Life Links 10/1/10

Christopher Tollefsen has a piece at Public Discourse regarding the differing definitions of pregnancy and how clarifying the issue can help provide a better definition of what abortion is.

Some liberals define the term as meaning the period from implantation of an embryo in a mother’s womb forward. Conservatives often define it as beginning at the point of conception. Quite a lot can seem to depend on the definition, since it can seem natural to think that a contraceptive, for example, works by preventing pregnancy, and an abortion by disrupting it. Thus, if pregnancy is not initiated until implantation, and an abortion disrupts pregnancy, then drugs that prevent implantation would be considered contraceptive, and not abortifacient. Conservatives rightly resist this claim, and do so by contesting the meaning of pregnancy.

But a better strategy might be to accept the liberal definition of pregnancy, but reject the conclusions that purportedly follow from it. On three issues—contraception, abortion, and embryo-adoption—I’ll argue that the liberal definition of pregnancy can actually help clarify what sound morality demands.

NOW decided to encourage its supporters to protest Lila Rose's recent speech in Indianapolis. The Live Action blog has a picture. One sign reads "95% of (women) hate Lila. See(?) I can make up statistics too." So instead of being mad at abortion clinics for looking the other way at statutory rape and lying to women about fetal development, NOW is mad at Lila for exposing them.


LifeNews reports that two more women have died after having taken RU-486 abortion cocktail.

The two women died after developing a Clostridium sordellii infection after using the abortion drug. Two separate studies -- conducted by the University of Michigan and a Brown University researcher -- showed that off-label use of the drug caused the infections in the women who took it and the infections led to septic shock that claimed their lives.

The two new cases include the 2008 death of a 29-year-old Hispanic woman and the 2009 death of a 21-year-old Caucasian woman.

If the study conducted by the University of Michigan included a woman who had an abortion in Michigan, her death wasn't reported to the Michigan Department of Community Health.


Bristol Palin took some time off from practicing her dancing to speak at a prolife group's dinner last night.