on the Truth of Matter

"Nobody wants to perform abortions after ten weeks, because by then you see the features of the baby, hands, feet. It's really barbaric." - abortionist quoted in M.D. Doctors Talk About Themselves, by John Pekkanen, p. 93

the Cost of Choice

WHO HAS ABORTIONS?

* At least 80% of all abortions are performed on unmarried women (CDC).

* The abortion ratio for unmarried women is 510 abortions for every 1,000 live births. For married women it is 61 abortions for every 1,000 live births (CDC).

* Women between the ages of 20-24 obtained 33% of all abortions (CDC).

* 50% of U.S. women obtaining abortions are younger than 25; women aged 20-24 obtain 33% of all U.S. abortions and teenagers obtain 17% (AGI).

* Adolescents under 15 years obtained less than 1% of all abortions, but have the highest abortion ratio, 773 abortions for every 1,000 live births (CDC).

* 47% of women who have abortions had at least one previous abortion (AGI).

* Black women are more than 4.8 times more likely than non-Hispanic white women to have an abortion, and Hispanic women are 2.7 times as likely (AGI).

* 43% of women obtaining abortions identify themselves as Protestant, and 27% identify themselves as Catholic (AGI).

WHY ARE ABORTIONS PERFORMED?

* On average, women give at least 3 reasons for choosing abortion: 3/4 say that having a baby would interfere with work, school or other responsibilities; about 3/4 say they cannot afford a child; and 1/2 say they do not want to be a single parent or are having problems with their husband or partner (AGI).

WHEN DO ABORTIONS OCCUR?

* 88% of all abortions happen during the first trimester, prior to the at 13th week (AGI/CDC).

HOW ARE ABORTIONS PERFORMED?

* 87% of abortions were known to have been performed by curettage (which includes dilatation and evacuation [D&E]). Most curetage abortions are suction procedures (CDC).

* Hysterectomy and hysterotomy were used in less than .01% of all abortions (CDC).

* Medical abortions make up approximately 10% of all abortions reported (CDC).

WHO IS PERFORMING ABORTIONS?

* The number of abortion providers declined by 11% between 1996 and 2000 (from 2,042 to 1,819). It declined another 2% between 2000 and 2005 (from 1,819 to 1,787) (AGI).

* Forty percent of providers offer very early abortions (during the first four weeks’ gestation) and 96% offer abortion at eight weeks. Sixty-seven percent of providers offer at least some second-trimester abortion services (13 weeks or later), and 20% offer abortion after 20 weeks. Only 8% of all abortion providers offer abortions at 24 weeks (AGI).

ABORTION FATALITY

* In 2003 (the most recent year for which data are available), 10 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion (CDC).

* The number of deaths attributable to legal induced abortion was highest before the 1980s (CDC).

* In 1972 (the year before abortion was federally legalized), a total of 24 women died from causes known to be associated with legal abortions, and 39 died as a result of known illegal abortions (CDC).

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the Hard Facts of the Matter

ANNUAL ABORTION STATISTICS

* In 2005 (the most recent year for which there is reliable data), approximately 1.21 million abortions took place in the U.S., down from an estimated 1.29 million in 2002, 1.31 million in 2000 and 1.36 million in 1996. From 1973 through 2005, more than 45 million legal abortions have occurred in the U.S. (AGI).

* In 2004, the highest number of reported legal induced abortions occurred in Florida (91,710), NYC (91,673), and Texas (74,801); the fewest occurred in Wyoming (12), South Dakota (814), and Idaho (963) (CDC).

* The abortion ratios by state ranged from a low of 43 abortions per 1,000 live births in Idaho to a high of 770 abortions per 1,000 live births in NYC (CDC).

* Overall, the annual number of legal induced abortions in the United States increased gradually from 1973 until it peaked in 1990, and it generally declined thereafter (CDC).

* In 1998, the last year for which estimates were made, more than 23% of legal induced abortions were performed in California (CDC).

