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- Adult Stem Cells Bring ESC To Its Knees – March 26, 2009
- ARPA E-Luminary – Successful Event In Parliament – March 27, 2009
- Christianity Today Magazine - Condoms, HIV & Pope Benedict – March 26, 2009
- Ethics Of Allowing Babies To Die – March 25, 2009
- Family Of Owner Of Nation's Largest Privately Owned Abortion Chain, Dies In Plane Crash – March 24, 2009
- Judge Orders Morning-After Pill Be Made Available to Teen Girls – March 26, 2009
- Letter to the Editor, The Chronicle Herald – March 21, 2009
- Lifeissues.Net Newsletter #415 – March 22, 2009
- Pharmacist's Conscience
- Right To Die In Halifax – March 26, 2009
1. Adult Stem Cells Bring ESC To Its Knees – March 26, 2009
From Family Research Council
Speaking of that research with a 100% consensus,
adult stem cells may be able to boast yet another amazing accomplishment.
Professor Anthony Hollander, who is also known for his work with
a stem cell windpipe transplant, has discovered a way to repair
torn knee cartilage with the patient's own stem cells. As he told
the Scottish Stem Cell Network Conference yesterday, the technique
will be tested in 10 people "within the next year." Using
the patient's bone marrow stem cells, Hollander will "knit
together" the injured cartilage and allow it to essentially
heal itself. If he is successful, this would be the first proven
method of repairing a common injury to athletes. With more than
70 successful
treatments under its belt, adult stem cell research definitely has
a leg up on the competition.
http://arpacanada.ca/attachments/202_March%20e-Luminary.pdf
March 3 rd was a big day for Reformed Christians in Canada. By God’s grace, we were able to give a presentation to MP’s in Parliament. Titled ― God & Government: A Biblical Perspective on the Role of the State, the purpose of the event was to go directly to our leaders with guidance about what the state is called to be involved with or to avoid.
Dr. Cornelis Van Dam, professor of Old Testament at the Theological College of the Canadian Reformed Churches addressed the MP’s, a Senator, staff from MP offices, and members from Ottawa’s Reformed churches. He spoke for about 30 minutes and then took questions from the MP’s which resulted in an excellent discussion. What follows is a short section from Dr. Van Dam’s talk. For the complete speech, you can go to our website and listen to it online. A booklet with the contents of the talk was also distributed by one MP to many of his colleagues, including our Prime Minister. It will be available at future ARPA Canada events and is also being sent to our donors.
A complete report can be seen at www.ARPACanada.ca
3. Christianity Today Magazine - Condoms, HIV & Pope Benedict – March 26, 2009
A Magazine of Evangelical Conviction
The following article is located here.
Interview
Condoms, HIV, and Pope Benedict
Leading HIV researcher Edward C. Green says criticism of the pope
'unfair.' Interview by Timothy C. Morgan; posted 3/20/2009 04:27PM
Edward C. Greenris one of the world's leading field researchers on the spread of HIV and public health interventions. He's the director of the Harvard AIDS Prevention Research Project, and is a leading advocate for evidence-based interventions. He has been sharply criticized by some public health experts for supporting sexual partner reduction programs and for endorsing the so-called ABC method ("Abstain, Be faithful, or use a Condom") for fighting the transmission of HIV. After Pope Benedict's comments earlier this week, Green agreed to answer / Christianity Today / deputy managing editor Tim Morgan's questions by e-mail.
Christianity Today:
Is Pope Benedict being criticized unfairly for his comments about
HIV and condoms?
Green: This is hard for a liberal like
me to admit, but yes, it's unfair because in fact, the best evidence
we have supports his comments — at least his major comments,
the ones I have seen.
Christianity Today: What does the evidence show about the effectiveness of condom-use strategies in reducing HIV infection rates among large-scale populations?
Green: It will be
easiest if we confine our discussion to Africa, because that's where
the pope is, and that is what he was talking about. There's no evidence
at all that condoms have worked as a public health intervention
intended to reduce HIV infections at the "level of population."
This is a bit difficult to understand. It may well make sense for
an individual to use condoms every time, or as often as possible,
and he may well decrease his chances of catching HIV. But we are
talking about programs, large efforts that either work or fail at
the level of countries, or, as we say in public health, the level
of
population. Major articles published in /Science/, /The Lancet/,
/British Medical Journal/, and even /Studies in Family Planning/
have reported this finding since 2004. I first wrote about putting
emphasis on fidelity instead of condoms in Africa in 1988.
Christianity Today: Is there any country worldwide (Brazil or Thailand, for example) that has emphasized condoms where a reduction in HIV infections has been verified and sustained?
