Community Press
by Rick Smith
"The Guttmacher Institute' s data indicates at least 25 percent of all abortions are due to male irresponsibility. Currently the woman bears nearly all the burden of an unintended pregnancy. The man' s responsibility doesn't begin until the baby is born. There need to be more immediate consequences for the man, no matter what the woman's choice. My plan would make the man immediately responsible for a woman's health care, through the birth or an abortion, if she did not intend to become pregnant. Further, the man would be charged with a minor misdemeanor, equivalent to a minor traffic violation, for 'causing an unintended pregnancy.' If he is adult, this offense would become public record (the woman's name would remain confidential)."
Monday, August 21, 2006
Sunday, August 20, 2006
A little less confrontation, a little more action
U.S. Catholic Magazine
...
Beyond politics
A handful of Democrats are trying to do just that, advancing legislation that they say could reduce the abortion rate by 95 percent in 10 years.
The bill, developed and promoted by Democrats for Life (DFL) as the “95-10 Initiative,” has the support of prolife Democrats in Congress, and DFL leaders soon hope to have the support of more members from both sides of the aisle and of the abortion debate.
The initiative was born in the wake of the 2004 election, when everyone was talking about moral values.
“The election sent a really big message,” says Kristen Day, DFL executive director. “A majority of people think the abortion rate should be declining. But no one is doing anything to make abortion rare. They’ve only been working to keep it legal. So we looked at the reasons women have abortions.”
Their initiative, introduced last November, includes prohibiting the transport of a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion; fully funding the federal government’s Nutrition for Women, Infants, and Children program; requiring insurance to cover contraception; providing grants to nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations for ultrasound equipment to provide free examinations to pregnant women; making adoption tax credits permanent; and initiating a five-year study by the National Institutes of Health on why women choose abortions.
Day acknowledges that reducing the number of abortions by 95 percent is ambitious, but she notes that in Michigan, where one point of the 95-10 initiative was put in place—a public awareness campaign informing women of abortion alternatives—abortion rates have already dropped. Though many factors affect abortion rates, including the economy, Day and other prolifers credit the public awareness campaign and use the Michigan statistic to justify a nationwide public awareness campaign.
Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, a group dedicated to spreading the prolife message among Catholic priests and parishes, gave some parts of the Democrats’ plan cautious approval.
“There are many proposals in this package, like women’s right-to-know provisions, funding for promotion of alternatives to abortion, strengthening of adoption practices, and more,” he wrote in a column last May. “These are key goals for all of us to pursue. The precise way in which these and other proposals in 95-10 should be written into law will, of course, need to be carefully debated and refined.
“And in the end, we cannot be content to reduce the numbers of abortions,” he wrote. “We have to acknowledge that laws permitting even a single abortion undermine the very fabric of our freedom and our republic.”
...
...
Beyond politics
A handful of Democrats are trying to do just that, advancing legislation that they say could reduce the abortion rate by 95 percent in 10 years.
The bill, developed and promoted by Democrats for Life (DFL) as the “95-10 Initiative,” has the support of prolife Democrats in Congress, and DFL leaders soon hope to have the support of more members from both sides of the aisle and of the abortion debate.
The initiative was born in the wake of the 2004 election, when everyone was talking about moral values.
“The election sent a really big message,” says Kristen Day, DFL executive director. “A majority of people think the abortion rate should be declining. But no one is doing anything to make abortion rare. They’ve only been working to keep it legal. So we looked at the reasons women have abortions.”
Their initiative, introduced last November, includes prohibiting the transport of a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion; fully funding the federal government’s Nutrition for Women, Infants, and Children program; requiring insurance to cover contraception; providing grants to nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations for ultrasound equipment to provide free examinations to pregnant women; making adoption tax credits permanent; and initiating a five-year study by the National Institutes of Health on why women choose abortions.
Day acknowledges that reducing the number of abortions by 95 percent is ambitious, but she notes that in Michigan, where one point of the 95-10 initiative was put in place—a public awareness campaign informing women of abortion alternatives—abortion rates have already dropped. Though many factors affect abortion rates, including the economy, Day and other prolifers credit the public awareness campaign and use the Michigan statistic to justify a nationwide public awareness campaign.
Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, a group dedicated to spreading the prolife message among Catholic priests and parishes, gave some parts of the Democrats’ plan cautious approval.
“There are many proposals in this package, like women’s right-to-know provisions, funding for promotion of alternatives to abortion, strengthening of adoption practices, and more,” he wrote in a column last May. “These are key goals for all of us to pursue. The precise way in which these and other proposals in 95-10 should be written into law will, of course, need to be carefully debated and refined.
“And in the end, we cannot be content to reduce the numbers of abortions,” he wrote. “We have to acknowledge that laws permitting even a single abortion undermine the very fabric of our freedom and our republic.”
...
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Exposure to Degrading Versus Nondegrading Music Lyrics and Sexual Behavior Among Youth
RAND
The more time adolescents spend listening to music with sexually degrading lyrics, the more likely they are to initiate intercourse and other sexual activities. This holds true for boys and girls as well as for whites and nonwhites. Only sexually degrading lyrics are related to changes in adolescents' sexual behavior.
...
The more time adolescents spend listening to music with sexually degrading lyrics, the more likely they are to initiate intercourse and other sexual activities. This holds true for boys and girls as well as for whites and nonwhites. Only sexually degrading lyrics are related to changes in adolescents' sexual behavior.
...
China vow on sex-based abortion
BBC NEWS
"China will punish health workers who help to abort female foetuses, despite a recent decision not to criminalise the practice, an official said.
China's legislature scrapped a bill in June that would have introduced fines and prison terms for aborting girls.
But an official said that did not mean there was any relaxation in the policy against selective abortion.
The practice stems from a preference for sons, especially in rural areas, and China's one-child policy.
As a result, official figures suggest there are 119 boys born for every 100 girls in China, Xinhua news agency said, a figure much higher than the global ratio of 103 to 107 boys for 100 girls."
...
"China will punish health workers who help to abort female foetuses, despite a recent decision not to criminalise the practice, an official said.
China's legislature scrapped a bill in June that would have introduced fines and prison terms for aborting girls.
But an official said that did not mean there was any relaxation in the policy against selective abortion.
The practice stems from a preference for sons, especially in rural areas, and China's one-child policy.
As a result, official figures suggest there are 119 boys born for every 100 girls in China, Xinhua news agency said, a figure much higher than the global ratio of 103 to 107 boys for 100 girls."
...
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
"Planned Parenthood partnership [in adoption] a good match"
IndyStar.com
"That's why the decision by an abortion clinic to partner with an adoption agency in Indianapolis is potentially a good move.
Independent Adoption Centers will have a presence at a Planned Parenthood of Indiana clinic two or three times a week, starting in July.
The idea, said Planned Parenthood President and CEO Betty Cockrum, is 'to explore with every patient the full continuum of choices, (including) adoption services.'
All those services are included in the agency's referral manual for clients. Indiana, she adds, has 37 Planned Parenthood locations with 106,000 patients. 'Only 4.5 percent get abortions,' she said.
The local partnership is not part of a national Planned Parenthood agenda, but it apparently plays well in the Heartland. In fact, it was a Planned Parenthood in Muncie that initially promoted adoption at its offices 'decades ago,' said David Nova, CEO of the Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge in Virginia."
...
"That's why the decision by an abortion clinic to partner with an adoption agency in Indianapolis is potentially a good move.
Independent Adoption Centers will have a presence at a Planned Parenthood of Indiana clinic two or three times a week, starting in July.
The idea, said Planned Parenthood President and CEO Betty Cockrum, is 'to explore with every patient the full continuum of choices, (including) adoption services.'
All those services are included in the agency's referral manual for clients. Indiana, she adds, has 37 Planned Parenthood locations with 106,000 patients. 'Only 4.5 percent get abortions,' she said.
The local partnership is not part of a national Planned Parenthood agenda, but it apparently plays well in the Heartland. In fact, it was a Planned Parenthood in Muncie that initially promoted adoption at its offices 'decades ago,' said David Nova, CEO of the Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge in Virginia."
...
