :)
Posted by: Fed Up at May 18, 2009 1:46 PM
do ya think he’s got enough pens in his suit pocket!?? lol
*Yawn* The coverage of Obama at Norte Dame is getting old. It’s over and done with so let’s pack it up and move on.
Whoops, that’s “Notre Dame” Boy am I tired…
On many of the pro-abortion signs, I see “revcom.us” which is the official website for Revolution newspaper, the newspaper for the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA.
Obama says that he wants to work to reduce abortions. Can anyone tell me how he has done this so far? By passing the Mexico City Policy? Appointing pro-abortion people like Sebelius to sensitive positions?
If he wants to find “common ground,” he sure has a strange way of showing it.
Obama’s actions completely go against his words. Pay attention to what the man is doing, NOT what he is saying!!
“abortion on demand without apology.” In other words, let us kill our babies up to the moment before birth. That is satanically inspired. He must have been very pleased yesterday.
And Carla I totally agree with you!
Joanne,
Satan is pleased with the covenant of death that is abortion. Satanically inspired, indeed.
Brendan 3:01PM
Obama’s kind of people.
Just a thought on communism: why does anyone still support that? Does no one pay attention to the history books? Anyone?
Capitalism is by no means a flawless ideology, but it is, at the very least, not totalitarianism. I truly do hope that communism goes no further than free speech, but, in all honesty, I wish that they would speak to someone who survived the terrible things that happened during the communist reign over the Soviet Union and its satellite states.
Obama’s actions completely go against his words. Pay attention to what the man is doing, NOT what he is saying!!
Posted by: Carla at May 18, 2009 3:23 PM
——-
Right – Obama is a moral illusionist – you need to stop looking at what he’s telling you to look at because that’s all part of His act – once you see what he’s really up to, it’s no longer magic – just a means for robbing your soul.
Vannah 5:02PM
People continue to idolize Hitler, Stalin, and Mao.
Hollywood hobnobs continue to kiss the backsides of world dictators, as does our president.
Apparently people spend precious little time reading history. Perhaps they need to live under a murderous dictatorship to truly understand.
Posted by: Jasper at May 18, 2009 12:35 PM
True, very true.
Salon had an interesting article about all the other right wing hate groups that made an appearance, Fred “God hates fags” Phelps, the Ku Klux Klan, numerous racist and white supremacist groups, so you were in good company. Did Randall Terry pass out cigars when he lit up? Class.
Out of curiosity, I checked out revcom.us. It calls itself “the voice of the Revolutionary Communist Party” and makes use of Dawn Johnson’s pregnancy-as-slavery mantra. (Or does she make use of theirs? Hard to say.) They embody the extreme position of other pro-abortion groups, but with a refreshing honesty; no sugar-coating about how it’s a difficult decision, etc. I doubt they’ll ever rise to prominence, but if they do, it would be to our advantage.
Elsewhere, they decry torture and demand Obama release torture photos. It’s sad that they don’t make the connection between those photos and the graphic images they saw at Notre Dame.
Posted by: Kelsey at May 18, 2009 9:54 AM
I went to the web site and couldn’t help but notice the big deal they make about torture but are rabidly pro abortion. Doesn’t get much more hypocritical than that.
Anyway I read the pro abortion rant and sent a comment. I will be shocked if it gets published.
Are you stalking Amanda?
Posted by: pro-choice athiest at May 18, 2009 11:47 AM………I doubt anyone would waste their time.
“Just a thought on communism: why does anyone still support that? Does no one pay attention to the history books? Anyone?”
IMHO, communism is all about the taking power of power by a small minority, taking away individual freedoms and removing God from society.
Two quotes from the classic “Animal Farm: by George Orwell:
“All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.”
Squealer consoles the animals, saying, “Do not imagine, comrades, that leadership is a pleasure. On the contrary, it is a deep and heavy responsibility. No one believes more firmly than Comrade Napoleon that all animals are equal. He would be only too happy to let you make your decisions for yourselves. But sometimes you might make the wrong decisions, comrades, and then where should we be?” The classic hypocrisy seen here is too hard to miss.
http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-afquotes.htm
Sound familiar?
Salon had an interesting article about all the other right wing hate groups that made an appearance, Fred “God hates fags” Phelps, the Ku Klux Klan, numerous racist and white supremacist groups, so you were in good company. Did Randall Terry pass out cigars when he lit up? Class.
Posted by: Bystander at May 18, 2009 7:29 PM
As usual, your pro abortion views are indefensible so once again you resort to this. I guess you are calling peaceful pro life people a “right wing hate group”. Well, we do hate abortion that is true.
And I am sure you are going to dodge this question but I will ask anyway.
