Canadian Doctors Worried More Moms Will Choose Life

So I was reading the transcript from Rush Limbaugh’s show today and noticed his mention of this article at Life Site News. Seems that Canadian doctors have their panties in a wad worrying about the popular reaction in the U.S. to Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin’s decision to not abort her baby, Trig, who has Down Syndrome.

Dr. Andre Lalonde, executive vice-president of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC), told the Globe and Mail yesterday, “Palin’s decision to keep her baby, knowing he would be born with the condition, may inadvertently influence other women who may lack the necessary emotional and financial support to do the same.”

“The worry is that this will have an implication for abortion issues in Canada,” he said.

Under the facade of “freedom to choose”, Lalonde said that “popular messages” about women like Palin, who choose not to kill their unborn children, “could have detrimental effects on women and their families.”

“We offer the woman the choice. We try to be as unbiased as possible,” Lalonde said. “We’re coming down to a moral decision and we all know moral decisions are personal decisions.”

It’s all about choice, isn’t it? As Rush says earlier in his transcript, for liberals, you’re only pro-choice if you choose abortion. If you choose life, they refuse to let you call yourself pro-choice. So really, as Rush says, pro-choice means pro-abortion.

As for Lalonde’s last statement, he’s not really saying anything, is he? “Moral decisions are personal decisions”? Of course they’re personal decisions. Anytime anyone makes a decision, they are personally making that decision–unless, of course, they’re shaking a magic 8-ball. Lalonde implies that a personal decision only impacts the person making that decision and that no one should limit that person’s options. So what about a person’s decision to shoot someone? That is a moral decision that someone personally makes. So why should the government be able to curb a person’s ability to shoot someone? Using Lalonde’s logic, it shouldn’t be able to.

Our society has to have a set of values that are universally accepted and enforced, no matter if some individuals might disagree with them. Without a standard, chaos will reign, and there will be no respect for anyone. This is what we’re starting to see. It has started with the killing of innocent babies still in the womb in the name of freedom of choice and convenience. Other countries have legalized “mercy-killing” of elderly and chronically ill people, and they’re now struggling with the definition being broadened to apply to more and more people. What makes us think this won’t happen in the United States?

The Palin Baby Story Matters

Byron York tells of his experience in talking with some evangelicals at the GOP convention and their reaction to the story of Bristol Palin being pregnant.

…the top McCain staffers revealed that a story would be breaking on the wires in a few hours reporting that Palin’s daughter, Bristol, is, in fact, pregnant now. The father is Bristol’s boyfriend, the staffers were told, and she intends to marry him.

The McCain aides’ assignment was to call a list of about 40 top evangelical and other cultural conservative leaders. Each one would get a personal explanation of the story, and each was asked for his or her reaction. The McCain people reached nearly everyone before the story broke, and the verdict was unanimous — all the leaders supported Palin and her place on the McCain ticket.

In the Colorado section [on the Convention floor], I ran into Sue Sharkey, from Windsor. When I asked what she thought, her reaction was not about Palin but herself.

“For me personally, it hit my heart this morning,” Sharkey told me, “because I was a 17 year-old girl, just like Sarah Palin’s daughter, and I had — I was in those shoes. And my son is with me, who will be 35 years old next week, and so I know what a difficult road there is for her.”

“I chose to have my son, and from that point I realized that I was a very strong right-to-life advocate,” Sharkey continued, her voice wavering ever so slightly. Roe v. Wade had been passed just the year before, and I already knew girls who were going through abortions. It wasn’t a choice for me; it wasn’t in my heart to do that. So when I heard the news this morning, it struck close to home for me.”

GOP Adopts Unconditional Stance Against Abortion

The Christian Post is reporting that the Republican Party adopted a tougher stance on abortion for its platform than Senator McCain had wanted.

The GOP document (see page 52), which is nonbinding, does not provide exceptions allowing abortion in cases of rape, incest or where a mother’s life would be in danger — all favored by McCain. The Arizona senator’s running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, opposes abortion in all cases, consistent with the platform.

Steven Spruiell details some other differences between the Platform and McCain’s positions.

One Mommy’s Perspective

Barbara at Mommy Life offers a good, Biblical perspective on what the Palin family is going through right now.

I say look to the Bible for example after example of God-appointed leaders who had real lives – full of flaws – and children who brought judgment to their parents.

God gave us free will. And thinking that you can control the outcome of your children’s lives – preventing them from ever making mistakes – is a form of spiritual pride. Even the perfect parent – God Our Father – saw his children who enjoyed perfect daily intimate relationship with Him disobey His commands.

God bless Sarah Palin and her family. It’s not the fact that her daughter got pregnant so much as the fact of how they are handling it that shows their true values.

I’ve heard from the pulpit that the abortion rate among evangelicals is as high as among the general population. That’s because evangelicals would rather face God’s judgment than the judgment of their peers. Hallelujah that the Palins – mother and daughter both – chose life when it would have been more convenient and less embarrassing to choose death.

A Breakdown of Planned Parenthood’s Comments

The Practicing Catholic has an excellent breakdown of Planned Parenthood’s reaction to McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as VP.

[PP president] Richards called the naming of a pro-life woman to the ticket “heartbreaking news” after an “inspiring” week at the Democratic convention that saw Democratic delegates officially nominate pro-abortion presidential candidate Barack Obama and his pro-abortion running mmate Joe Biden. [I'll tell you what makes my heart break: thinking of the millions of people who should be here but aren't, many of them who would be my age right now. Not to mention the people who have to live with it afterwards: mothers, fathers, grandparents, siblings, our whole society.]

New Bumper Sticker

Posted at The Free Republic.

Sarah Palin’s Daughter Pregnant

The news is breaking today that Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin’s 17-year old daughter is pregnant. From the Palin’s statement:

“We have been blessed with five wonderful children who we love with all our heart and mean everything to us. Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We’re proud of Bristol’s decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents. As Bristol faces the responsibilities of adulthood, she knows she has our unconditional love and support.

Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family.”

A reader wrote in to Hugh Hewitt’s Town Hall blog:

Hugh –

There couldn’t be a clearer difference between conservatives and liberals than this one…

Obama…

“If my daughter makes a mistake, I don’t want her punished with a baby”

Palin…

“As [our daughter] faces the responsibilities of adulthood, she knows she has our unconditional love and support.”

(also… “Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family.”)