Index of News Items 

• March For Life In Ottawa – May 11 to 12, 2005
• International Day Of The Unborn Child – April 4th
• Aliant's Support Of Tsunami Relief Efforts
• Update – Marriage Referendum Campaign
• My Humble Apology – National Geographic's In The Womb Did Not Air
• Disability Rights Activist Has Experienced Medically Induced Starvation
• Committee Hearings on Anti-marriage Bill C-38
• CWA Says Supreme Court Should Uphold Ten Commandments Displays or Redecorate
• Foster Kids: One Percent Molested Each Year
• 'Million Dollar Baby Controversy' Incites Protest at Academy Awards
• United Mothers, Fathers And Friends
• Atlantic Marian Gathering – 2005
• Sobey's Receipts Are Valuable
• Queenship of Mary Fraternity - Quarterly Newsletter
• PRI Weekly Briefing – A Million Dollars for Messrs. Eastwood and Schiavo
• Life Issues.Net NEWSLETTER #216 – March 6, 2005
• Citizens Centre Calls For A Marriage Referendum At Townhall Meetings
• National Geographic Channel - In The Womb - May 8, 2005
• Terri Schiavo Is Condemned To Die Unless A New Court Decision Intervenes
• Speed Needed For 'Terri's Law'; Senate Rejects Schumer Amendment; Victory At The UN! and Absence Of Thought On Abstinence
• Therese Movie - More Canadian Theatres Confirmed!
• Poll Shows 76% of Connecticut Voters Want State-Wide Referendum
• The Conservative Position Offers A Reasonable Alternative
• United Mothers, Fathers And Friends - Latest Update
• Should Terri Schiavo's Be Allowed To Die? - Vote
• Marriage Referendum Campaign - UPDATE - March 15, 2005

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March For Life In Ottawa - May 11 to 12, 2005

"LIFE IS THE ONLY CHOICE" - 8th annual MARCH FOR LIFE. Make plans now to join pro-life people from across the country to demand protection for our unborn citizens. Events will include Banquet with Guest Speaker Supreme Knight of Columbus Carl Anderson, Candlelight Vigil, Church Services, March through Downtown Ottawa. For information on youth events, candle pledge forms and other information visit http://www.lifesite.net http://www.lifesite.net/ or call toll-free1-800-730-5358.

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International Day Of The Unborn Child

April 4 – Monday – International DAY OF THE UNBORN CHILD. (Rescheduled this year only from March 25). An international witness to life, initiated and spearheaded by the Knights of Columbus since 2002. For information regarding observances in your area please contact your local Knight of Columbus Council.

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Update - Marriage Referendum Campaign 

March 4, 2005

How to steal a democracy in broad daylight

If you enjoy movies about smooth, artistic master criminals, you should catch the debate in Parliament these days over same-sex marriage.

The Liberals are pulling off one of their periodic brilliant heists of Canadian rights and freedoms.

They are claiming that gay marriage is an established legal right, and that anyone who disagrees (which is most Canadians, according to the polls) is "against the Charter."

Question: If the right of homosexuals to marry is already established, why is there a government Bill before Parliament to establish it?

Because, says the government, lower courts have legalized gay marriage in only seven provinces, and the Bill will make it legal in all ten.

But if rights are something judges decide, not MPs, surely there should be a test case before the Supreme Court, not a Bill before Parliament. What has the Supreme Court said about gay marriage?

Well, believe it or not, in its last actual ruling ten years ago, the Supreme Court held that "Marriage. . . is by nature heterosexual."

And for good measure, Parliament voted by a huge majority in 1999 for a resolution saying they would keep it that way.

In fact, the Liberal cabinet (including Anne McLellan and Paul Martin) promised to opt out of anything the courts might say to the contrary--"to take all necessary steps within the jurisdiction of the Parliament of Canada to preserve this [traditional] definition of marriage."

Well, okay, but now the seven lower courts completely ignored and contradicted Parliament and the Supreme Court by saying homosexual marriage is a Charter right. What did the Supreme Court say to correct the lower courts?

Nothing, because the federal government decided not to appeal those cases.

Why on earth not?

Good question.

Why didn't Parliament exercise its own Charter right to opt out the seven lower court decisions, as MPs promised to do in 1999?

Another good question. Instead, the government drafted a Bill to legalize same-sex marriage, and asked the Supreme Court for permission to pass it -- an unheard-of request.

And what did the court say?

The Supreme Court said Parliament could pass the Bill if it wants, but it refused to answer whether the traditional restriction to man and woman is "against the Charter."

So why does Justice Minister Irwin Cotler keep saying it is?

Because that's how he chooses to see it. He wants all social controversies removed from Parliament and passed to the judges. He told the Western Standard (Feb. 28 edition) "I am opposed to invoking the notwithstanding clause on principle [i.e. Parliament's Charter right to overrule the courts]." So he's flouting the Charter while claiming to defend it.

And Martin keeps saying and doing the same.

By taking this tack, they're trying to cut out all the MPs we elect to Parliament, and transfer ultimate authority to the judges they themselves appoint to the superior courts.

In most countries this sort of coup d'etat has to be done with guns. Here all it takes is a slogan--"Defend the Charter!"--even while you pervert and wreck it.

Like a brilliant heist in a movie, it's hard not to admire how clever they are. Except that it just happens to be our democracy they're stealing. - Link Byfield

Link Byfield is chairman of the Edmonton-based Citizens Centre for Freedom and Democracy, and an Alberta senator-elect.

Citizens Centre for Freedom and Democracy
Suite 203, 10441 - 178 Street
Edmonton, AB T5S 1R5
Phone: 780-481-7844
Toll Free: 1-866-666-6768
Fax: 780-481-9983
contact@citizenscentre.com
www.citizenscentre.com

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My Humble Apology - National Geographic's In The Womb Did Not Air

My humble apology that the program "In The Womb" scheduled for the National Geographic TV Channel did not air. I didn't realize that scheduling for Canadian TV would be different than it was in the US.

I've sent an email to them to ask when.  You may too consider doing likewise.