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Poverty and the Daily Lives of Infants - Consistent disadvantage
Journal of Children and Poverty
"It has been amply demonstrated that poor children suffer disadvantages as compared to their more advantaged peers. This paper examines important aspects of infants’ daily experiences in a southeastern city in the United States in order to illustrate differences between poor and non-poor infants. “Poor” infants were compared to their “non-poor” counterparts on the quality of parenting they received; quality of their home environments; relative health and safety; stability, structure, and predictability of their daily lives; and exposure to diverse experiences in the community. Findings reveal that poor infants are at a consistent disadvantage across all domains when compared to their more affluent counterparts. These daily deficiencies might be conceptualized as the mechanisms through which poverty exerts its negative effects. This paper shifts the focus from macro-level variables such as larger economic and social factors to the cumulative effect of deficiencies at the micro-level. Intervening to ameliorate the micro-level deficits that are most modifiable may lessen the cumulative risk and provide some small avenues toward resilience for the most disadvantaged and at-risk infants."
Friday, June 23, 2006
The Labor Market Consequences of Childhood Maladjustment
Social Science Q
The Labor Market Consequences of Childhood Maladjustment
Paul Fronstin, David H. Greenberg, and Philip K. Robins
Objective. This article uses data from the National Child Development Survey on a cohort of individuals born in Great Britain during the first week of March 1958 to investigate whether educational attainment and labor force behavior 33 years later are affected by childhood behavioral problems that are exhibited at both age 7 and age 16.
Method. Regression methods are used to test hypotheses concerning these effects.
Results. Our results indicate that maladjusted children suffer economically when they reach adulthood. Maladjusted children perform worse on aptitude tests and have lower educational attainment. Maladjusted children also are less likely to be employed at age 33 and to have lower wages when employed. Part of the reduced employment and wages is the result of lower education, but part is also due to other factors.
Conclusion. Future research should investigate whether adult labor market outcomes vary with the type of behavioral problems exhibited at younger ages.
The Labor Market Consequences of Childhood Maladjustment
Paul Fronstin, David H. Greenberg, and Philip K. Robins
Objective. This article uses data from the National Child Development Survey on a cohort of individuals born in Great Britain during the first week of March 1958 to investigate whether educational attainment and labor force behavior 33 years later are affected by childhood behavioral problems that are exhibited at both age 7 and age 16.
Method. Regression methods are used to test hypotheses concerning these effects.
Results. Our results indicate that maladjusted children suffer economically when they reach adulthood. Maladjusted children perform worse on aptitude tests and have lower educational attainment. Maladjusted children also are less likely to be employed at age 33 and to have lower wages when employed. Part of the reduced employment and wages is the result of lower education, but part is also due to other factors.
Conclusion. Future research should investigate whether adult labor market outcomes vary with the type of behavioral problems exhibited at younger ages.
Proven Benefits of Early Childhood Interventions
RAND
"There is increasing recognition that the first few years of a child’s life are a particularly sensitive period in the process of development, laying a foundation in childhood and beyond for cognitive functioning; behavioral, social, and self-regulatory capacities; and physical health. Yet many children face various stressors during these years that can impair their healthy development. Early childhood intervention programs are designed to mitigate the factors that place children at risk of poor outcomes. Such programs provide supports for the parents, the children, or the family as a whole. These supports may be in the form of learning activities or other structured experiences that affect a child directly or that have indirect effects through training parents or otherwise enhancing the caregiving environment"
..
"There is increasing recognition that the first few years of a child’s life are a particularly sensitive period in the process of development, laying a foundation in childhood and beyond for cognitive functioning; behavioral, social, and self-regulatory capacities; and physical health. Yet many children face various stressors during these years that can impair their healthy development. Early childhood intervention programs are designed to mitigate the factors that place children at risk of poor outcomes. Such programs provide supports for the parents, the children, or the family as a whole. These supports may be in the form of learning activities or other structured experiences that affect a child directly or that have indirect effects through training parents or otherwise enhancing the caregiving environment"
..
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
New software to keep an eye on foeticide [India]
The Times of India
"Conducting sex selection abortions in India will soon become a lot more difficult. The Union health ministry has developed a special data entry and report-generating software, which when installed in the computers of all the 28,565 registered ultrasound clinics in the country, will make it mandatory for them to fill up their Form F online. ...
