Politics
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Friday February 6, 2004
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Print- United Nations Tells Ethiopia to Decriminalize Abortion, Publicly Fund Contraceptives
- Clergy Abuse in Context - Teachers Sexually Abuse Students Far More Often
- Wisconsin Senate Passes Nation's Most Comprehensive Conscience Clause Bill
- Gearing up for a Pro-Abortion March in Washington
- Parents Continue to Object to Diocesan Child Protection Programs
- Catholic Philosophy Professor Punished for Expressing Religious Beliefs
- NY State Approves Sale of 'Morning-After' Pill Over-The-Counter
- LifeSite NewsBytes
United Nations Tells Ethiopia to Decriminalize Abortion, Publicly Fund Contraceptives
TODAY'S HEADLINES
NEW YORK, February 6, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women urged Ethiopia to decriminalize abortion and to publicly fund contraceptives. The committee met with Ethiopian Government officials January 26 and was informed that abortion is illegal in Ethiopia.
Despite the stated UN policy not to promote abortion in countries where it is illegal, UN Committee member Sjamsiah Achmad, the expert from Indonesia, asked the Ethiopian representatives, "Would (the government) consider reviewing the punitive measures contained in the penal code against women who had undergone abortions?" She also claimed: "Something along those lines had been recommended in the Beijing Platform for Action."
Another committee member, Salma Khan from Bangladesh, was troubled by low rates of contraceptive use in the country. "There was also a very low rate of contraceptive use -- as few as 8 per cent of married women," said Khan. "That raised certain questions about the availability of family planning services for women and adolescents."
Ms. Heisoo Shin (Republic of Korea), Vice-Chairperson of the Committee, also picked up on the contraceptive issue. "(Is) the cost of contraceptives affordable for women?," she asked. "If (it is) too expensive, the Government should make contraceptives available through a budgetary allowance," she said.
See the UN report on the proceedings:
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/cedaw.doc.htm
See related LifeSite coverage:
United Nations Pushes Nepal to Allow More Abortions
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2004/jan/04011501.html
Back to TopClergy Abuse in Context - Teachers Sexually Abuse Students Far More Often
Underscores fact that ordination of priests with homosexual tendencies may be the real problem
NEW YORK, February 6, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In order to put recent scandals "in perspective", a report from the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights seeks to fairly compare the incidence of sexual abuse by Catholic priests with clergy from other denominations, and with other professionals. The League argues that isolating the incidence of sexual abuse from the context of the greater problem is "grossly unfair". The report reassures that it does not "seek to exculpate anyone who had anything to do with priestly sexual misconduct."
The Catholic League report underscores the reality that the incidence of sexual abuse by clergy is, in comparison, far less than the incidence among other professionals. A survey by the Washington Post found that "Over the last four decades, less than 1.5 percent of the estimated 60,000 or more men who have served in the Catholic clergy have been accused of child sexual abuse." And a similar survey by the New York Times found an incidence rate of "1.8 percent of all priests ordained from 1950 to 2001."
The league report also highlights the fact that "Almost all the priests who abuse children are homosexuals. Dr. Thomas Plante, a psychologist at Santa Clara University, found that '80 to 90% of all priests who in fact abuse minors have sexually engaged with adolescent boys, not prepubescent children,'" the report continues, underscoring the fact that the ordination of priests with homosexual tendencies may be the real problem.
In contrast, the League report reveals that "In a 1984 survey, 38.6 percent of ministers reported sexual contact with a church member, and 76 percent knew of another minister who had had sexual intercourse with a parishioner." In 2002, Christian Ministry Resources reported on national surveys they conducted which concluded that "Despite headlines focusing on the priest pedophile problem in the Roman Catholic Church, most American churches being hit with child sexual-abuse allegations are Protestant."
The incidence of abuse by teachers is even more staggering, as a 1988 study reported in The Handbook on Sexual Abuse of Children reveals. It reported that "One in four girls, and one in six boys, is sexually abused [by a teacher] by age 18." A 1991 study revealed that "17.7 percent of males who graduated from high school, and 82.2 percent of females, reported sexual harassment by faculty or staff during their years in school. Fully 13.5 percent said they had sexual intercourse with their teacher," the report states.
"In a survey for the Wall Street Journal-NBC News, it was found that 64 percent of the public thought that Catholic priests frequently abused children," the League reports. This is not surprising, considering the "media fixation" on the issue, the League says. It is, however, "Outrageously unfair," they conclude.