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Disability Rights Activist Has Experienced Medically Induced Starvation

Kate Adamson joins the fight to save Terri Schiavo from a court-ordered starvation by sharing her unique experience.

National Desk - Wanda L. Sanchez of Full Phase Media, 209.531.9899, 209.534.9921

LOS ANGELES, March 1 /Christian Wire Service http://www.christianwireservice.com - Kate Adamson, award winning author and disability rights activist, by request of the Schindler family, has launched a campaign to save Terri Schiavo from starvation. Like Terri, the doctors felt that Kate was someone who should not or could not be saved. Kate suffered a catastrophic brain stem stroke and was dependent on a feeding tube for all her nourishment. Kate had her feeding tube turned off for over a week. Now fully functional except for some paralysis on the left side of her body, Kate is in the unique position of knowing what it is like to be starved. She is hopeful that her story will get people to stop before they sign on to the idea that Terri Schiavo should be starved to death. Unlike Michael Schiavo who is trying to have his wife starved to death, Kate's husband Steve fought to save her life. Adamson, author of /Kate's Journey/, appeared on /Paula Zahn Now/ to make an impassioned plea to save Terri's life. That program, along with numerous other radio and television appearances, has resulted in thousands of responses from people who agree that Terri Schiavo deserves a chance to live. Planning a trip in hopes of visiting Terri's bedside, Kate is hopeful that she will be able to meet with Governor Bush and the members of the Florida State legislature. "I have a unique understanding of what Terri is feeling. I could feel everything that the doctors did to me, and I could do nothing. I was at the complete mercy of others, and they couldn't hear me." - Kate Adamson For more information, please visit her website at: http://www.katesjourney.com

To schedule an interview with Kate Adamson, contact her publicist, Wanda L. Sanchez at 209.531.9899 or 209.534.9921.

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Committee Hearings on Anti-marriage Bill C-38

REAL Women of Canada

Despite the fact that the same-sex marriage Bill C-38 has not yet reached second reading in the House of Commons and the debate is still raging, the Liberal government has already established a Special Committee to review the bill.  This review, however, will only commence if and when the bill has passed second reading.

Although the date when this may occur is unknown, the Committee plans to meet in early April to review the list of requests to appear as witnesses, and will, at that time, make its selection of the witnesses. 

The Committee itself is far from promising from a pro-marriage perspective, as it appears to have been carefully stacked against us.  Committee members include two homosexual MPs, Réal Ménard (BQ) (Hochelaga, Quebec) and Bill Siksay (NDP) (Burnaby-Douglas, BC).  The latter replaced former NDP MP, Svend Robinson in his riding when the latter resigned.  The Liberals have appointed six MPs who are hard-line supporters of the Bill.  They are:

Mr. Marcel Proulx (Hull-Aylmer, Quebec), Chairman

Ms. Françoise Boivin (Gatineau, Quebec)

Mr. Don Boudria (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, Ontario)

Mr. Paul Harold Macklin (Northumberland-Quinte West, Ontario)

Ms. Anita Neville (Winnipeg South Centre, Manitoba)

Mr. Michael John Savage (Dartmouth-Cole Harbour, NS)

The Conservative members of the committee are:

Rona Ambrose (Edmonton-Spruce Grove, Alberta)

Gord Brown (Leeds-Grenville, Ontario)

Mr. Rob Moore (Fundy, New Brunswick)

Mr. Vic Toews  (Provencher, Manitoba)

The final member of the committee is Bloc Québécois MP Richard Marceau (Charlesbourg, Quebec) who, in the previous Parliament, sat on the then Justice Committee when it studied the same-sex marriage issue.  He, too, is a hard line supporter of same-sex marriage.

The Committee’s final decision on same-sex marriage set out in Bill C-38, is, therefore, a foregone conclusion.

Our job, however, is to inundate the Committee with requests to appear as a witness before the beginning of April.  The more requests that are made, the more difficulty the committee will have in turning down requests to appear in an attempt to shorten the number of committee hearings.  The longer the review process, the more opportunity we will have to lobby against the Bill.  We must also request that the Committee be permitted to travel across the country to hear witnesses.  This, too, will delay the Committee hearings further, but also, importantly, it will allow a broader spectrum of Canadians to have their views heard by the Committee.

Please write to the Clerk of the Committee to request to appear as a witness.

Mr. Jean-François Pagé
Clerk, Legislative Committee on Bill C-38
House of Commons
Room 603
Ottawa, Ontario  K1A 0A6

Tel:  (613) 944-4364

Fax: (613) 943-0307

Email: cc38@parl.gc.ca

Please write to:

The Right Hon. Paul Martin, PC, MP

Prime Minister of Canada

Langevin Building

80 Wellington Street

Ottawa, ON  K1A 0A2

Tel: (613) 992-4211

Fax: (613) 941-6900

E-mail: Martin.P@parl.gc.ca

The Hon. Irwin Cotler, PC, MP

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Justice Canada

East Memorial Building,

4^th Floor, 284 Wellington Street

Ottawa, ON  K1A 0H8

Tel: (613) 992-4621

Fax: (613) 990-7255

E-mail: Cotler.I@parl.gc.ca

Mr. Stephen Harper

Leader of the Opposition

House of Commons

Ottawa, Ontario  K1A 0A6

Tel: (613 ) 996-6740

Fax: (613) 947-0310

Email: Harper.S@parl.gc.ca

Conservative Member

c/o Legislative Committee on Bill C-38

House of Commons

Ottawa, Ontario  K1A 0A6

and Conservative Committee Members (see above) to request that the Committee be permitted to travel across the country to hear witnesses.

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CWA Says Supreme Court Should Uphold Ten Commandments Displays or Redecorate

Rebecca S. Jones of Concerned Women for America, 202-488-7000 ext. 126

WASHINGTON, March 1 /Christian Wire Service/ - Concerned Women for America (CWA) is cautiously optimistic that the U.S. Supreme Court will affirm the constitutionality of public displays of the Ten Commandments along with other symbols of law on government property.