Green: In countries where HIV is largely concentrated among prostitutes and their clients, such as Thailand and Cambodia, there seems to have been success in promoting the so-called 100 percent condom policy in brothels. Most analysts credit the decline of HIV infection rates there to this policy and its implementation (of course, they were saying that about Uganda as well), but I agree that this probably has been the major factor explaining prevalence decline in those two countries. However, condom use is not especially high for prostitutes and their clients who are not based in brothels. And another factor in both countries is surely that there was a significant decline in the proportion of men going to prostitutes of any sort, and there was even a big decline in the proportion of men having extramarital sex in the years before we first saw infections decrease in Thailand.
Christianity Today: Is there any country in Africa with a high HIV infection rate that has implemented new programs and seen infection rates fall? If so, what strategies are being followed?
Green: I'm glad you asked this. We are seeing HIV decline in eight or nine African countries. In every case, there's been a decrease in the proportion of men and women reporting multiple sexual partners. Ironically, in the first country where we saw this, Uganda, HIV prevalence decline stopped in about 2004, and infection rates appear to be rising again. This appears to be in part because emphasis on interventions that promote monogamy and fidelity has weakened significantly, and earlier behavior changes have eroded. There has been a steady increase in the very behavior that once accounted for rates declining — namely, having multiple and concurrent sex partners. There is a widespread belief that somehow Uganda had fewer condoms. In fact, foreign donors have persuaded Uganda to put even more emphasis on condoms.
Christianity Today: What about Swaziland, which has a reputation for one of the highest HIV rates in the world? Do condoms work there? If not, what would?
Green: As I have
said, condoms have not worked in any country in Africa. The two
countries with the highest infection rates, Swaziland and Botswana,
have both launched MCP campaigns. "MCP" is shorthand for
campaigns that discourage people from having multiple and concurrent
sexual partners. We are starting to see prevalence decline in both
of these countries.
Christianity Today: Is the African
church part of the problem here for creating a stigma and demonizing
people with HIV?
Green: That charge has been way overblown.
There was some of that early in the pandemic, but the churches'
involvement and intervention are essential. For one thing, they
have always been right about where to put the emphasis — namely,
on marital fidelity and abstinence, or delay of the age of first
sex. All faith-based organizations promote this, whatever the denomination
or religion. Faith-based organizations are some of the most powerful
NGOs in Africa, and they play a leading role not only in general
health and education in these countries, but also in caring for
the sick and dying in the AIDS epidemics we find in Africa, from
the very beginning. I think historians will look back and find great
fault in the fact that the major AIDS donor organizations did really
not bring the religious groups into prevention activities at or
near the beginning of the pandemic.
Christianity Today: What
is the best HIV prevention strategy for the Obama administration
to fund with new PEPFAR money?
Green: Well, my views here also upset
a lot of my colleagues, but I've always said that we cannot treat
our way out of this pandemic. A sound public health approach is
always based on good prevention strategies. We can justify treatment
with expensive anti-retroviral drugs on humanitarian grounds, but
it's hard to do on public health grounds.
So I would advise Obama, the candidate I voted
for, to put more emphasis on prevention, and to face up to the hard
realities of the best evidence available to date, which shows that
condom promotion, testing and counseling, curing the curable STDs,
or any of the other interventions widely endorsed and considered
"best practices" always funded have simply not worked
in Africa. (It's possible they may work in other regions, like condoms
in Thailand, so it's easy for me to be misquoted on something like
this.) In a number of studies, these interventions have actually
been shown to not work.
The two interventions that work best in Africa are promotion of
monogamy and fidelity, and male circumcision. We have even stronger
science behind the latter. I assume people know about "the
male circumcision factor" these days, so I will not say more
here.
As for IDU (injecting drug use) epidemics, I would advise putting resources into preventing addiction in the first place and into treatment of drug addicts and facilitation of support groups to keep addicts from relapsing, groups like those in the 12-step programs.
Copyright © 2009 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/dispatch.html?code=navigation&url=/
4. Ethics Of Allowing Babies To Die – March 25, 2009
The ethics of allowing babies to die
The baby Phebe case could help clarify the ethical and legal rights of disabled babies and disabled people in general – By Margaret Somerville, The Gazette March 25, 2009
Phebe Mantha is a 17-month-old baby girl who was injured during birth and as a result is brain damaged. Shortly after her birth, she was transferred to the Montreal Children's Hospital and placed on life support.
The physicians told her parents that she would be deaf, blind, unable to take food orally, and would never walk. Her parents consented to the withdrawal of life-support treatment to allow Phebe to die. However, when the respirator was removed, Phebe started to breathe on her own. The issue, then, was removal of the feeding tube.
The hospital's ethics committee advised it and other necessary treatment should be continued. Ten weeks later, Phebe was discharged into the care of her parents, still needing the feeding tube and other care. The parents are now suing the hospital and its ethics committee for not abiding by their decision to let Phebe die, saying they did not give their informed consent to continuing treatment.
In a recent radio interview, Phebe's mother explained that while Phebe is seriously disabled, she is not blind or deaf, as was predicted, and that they love her. But they are seeking damages to compensate them for the cost of caring for her.