"Conducting sex selection abortions in India will soon become a lot more difficult. The Union health ministry has developed a special data entry and report-generating software, which when installed in the computers of all the 28,565 registered ultrasound clinics in the country, will make it mandatory for them to fill up their Form F online. ...
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Most Bad Habits Begin Early
JoinTogether.org
From alcohol abuse to smoking, overeating to lack of exercise, most behaviors that lead to preventable deaths are well-established by adolescence or early adulthood, according to research from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).
"Smoking, obesity, and alcohol abuse are leading contributors to preventable death in the United States," said Duane Alexander, M.D., director of the NICHD. "By early adulthood, a large proportion of Americans smoke, are overweight, and drink alcohol to excess."
Researcher Kathleen Mullan Harris, Ph.D., and colleagues at the Carolina Population Center and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill examined data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and found that diet, activity level, obesity, healthcare access, tobacco, alcohol and illicit drug use, and the likelihood of acquiring a sexually transmitted disease all got worse as subjects reached adulthood.
For example, just 5 percent of young white women reported getting no weekly exercise as adolescents. But that rate skyrocketed to 46 percent in early adulthood. White people, in general, were more likely to be healthy as adolescents but experience the biggest decline in healthy behaviors as adults, including high rates of smoking and binge drinking.
Black and Asian female adults were the least likely to exercise, as were white and black male adults.
"When they were young teenagers, most of the participants had fairly healthy behaviors," said Christine Bachrach, Ph.D., chief of NICHD's Demographic and Behavioral Sciences Branch. "What's really alarming is how rapidly healthy practices declined by the time the participants reached young adulthood."
"These trends are quite stunning," Harris added. "Whether or not the trends will continue as they age, we don't know. But it doesn't bode well for their future health, especially if these habits become established."
The research appears in the January 2006 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Harris, K. M., Gordon-Larsen, P., Chantala, K., Udry, J. R. (2006) Longitudinal Trends in Race/Ethnic Disparities in Leading Health Indicators From Adolescence to Young Adulthood. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 160: 74-81.
From alcohol abuse to smoking, overeating to lack of exercise, most behaviors that lead to preventable deaths are well-established by adolescence or early adulthood, according to research from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).
"Smoking, obesity, and alcohol abuse are leading contributors to preventable death in the United States," said Duane Alexander, M.D., director of the NICHD. "By early adulthood, a large proportion of Americans smoke, are overweight, and drink alcohol to excess."
Researcher Kathleen Mullan Harris, Ph.D., and colleagues at the Carolina Population Center and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill examined data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and found that diet, activity level, obesity, healthcare access, tobacco, alcohol and illicit drug use, and the likelihood of acquiring a sexually transmitted disease all got worse as subjects reached adulthood.
For example, just 5 percent of young white women reported getting no weekly exercise as adolescents. But that rate skyrocketed to 46 percent in early adulthood. White people, in general, were more likely to be healthy as adolescents but experience the biggest decline in healthy behaviors as adults, including high rates of smoking and binge drinking.
Black and Asian female adults were the least likely to exercise, as were white and black male adults.
"When they were young teenagers, most of the participants had fairly healthy behaviors," said Christine Bachrach, Ph.D., chief of NICHD's Demographic and Behavioral Sciences Branch. "What's really alarming is how rapidly healthy practices declined by the time the participants reached young adulthood."
"These trends are quite stunning," Harris added. "Whether or not the trends will continue as they age, we don't know. But it doesn't bode well for their future health, especially if these habits become established."
The research appears in the January 2006 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Harris, K. M., Gordon-Larsen, P., Chantala, K., Udry, J. R. (2006) Longitudinal Trends in Race/Ethnic Disparities in Leading Health Indicators From Adolescence to Young Adulthood. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 160: 74-81.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
RAND Study Says Early Childhood Intervention Programs Save Money and Benefit Children, Families and Society
RAND | News Release :
A RAND Corporation study issued today says well-designed programs for disadvantaged children age 4 and younger can produce economic benefits ranging from $1.26 to $17 for each $1 spent on the programs.
The report by RAND Labor and Population says effective early childhood programs return more to society in benefits than they cost, by enabling youngsters to lead more successful lives and be less dependent on future government assistance. Researchers say this is because such programs help children improve their thinking skills, do better in school and develop socially.