"The Supreme Court should be able to see straight through the bogus arguments of special interest groups whose only motivation appears to be erasing any recognition of God from our public life," said Jan LaRue, CWA's chief counsel. "Setting the Ten Commandments on public display is an acknowledgement of the cultural and legal history of the United States. It is light years from establishing a national church, which is what the First Amendment prohibits."

"Hopefully, the Court will affirm the 5th Circuit's ruling in Van Orden v. Perry, and reverse the ruling by the Sixth Circuit in the McCreary case. If it fails to do so, the next sound we hear may be that of a hammer and chisel on the Ten Commandments in the Court's own building," LaRue concluded.

Concerned Women for America is the nation's largest public policy women's organization.

The preceding was forwarded to you by the Christian Communication Network.
You can always find the latest press releases at www.ChristianWireService.com.

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Foster Kids: One Percent Molested Each Year

Paul Cameron, Ph.D. Chairman, Family Research Institute, 303-681-3113, pdcameron@juno.com

COLORADO SPRINGS, March 1 /Christian Wire Service/ -- Every year, 1% of foster children are molested and 3% are physically abused. Those are the findings from 6 years of substantiated physical or sexual abuse cases reported by the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services. Most sexual abuse (64%) was by foster fathers, but foster mothers were responsible over three-fourths (77%) of physical abuse.

Dr. Paul Cameron, chairman of the Family Research Institute, reported the data in the March issue of Psychological Reports, a refereed scientific journal. "It is likely that these rates apply to the nation's estimated half million foster children," he said. "What's shocking, is that 34% of the molestations were homosexual."

"Professional societies are so taken with gay rights they are ignoring the evidence. Just last year,[1] the American Psychological Association declared opposition to 'discrimination' against lesbian or gay parents adoption, child custody and visitation, foster care and reproductive health services," said Dr. Cameron. "How does the APA answer this new evidence? In what appears to be the only other published survey of molestations by foster parents, 6 of 3,714 adults[2] reported serious sexual advances by foster parents, and half of these were homosexual. Likewise, in a large random sample[3] 1 of every 136 adults reported sex with a parent, whereas 5 (29%) of the 17 with a homosexual parent did. These new Illinois findings also suggest that a child's risk of being molested is considerably higher when their parent engages in homosexuality."

In responding to the Freedom of Information Act request, Illinois became the first state to disclose the kinds of abuse of its foster and adoptive children. Every year, Illinois has about 60,000 children in 4,300 foster- or adoption-subsidized homes. For the 6-year period (1997-2002), after investigation, 966 parents were determined to have violated their charges. Of foster parents who engaged in both physical and sexual abuse, 8 of the 15 abused children of their sex.

Psychological Reports is a refereed scientific journal (see PubMed, the search engine of the National Library of Medicine). The cite is 2005;96:227-230.

References

1. 7/28/04
2. Psychological Reports 1986;58:327-337.
3. Adolescence 1996; 31:757-776.

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'Million Dollar Baby Controversy' Incites Protest at Academy Awards

Already Hollywood is on the side of killing those whose live's are deemed not worthy of living.  Sounds familiar to many seniors who fought in the last world war.

Comment Courtesy Herm Wills

'Million Dollar Baby Controversy' Incites Protest at Academy Awards
Terri Schiavo supporters see Clint Eastwood's movie as a disgraceful endorsement of euthanasia

National Desk - Contact: Arianna Grumbine, 310-850-7026 cell, or Cheryl Conrad 909-213- 8472 cell, both of Survivors

HOLLYWOOD, Ca., Feb 26 /Christian Wire Service/ - A protest of the Oscar-nominated movie, Million Dollar Baby, directed by Clint Eastwood, is scheduled to begin at 2 pm at the corner of Highland and Hollywood. Over 40 Christians and concerned citizens of Southern California will stand together to give a voice to Terri Schindler Schiavo and all other disabled people of America.

Press Conference and Protest Details:

When: Sunday, February 27, starting with a Press Conference at 2 PM
Where: At the southeast corner of Highland and Hollywood, in Hollywood, Ca.
Who: Christians and concerned citizens of Southern California
Why: To give a voice to Terri Schindler Schiavo and all other disabled people of America

"It has been called euthanasia, and it's been called mercy killing, but no matter what you call it, the starvation of Terri Schiavo, like the death of Maggie, is simply the execution of a disabled and innocent person." -  Arianna Grumbine of Survivors

"Clint Eastwood speaks out of both sides of his mouth.  In a recent interview, Mr. Eastwood said that he agreed with the priest in his movie that condemned euthanasia, yet there is no doubt Mr. Eastwood's movie is an unabashed endorsement of killing the handicapped.  So we ask Mr. Eastwood the question; "Would you kill Terri Schiavo?"  - Jennifer Mason of Survivors

"Movies like Million Dollar Baby that glorify the act of killing and treat a killer as a hero, are extremely dangerous and pose a serious treat to all persons with disabilities." Bobby Schindler, the brother of Terri Schindler Schiavo

For on-site interviews call: Arianna Grumbine – (cell) (310) 850-7026; Cheryl Conrad – (cell) (909) 213- 8472

Background:

The court ordered starvation and dehydration of Terri Schindler Schiavo, a brain injured woman, is scheduled to begin on March 18, in Pinellas Park, Florida.

For a history of the fight to save Terri Schindler Schiavo's life, visit www.TerrisFight.org

Founding in 1998, Survivors is a pro-life youth organization based in Southern California dedicated to defending those unjustly sentenced to death.

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• Ontario Bill 171 - A Call to Arms
• Defend Marriage Campaign Update
• Russian Supreme Court Upholds Marriage
• 3 More MP’s Come Out Against C-38
• Compas Poll – 66%
• Action Items – Upcoming Rallies March 5 - 15

"Martin is wrapping himself around in the human rights argument. This is not a human rights issue. It's a common good issue, for society. That's the fundamental difference between our position and the position that Paul Martin and his government have taken." - Dennis Savoie. Former president of the Canadian Association of the Knights of Columbus.

1) ONTARIO BILL 171 – A CALL TO ARMS

What happens to a nation when a particular lobby group works its way so effectively into the powers of all three major political parties that a controversial bill, which benefits one small lobby group, passes into law with little resistance and lightning speed.