This is an unusual legal claim. It has resonance with "wrongful birth" and "wrongful life" cases, but does not clearly fit either precedent.
In "wrongful birth," the parents sue for having given birth to a child, alleging the birth would not have occurred except for negligence. These cases include failed sterilization, failed abortion, and inadequate or wrong genetic or other risk information the parents relied on in deciding to continue the pregnancy. They claim the costs of raising the child and for other damages suffered.
When the child is healthy, the courts use a rule that the benefits of the negligence – a healthy child – outweigh its harms and the parents do not recover damages. When the child is disabled, the costs of caring for the child are recoverable.
In "wrongful life," the child sues for having been born, that is, alleging that no life is better than life in their disabled state. The courts rarely allow such claims, ruling that life is always better than no life – they don't want to affirm that we're "better off dead" – and citing concern for the precedent ruling otherwise would set regarding disabled people.
This case appears to be a "wrongful continuation of life" claim by the parents. There are some rare precedents for that: An American man, who had signed a "do not resuscitate" order, sued for having been resuscitated. And, a Dutch man sued for negligent euthanasia after he didn't die from the "lethal" injection.
But what ethics and law govern deciding on treatment for an incompetent child?
Who decides?
The parents, physicians and other health – care professionals, the hospital and the state (child-welfare authorities and the courts) can all be involved.
Parents have the primary right and responsibility to decide for their children. But this right is not absolute and narrower than what one may decide for oneself. Competent adults can refuse life-saving treatment for themselves, but not for their children. Decisions must be based on a presumption in favour of life and the child's "best interests" must take priority.
Some people see not providing treatment to a disabled baby and its dying as a result, as being in the child's "best interests." That can be correct if the treatment is simply prolonging dying. But a decision based just on a "quality of life not worth living" criterion is not ethically acceptable.
Physicians have a primary ethical obligation of personal care to each patient, and they too must give priority to the child's "best interests," especially when they might be in conflict with the parents' best interests.
The hospital also has ethical and legal obligations to patients in its care, in particular, incompetent ones.
The state, too, has obligations to protect children. When a parent's decision to refuse medical treatment can be classified as child abuse or neglect, child-welfare authorities must be involved. They usually ask a court to take decision making power or custody away from the parents and place it in some other person or institution. Because Phebe's treatment was continued, this was not necessary.
This brings us to the role of ethics committees. Ethics committees are consultative and in the vast majority of cases their opinions are not binding, but they are very influential.
Hospital policies can require health-care professionals to consult ethics committees in certain circumstances and these professionals can also voluntarily seek advice.
The committee in Phebe's case would have started
from a presumption in favour of life, which means withdrawing treatment
must be ethically and legally justified. If justification is in
doubt, treatment must be continued.
Justifications include that:
The burden and suffering caused by the treatment are not outweighed by its benefits. A feeding tube would not fulfill this requirement.
The treatment is simply prolonging dying, not living. The ethics committee is reported to have expressly found that Phebe was not dying.
The treatment is "extraordinary" – only "ordinary" treatment need be given. A feeding tube is not extraordinary treatment. And if it would be given to a non-disabled baby, it's not extraordinary.
The treatment is "futile." But futility judgments are often covert "quality-of-life" assessments: Treatment is withheld because restoring what the decision-maker regards as an acceptable quality of life is not possible. That impossibility is not, in itself, a justification for withholding treatment. In contrast, "medical futility" – the treatment will have no effect – is a justification.
Withholding food and fluids is a particularly fraught area in ethics. When food and water can be taken naturally, it must be provided. Whether intravenous hydration and nutrition is life-support treatment that may be withdrawn, when withdrawal of life-support, in general, is justified, is an ethically contentious issue. And in which of these categories a feeding tube fits and in which circumstances, likewise. However, we must err on the side of respect for life, as the ethics committee did. Not to continue hydration and nutrition would have resulted in Phebe dying of starvation and dehydration, not any underlying disease.
The committee would have considered whether withholding treatment was discrimination on the basis of disability, which is unethical and illegal.
If a feeding tube would not be withdrawn from a child without disabilities, who was not dying, it must not be withdrawn from a disabled child.
The committee might also have considered the precedent withholding life-sustaining treatment from a disabled baby would mean for other disabled people.
Phebe's case is likely to deliver very important messages about the ethical and legal rights of disabled babies and disabled people, in general, to medical treatment and to the "necessities of life," hydration and nutrition.
Margaret Somerville is the founding director of the McGill Centre for Medicine, Ethics and Law.
C Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette
5. Family Of Owner Of Nation's Largest Privately Owned Abortion Chain, Dies In Plane Crash – March 24, 2009
Family of Irving 'Bud' Feldkamp, Owner of the Nation's Largest Privately Owned Abortion Chain, Dies in Montana Plane Crash. See: http://deaconforlife.blogspot.com/2009/03/family-of-irving-bud-feldkamp-owner-of.html & Picture
Family of Irving 'Bud' Feldkamp, Owner of the Nation's Largest Privately Owned Abortion Chain, Dies in Montana Plane Crash
MEDIA ADVISORY, Mar. 24 /Christian Newswire/ – Some of you may have seen the major news story of the private plane that crashed into a Montana cemetery, killing 7 children and 7 adults.
But what the news sources fail to mention is that the Catholic Holy Cross Cemetery owned by Resurrection Cemetery Association in Butte – contains a memorial for local residents to pray the rosary, at the 'Tomb of the Unborn'. This memorial, located a short distance west of the church, was erected as a dedication to all babies who have died because
of abortion.
What else is the mainstream news not telling you? The family, who died in the crash near the location of the abortion victim's memorial, is the family of Irving 'Bud' Feldkamp, owner of the largest for-profit abortion chain in the nation.
Family Planning Associates was purchased four years ago by Irving Moore "Bud" Feldkamp III, owner of Allcare and Hospitality Dental Associates and CEO of Glen Helen Raceway Park in San Bernardino. The 17 California Family Planning clinics perform more abortions in the state than any other abortion provider – Planned Parenthood included – and they perform abortions through the first five months of pregnancy.
Although Feldkamp is not an abortionist, he reaps profits of blood money from the tens of thousands of babies that are killed through abortions performed every year at the clinics he owns. His business in the abortion industry was what enabled him to afford the private plane that was carrying his family to their week-long vacation at The Yellowstone Club, a millionaires-only ski resort.
The plane went down on Sunday, killing two of Feldkamp's daughters, two sons-in-law and five grandchildren along with the pilot and four family friends. The plane, a single-engine turboprop flown by Bud Summerfield of Highland, crashed into the Catholic cemetery and burst into flames, only 500 ft. from its landing destination. All aboard were killed.
The cause of the crash is a mystery. The pilot, who was a former military flier who logged over 2,000 miles, gave no indication to air traffic controllers that the aircraft was experiencing difficulty when he asked to divert to an airport in Butte. Witnesses report that the plane suddenly nosedived toward the ground with no apparent signs of a struggle. There was neither a cockpit voice recorder nor a flight data recorder onboard, and no radar clues into the planes final moments
because the Butte airport is not equipped with a radar facility. Some speculate that the crash was due to ice on the wings, but this particular plane model has been tested for icy weather and experts have stated that ice being the cause is unlikely.
In my time working for Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust, I helped organize and conduct a weekly campaign where youth activists stood outside of Feldkamp's mini-mansion in Redlands holding fetal development signs and raising community awareness regarding Feldkamp's dealings in child murder for profit. Every Thursday afternoon we called upon Bud and his wife Pam to repent, seek God's blessing and separate themselves from the practice of child killing.
We warned him, for his children's sake, to wash his hands of the innocent blood he assisted in spilling because, as Scripture warns, if "you did not hate bloodshed, bloodshed will pursue you". (Ezekiel 35:6)
A news source states that Bud Feldkamp visited the site of the crash with his wife and their two surviving children on Monday. As they stood near the twisted and charred debris talking with investigators, light snow fell on the tarps that covered the remains of their children.
I don't want to turn this tragic event into some creepy spiritual 'I told you so' moment, but I think of the time spent outside of Feldkamp's – Pam Feldkamp laughing at the fetal development signs, Bud Feldkamp trying not to make eye contact as he got into his car with a small child in tow – and I think of the haunting words, 'Think of your children.' I wonder if those words were haunting Feldkamp as well as he stood in the snow among the remains of loved ones, just feet from the 'Tomb of the Unborn'?
I only hope and pray that in the face of this tragedy, Feldkamp recognizes his need for repentance and reformation. I pray that God will use this unfortunate catastrophe to soften the hearts of Bud and Pam and that they will draw close to the Lord and wash their hands of the blood of thousands of innocent children, each as precious and irreplaceable as their own.
"I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then." (Deut. 30:19)
Gingi Edmonds is a freelance pro-life activist, writer and photographer based out of Hanford, California. Gingi writes a bi-monthly ProLife Opinion Column and is available for pro-life presentations and speaking engagements. Visit www.gingiedmonds.com. For more information see here.
6. Judge Orders Morning-After Pill Be Made Available to Teen Girls – March 26, 2009
By Jennifer Mesko, Editor
'This ruling jeopardizes girls' health and the ability of parents to care for their daughters' physical and emotional well-being.'
In the not-too-distant future, girls across the U.S. likely will be able to get the so-called morning-after pill without anyone's knowledge.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman ordered the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make the morning-after pill available to 17-year-olds without a doctor's visit or prescription — and without parental consent. Korman also asked the FDA to consider making the drug — which is sold under the name Plan B — available to girls of all ages.