The large differences in the dollar returns for different programs reflect variations in the populations of children served by the programs and the range of benefits that researchers could express in dollar terms. As a result, not all programs could be easily compared to other programs on a dollar basis or expressed in dollar values.
The report says high-quality early childhood programs can keep children out of expensive special education programs; reduce the number of students who fail and must repeat a grade in school; increase high school graduation rates; reduce juvenile crime; reduce the number of youngsters who wind up on welfare as adults; increase the number of students who go to college; and help adults who participated in the programs as children get better jobs and earn higher incomes.
Some of the largest benefits came from the most expensive and comprehensive programs that provide services to children throughout their first five years of life. The researchers found, however, that even some small-scale, less expensive programs also provided benefits. In addition, more disadvantaged children tend to receive greater benefits from programs. The research team believes that its estimates of benefits are likely to be conservative.
The RAND study focused on three types of early childhood programs that are typically called intervention programs and target children who need help because of several factors – such as living in poverty or in a single-parent household. Examples of intervention programs ...
...
A RAND Corporation study issued today says well-designed programs for disadvantaged children age 4 and younger can produce economic benefits ranging from $1.26 to $17 for each $1 spent on the programs.
The report by RAND Labor and Population says effective early childhood programs return more to society in benefits than they cost, by enabling youngsters to lead more successful lives and be less dependent on future government assistance. Researchers say this is because such programs help children improve their thinking skills, do better in school and develop socially.
The large differences in the dollar returns for different programs reflect variations in the populations of children served by the programs and the range of benefits that researchers could express in dollar terms. As a result, not all programs could be easily compared to other programs on a dollar basis or expressed in dollar values.
The report says high-quality early childhood programs can keep children out of expensive special education programs; reduce the number of students who fail and must repeat a grade in school; increase high school graduation rates; reduce juvenile crime; reduce the number of youngsters who wind up on welfare as adults; increase the number of students who go to college; and help adults who participated in the programs as children get better jobs and earn higher incomes.
Some of the largest benefits came from the most expensive and comprehensive programs that provide services to children throughout their first five years of life. The researchers found, however, that even some small-scale, less expensive programs also provided benefits. In addition, more disadvantaged children tend to receive greater benefits from programs. The research team believes that its estimates of benefits are likely to be conservative.
The RAND study focused on three types of early childhood programs that are typically called intervention programs and target children who need help because of several factors – such as living in poverty or in a single-parent household. Examples of intervention programs ...
...
Family-centered preventive intervention science: toward benefits to larger populations of children, youth, and families.
Entrez PubMed
The field of family-centered preventive intervention science is well poised to seize an opportunity for larger-scale intervention implementation and greater public health impact. This opportunity has been created by earlier research in the areas of epidemiology, developmental etiology, and intervention outcome research. Both earlier and current research define a number of key tasks required to meet the many challenges involved in scaling-up for greater impact. Illustrations of how these tasks can be addressed are provided in articles on programs of family-centered research with infants, children, and adolescents. Each article in this special issue treats one or more tasks that concern (a) expansion of the set of rigorously evaluated, theory-driven interventions that have potential to reach large numbers of children, youth, and families; (b) effective strategies for family recruitment and retention; (c) cultural sensitivity of interventions; (d) application of a developmental life course perspective; (e) strategies for linking higher-risk population subgroups with potentially beneficial services; (f) improved diffusion mechanisms for sustained, quality delivery; and (g) policy making informed by research, including economic analysis. A summary of how articles address these tasks concludes with a discussion of the importance of futher strengthening a public service orientation in prevention science.
The field of family-centered preventive intervention science is well poised to seize an opportunity for larger-scale intervention implementation and greater public health impact. This opportunity has been created by earlier research in the areas of epidemiology, developmental etiology, and intervention outcome research. Both earlier and current research define a number of key tasks required to meet the many challenges involved in scaling-up for greater impact. Illustrations of how these tasks can be addressed are provided in articles on programs of family-centered research with infants, children, and adolescents. Each article in this special issue treats one or more tasks that concern (a) expansion of the set of rigorously evaluated, theory-driven interventions that have potential to reach large numbers of children, youth, and families; (b) effective strategies for family recruitment and retention; (c) cultural sensitivity of interventions; (d) application of a developmental life course perspective; (e) strategies for linking higher-risk population subgroups with potentially beneficial services; (f) improved diffusion mechanisms for sustained, quality delivery; and (g) policy making informed by research, including economic analysis. A summary of how articles address these tasks concludes with a discussion of the importance of futher strengthening a public service orientation in prevention science.