Such a thing should never happen in Canada.

Last Thursday it happened in our backyard.

Canada is a nation that immigrants continue to flock to believing it to be a land free from the political corruption that devastated their homelands, a land where freedom of religion and speech are hallmarks of society.

Those Canadians who still believe these hallmarks exist in our nation are invited to take a close look at the events that transpired in the Ontario Legislative Assembly last Thursday.

What happened there is a wake up call to each of us as citizens, for what happened in Queen’s Park could happen in any of our provincial legislatures. It could happen on Parliament Hill.

It is much more than a painful reminder of the democratic deficit in our country. It stands as a frightening foretaste of where our democracy is ultimately headed if we as citizens do not rise up and shoulder the full responsibility of citizenship by speaking out and holding our politicians accountable.

In three infamous days, the Ontario legislature with the collusion of all three provincial parties introduced and passed controversial bill 171.

There was no lengthy debate over the bill, no committee struck to fully examine the bill’s many profound implications, no witnesses invited to speak, and in the greatest show of cowardice seen in a house of representatives in recent years, no recorded vote was taken on third reading.

How can we as Canadians hold our politicians accountable when they won’t even let us know how they voted on an issue?

Instead of transparency there was an opaque series of backroom negotiations followed by intense party discipline to ensure that the bill would pass quickly with little debate or controversy.

Only 5 of the 102 MPP’s were needed to call for a recorded vote on the bill.

"If you put this vote through without us having a recorded vote, then as far as I'm concerned, democracy is dead in Ontario," declared Tory MPP Bill Murdoch.

Only 3 MPP’s had the fortitude to stand up and request a recorded vote. Tory MPP’s Bill Murdoch, Frank Klees and Jerry Ouellette were the notable exceptions who pleaded in vain for a recorded vote so constituents would know where their MPP’s stood. Unfortunately, constituents will never know how their MPP’s voted.

If democracy isn’t quite dead in Ontario, something sure stinks. Before: http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1108509011821&call_pageid=968256290204&col=Columnist969907623279

After: http://www.oacas.org/whatsnew/newsstories/05/feb/25ss.pdf

“Acceptance is not submission; it is acknowledgement of the facts of the situation. Then decide what you’re going to do about it." - Kathleen Casey Theisen

2) DEFEND MARRIAGE CAMPAIGN

Thanks to all of you who forwarded last week’s special report, and sent letters to your MP’s regarding the health risks of Bill C-38 as detailed by the coalition of Canadian physicians. It is imperative that as many Canadians as possible read this well documented report. http://www.lifesite.net/features/marriage_defence/SSM_MD_evidence.htm

The Internet is an integral tool for us in our fight to defend marriage. If you have not had a chance to forward the physician’s report, please do so now.

In addition, we wish to thank all of you who have sent letters to politicians asking them to uphold the definition of marriage and for going the second mile by inviting others to do Over 250,000 letters have gone out to date!

3) RUSSIAN SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS MARRIAGE

In some positive news on the international front, Moscow News Online reported recently that “The Russian Supreme Court has refused to introduce amendments to the Family Code allowing same-sex marriages, Ekho Moskvy radio reported on Tuesday.

“The court’s resolution reads that the court is not entitled to change laws.” (Russian Supreme Court Rejects Attempt to Legalize Same-Sex Marriages - Created: 15.02.2005 15:57 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 17:32 MSK MosNews - Moscow News Online)

4) 3 MORE MP’s COME OUT AGAINST C-38

Good news on the home front, MP's Walt Lastewka, Gary Carr and Lee Richardson have decided to vote to defeat Bill C-38.

5) COMPAS POLL – 66%

A Compas Poll commissioned by the National Post and Global TV found that two-thirds of Canadians (66%) endorse keeping marriage the way it is: http://www.compas.ca/pages/FrameMain.html - (February 2, 2005)

Edmonton Journal columnist Lorne Gunter pointed out that polls clearly "show popular opinion running two-to-one - or at worst three-to-two - against gay marriage." An SES poll revealed that most Canadians (54%) expect their MPs to listen to their views on marriage - and vote accordingly. Almost 42% said that if their MP failed to reflect their views in Parliament, they would vote to unseat him or her at the next election.

6)   ACTION ITEMS:

Upcoming Rallies…

TORONTO – Saturday March 5, 12:30 p.m. Nathan Phillip Square to Queen’s Park

Sponsored by United Front Canada www.unitedfrontcanada.com - (Multi-cultural and Multi-faith coalition) - Contact: 416-414-4620 or info@unitedfrontcanada.com

BRAMPTON – Saturday March 5, 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. Wellington St. & Hurontario St. Organized by: Campaign Life Coalition. (www.campaignlifecoalition.com) - Contact Rhonda Wood - Work: 416-204-9749 Cell 416-854-3124. CLC will supply signs, posters and handouts.

OTTAWA – Saturday March 5, 11 a.m. Ottawa Congress Centre, Westin Hotel (Colonel By Drive) Outside Liberal Convention - Organized by: Defend Marriage - (www.defendmarriage.ca) 

OTTAWA – Saturday March 5, 2 p.m. MP David McGuinty's riding office , 1883 Bank St., south of Walkley (Kilborn Ave is Dalton McGuinty's office) - Organized by:  REAL Women (www.realwomenca.com) 

OTTAWA YOUTH RALLY – Sunday March 6, 1p.m. – 4 p.m., Flame on Parliament Hill, Sponsored by Youth League for Marriage - More info: http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/mar/05030101.html 

OTHER IMPORTANT RALLIES

Information regarding these is available at the Defend Marriage website: http://www.defendmarriage.ca/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=5&id=70&Itemid=52 (Click on the community link)  

SATURDAY, MARCH 5:

Bowmanville, ON; Durham, ON; Hamilton, ON; Prince Albert, SK  

SUNDAY, MARCH 6:

Ottawa Youth Rally  

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9:

Edmonton, AB; Saskatoon, SK  

THURSDAY, MARCH 10

Kitchener, ON  

SATURDAY, MARCH 12

Markham, ON; Brampton, ON; Richmond Hill, ON; Thornhill, ON  

Tuesday March 15

Alberton, PEI  

Sincerely yours, Michele Dow - United Mothers, Fathers and Friends

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Atlantic Marian Gathering - 2005

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Sobey's Receipts Are Valuable

Please don't throw away your Sobey's receipts. Click here and see why!