"This ruling jeopardizes girls' health and the ability of parents to care for their daughters' physical and emotional well-being," said Chris Gacek, senior fellow for regulatory affairs at the Family Research Council. "Judge Korman has accepted all of the claims of a political ideology promoting sexual license for teens."
Plan B refers to a series of pills taken within 72 hours of sexual intercourse with the intent of preventing pregnancy. The pills contain high concentrations of the hormones found in birth-control pills.
"There is a real danger that Plan B may be given to sexually abused women and minors, under coercion or without their consent," Gacek said. "The availability of Plan B over the counter also bypasses the routine medical care of sexually active girls and women, which is important to allow screening for other health conditions."
Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America, said she's also worried.
“This ruling puts politics above women's health,” she told The Christian Post. “Minor girls need permission to go on a field trip, get a piercing, or in some states use a tanning booth. But now, by one judge's order, girls will be encouraged to rely on an ineffective drug without medical oversight or parental involvement."
7. Letter to the Editor, The Chronicle Herald – March 21, 2009
In response to your article of March 19, 2009, “Wrong on condoms”
In reference to Pope Benedict’s claim that the distribution of condoms endanger public health, are not a solution to the AIDS problem, but rather increase it; you complain that he did not supply supporting evidence. However, neither did all of those who objected and proclaimed the contrary. In your own statements regarding unassailable scientific evidence, and a recent analysis of thousands of studies, you also omitted the supporting evidence.
I was surprised by your statement, “À recent analysis of thousands of studies concluded condoms, properly and consistently used, cut the transmission of HIV by 80%.” Do you seriously consider this a positive solution when on any given occasion even the careful stand a 20% chance of contracting a disease that will kill them?
Further, there is supporting documentation for the Pope`s position. Edward Green is director of the AIDS Prevention Research Project at the Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies. He wrote, ``Rethinking AIDS Prevention: Learning From Successes in Developing Countries`` and reported that, between 1989 and 2001, the average number of condoms per male ages 15 to 49 in African countries skyrocketed. So did the number of those infected with HIV. South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe had the world’s highest levels of condom availability per man. They also had the world’s highest HIV rates.
According to an article by Sr. Grace Candiru in the March 8, 2009 issue of National Catholic Register, UNAIDS, the joint United Nations Program on HIV AIDS asked a Dr. Norman Hearst, physician and epidemiologist at the University of California, to do a scientific review to see if condom promotions had reversed HIV AIDS epidemics. His review found the contrary was true. Countries with the most condoms per man tended to have the highest HIV rates. UNAIDS refused to publish Hearst`s findings.
I suppose that Pope Benedict XVI was guilty of not being politically correct, but then I don’t think that would have been his objective.
Ernie Curry
8. Lifeissues.Net Newsletter #415 – March 22, 2009
Greetings from LifeIssues.net (www.LifeIssues.net)
Dear Friends for Life,
The Federal district of Mexico City legalized abortion two years ago. Abortion is not legal in the other Mexican States and pro-abortion people are calling for legalization throughout the country. They have published a "study" done by Planned Parenthood's Guttmacher Institute and the Population Council, both of them aggressive proponents of abortion on demand. These two organizations are now claiming that in 2006 there were an estimated 875,000 illegal abortions in Mexico.
First of all, since illegal abortions are not reported, there are no firm statistics in any country. Anything you hear is an estimate. Since legalization in the Federal District there have been 12,262 abortions or approximately 8,000 abortions in a twelve month period. The total population of the Federal District is about 10 million people compared to the total population of the nation of Mexico which has 110 million. If abortion were legal nationwide and the same percentages would apply, then there would be a total of 88,000 abortions in the entire nation. Compare this to the wild and unsubstantiated claim of 875,000 above. Sadly, this is the type of total falsehoods that we have seen in other countries around the globe. This claim of the number of illegal abortions is wildly beyond any remote possibility.
God Bless; Jerry Novotny, OMI
Action: Please go to this very important poll on the Fox news website. The left hand side box includes 3 options, video, photo, poll, – click on the poll. The poll asks: Do you believe assisted suicide is unethical? Please vote Yes. Thank you.
Lifeissues.Net Newsletter #415 – March 22, 2009
Table Of Contents:
1. Me And Mengele
2. Embryonic Stem Cell Research And Human Dignity
3. Begotten Not Made: A Catholic View Of Reproductive Technology
4. Extracts From Dignitas Personae: A Selection Of Key Passages Congregation For The Doctrine Of The Faith
5. Speaking Clearly About Early Life: Confusion Over Medical Terms
6. Father Kuchinsky: What Can I Say?
7. Stem Cells For Dummies
8. Cardinal George Warns US Heading Toward Despotism, Urges Catholics To Lobby For Conscience Protection
9. Illegitimacy On The Rise: Out-Of-Wedlock Births Hit 40% In US
10. Condom Distribution Not Answer To Curbing Spread Of HIV In Africa, Pope Benedict Says
11. Consciousness, Coma, And Brain Death-2009
12. Exploiting Children And Undermining Parental Rights: U.N. Convention On The Rights Of The Child
Item #1. Me And Mengele
Summary: And his words had made me stop and ponder about any moral obligations and moral accountability I might have as a brand new research scientist myself. What exactly had taken place in those Nazi medical experiments with human subjects? How could such brilliant scientists and physicians have conceived and carried out such abominable crimes against humanity in the name of "science" and "the greater good"? "Well, they were just 'untermenchen', and going to die anyway; might as well get some good out of them"!
