Death Oct 30^th

Cal Thomas’ column today is titled, “California: State of death.” His opening sentence refers to the state’s new assisted suicide law so, naturally, I assumed that assisted suicide was the focus of his angst. It wasn’t. As it happens, assisted suicide is already legal in a number of states and is being considered in many others. Mr. Thomas, as usual, is on a rant about abortion, better known among his peers as baby killing.

 The focus of his column is a law in California that requires “pregnancy crisis centers to offer information about affordable contraception, abortion and pre-natal care.” What an outrage! What will these liberals think of next? Thomas seems uninterested, or at least he completely ignores, the part about the clinics’ requirement to offer information about affordable contraception. This is typical and it is logically absurd. It should be obvious, and I am sure it is, that the use of contraceptives reduces unwanted pregnancies and hence reduces abortions. Every adolescent knows that and those who are forgetful pay dearly. So the rationale for not using contraceptives is exactly what?

Thomas goes on to tell us that this law “is deceptively labeled the reproductive FACT Act. The law requires women seeking help with an unplanned pregnancy to be informed of alternatives, including abortions, which the pregnancy crisis centers do not perform.” And this is deceptive because? The L.A. Times claims “the law will counter the deceptive practices of some…crisis centers to deter women from considering abortion. The real ‘deceivers’ (according to Thomas) are the ones who promote abortion as a woman’s right.” Apparently Thomas believes abortion is not a woman’s right, never mind the decision of SCOTUS; Mr. Thomas is quite prepared to decide these things for himself. Now there is more arrogance in this comment than even those on the right are accustomed to showing.

Thomas then goes on to describe individual cases where women regret having had abortions or claim to have been pressured to have abortions. There is no doubt that this happens. I lived in a small town where the physician who provide abortions was well known. His office was just off the main street and I walked by it every morning on my way to work. There were always placard carrying activists, both male and female, imploring the women entering the office not to have an abortion. In point of fact the great majority of this man’s patients were there for routine medical procedures, not abortions. No matter; they were screamed at as baby killers anyway. Then there are the activists who simply murder physicians who provide abortions and then claim that they are “doing the Lord’s work.”

Once again Thomas seems only concerned with the unborn child; once he/she is “post-born” its welfare is of no concern to these “pro-life” enthusiasts.