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Secular Franciscan Order (SFO) - See the Newsletter Here as an Adobe Acrobat File (PDF format). Thank you for your patience while this document was being prepared.

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PRI Weekly Briefing - A Million Dollars for Messrs. Eastwood and Schiavo

Dear Colleague:

An inversion has occurred: Husbands and fathers who murder their wives and daughters instead of protecting them are now celebrated.  Witness the success of Clint Eastwood's Million-Dollar Baby and the near-success of Michael Schiavo's effort to kill his wife, Terri.

Steven W. Mosher, President
PRI Weekly Briefing
4 March 2005
Vol. 7 / No. 9

A Million Dollars for Messrs. Eastwood and Schiavo - By Joseph A. D'Agostino
 
Euthanasia is enjoying its greatest renaissance in the Western world since Nazi Germany.  Together with so many other social ideas first popularized in modern times by Nazis and Communists from abortion to easy divorce, euthanasia's time may have come.  Doctors in the Netherlands are euthanizing disabled infants even without parental consent, and Britain's Labour government may be about to legalize widespread euthanasia there. Our own state of Oregon has a physician-assisted suicide law.  Hollywood's elite, ever on the cutting edge of evil, gave its implicit imprimatur to exterminating the unfit to live by granting Academy Awards the other day to two movies that feature euthanasia, Million Dollar Baby and The Sea Inside.

The latter, which won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, is a Spanish movie with small impact and circulation outside of arty circles. It is also clear to prospective filmgoers what it is about: A man's effort to kill himself legally.  PG-13-rated Million Dollar Baby, which won Best Picture, is a major Hollywood release that has grossed $65 million already, and no doubt many people, including minors, went to see it with no idea that the film promoted the "mercy" killing of disabled people. Director Clint Eastwood won Best Director.

The film revolves around the story of Maggie (played by Hillary Swank, who won Best Actress), a female boxer who achieves success with the help of coach and surrogate father Frankie (played by Eastwood), but then is gravely injured in a boxing match.  I have not seen the movie and do not intend to since I do not enjoy watching women being beaten-even by other women.  Therefore, I will not attempt to critique the movie artistically but only discuss undisputed plot points.

"First, Maggie becomes a ventilator-dependent quadriplegic, after once living a life of utter physicality.  That would be difficult to adjust to even under ideal circumstances," wrote Wesley J. Smith in the Weekly Standard.  "But Maggie's life as a disabled woman is anything but ideal. Despite supposedly receiving the best of care she soon develops bed sores so serious that one of her legs is amputated. . . . Third, her venal and uncaring family refuses to visit, and when they do, she is pressured into signing over control of her assets.  Fourthly, after trying to kill herself in a terribly painful way, she is force-sedated to prevent further suicide attempts.  Frankie is in anguish over his friend's plight and concludes that he is actually killing Maggie by letting her live.  So, in his love for her, he overcomes his Catholic guilt and murders Maggie by removing the respirator and injecting her with an overdose of adrenalin."

Hollywood has long loved to portray euthanasia, and so have other film industries over time.  "Indeed, in the past movies were made as explicit propaganda to promote the legalization and legitimacy of active euthanasia," Smith wrote.  "The most notorious of these is the 1939 German movie I Accuse (Ich Klage An), a film that, with Goebbles's blessing, both promoted voluntary euthanasia as well as the propriety of killing disabled
infants-to blockbuster success at the box office.  It is striking and disturbing how similar the plotline of Million Dollar Baby is to the voluntary euthanasia story in I Accuse."  The heroines in both movies ask their "their primary male companions (the husband in I Accuse and surrogate father in Million Dollar Baby) to put them out of their misery," said Smith, a lawyer for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide.

Another primary male companion is out to eliminate a woman from the world but, unfortunately, these two people are real.  And the woman never asked to be eliminated.  Michael Schiavo has spent years trying to kill his severely disabled wife, Terri.  Her end may finally have come, and if it does, it will set a precedent that will eviscerate the rights of the disabled in this country.  Since Terri lives in Florida, the precedent will be especially ominous for the large number of retirees who live there.

"Judge Greer has ruled that she is to be executed March 18," said Eleanor Drechsel, an activist who assists Terri's parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, in trying to save Terri's life.  The case is an especially disturbing one because, among other reasons:

In a commentary on Ephesians, after discussing St. Paul's injunction that wives must obey their spouses, he admonished husbands, "Thou hast seen the measure of obedience, hear also the measure of love.  Wouldest thou have thy wife obedient unto thee, as the Church is to Christ?  Take then thyself the same provident care for her, as Christ takes for the Church. Even if it shall be needful for thee to give thy life for her, and to be cut into pieces ten thousand times, and to endure and undergo any suffering whatever, refuse it not.  Though thou shouldest undergo all this, yet wilt thou not, no, not even then, have done anything like Christ."

It's bad enough when a man kills another man, especially when he's vulnerable.  A few decades ago, a man deliberately killing a suffering woman would not have been celebrated in life or in fiction.  Except in Nazi Germany.

Joseph A. D'Agostino is Vice President for Communications at PRI.

PRI
P.O. Box 1559
Front Royal, VA 22630
USA
Phone: (540) 622-5240 Fax: (540) 622-2728
Email: jad@pop.org
Media Contact: Joseph A. D'Agostino
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Lifeissues.net NEWSLETTER #216 – March 6, 2005

Greetings from LifeIssues.net (http://www.lifeissues.net)

Just got back from a speaking engagement in the Philippines. My personal thanks to Dr. Resty Monson, Asian President of HLI (Human Life International Asia), Mr Marlon Ramirez, Asian Program Director of HLI, Mr. Edwin Lopez, Marketing Director of EWTN for Asia, Dr. Rene Josef Bullecer, Mr & Mrs Melquiades J. Castillo, Jr. and the many good leaders who made my stay so enjoyable and educational. They opened my eyes to a number of new possibilities and I really enjoyed talking and working with them. Now I know why their time is so valuable. Thanks a million! Now that I know the way, I hope it's the first of many.