View full article at LifeIssues.net
Item #2. Embryonic Stem Cell Research And Human Dignity
It is often said that every man has his price. In this age it seems that even moral absolutes have their price in the minds of many. Actions are viewed as morally wrong only until I decide that the action would have sufficient benefits for me. This is the moral relativism we have often heard our present and our previous Holy Fathers condemn. This approach to morality has led our society into actions many of us would never have imagined possible.
View full article at LifeIssues.net
Item #3. Begotten Not Made: A Catholic View Of Reproductive Technology
One reproductive technology which the Church has clearly and unequivocally judged to be immoral is in vitro fertilization or IVF. Unfortunately, most Catholics are not aware of the Church's teaching, do not know that IVF is immoral, and some have used it in attempting to have children. If a couple is unaware that the procedure is immoral, they are not subjectively guilty of sin. Children conceived through this procedure are children of God and are loved by their parents, as they should be. Like all children, regardless of the circumstances of their conception and birth, they should be loved, cherished and cared for. The immorality of conceiving children through IVF can be difficult to understand and accept because the man and woman involved are usually married and trying to overcome a medical problem (infertility) in their marriage. Yet the procedure does violence to human dignity and to the marriage act and should be avoided. But why, exactly, is IVF immoral?
View full article at LifeIssues.net
Item #4. Extracts From Dignitas Personae: A Selection Of Key Passages Congregation For The Doctrine Of The Faith
On September 8, 2008, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith ordered the publication of Dignitas personae, the first Vatican assessment of bioethics since Donum vitae (1987). We reprint the extracts of Dignitas personae that have occasioned the most comment from Catholic bioethicists.
View full article at LifeIssues.net
Item #5. Speaking Clearly About Early Life: Confusion Over Medical Terms
The crux of the controversy, however, lies in the meaning of four words: conception, fertilization, implantation, and pregnancy. Many tend to interchange the terms fertilization and conception when referring to the beginning of human life. Indeed, some dictionaries make little, if any, distinction between them.
View full article at LifeIssues.net
Item #6. Father Kuchinsky: What Can I Say?
What should I say? What would you like me to say?
Would you like me to say that God is unaware and unconcerned that a president would sign an executive order so that, with the stroke of a pen, taxpayer money now will be used to kill babies in the womb; and your money and mine is now to be used to promote the evil of abortion throughout the world? Do you want me to tell you that the Word of God does not say the shedding of innocent blood cries out to Heaven for vengeance? It does. I cannot change that. I cannot withhold His warning.
See the full article at LifeIssues.net
Item #7. Stem Cells For Dummies
With all we now know, why is Congress bent on spending taxpayer money for embryo destructive experimentation? Isn't that scientifically retrogressive and economically wasteful, not to mention morally unjust to the embryos killed as a result of the decision and to the taxpayers who object to public funds being used for such research when alternatives are available?
Full article at Culture of Life Foundation
Item #8. Cardinal George Warns US Heading Toward Despotism, Urges Catholics To Lobby For Conscience Protection
Warning that the Obama administration's proposed removal of conscience-protection regulations for health care workers "would be the first step in moving our country from democracy to despotism," Cardinal Francis George, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, urged Catholics to contact the Department of Health and Human Services before the administration makes its final decision. "We therefore need legal protection for freedom of conscience and of religion – including freedom for religious health care institutions to be true to themselves," Cardinal George said. He added:
Conscientious objection against many actions is a part of our life. We have a conscientious objection against war for those who cannot fight, even though it's good to defend your country. We have a conscientious objection for doctors against being involved in administering the death penalty. Why shouldn't our government and our legal system permit conscientious objection to a morally bad action, the killing of babies in their mother's womb? People understand what really happens in an abortion and in related procedures – a living member of the human family is killed – that's what it's all about – and no one should be forced by the government to act as though he or she were blind to this reality.
I ask you please to let the government know that you want conscience protections to remain strongly in place. In particular, let the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington know that you stand for the protection of conscience, especially now for those who provide the health care services so necessary for a good society.