Read the report at:
http://www.catholicleague.org/research/abuse_in_social_context.htm
See a related LifeSiteNews.com Special Report,
"Roots of Sexual Abuse in the Church: Homosexuality, Dissent and Modernism," at: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2002/jun/020618a.html
Wisconsin Senate Passes Nation's Most Comprehensive Conscience Clause Bill
MADISON, February 6, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Wisconsin Senate passed a conscience clause bill Wednesday which would protect health care professionals and facilities from penalties for refusing to be involved with abortion, assisted suicide, euthanasia and unethical medical experiments involving the deliberate destruction of in vitro human embryos or the use of tissue from aborted babies.
Susan Armacost, Legislative Director for Wisconsin Right to Life, the lead organization promoting the legislation, said the legislation passed in spite of a campaign of misinformation and inflammatory rhetoric by the pro-abortion lobby. Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice Wisconsin, were relentless in literally making up ridiculous and inflammatory arguments against AB 67, said Armacost. For example, they tried unsuccessfully to convince legislators that AB 67 is "an inhumane assault on pregnant women's health and lives, and allows doctors to refuse medical care and information in the most tragic situations."
Assembly Bill 67 will go back to the Assembly for their concurrence on one change made by the State Senate. The bill will then go to the Governor Jim Doyle.
Pharmacists for Life International was hoping for an additional clause which would have protected health care workers from having to violate their consciences by doling out contraceptives, especially abortifacients such as the birth control pill and morning after pill.
Gearing up for a Pro-Abortion March in Washington
WASHINGTON, DC, February 6, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Sensing their political support slipping away the largest pro-abortion groups in the United States have joined in a massive effort to mobilize a pro-abortion march in the hopes of copying the annual March for Life. Planned Parenthood Federation of America, The Feminist Majority Foundation, National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL Pro-Choice America), and the National Organization for Women are planning their march for April 25, with lead-up gatherings set for the third Tuesday of every month beginning Feb 17.
Although in line with their rhetoric, the "March for Women's Lives" remains an ironic title for the pro-abortion event. The website for the march, contains a long list of cosponsors for the march which, beyond the usual suspects, includes a rather large number of Jewish organizations. (see http://www.marchforwomen.org/cosponsors/list.php )
The Sunday April 25 march will begin at noon from the National Mall, with a rally after the march held from 1-4 p.m. on the National Mall. Organizers suggest it will be "the largest pro-choice majority in history". Even though grossly exaggerated, the stated reason for the march is a joy to hear for pro-lifers - "Our rights are under attack as they haven't been in over a decade, and Roe v. Wade hangs by a thread in the Supreme Court."
See the website:
http://www.marchforwomen.org/
Parents Continue to Object to Diocesan Child Protection Programs
Boston "Talking about Touching" program heavily endorsed Planned Parenthood and allies
ARLINGTON, February 05, 2004 (LifeSiteNews) - It is becoming clear that programs being chosen by U.S. dioceses for the protection of children from sexual abuse, rather than putting the primary focus on potentially abusive clergy, are putting the children into an unwanted position as the first line of defence against the abusers. Parents are starting to object vociferously to what they see as further sexual exploitation by the programs intended to protect the children.
In his weekly e-letter, Deal Hudson editor of Crisis, a Catholic magazine, describes the most recent meeting of parents and diocesan officials in Arlington Va. Officials in that diocese have dropped plans to implement the "Good Touch/Bad Touch" program. Catherine Nolan, the diocesan director of child protection and safety, told parents at the meeting that the reason they had been excluded from the program selection process was "that parents themselves might be predators". This accusation is so absurd as to be laughable, as Hudson said, "the problem is NOT with parents. It's with priests. On the list of 1700-plus names published in the New York Times as being sexual predators in this scandal, not one of them was a parent."
An article appearing in Catholic World News in June 2003 pointed out that the scandal came to light in 2002 precisely because of diocesan refusal to listen to and take seriously parents' complaints against priestly sexual abuse. The article featured another program, "Talking about Touching" that is being adopted by the Archdiocese of Boston's Commission for the Protection of Children. "Talking about Touching" has been heavily endorsed by groups like Planned Parenthood and the sex education lobby group, Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S. (SIECUS). However, despite objections of parents, the Boston archdiocese is making the sex education program mandatory for Catholic school children as early as kindergarten.
The "Talking about Touching" curriculum was produced by the Washington State group Committee for Children. The Committee was originally called Judicial Advocates for Women and was formed in the 1970's "to work for the repeal of the prostitution laws and an end to the stigma associated with sexual work."
As one parent in the Boston diocese pointed out, it seems odd that the Church, which relied on secular psychiatrists and doctors to excuse the shuffling of abusive clergy from one parish to another, would turn to the same secular "experts" to come up with a program to prevent child abuse.
Catholic World News Story:
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=22707
Catholic Philosophy Professor Punished for Expressing Religious Beliefs
KIRTLAND, OH, February 6, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Lakeland Community College near Cleveland, Ohio, has removed a professor of moral philosophy from his classes as punishment for refusing to hide his religious identity from students. The college threatened Dr. James Tuttle, who espouses traditional Catholic beliefs, with dismissal because he made statements on his syllabi and in class that disclosed his religious faith and how that shaped his personal philosophy.