It’s a proven fact that the sex of the baby, as well as its unique DNA and genes are determined at conception. In addition, the unborn baby has a heartbeat and brainwaves, arms, legs, head, etc often before the woman even knows she is pregnant. Since we know this to be true, and we know the baby has a heartbeat within weeks of conception, how can you say its not ending a life?
I wanted to add of course there is no such thing as a left wing hate group. *sarcasm*
Liberals are trying to force gay marriage and the rest of their left wing agenda on everyone. Look at how Carrie Prejean has been demonized by gay activists and many in the news media who are all in the tank for extreme liberal causes (with the exception of Fox)
Salon had an interesting article about all the other right wing hate groups that made an appearance, Fred “God hates fags” Phelps, the Ku Klux Klan, numerous racist and white supremacist groups, so you were in good company. Did Randall Terry pass out cigars when he lit up? Class.
Posted by: Bystander at May 18, 2009 7:29 PM
Honestly, the whole “I spend tons of time poking people I don’t understand with sticks” act makes you seem blazingly insecure. Do you have any thoughtful and factually based arguments in favor of abortion? If so, I’d be interested to hear them. If not, continue getting your jollies acting anonymously immature while no one takes you seriously.
As you look at the pro-aborts sign saying “A fetus is not a baby” right next to the picture of the head of the decapitated baby’s you want to scream “NO THIS IS NOT A BABY IT IS THE HEAD OF A DEAD BABY, AND WHAT SPECIES OTHER THAN HOMO SAPIENS A HUMAN BEING IS SHOWN IN THIS PICTURE? AND THIS IS WHAT YOU AND OBAMA WANT THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE?”
If my people that are called by my name will humble themselves and pray, seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14
Pro-lifers continue to pray, fast, save babies, help desperate women and men and to protest because God allowed this nation and the “above my pay grade” president that wanted the abortion issue to go away and to be swept under the rug, God allowed abortion to be brought to the forefront. No one would touch this issue during the national campaign, MSM, Obamination backers, Democrats and even the RNC wanted to skirt the issue. Except Sarah Palin when she held her beautiful Down’s Syndrome baby in her arms for the whole world to see and they went ballistic because all of the pro-aborts dirty laundry was shown in public. The Satanic spirit of death was exposed for all the world to see. The “Chosen One” had to address the abortion issue again although he tried to smooze his way through with another campaign speech and bask in the adulation of Obamamania. As horrible as it was that he received a honorary degree by Notre Dame remember God is still on the throne, he is still in control and he will avenge those who spill innocent babies blood. Pray for this man’s conscience to never rest until his eyes are opened and he repents, pray for him to have a “Saul of Tarsus” moment and he fall off of his donkey and for Jesus ask him “Why do you persecute me” and my precious creation?” If he refuses to repent, pray God will take care of him in only the way our just and holy God can.
By the way, did anyone notice how Obama and Fr. Jenkins tried to turn the pro-lifers into the “bad guys?
Dear Moderator I am sorry I was having problems with my computer would you delete the last 2 repeat post of mine.
Liberals are trying to force gay marriage and the rest of their left wing agenda on everyone. Look at how Carrie Prejean has been demonized by gay activists and many in the news media who are all in the tank for extreme liberal causes (with the exception of Fox)
Posted by: Joanne at May 18, 2009 8:36 PM
I agree. I thought it was funny that the liberals have been saying for years that the “majority” of Americans want abortion, yet when the majority voted down gay marriage in California then the majority was wrong. It just makes me laugh.
Bystander 7:29PM
The “right wing hate group” Ku Klux Klan was actually founded as the terrorist arm of the Democrat Party.
Long time Senate Democrat Robert Byrd is a former member and recruiter.
Kelsey 9:54am
They decry torture?? Oh please, since when have communists had any issue with torture?
Are Castro’s prisons resorts?
Were Stalin’s prisons summer camps?
What about the deliberate mass starvation of Ukrainians in the 1930’s engineered by “Uncle Joe” Stalin? Millions died. What tortures did they experience?
Mao was the greatest mass murderer of the 20th century, making Hitler look like a rank amateur.
Old Joe Stalin was no slouch either, killing about 20 million of his own countrymen.
Then there was PolPot who decimated up to a third of the population of his country with forced labor, starvation, and appalling torture.
Posted by: Mary at May 19, 2009 9:24 AM
Silly Mary! Don’t you know about selective memory? None of that matters. ;)
For the pro-aborts like Obama and Pelosi to be against “torture, waterboarding is inhumane and against everything this country stands for” but it is just and right to have a “right to choose” to do what was done to the decapitated baby in the picture at the top of this article. This nation’s leadership is truly sick.