The Second Look Project
Current mood: determined
Category: Life

JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING IS LEGAL DOESN'T MAKE IT RIGHT!

1 Corinthians 10:23 (New International Version)
"Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive.

I got an e-mail yesterday from my co-worker Verne who is the News Director of WBFJ FM (www.wbfj.fm). He gave me some links to a website-- www.SecondLookProject.org and wrote, "If you can use these [their radio PSAs--for Stereo 1550 WBFJ AM]…wow…it will make you think." And it surely did.

Here is some information I have gathered from the website so far...
The Second Look Project offers information to help people make informed decisions based on fact rather than emotion. While abortion has been legal in the U.S. for three decades, polls continue to show that many people do not have very basic information about abortion, such as when during pregnancy it is legal, or why it is generally performed.

DID YOU KNOW?
* It is during the embryonic period that all major systems and structures develop.114-21 days: The cardio-vascular system is the first major system to function in the human embryo. Blood is circulating and the heart begins to beat at 21 or 22 days, and can be detected on ultrasound.
*The U.S. abortion rate is among the highest of developed countries. 2
*Women who have had abortions cite the following reasons: 3

42%
unmarried
38%
would interfere with education/job/career
38%
have completed my childbearing
34%
student or planning to study
28%
can't afford baby and child care
25%
don't want people to know they had sex or got pregnant
22%
don't feel mature enough to raise a child
22%
unemployed
14%
not enough support from husband or partner
13%
possible fetal health problem
12%
physical problem with my health
1%
was a victim of rape
<0.5%
became pregnant as a result of incest

1.Moore, Keith L. and Persaud, T.V.N. The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology, 6th edition: Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co., 1998; also England, Marjorie A. Life Before Birth, 2nd ed: London: Mosby-Wolfe, 1996.
2.The Alan Guttmacher Institute, "Abortion in Context: United States and Worldwide" Issues in Brief, 1999 No. 1 (1999).
3.The Alan Guttmacher Institute, "Abortion in Context: United States anThe Alan Guttmacher Institute, "Reasons U.S. Women Have Abortions: Quantitative and Qualitative Perspectives," Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, Vol. 37 (September 2005). d Worldwide" Issues in Brief, 1999 No. 1 (1999).

Partial birth abortion
The Supreme Court and Partial-Birth Abortion Six years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court invoked its Roe v. Wade decision to strike down a state law against partial-birth abortion.

Unfamiliar with partial-birth abortion? Well, it is what it sounds like it is.

Warning: See below for a nurse's eyewitness description of a partial-birth abortion. Due to the nature of the procedure, some may find the text disturbing.

Brenda Pratt Shafer, R.N., telling Congress about a partial-birth abortion she witnessed:
"The mother was six months pregnant (26 1/2 weeks)*. ... Dr. Haskell ... delivered the baby's body and the arms -- everything but the head. The doctor kept the baby's head just inside the uterus. The baby's little fingers were clasping and unclasping, and his feet were kicking. Then the doctor stuck the scissors through the back of his head, and the baby's arms jerked out in a flinch. ... The doctor opened up the scissors, stuck a high-powered suction tube into the opening and sucked the baby's brains out. Now the baby was completely limp."- Brenda Pratt Shafer, R.N. to the House Subcommittee on the Constitution, March 21, 1996

*26-29 weeks: Eyes open; eyelashes are well developed, and the fetal body becomes plump as subcutaneous fat is deposited. If born now, lungs are sufficiently developed to breathe air; the central nervous system is also well developed.

Warning: See below for an abortion practitioner's description of a partial-birth abortion. Due to the nature of the procedure, some may find the text disturbing.

Trial testimony of William Knorr, M.D., who performs partial-birth abortions:
"[Question:] When ... the fetus comes through the cervix except for the head, how do you proceed?"

[Answer:] I first evaluate the cervix to see if I have enough room to slip a finger between the cervix and the fetal head, and if I can do that, I can then insert my crushing forcep around the head, crush the head and extract it. If the cervix is very tight, I can't do that, I will use a craniotomy procedure, will turn the fetus so the back is up and find the area that I want to open, and either with a finger, a dilator or a scissor will open that area and gently pull down. That pressure alone is enough to empty the cranium and extract the head." - Carhart v. Ashcroft, 331 F.Supp.2d 805 (D. Neb. 2004), March 31, 2004, transcript at 516

Please visit www.SecondLookProject.org for even more eye-opening information. And please pray for women in crisis/unplanned pregnancies as well as for the babies whose lives are affected (and sometimes ended) by those women's choices. And pray that laws will be changed to protect those whose hearts beat and lungs are able to breathe but whose mouths are yet able to protest. It doesn't make sense to me that someone who murders a pregnant woman can (rightfully, in my opinion) be charged with double murder, and yet abortion remains LEGAL.

Rejoicing in grace and celebrating life,
Jenn

PS-God loves you. I am in no way suggesting that He doesn't love anyone who is in any way involved with abortion. Sin is sin to Him. And forgiveness is available to all of us.

1 John 1:9 (New International Version)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9 (Amplified Bible)
If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action].

1 John 1:9 (The Message)
8-10If we claim that we're free of sin, we're only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won't let us down; he'll be true to himself. He'll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. If we claim that we've never sinned, we out-and-out contradict God—make a liar out of him. A claim like that only shows off our ignorance of God.