Pro-life news brief 4-3-13
by JivinJ, host of the blog, JivinJehoshaphat
- At National Review, Michael J. New gives his take on why the pro-life movement will continue to struggle against abortion in a sex-saturated culture, and how he believes abortion and same-sex marriage are related.
- Alabama legislators have passed new abortion clinic regulations:
The [Women’s Health and Safety Act] requires abortion clinics to use doctors who have approval to admit patients to hospitals in the same city. Some clinics now use doctors from other cities that don’t have local hospital privileges. A similar law in Mississippi is threatening to close that state’s only abortion clinic, which is challenging the law in court.The bill also sets stricter building requirements, including wider halls and doors and better fire suppression systems. The state Department of Public Health, which regulates Alabama’s five abortion clinics, reports that most will not meet the stricter standards.
- Yesterday at the Kermit Gosnell murder trial, Dr. Karen Feisullin (pictured left) testified regarding Gosnell’s abortion practice, noting that his ultrasound machine was ancient:
Feisullin… [testified] that: There was no medical reason for Gosnell’s practice of cutting and storing the feet from aborted fetuses.Late-term abortions – those close to the 24-week gestational age after which abortion is illegal in Pennsylvania – are rare in her experience and, in those cases, the fetus is injected with potassium chloride to stop the heart before the procedure begins.
Babies are almost never born alive in late-term abortions and, when they are, they are provided “comfort care” until they die. Feisullin said she never heard of any other physician snipping with scissors the spinal cords of babies born alive and viable….
The defense lawyer then walked back to the table and his client, but not before Feisullin asked: “Are we going to talk about how they’re all over 24 weeks?” McMahon told her she was not allowed to ask questions.
A little background on Karen Feisullin – she’s an OB/GYN in the greater Philadelphia area who does two to four second trimester abortions per week and has written a couple of book chapters on contraception with Carolyn Westhoff, a well-known abortionist who was the recipient of an award given out by Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health. Westhoff is also the senior medical adviser for Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
- Operation Rescue has many more details from the Gosnell trial, where crime scene investigator John Taggart (pictured right) also spoke:
Taggart testified that last Friday he returned to the clinic and retrieved one final item which was also in court.It was a large garbage disposal that was under the sink in the wash room that was between the O’Keefe and Monet abortion rooms where jars containing the severed feet sat on a shelf….
- In the New York Post, Michael Benjamin (a former legislator who was pro-choice) demolishes Governor Andrew Cuomo’s claim that the Reproductive Health Act would only codify Roe v. Wade by simply explaining what the bill would do:
For starters, it would ban the prosecution of criminals who cause the death of an almost-born child. This has absolutely nothing to do with Roe or protecting women; so its inclusion is especially odd — if not wrong….Second, the bill removes age restrictions on abortion — removing parents’ ability to decide whether their children under the age of 16 has access to contraceptives and morning-after abortion pills….
Third, the bill would let non-doctors perform abortions and make medical judgments about when a mother’s life might be in danger….
Fourth, the bill removes accountability for doctors who perform an illegal procedure that leads to the death of a woman.
[Taggart photo via philly.com; Feisullin photo via vitals.com]

Sounds like what the Alabama bill is asking for is that abortion clinics hold to the same standards as other medical facilities. Since they claim to be part of the medical industry, and to be health care facilities, they should be able to offer the same opportunities for health as any health care facility.
Can there be any other reason for the abortion industry to be against this bill than because it will cost them too much to comply and will also cost them abortion money, possibly even closing them down?
And if it’s all about the money, and if they don’t want to have the same health care standards as other health care facilities, what does this say about how much (or how little) they really care about women’s health. Which is what I thought the abortion industry was supposedly all about.
Alabama legislators have passed new abortion clinic regulations:
The [Women’s Health and Safety Act] requires abortion clinics to use doctors who have approval to admit patients to hospitals in the same city. Some clinics now use doctors from other cities that don’t have local hospital privileges. A similar law inMississippi is threatening to close that state’s only abortion clinic, which is challenging the law in court.
The bill also sets stricter building requirements, including wider halls and doors and better fire suppression systems. The state Department of Public Health, which regulates Alabama’s five abortion clinics, reports that most will not meet the stricter standards.
(Denise) Lack of oversight let Kermit Gosnell get away with what he did for many years. It is possible many abortionists don’t want normal regulations because abortion attracts bottom-of-the-barrel medical personnel who know they can’t adhere to high standards of medical treatment.
As far as Kermit and the fetal feet: I’m a true crime writer. This shows he has the mentality of a serial murderer, many of whom keep souvenirs of their murders.
Public Health and School Health education is flawed. It needs to be approached differently than that of the Planned Parenthood modal. If it was addressed as valuing human life,it might help. Men have been grossly misinformed. Ignorance is bliss? That approach needs to end.
I think Denise is doin’ it wrong.
ENOUGH DENISE NOE!!
I deleted all of your comments. You are crossing the line. Totally inappropriate.
DeniseNoe says: The act that leads to pregnancy should not be the “typical sex act.” Sexual emancipation of the female… should be linked to re-defining the very nature of sexuality so that this sex act, while it will not disappear…will radically decrease.
N.O. The “very nature of sexuality” cannot be re-defined, even if you wanted to. We are what we are. Humans don’t need to promote selfish and disordered sexuality in order to reduce abortion. We just need to behave responsibly, towards both ourselves and others. Your desire to reduce abortion by having humans accept your distorted view on sexuality is misguided.