* The abortion rate in the United States was higher than recent rates reported for Canada and Western European countries and lower than rates reported for China, Cuba, the majority of Eastern European countries, and certain Newly Independent States of the former Soviet Union (CDC).

* The national legal induced abortion ratio increased from 196 abortions per 1,000 live births in 1973 to 358 abortions per 1,000 in 1979 and remained nearly stable through 1981. The ratio peaked at 364 abortions per 1,000 live births in 1984 and since then has demonstrated a generally steady decline. In 2001, the abortion ratio was 246 abortions per 1,000 live births (for the states that reported, a 0.4% increase from 2000 (CDC).

* Nearly half of pregnancies among American women are unintended; about 4 in 10 of these are terminated by abortion. Twenty-two percent of all U.S. pregnancies end in abortion. (AGI).


THE COST OF ABORTION

* In 2005, the cost of a nonhospital abortion with local anesthesia at 10 weeks of gestation ranged from $90 to $1,800, and the average amount paid was $413 (AGI).

MEDICAL ABORTION

* In 2005, 57% of abortion providers, or 1,026 facilities, provided one or more types of medical abortions, a 70% increase from the first half of 2001. At least 10% of nonhospital abortion providers offer only medication abortion services (AGI).

* In 2005, an estimated 161,100 early medication abortions were performed in nonhospital facilities (AGI).

* Medication abortion accounted for 13% of all abortions, and 22% of abortions before nine weeks’ gestation, in 2005 (AGI).

ABORTION AND CONTRACEPTION

* Induced abortions usually result from unintended pregnancies, which often occur despite the use of contraception (CDC).

* 54% of women having abortions used a contraceptive method during the month they became pregnant. Amont those women, 76% of pill users and 49% of condom users reported using the methods inconsistently, while 13% of pill users and 14% of condom users reported correct use (AGI).

* 8% of women having abortions have never used a method of birth control (AGI).

* 9 in 10 women at risk of unintended pregnancy are using a contraceptive method (AGI).

ABORTION AND MINORS

* 40% of minors having an abortion report that neither of their parents knew about the abortion (AGI).

* 35 states currently enforce parental consent or notification laws for minors seeking an abortion: AL, AR, AZ, CO, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA,WI, WV, and WY. The Supreme Court ruled that minors must have the alternative of seeking a court order authorizing the procedure (AGI).

ABORTION AND PUBLIC FUNDS

* The U.S. Congress has barred the use of federal Medicaid funds to pay for abortions, except when the woman's life would be endangered by a full-term pregnancy or in cases of rape or incest (AGI).

* 17 states (AK, AZ, CA, CT, HI, IL, MA, MD, MN, MT, NJ, NM, NY, OR, VT, WA and WV) do use public funds to pay for abortions for some poor women. About 14% of all abortions in the United States are paid for with public funds (virtually all from the state) (AGI).

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Thoughts on Our New President

It doesn't matter if you voted for him or not, this is amazing and historic. His election is one more step towards the fulfillment of the words of Dr. King, " I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." What Obama has done is a fulfillment of the american dream; the part of it where if you work hard you can be anything you want. While I am opposed to how he will conduct policy on most issues and am angered at his choices on life and abortion, today is historic and important and I will not try and take that away from him. I am hopeful that he will do much good and I fear that the pressures of the position will be too much, but in the end I am simply happy to move forward, away from the divisive politics of the election, away for the misguided Wilsionianism of the Bush years, towards a lively and civil conversation about the direction we should go in as nation. Over the next four years you will see me call him and others on the carpet, and in doing that I am fulfilling another part of the American dream; the part where we are free to think and feel and express our thoughts on the government with out fear. So today as we and many others walk in tandem with Obama with the goal of improving America, some of use through policy, some of use through analysis of that policy, all of use working for the common good,we will together archive the dream Dr. King spoke of so many years ago.