Philippines is a country with over 7000 islands, rich resources and dynamic, energetic prolife people. A vital Faith is strong and alive among the Catholics – 80% of the population. There's a demand for HLI speakers, as a strong sense of protecting the Philippino family stands at the center of their motivation. The day I left, a big rally was held in Manila by various groups to show their opposition to the bill limiting couples to have only two children.

"House Bill 3773", said Mayor Lito Atienza of Manila, "not only destroys positive values, it also promotes a culture of death. Poverty cannot be solved by population control. The real solution is for the government to pursue effective governance and create more economic opportunities."

He said that liniting the number of children a couple could have is a backward policy aimed at curbing population growth, noting that countries like Singapore and Germany applied a similar program and are now smarting from an old population. The governments of these countries now offer incentives to couples to bear more children because they now lack young people who could sustain their country's economic growth.

On the other hand, poverty stalks much of the Philippine population. With the many islands surrounded by the ocean, rice farming covering large areas and rich resources, why does such poverty still exist in the Philippines? One of our speakers at the Congress pointed out that the World Bank institute showed that 50% of the Philippines' annual budget is lost to corruption. The speaker also pointed out that if the world were reduced to only 100 people, 6 of these people would own 59% of the world's resources and all 6 will come from the USA. In the Philippines, 80% of the resources are owned by 10% of the population.

Is this overpopulation or poor governance? A population control program was put in place in the country in the 1970s – with billions of public money spent every year to fund it – the population growth has been declining and continues to do so today, and yet, poverty has not been reduced. Official government data attest to this. If this population trend continues, the Philippines will lose precious human capital. – Jerry Novotny, OMI

PS: It's been more almost two months since an earthquake-induced tsunami devastated coastal communities in Southeast Asia. We ask for your continued prayer support for the victims living in those areas. Thank you.

Lifeissues.net NEWSLETTER #216 – March 6, 2005

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

"NEW" ARTICLES POSTED RECENTLY at http://www.lifeissues.net

New Website: Women Affirming Life – http://www.affirmlife.com/index.cfm . Women Affirming Life (WAL) is a national organization of Catholic women dedicated to offering a caring and compassionate voice in the public debate on the life issues. Founded by Catholic women professionals in 1990, the mission of Women Affirming Life is "to offer a public witness by women in defense of the unborn and unwanted through personal commitment, educational efforts, prayer and homes and professional life."

ITEM #1. Stem Cell Research Boon To IVF Fertility Clinics

Note: As usual, the "logic" employed in the following article totally ignores the damaging and even deadly consequences to two categories of human research subjects: living human embryos who will be experimented on in order to retrieve the data to help "future" embryos; and, women IVF clinic patients who will have these experimental human embryos implanted into them and studied for more data advantageous to the IVF industry. We are looking at RESEARCH – not standard medical practice. Yet apparently none of the national or international standards for the use of human subjects in RESEARCH – even "therapeutic" research – are applied here. This outlandish anomaly has been true for IVF research from its beginning. They simply made up their own novel "category" – "innovative therapy" – which in fact is therapeutic research by any other name.

ITEM #2. Embryonic Stem Cell Research As An Obsession

Twenty-first century society was not prepared for the fact that human life could be produced for the purpose of harvesting cells or body parts for the benefit of others. Only a few years ago we thought this was still science fiction from some futuristic Star Trek age.

Rapid scientific advancements have made it possible to produce new human life in the laboratory. We can no longer put off the ethical questions surrounding the use of embryos and clones. View full text at Townhall.com: http://www.townhall.com/columnists/GuestColumns/May20050214.shtml

For a recent scientific response to these same proponents of human cloning to produce human embryonic stem cells, see Irving, Missouri: Fairy Tales Abound in Human Cloning Debates" (Feb. 12, 2005), at: http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_86missourifairytales.html

ITEM #3. Abstinence Seminar Attracts Educators

Adults telling teenagers to hold off on sex before marriage is nothing new, but the high rate of sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy is prompting a growing number of people into abstinence education. But despite their passion, educators sometimes do not always have the information, resources and know-how to craft an effective message, and many are asking for help. State officials are responding to the demand by offering free training seminars throughout the state aimed at helping educators get informed.

"Abstinence educators want a level playing field," Vickie-Jean Mullins, director of the state's abstinence education program, said at an educator training session in Sarasota on Saturday. "They want the training that gives them the skills, the data and the approaches to be effective." Source of article at heraldtribune.com: http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050220/NEWS/502200310/1060

ITEM #4. Might vs. Right

Note: Thanks to Sam for this article. The strawman argument that opposition to human cloning for stem cells is "theologically based" and thus unfit for democratic consumption is exposed for what it is – a desperate and feeble attempt to divert the public's attention away from the objective scientific facts that per se have nothing whatsoever to do with "theology", "religion" or "prolife" – because if known, those objective scientific facts make a shocking mockery of these "scientists'" own fake "scientific" arguments. The objective scientific fact is that all forms of human a-sexual reproduction (including "nuclear transfer") result in a new unique living single-cell human BEING, a single-cell human ORGANISM, who is at Stage One in the Carnegie Stages of Early Human Development. These innocent living human beings are then grown in vitro to the blastocyst stage (Stage Three) and killed for their body parts to make money. Simple – and shameful – as that. Dr. Dianne Irving, Ph.D. – View full text at St. Louis Business Journal: http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2005/02/21/editorial3.html Also See Irving, "Missouri: Fairy Tales Abound in Human Cloning Debates", Feb. 12, 2005, at: http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/irv/irv_86missourifairytales.html

ITEM #5. Doctors Stir Revival Of Hippocratic Ethic

In an effort to enable patients to discriminate against pro-abortion physicians, a doctor in Ohio is developing a list of providers who subscribe to the pro-life plank of the Hippocratic oath. The Association of Pro-Life Physicians has nine physicians in the Zanesville, Ohio, area from several medical specialties.