Full viewing at Catholic Culture
Item #9. Illegitimacy On The Rise: Out-Of-Wedlock Births Hit 40% In US
The number of illegitimate births in the US continues to rise, with the latest federal statistics showing that 40% of all births in 2007 took place out of wedlock. Figures from the Centers for Disease Control showed that teen pregnancy also increased in 2007 – the last year for which full statistics were available. But teenagers were not responsible for the rise in out-of-wedlock births; more than 75% of the mothers giving birth to illegitimate children were at least 20 years old.
View entire text at Catholic Culture
Item #10. Condom Distribution Not Answer To Curbing Spread Of HIV In Africa, Pope Benedict Says
Distributing condoms is not the answer to curbing the spread of HIV in Africa, Pope Benedict XVI said on Tuesday while heading to Yaounde, Cameroon, as part of a seven-day pilgrimage to the continent, the AP/Washington Post reports. "You can't resolve it with the distribution of condoms," Benedict said, adding, "On the contrary, it increases the problem".
View entire text at Kaiser
Item #11. Consciousness, Coma, And Brain Death-2009
Comment: Note this quote: "a patient in PVS who appears unaware of the environment and commands actually may be fully aware and cognitively intact but unable to show any response to stimuli." Although this commentary accepts brain death criteria uncritically, it does give a good review of some new (and not so new) advances in understanding that lack of motion in brain injury does not automatically mean lack of brain function. I wish this had come out during Terri's ordeal and I doubt that this will come out in the mainstream media even now due to the medical, legal and public bias against people with severe brain injury. – Nancy Valko, RN
View entire text at JAMA
Item #12. Exploiting Children And Undermining Parental Rights: U.N. Convention On The Rights Of The Child
The United States and Somalia are the only two countries that have yet to ratify this ticking time bomb. The Convention's vague standards are troubling and establish the primary basis for why it should not be ratified. As it stands, the UNCRC could be used to establish a "right" to abortion and contraception for our children, based upon international human rights, where the government and international "consensus" would be the sole arbiters of what is in the best interest of children.
View entire text at Culture of Life Foundation
You Can Change Society:
1. Be Informed: "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge." Hosea 4:6. Visit Lifeissues.net Website for insights into current Life Issues www.lifeissues.net. All prior email Newsletters Archives are located online.
2. Pray Daily: for the courage to be God's presence in society and to strongly support those who are deemed "unworthy of life". "If My people who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14.
3. Become Involved: Several years ago Fr. Jerry created a project entitled, "Journey for Life into the Heart of Asia". It is a project which appeals for donations to help finance plane travel for lectures and seminars to developing countries in Asia. Strong focus is placed on reaching Asian Catholic Major Seminaries, Universities, Parishes, Hospitals and Family/Pro Life related groups. The lectures place emphasis on "The Asian Family at Crossroads: Life Issues Trends and Challenges".
For information about no-cost Pro Life Talks to your group in Asia: contact Fr. Jerry at jerry@shirt.ocn.ne.jp.
To become a supportive Missionary participant for this Asian project, kindly send your donations to: Fr. Jerry Novotny, OMI; LifeIssues.net, Editor; Akebono-cho 1-15-9; Kochi City, Japan, 780-8072; (or transfer donation directly to ProLife bank account: Jerome Novotny, Shikoku Bank, Asakura Branch, No. 102-1-0080824).
Contact Editor: Fr. Jerry Novotny, OMI; LifeIssues.net, Editor; Akebono-cho 1-15-9; Kochi City, Japan, 780-8072; Tel/Fax: 088-843-0406; E-Mail: jerry@lifeissues.net (or) jerry@shirt.ocn.ne.jp.
Websites by Editor:
English LifeIssues Site: http://www.lifeissues.net,
Japanese LifeIssues Site: http://www.japan-lifeissues.net,
OMI Site: http://www.omijapankorea.net/index.html.
9. Pharmacist's Conscience
Contact: Stanley J. Lloyd PharmD
Telephone: 513/793-3555
Fax: 513/793-3600
E-mail: theannalsnews@theannals.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ETHICIST Raises Concerns as PHARMACIST MORAL Conscience RULE is CHALLENGED
CINCINNATI, March 2009 – A recent commentary concludes that pharmacists require freedom of conscience in order to provide the best patient care. “ The ‘Hijacking’ of Moral Conscience from Pharmacy Practice: A Canadian Perspective” by pharmacist and ethicist Cristina Alarcon, clinical instructor at the University of British Columbia, is available online from The Annals of Pharmacotherapy (www.theannals.com) and will appear in the April 2009 issue. The article’s release coincides with recent plans to remove a federal rule that clarifies and protects US healthcare workers’ conscience rights.
In the wake of ongoing medical developments, pharmacists increasingly face involvement with controversial procedures such as assisted suicide and abortion. Laws, policies, and professional guidelines exist to promote professional integrity. Yet some can require pharmacists to provide services contrary to their ethical beliefs, potentially interfering with their professional judgment and their abilities to provide patient care with integrity and a full sense of responsibility.