Dr. Tuttle's problems began in March 2003 when he received a copy of a student complaint forwarded to him by Dean James L. Brown of the Arts and Humanities Division at Lakeland. The student complained that Dr. Tuttle mentioned his Catholic beliefs too often for the student's taste and suggested that he be given "counseling for tolerance."
In an effort to address this issue, Dr. Tuttle decided to add "disclaimers" to the syllabi of two of his classes informing students that the professor was "a committed Catholic Christian philosopher and theologian," so that students would know in advance about his perspective. The statement also encouraged any students who felt uncomfortable with Dr. Tuttle's views or methods to feel free to talk to him outside of class.
On April 21, 2003, Dr. Tuttle received a letter from Dean Brown saying that he was "more bothered by [Tuttle's] disclaimer than by anything I read in [the student]'s complaint." Dean Brown went on to suggest that Dr. Tuttle "would be happier in a sectarian classroom." In punishing Dr. Tuttle for including the disclaimer, Dean Brown stated that he would reduce Dr. Tuttle's course load for the next semester to only one class (thereby reducing his pay) and would subject him to classroom monitoring by a fellow professor before reaching a final decision on whether to actually fire him.
Dr. Tuttle was informed in December that he was being given the last pick of classes-with a selection of courses that administrators knew he did not wish to teach-despite the fact that Lakeland's traditional seniority system should have given him preference over six other instructors. Dr. Tuttle refused to accept the loss of his seniority and declined to accept Lakeland's shameful offer.
The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), contacted the college in December in support of Dr. Tuttle. "Asking a philosophy professor to divorce his deepest philosophic views from his teaching is both outrageous and absurd," said Greg Lukianoff, director of legal and public advocacy for FIRE. "To say that a philosophy professor cannot discuss religious ideas is to render him incapable of meaningful discussion of some of the greatest minds in the history of his field. Feminists are not forced to veil their feminism, and Catholic philosophers should be free to be Catholic philosophers."
To express your views to the college contact:
Morris W. Beverage,
President, Lakeland Community College :
440-525-7000;
James L. Brown,
Dean, Arts and Sciences Division, Lakeland Community College :
440.525.7091;
See FIRE's complete letter to the college:
http://www.thefire.org/pdfs/beverage_lukianoff_12-5-2003.pdf
NY State Approves Sale of 'Morning-After' Pill Over-The-Counter
ALBANY, February 6, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Over-the-counter sale (OTC) of the abortifacient 'morning-after' pill, precluding the need for a prescription, has been given the green light by the Democrat-dominated New York Assembly on Monday.
Debate over the availability of the morning-after pill is still ongoing at the national level, by the Food and Drug Administration. Assemblywoman, Democrat Amy Paulin, who proposed the legislation, said that, "If they won't do it, we will do it in New York." The Assembly is hoping their action will put pressure on the F.D.A. to approve the OTC sale of the drug in America.
An attempt at similar legislation last year failed because the Republican-controlled Senate threw it out.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver criticized the Bush administration for "continuing to 'wage war on women,'" by denying their "access to quality wide-ranging health care services."
In related news, the Virginia State House of Delegates committee approved Tuesday legislation mandating that public schools instruct girls in the use of morning-after pills for "emergency" use, as for example, in the case of rape.
Read former LifeSiteNews.com coverage "FDA Begins Debate on Availability of Morning-After Pill Tuesday," at: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2003/dec/03121205.html
Read about the many negative side effects of the morning-after pill - see "Potent Drug Receives Revolutionary Exemption from Usual Doctors' Risk Assessment" at: http://lsn.ca/ldn/1999/sept/990922a.html
LifeSite NewsBytes
Dr. Dobson's Open Letter on The Passion of Christ
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=36973
Former Homosexual: 'Gay Marriage is a Counterfeit and Fraud'
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=105-02052004
New York City Uses AIDS as Excuse for Earlier Sex-Ed
http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/16012.htm
South Dakota Bill to Ban Abortion Goes to House Floor
http://www.aberdeennews.com/mld/aberdeennews/news/7886050.htm
Lawsuit Over Jackson's Super Bowl Incident Seeks Billions In Damages
http://www.talonnews.com/news/2004/february/0206_lawsuit_jackson_superbowl.shtml
President Delivers Remarks at 52nd Annual National Prayer Breakfast
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/02/20040205-1.html
PM muzzles caucus on gun vote
http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=f79e5eea-d55f-45c...
French cardinal fears trend toward euthanasia
http://www.ewtn.com/vnews/getstory.asp?number=43593
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