"We are presently in the middle of an aggressive educational campaign to inform the community who the pro-life physicians are, so as to allow patients to discriminate against physicians who will kill their patients or who will refer for abortions," said Patrick Johnston.

Johnston said patients "have a right to be informed of which physicians in their community justify the killing of innocent people under their care." His group is meeting with pastors, providing a bulletin insert for churches, setting up speaking engagements and erecting billboards around town.

The billboards include one that says: "Does your doctor kill babies? Find out at http://www.prolifephysicians.org/." Johnston says he wants to expand his list to include physicians in other cities. "You will find us consistent with our premise that life begins at conception, and there are no exceptions to the divine ordinance against killing innocent people," he said.

Johnston points out that the Hippocratic oath, taken for hundreds of years by medical students, was the bedrock of ethics in medicine. It included a vow not to commit abortions, nor to suggest such counsel, and forbade euthanizing patients.

"In our generation, the building has abandoned the foundation," Johnston said. "The concepts of right and wrong have replaced by relative morality and situational ethics." Read coverage from WorldNetDaily: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=43165

ITEM #6. Was It Hospice Or Murder? – You Decide

Stanley was getting up in years having just passed his 85th birthday. He was an extremely active man with full use of his mental faculties, even in his advanced years. He even volunteered at the local YMCA, helping to clean up around the place and helped some troubled boys by speaking with them and spending time with them at the YMCA, watching them play. Some of them looked up to him like a Dad. However, Stanley had been diagnosed with colon cancer a few years before. From Ron Panzer's Hospice Patients Alliance: http://www.hospicepatients.org/starvation.html

ITEM #7. 4-D Ultrasound Gives Video View Of Fetuses In The Womb

The new generation of three- and four-dimensional ultrasound imagery provides striking views of fetuses inside the womb. Parents-to-be appreciate the lifelike pictures, and doctors gain an improved understanding of fetal development and behavior.

"It's almost a new science, in a way. It's taught us so much about how the fetus develops at an early stage," said Professor Stuart Campbell of the Create Health Clinic in London. Campbell, one of the world's leading experts in obstetrics, has been working with ultrasound technology since its earliest days and with so-called four-dimensional images since their debut about four years ago.

Four-dimensional imagery shows objects in 3-D moving in something close to real time. Doctors have long known that fetuses move, but the physical behavior revealed by 4-D scans is expanding that knowledge exponentially.

"We see the earliest movements at 8 weeks," Campbell said. "By 12 weeks or so they are seen yawning and performing individual finger movements that are often more complex than you'll see in a newborn," he said. "It may be due to the effects of gravity after birth." See National Geographic News: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/02/0225_050225_tv_ultrasound.html

ITEM #8. Goodbye Too Soon

What we saw on the monitor looked more like a cinematic alien than a 20-week-old fetus. Instead of arms, there were truncated flippers, and it looked like those drawings I've seen demonstrating how close man and dolphin are on the evolutionary scale. The legs were gnocchi-shaped buds that barely protruded from the pelvis. The chest cavity was deformed as well, although we wouldn't know that until later.

You've seen this before: a young couple staring in wonder at an ultrasound monitor, getting a first, magical glimpse of their unborn child. It wasn't like that for us. "What I'm seeing is a fairly significant abnormality," Dr. Eddleman said, shaking his head sympathetically. Tears ran from my wife Liz's closed eyes as she wiped the blue goop off her swelled belly.

We walked on rubber legs down the hall to Dr. Eddleman's office, where he emerged from behind his veil of jargon just long enough to impart that we hadn't done anything wrong. Osteogenesis imperfecta type II was his diagnosis, a freak mutation over which we had no control. I could see in Liz's expression that it would take some time for her to believe him.

The fetus might make it to term or die in the womb. Either way, it wouldn't survive for long after birth. This disease, the doctor said, is "fatal in infants." You know you've arrived in a different universe when the word "fatal" comes as a relief. Because until that moment, I had been trying to extrapolate what the flesh-and-blood version of this baby would look like in the maple crib we'd ordered, asking myself if we had it in us to raise such a severely compromised baby. Liz would later tell me that she was also sadly relieved. "Fatal" was our absolution – we would not have to learn darker truths about ourselves.

COMMENT: In today's society, it's so easy to rationalize the abortion of a child with a disability. This child's condition is better known as "brittle bone disease". While type 2 of this condition is often lethal, killing a child before birth in no way "helps" the child. And sadly, the abortion itself usually seems to add a new layer of guilt for the parents. (Nancy Valko) Check article at NYT: New York Times

ITEM #9. A fifth Of Elderly People In Israel Are Abused

Israel's first national survey of elder abuse has said that 18.4% of elderly people reported being abused in the previous year. Rates of neglect were among the highest in the world, while rates of physical and sexual abuse and limitation of freedom were similar to those in North America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Hong Kong. Economic exploitation and verbal violence were more common in Israel than in many of those countries.

The types of abuse were neglect (18.0%); verbal (8.0%) or physical or sexual abuse (2.0%); limitation of freedom (2.7%), or economic exploitation (6.6%) by a spouse or adult child. Some people had been abused in more than one way.

Elderly Arab women were most vulnerable to physical abuse and limitation of freedom. Ten per cent of Arab women complained of physical and sexual violence against them during the past 12 months (compared to 2.1% of Jewish women), while 6.7% of Arab women complained of limitation of their freedom (compared to 2.6% of Jewish women). Overall 40% of Arab women complained of one or more types of abuse or neglect, compared to 33.9% of Jewish women. The lower rates of abuse among men bring the average overall down to 18.4%. Article may be viewed at bmj: http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/330/7490/498-c

ITEM #10. Gauging What "Quality Of Life" Means

Vatican Conference Considers Ethical Principles – ROME, MARCH 5, 2005 (Zenit.org) – The much-bandied term "quality of life" was the theme of the annual meeting of the Pontifical Academy for Life. The Feb. 21-23 general assembly of the Vatican body brought together Church dignitaries, along with experts in medicine and bioethics, to reflect on the subject of "Quality of Life and the Ethics of Health."