Although written from the perspective of Canadian laws and practice standards, the article applies to healthcare workers in all settings. Arguing that conscience rights are neither arbitrary nor subject to removal, Alarcon explains they are a natural and necessary part of all public life. “Protection of conscience is crucial if we are to foster a society where citizens are free to dissent from popular opinion,” she explains. “This is especially true in modern Western democracies, where the concept of majority rule can lead to the mistaken notion that ‘might’ makes ‘right’.”
Early online publication of Alarcon’s article coincides with the US Department of Health and Human Services’ proposal to overturn the regulation entitled “Ensuring that Department of Health and Human Services Funds Do Not Support Coercive or Discriminatory Policies or Practices in Violation of Federal Law.” The regulation clarifies and strengthens laws that protect the rights and freedoms of healthcare providers, including pharmacists, when they choose to not participate in ethically controversial medical procedures. A 30-day comment period was opened on March 10 to seek public input on the rule and its pending reversal. Interested parties may comment to the Department of Health and Human Services by April 9, 2009, at proposedrescission@hhs.gov.
The Annals of Pharmacotherapy , now in its 43 rd year of publication, is a leading peer-reviewed, international pharmacotherapy journal for physicians, pharmacists, and other healthcare practitioners. Published by Harvey Whitney Books Company, The Annals features articles directly r elated to the safe, effective, and economical use of medications and related devices in patient care. The journal’s editorial office is headquartered at 8044 Montgomery Road, Suite 415, Cincinnati, Ohio 45236-2998, USA. The journal is available online at www.theannals.com.
10. Right To Die In Halifax – March 26, 2009
Dr. Jocelyn Downie is the Canada Research Chair Health Law and Policy and Professor of Law and Medicine at Dalhousie University. She also wrote a book on euthanasia and assisted suicide in Canada and was recently published in a text book on law and ethics with a chapter on euthanasia and end-of-life care.
In her book – Dying Justice (2004) – Downie explains several issues.
She believes that the Sue Rodriguez decision was wrong and if re-visited today would be decided differently. In 2007 Downie spoke at Carlton University and I attended her lecture. She explained that the Supreme Court Decision concerning health care in Quebec brought a new concept into the issue. She said: The other change in legal interpretation
since 1993 concerns the issue of "over-breadth". Over-breadth is a legal concept that states that a law cannot infringe on the Charter in a manner that is unnecessarily broad or going beyond what is necessary.
Since the majority of the Supreme Court found that Rodriguez's rights were infringed upon by the law, but that it was a necessary infringement, therefore when applying the concept of over-breadth, she maintains that the Supreme Court would rule in favour of assisted suicide, meaning that the law must not need to be overbearing.
Downie explained in her book that she believes that there is no difference between killing and letting die. This position is also held by the majority of the bioethics community even though it is a ridiculous position. Therefore she believes that not providing treatment is the same as directly and intentionally causing death. Even though many decisions are made that directly result in the death, usually medical treatment is stopped in order to allow death to occur naturally.
To say there is no difference between killing and letting die is ridiculous because non-treatment doesn't cause the death, the disease causes the death and many times death doesn't actually occur. A recent American study found that 16% of people in an ICU who are declared to have no hope, actually recovered. But to directly and intentionally provide a lethal dose to someone will cause death all of the time whether that person is terminally ill or not.
Downie is very honest. She believes that the "Safeguards" that appear in the Oregon assisted suicide law are unconstitutional in Canada. She was very clear that we are all equal under the law (Section 15 of the Charter). Therefore any law that would limit euthanasia or assisted suicide to people who are terminally ill or within 6 months of death, or who are suffering physical pain, or containing a waiting period (14 days), that all the "safeguards" would eventually be struck down by the Supreme Court of Canada. She stated at the Carlton lecture that: 'the only Charter proof law legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide in Canada would be a law that is based on a competent, free and autonomous choice'.
In other words, due to the legal precedent, we can't have a little bit of euthanasia or assisted suicide, because the "safeguards" would be struck down. A little bit of euthanasia and assisted suicide will result in euthanasia and assisted suicide on demand. I wish the Dying With Dignity group were as honest as Downie.
Downie is an activist and supports activist judicial decisions. She is a friend of the disability community and interestingly she opposes the Statement of the Manitoba College of Physicians and Surgeons on End of Life Decisions. She also opposed the Winnipeg hospital that pushed to end medical care for Samuel Golubchuk. She holds these positions because
she absolutely believes that health care must be provided with consent, but also withdrawn with consent.
She is also the major author of the textbook – Canadian Health Law and Policy (Hardcover) that sells for $400.
I have written several articles about Downie. She was a speaker at the World Federation of Right to Die Societies conference in Toronto (September 2006) and she has been published in articles and periodicals everywhere.
For more information contact Alex Schadenberg at: info@epcc.ca.
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