On Being President

George Washington is the only president who didn't blame the previous
administration for his troubles. -Author Unknown

MLK, Jesus and the Kind of Man Needed to Fight for Racial Equality

What kind of man is needed to bring black and white together? What kind of man is can do that? What kind of man can over come such hate?

I am a lover of MLK and what he stood for. I am also a lover of God thru Jesus and all that He Died for...including Martin Luther King. I believe that Dr. King met God 12 years before that day a shot rang out in Memphis. below is the account of Kings conversion. I have always found it striking that only a man of God was capable of moving America towards racial equality.

"He put his head in his hands and bowed over the table. “Oh Lord,” he prayed aloud, “I’m down here trying to do what is right. But, Lord, I must confess that I’m weak now. I’m afraid. The people are looking to me for leadership, and if I stand before them without strength and courage, they too will falter. I am at the end of my powers. I have nothing left. I can’t face it alone.”

He sat there, his head still bowed in his hands, tears burning his eyes. But then he felt something—a presence, a stirring in himself. And it seemed that an inner voice was speaking to him with quiet assurance: “Martin Luther, stand up for righteousness. Stand up for justice. Stand up for truth. And, lo, I will be with you, even unto the end of the world.” He saw lightning flash. He heard thunder roar. It was the voice of Jesus telling him still to fight on. And “he promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone. No, never alone, No, never alone. He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone . . . .”

He raised his head. He felt stronger now. He could face the morrow. Whatever happened, God in His wisdom meant it to be. King’s trembling stopped, and he felt an inner calm he had never experienced before. He realized that “I can stand up without fear. I can face anything.” And for he first time God was profoundly real and personal to him. The idea of a personal God was no longer some “metaphysical category” he found philosophically and theologically satisfying. No, God was very close to him now, a living God who could transform “the fatigue of despair into the buoyancy of hope” and who would never, ever leave him alone." (Stephen B. Oates, Let the Trumpet Sound: The Life of Martin Luther King, Jr., 85)

So, returning to my original question of what kind of man can overcome that kind of hate; it is clear that only a God-Man can overcome that and only a man who has been covered by the God-Man's blood can seek to fight for true justice.

to see Pipers thoughts on this same portion of the book, visit http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1163_when_mlk_first_met_god/

it is where I go this post began.

Thoughts to Consider on the Eve of a New Era

The citizen can bring our political and governmental instiutions back to life, make them responsive and accountable, and keep them honest. No one else can. - John Gardner

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on the Great Evil of Our Time 2

"If the unborn is not a human person, no justification for abortion is necessary. However, if the unborn is a human person, no justification for abortion is adequate." - Gregory Koukl

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on The Great Evil of Our Time 1

"Simple morality dictates that unless and until someone can prove the unborn human is not alive, we must give it the benefit of the doubt and assume it is (alive). And, thus, it should be entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." - Ronald Reagan 1982

Preparing for the 36th aniversery of Roe V. Wade.

On January 22, 1973 the supreme court ruled that abortion was legal in the first three months of pregnancy. In response to this over 49,551,703 children have been killed at the hands of their mothers in the past 36 years. The majority opinion from the case reads, "We need not resolve the difficult question of when life begins. When those trained in the respective disciplines of medicine, philosophy, and theology are unable to arrive at any consensus, the judiciary, at this point in the development of man's knowledge, is not in a position to speculate as to the answer." The 36th anniversary is on next Thursday.I would invite you to read along with me as I ponder this act, point to alternatives,and point out ways to respond. I will be posting quotes about the topic the whole week, along with data about abortion in an attempt to shed light on the evil it is, and pointing you to great resources. Lastly, I would ask you to consider fasting and praying on behalf of the unborn on Thursday.To be honest just thinking about it makes me not want to eat anyway.

the BART Shooting, Obama, Race Relations & the True Divding Line Amoung Men.