In his presentation, the president of the academy, Bishop Elio Sgreccia, observed that the terms "quality of life" and "health" have become a sort of absolute, "to be pursued to the point of a sort of divinization of health."

The terms, he noted, reflect a strong influence of the utilitarian philosophy so widespread in English-speaking societies. This has led to a widespread belief that "the human being who does not possess the desired minimal 'quality' does not deserve to be kept alive – hence, the proposal of eugenic parameters for the purpose of selecting those who do deserve to be accepted or kept alive and those who are to be abandoned or suppressed via euthanasia."

Trying to understand what the concept quality of life means was dealt with by A. Gomez-Lobo, professor of metaphysics and moral philosophy at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. The idea that lives can be judged according to their quality goes back to the ancient Greek philosophers, he noted.

It is a concept that covers diverse dimensions of life, but in the area of health the expectation of a low quality of life has become a standard rationalization to justify euthanasia, Gomez-Lobo explained. However, claiming to benefit a person by intentionally killing someone with a low quality of life is "deeply wrong," he argued.

A person suffering from health problems "is still enjoying the basic good of life, a good that is distinct from any evil the person may be undergoing," the professor said. Moreover, for an external observer to judge that the patient is a life "not worth living" is "an intolerable presumption," he added.

The prohibition against killing an innocent person, Gomez-Lobo continued, is based on respect for the dignity of the person, "and human dignity is logically independent of, and not reducible to, the quality of a person's life because dignity is an intrinsic property that does not admit of degrees." In fact, he added, "The suffering and the weak have a special claim on us." And the quality of life of the patient should not affect this obligation.

"Vegetative state" The question of what to do with persons who are in a vegetative state was addressed by Gian Luigi Gigli and Mariarosaria Valente. They are, respectively, the president of the World Federation of Catholic Medical Associations, and director of the Department of Neurosciences at the Santa Maria della Misericordia hospital in Udine, Italy.

In analyzing the current situation they observed in a statement: "Faith in the omnipotent power of technology of being able to ameliorate the quality of life and lack of moral principles combine together." This technological approach considers every action ethical if it is the result of free choice, and every action legitimate if it is socially useful.

Regarding the vegetative state they explained: "This condition is still affected by important clinical uncertainties, leading to frequent misdiagnosis." It is difficult to distinguish between the vegetative state, and the persistent, also called permanent, vegetative state. In the latter case no recovery is expected, but the point of division between the two is not clear. They added that there are well-documented cases of patients who have recovered consciousness even after the criteria for permanence have been met.

So-called right-to-die advocates argue that once a vegetative state is diagnosed as permanent there should be a presumption against assisted feeding. In addition, the provision of food and water is redefined as a medical treatment, rather than the provision of basic needs. "According to this view, the ensuing death by dehydration and starvation should be regarded as a natural death," Gigli and Valente wrote.

However, they explain, in this situation patients do not die because of the vegetative state, but of malnutrition and renal failure. "The outcome (death) is fully intended."

The two explain that understanding how we have arrived to intending the death of someone in this state is linked to considerations about the quality of life. Often, in measuring the quality of life, the concept is reduced to the ability to produce and to be useful. It follows, then, that using health resources for people who cannot return to a productive life is considered wasteful.

The withdrawal of nutrition and water from persons in the permanent vegetative state can lead to a dangerous attitude in the medical profession, Gigli and Valente warned. "Withdrawal of nutrition and hydration could be the key to open the still strong existing barriers which oppose the legalization of euthanasia in the majority of countries," they added. As well, in the long term, having doctors hastening death could destroy the relationship of trust between patient and physician.

The newborn – Another set of questions regards the quality of life for newborn babies. This was dealt with in the paper presented by Patricio Ventura-Junc, director of the Center for Bioethics of the pontifical University of Santiago, Chile.

Newborn babies are highly vulnerable as well as quite incapable of evaluating their situation or expressing preferences. In the last few decades, neonatal care has made enormous strides, explained Ventura-Junco. Many of the immature functions of prematurely born infants can be temporarily replaced by mechanical means. But the ethical problem that exists is judging whether to withhold or withdraw treatment.

She explained that many parents have difficulty in understanding the medical information they are given and to make a decision. In general, however, parents are more in favor of intervening to save the infant than are health care professionals. In this situation the opinion and the values of the doctor in charge have a great influence on the parents.

The situation of persons suffering from mental handicaps was addressed by professor Wanda Poltawska, a psychiatrist from the school of theology of the University of Krakow, Poland. "A human being is always human irrespective of the stage of his or her physical or mental development," she stated.

Families burdened with a mentally diseased person are often divided over the best way to cope with this problem. In order to affront the burden, family members need a deep understanding of the sense of suffering.

In deciding what to do when confronted with this situation Poltawska stated: "The life of a human being, its beginning and its end are in the hands of the Creator – when we try to manipulate human conception or human death we transgress our authority."

Handicapped persons are a challenge to society, she added, and our own value as persons can be assessed by examining our attitudes toward the ill, the old and the disabled.

In a letter dated Feb. 19, directed to Bishop Sgreccia on the occasion of the congress, John Paul II drew attention to "the essential quality that distinguishes every human creature as that of being made in the image and likeness of the Creator himself" (No. 3).

This dignity and quality of the person "endures through every moment of life, from the very moment of conception until natural death," the Pope stated. "Consequently, the human person should be recognized and respected in any condition of health, infirmity or disability." – Article located at Zenit:http://www.zenit.org

ACTION:

1. Pray that all may have the courage to be God's presence in society and support those who have been deemed "unworthy of life".
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On Saturday morning, March 12, Byfield will speak to a Citizens Centre townhall meeting in Calgary. Byfield will be joined by Wild Rose MP Myron Thompson, former Opposition leader Grant Hill, former Calgary MP Eric Lowther, and Brian Rushfeld of the Canada Family Action Coalition, representing the national Defend Marriage initiative. Other area MPs have been invited.