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
Canada’s "missing daughters"
Today's Family News
"Abortion clinics in Canada are accommodating women seeking to terminate a pregnancies for no apparent reason other than gender preference.
Documents obtained by Calgary’s Western Standard magazine reportedly confirm anecdotal evidence that communities around Toronto and in B.C.’s Lower Mainland with a high proportion of immigrants from China and India have significantly more baby boys than girls. Sons are said to be favoured because they continue the family name and are presumably better able to support their parents."
...
"Abortion clinics in Canada are accommodating women seeking to terminate a pregnancies for no apparent reason other than gender preference.
Documents obtained by Calgary’s Western Standard magazine reportedly confirm anecdotal evidence that communities around Toronto and in B.C.’s Lower Mainland with a high proportion of immigrants from China and India have significantly more baby boys than girls. Sons are said to be favoured because they continue the family name and are presumably better able to support their parents."
...
China closes 201 clinics in sex selection crackdown; offers subsidies to sonless couples
casper star tribune
A Chinese province has closed 201 clinics that helped detect and abort female fetuses and is offering stipends to elderly couples without sons in an attempt to counter China's widening gender imbalance, the government said Wednesday.
Investigators in Hebei province, next to Beijing, uncovered 848 cases over the past two years where medical staff had violated rules banning gender checks that can lead to abortions, the official Xinhua News Agency said.
Of 745 hospitals and clinics involved, 374 facilities were fined, and 104 medical workers had their licenses revoked for arranging the illegal practices, Xinhua said. Criminal cases were opened against three others, it said, without saying what the charges were.
...
A Chinese province has closed 201 clinics that helped detect and abort female fetuses and is offering stipends to elderly couples without sons in an attempt to counter China's widening gender imbalance, the government said Wednesday.
Investigators in Hebei province, next to Beijing, uncovered 848 cases over the past two years where medical staff had violated rules banning gender checks that can lead to abortions, the official Xinhua News Agency said.
Of 745 hospitals and clinics involved, 374 facilities were fined, and 104 medical workers had their licenses revoked for arranging the illegal practices, Xinhua said. Criminal cases were opened against three others, it said, without saying what the charges were.
...
Monday, May 29, 2006
Religion News Service/Washington Post Examines Prevalence of Sex-Selective Abortion in India
Religion News Service/Washington Post / Kaisernetwork.org
The Religion News Service/Washington Post on Saturday examined the prevalence of sex-selective abortion in India despite laws forbidding the practice (Samson Katz, Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20). India in 1994 approved the Prenatal Determination Act, which bans the use of technologies such as ultrasounds and sonograms for the purpose of sex-selective abortion. The law also bans advertisements for prenatal sex determination, as well as the practice of preconception sex selection law (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/15). Despite the law, some advocates say the desire for male heirs has produced a need for ultrasound clinics that can determine the sex of a fetus and has created medical practices that profit mostly from performing sex-selective abortions. According to the Religion News Service/Post, some experts have estimated that some physicians charge between $80 and $230 for an ultrasound and an abortion and "still act with impunity" in relation to sex-selective abortion. "But attitudes are changing" in some Indian communities, including the village of Kajampur, where equal numbers of girls and boys have been born "for several years," the Religion News Service/Post reports (Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20).
The Religion News Service/Washington Post on Saturday examined the prevalence of sex-selective abortion in India despite laws forbidding the practice (Samson Katz, Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20). India in 1994 approved the Prenatal Determination Act, which bans the use of technologies such as ultrasounds and sonograms for the purpose of sex-selective abortion. The law also bans advertisements for prenatal sex determination, as well as the practice of preconception sex selection law (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/15). Despite the law, some advocates say the desire for male heirs has produced a need for ultrasound clinics that can determine the sex of a fetus and has created medical practices that profit mostly from performing sex-selective abortions. According to the Religion News Service/Post, some experts have estimated that some physicians charge between $80 and $230 for an ultrasound and an abortion and 'still act with impunity' in relation to sex-selective abortion. 'But attitudes are changing' in some Indian communities, including the village of Kajampur, where equal numbers of girls and boys have been born 'for several years,' the Religion News Service/Post reports (Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20)."