So I’m listening to “all things considered” on NPR yesterday ( I know for some of you this was my first mistake), and they do this story on the black community’s response to the new years shooting of a young, unarmed black man by a transit cop. For those of you who don’t know what happened here is a brief run down, “Witnesses said Mehserle, who is white, fired a shot into the back of 22-year-old Oscar Grant while the supermarket worker was lying facedown on a train platform at a station in Oakland. Grant and others had been pulled off a train after reports of fighting, as New Year's Eve revelers were shuttling home after midnight. ‘Videos of the action show him being pushed facedown,’ Gonzales says. ‘Officer Mehserle has his knee in his back. Then the officer rises, pulls out his gun and shoots Grant in the back. The officer looks momentarily stunned.’” The video of the whole thing was captured on a cell phone and placed on youtube. These lead to rioting and protests in the bay area last week. While this is appealing and sad what is even sadder to me is the comment of an African American later in the piece. She says to the effect of the following ‘ this is strange week due to the election of Obama and the hopes tied up in him… this killing brings us as a black community back to reality. This stopped me dead in my tracks. I’m done with my dinner. All I’m doing int hat moment is thinking; thinking about race, thinking about the misplaced hopes of one community and the misplaced fears of another in regard to Obama, thinking about the way sin makes no race superior, thinking about the true dividing line of life, if you are in Christ or not. What I walked away with was this; the true reality of the situation as nasty as it was is that due to sin this should be expected, yes we should try and prevent it from happening, but when it does it should not shock us. Second, to hold the view that one racial group is better or worse than another in light of the universality of the fall of man is to ignore the facts. All men are evil, all hate god and all, whether black, white, purple or blue can and would kill of all common grace was removed. additionally to think that one man who is not God will be to you all the things you have collectively hoped for as community for the last 400 years is unfair not only to him, (think of the pressure of that task) or the community as a whole (how cheap to allow one man to define and embody what you are as a people). Lastly, I reflected on the true divide among men; being in Christ or not. This is an amazing divide. The power to heal all racial conflict is rapped up in it. The keys of life an pain are rapped up in it. In the end the color of your skin is not important, but if Christ die to save that skin.

This week Obama indicated that he intends to close Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba. To this I say Amen. This prison and the actions taken there against enemy combatants captured in Afghanistan have in my estimation done more harm than good. I will not take time to outline or argue about the costs and benefits here. What I will say is that while I am very pleased that Obama will be closing the now infamous prison, it is important to point out that this will be a mute point if He does not make a clear break with many of the Bush administration's policies in acted in the wake of 9/11. The use of warrantless wiretaps, water boarding and harsh interrogation methods by members of the intelligence services and the U.S. military are deplorable. What is even more saddening is that these policies were not just allowed but apparently encouraged by high ranking administration officials, such as former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Chaney. Simply put, the United States in responding to murderous and evil men have take a few plays out of their play book and in so doing have abandoned the moral high ground, that among other things, lead them to attack us in the first place. Also if we simple transfer the detainees to another location either stateside or in their home countries where they will continue to be held indefinitely without being charged or put on trial would be to miss the point. I am not in any way defending their membership, association or sympathies to al Quada or the Taliban or standing up for their rights to hold jihadist ideology. What I am saying is that many of these men are criminals and should be treated as such (some are innocent and should be released). If the U.S. government has reason to hold them because of perceived wrong doing the correct course of action would be to charge them with the perceived wrong committed and conduct a trial and let justice be served. Right now neither justice nor the rule of law is being up held. So to reiterate; for Obama to simply close Guantanamo bay and not reform the current bush policies would not only be short sighted it would be to deny the rule of law, justice two of the guiding principles of the American way of life.

