With the recent (February, 1997) admission
by abortionist Ron Fitzsimmons, executive director of the National Coalition
of Abortion Providers in Alexandria, Va., who has now confessed that he
"lied through my teeth" when he said so-called partial-birth
abortions were performed rarely, and only to save the mother's life or
abort malformed fetuses, a Clinton staffer has said that the President
would probably now look favorably at signing a partial birth abortion ban
into law.
WTV is grateful that the truth has finally come out about this ghastly
procedure. It is tragic and shameful, however, that so many have been allowed
to lie for so long about abortion, keeping Americans in the dark about
a holocaust that has cost 30 Million innocent lives and diminished our
culture’s respect for human life. The consequences continue to tear away
at the social fabric of a nation that once protected the innocent.
The following is an op-ed column written by Robert R. Larimer Jr. for the
Boston Globe, columnist Ellen Goodman’s home newspaper, prior to the Friday,
November 17, 1995 Senate hearing on Partial Birth Abortion. It appeared
in The Columbian (a daily Vancouver, WA newspaper), in the Human Life of
Washington state newsletter, and nationally in the newsletter of Traditional
Values Coalition.
In an Op-Ed piece last Sunday, nationally syndicated
columnist Ellen Goodman dramatically denounced the ban on partial birth
abortions recently passed by the House and now being considered by the
Senate Judiciary committee.
Employing the "inflammatory inaccuracy" she claims to abhor,
she attempted to persuade readers that the "Oh My God" reaction
to bad news during an ultrasound examination must logically lead the horrified
mother to a decision to abort the child. Any compassionate person would
agree, right?
About this time last year, my then-pregnant wife, Rose, was informed that
her ultrasound examination had revealed abnormalities in our baby's spine
and head which usually indicate brain damage. She was scheduled for another
ultrasound one week later.
We prayed our way through a very long week and then went to keep the appointment.
With Rose on the exam table, a lump in my throat and the room seeming to
hum louder and louder, I listened as the doctor and a technician explained
that they wanted to be certain of any problems early on, so that we could
exercise our option to "terminate the pregnancy."
I have never been more proud of Rose than when she raised herself up off
the table and demanded to know: "Why would I kill my own baby?"
After a very thorough ultrasound exam, the doctor stated that she could
see only a very minor abnormality and that it probably would have no serious
consequences.
The pregnancy progressed and on the morning after our daughter's birth,
the pediatrician on duty entered my wife's room and happily announced,
"I've just examined your baby and she's perfect!"
If we had given in to the subtle, yet powerful, pressure and listened to
the 'experts,' typified by Goodman and the "caring" crowd who
stand against any restrictions on abortion, our little Caitlin Marie would
be dead. Another victim of "Choice." Instead, she is a bright,
healthy 7 and 1/2 month old baby girl. {editor’s note: At the time of posting
on this website, Caitlin Marie is 20 months old. She has been speaking
in complete sentences for about 1 ½ months and she sings, runs,
dances, plays with her dolls - she is a very careful little mother! - and
wins arguments with her 3 ½ year old brother by wrestling him to
the floor and sitting on him.}
I wonder if anyone who participated in the "medical procedure"
of taking Caitlin's life would have had the integrity to tell us that there
was nothing wrong with her after all.
A Seattle radio station interviewed me a few days ago following a news
release by my organization, Washington for Traditional Values (WTV), which
congratulated House members for their efforts to ban partial birth abortions.
I was not too surprised when the program's host announced that he and his
wife were also pressured to abort their child. They too resisted and now
have a happy, healthy child. A lady who volunteers part time secretarial
work for WTV tells a very similar story about her daughter.
Goodman questions National Right to Life leader Maureen Malloy's statement
that "on demand" abortions are performed on "healthy women
carrying healthy babies." I think Goodman should really be asking:
Who is actually doing the demanding? How many frightened young couples
and terrified single women are stampeded into ending the lives of their
own healthy children? And should a possible imperfection be enough to condemn
a baby to death?
Last Sunday, the day of Goodman's abortion column, while on a family visit
to a shopping mall, Caitlin gave her very first wave to her proud Aunt
Merna. Then, just to be sure we were convinced, Caitlin batted her eyes,
smiled and waved to each of us in turn.
For Goodman, it would simply have been a woman's choice if that little
arm and hand had been severed and pulled out through the birth canal. It
would have been the compassionate thing to do if the small head and face
had been crushed, forever destroying the miracle of creation.
Goodman objects to the "graphic" nature (read uncensored reality), of the pictures that will be shown in Friday's Senate Judiciary hearing.
Too bad. If it will help save the lives of little ones like Caitlin, and help America to consider what compassion really is, maybe a little dose of reality is a healthy thing.
Robert R. Larimer Jr.
Executive Director
Washington for Traditional Values
PO Box 6189
Vancouver, WA 98668-6189