on How to View One's Government

Every decent man is ashamed of the government he lives under. - H.L. Mencken

Current Issue of Foreign Policy Worth the Read

The current issue of FP is Fantastic! I highly recommend it to anyone looking to understand the numerous pressing policy issues facing the incoming Obama administration. There are great articles on Afghanistan, an interview with General David Petraeus, and an eye opening look at climate change along with an editorial by Christian Brose, former speech writer for Condoleezza Rice on what the Obama administration's foreign policy should look like.

this and all the rest can be read at:
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=220

What I Learned on My Winter Vacation: the Gaza Invasion Lessons Two

Lesson two: it is pre not post millennialism

The second point I would like to make is that the current conflict in the Middle East highlights why adopting a post millennial view of the end times is really silly. Outside of it being completely unbiblical ( to those who hold this position please read matt 24), an empirical analysis of world events points in a completely different type of second coming; on outlined in the scripture as being to a hostile world fool of non believers who are persecuting the church and fighting wars amongst themselves. For those of you who don't know what post millennialism is, here it is in brief. Simply put the church and the gospel will advance in the world to a point where most of the world is Christian and the church is a dominate player. This expansion of the gospel will result in world peace and at the close of the millennial period all this good feeling and "christianness" will bring about the return of the Jesus. This runs against the words of Jesus in the gospels and the words of Paul. Additionally it runs counter to an empirical observation of the world these days. The current Israeli conflict in conjunction with the words of Jesus and all of modern history highlights the falseness of this doctrine. In its place I recommend exploring a classical pre millennial view. I believe that it is the biblical correct position and that as a result of this empirically observable events will confirm it.

on Democracy as a System of Governance

Democracy's the worst form of government except for all the others. - Winston Churchill

What I Learn Over Winter Vaction: the Gaza Invasion Lessons

The Israeli military attacks on Gaza are stretching into their second week and I think it is time to step back from the horror of daily rocket attacks and helicopter gunships and take a look at what can and should be learned from this conflict. So the question on the table is what did I learn on my winter break; the Gaza invasion lesson. Over the next few days I will share some observations I have made out of the current conflict in Israel.

Lesson 1: Demos=Hamas

One of the major planks in the neoconservative foreign policy platform adopted by the Bush administration was the global promotion of democratic regimes and more specifically, pushing hard for the adoption of democracy in the Middle East. An unintended consequence of rule by the people is that the people of a given country may not choose the best strategic choice for the promotion of U.S. interests in the region in question. Case in Point was the landslide electoral win of Hamas members in 2006 parliamentary elections. This was disaster for U.S. policy in the Middle East and for the peace process; a current terrorist network that wants to destroy Israel won. Let me point out right now what I am not saying; I am not saying that Hamas is a bunch of really good guys or that promoting democracy is a bad thing. What I am saying is that Hamas, As bad as they are, were democratically elected as the rulers of the Palestinian authority. In regard to democracy promotion I believe it is a good idea but it can and will weakening the short tem goals of the United States while in the long run working to the benefit of U.S. Policy goals. The bottom Line is that we need to be willing to take one in the teeth in the short term in the middle east as the electorates there, which have been suppressed for years, either internally like in Syria or Jordan, or externally as in case of the Palestinians, figure out how to do democracy. In light of this kind of brutal oppression and suppression it is only natural that the more radical, reactionary political parties will appear the most appealing. As a result they will win sizable portions of the vote if nor winning elections out right. They will either learn to rule effectively, be voted out of office in subsequent elections or seize power through a coup. We can only hope for the first two options and use our political and military influence in the region to seek these ends. If we allow these countries and their electorates to figure out democracy and how to vote in their best interest, with some unfortunate twists in the short term, the U.S. should come out a head in the more distant future. In light of this I would like to close with a note of caution; to believe that simply because two countries are democratic that they will get along is a very naive position to hold indeed. States balance states, not due to the type of governmental system they employ or in light of the perceived threat another nation poses but because it is the nature of states to compete for influence with other states. The balance of power is alive and well and very real. Democracy or not the Middle East and Arab-Israeli relations will be messy for years to come.