The Religion News Service/Washington Post on Saturday examined the prevalence of sex-selective abortion in India despite laws forbidding the practice (Samson Katz, Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20). India in 1994 approved the Prenatal Determination Act, which bans the use of technologies such as ultrasounds and sonograms for the purpose of sex-selective abortion. The law also bans advertisements for prenatal sex determination, as well as the practice of preconception sex selection law (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/15). Despite the law, some advocates say the desire for male heirs has produced a need for ultrasound clinics that can determine the sex of a fetus and has created medical practices that profit mostly from performing sex-selective abortions. According to the Religion News Service/Post, some experts have estimated that some physicians charge between $80 and $230 for an ultrasound and an abortion and "still act with impunity" in relation to sex-selective abortion. "But attitudes are changing" in some Indian communities, including the village of Kajampur, where equal numbers of girls and boys have been born "for several years," the Religion News Service/Post reports (Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20).
The Religion News Service/Washington Post on Saturday examined the prevalence of sex-selective abortion in India despite laws forbidding the practice (Samson Katz, Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20). India in 1994 approved the Prenatal Determination Act, which bans the use of technologies such as ultrasounds and sonograms for the purpose of sex-selective abortion. The law also bans advertisements for prenatal sex determination, as well as the practice of preconception sex selection law (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/15). Despite the law, some advocates say the desire for male heirs has produced a need for ultrasound clinics that can determine the sex of a fetus and has created medical practices that profit mostly from performing sex-selective abortions. According to the Religion News Service/Post, some experts have estimated that some physicians charge between $80 and $230 for an ultrasound and an abortion and 'still act with impunity' in relation to sex-selective abortion. 'But attitudes are changing' in some Indian communities, including the village of Kajampur, where equal numbers of girls and boys have been born 'for several years,' the Religion News Service/Post reports (Religion News Service/Washington Post, 5/20)."
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Early Conduct Problems and Later Life Opportunities
J Child Psychol & Psychiat
"Associations between the extent of conduct problems at age 8 years and later life opportunity outcomes at age 18 years were examined in a birth cohort of New Zealand children studied prospectively to age 18 years. Conduct problems at age 8 were assessed using a combination of parent and teacher reports of conduct disordered and oppositional behaviours. Two measures of life opportunities were assessed at age 18: (a) whether the young person had left school by age 18 without educational qualifications; (b) whether the young person had experienced a period of unemployment of 3 months or longer following school leaving.
The analysis suggested the following conclusions: (1) There were clear and significant (p< .0001) tendencies for increasing levels of conduct problems at age 8 to be associated with increasing risks of leaving school without qualifications and of unemployment by age 18. (2) A substantial component of these associations was explained by a series of confounding social, family, and individual factors (notably child intelligence, early attentional problems, and family sociodemographic disadvantage) that were associated with both early conduct problems and later life opportunities. (3) Further analysis suggested that linkages between early conduct problems and later educational underattainment and unemployment (after adjustment for confounders) were mediated by a series of adolescent behavioural processes including patterns of peer affiliations, substance use, truancy, and problems with school authority."
"Associations between the extent of conduct problems at age 8 years and later life opportunity outcomes at age 18 years were examined in a birth cohort of New Zealand children studied prospectively to age 18 years. Conduct problems at age 8 were assessed using a combination of parent and teacher reports of conduct disordered and oppositional behaviours. Two measures of life opportunities were assessed at age 18: (a) whether the young person had left school by age 18 without educational qualifications; (b) whether the young person had experienced a period of unemployment of 3 months or longer following school leaving.
The analysis suggested the following conclusions: (1) There were clear and significant (p< .0001) tendencies for increasing levels of conduct problems at age 8 to be associated with increasing risks of leaving school without qualifications and of unemployment by age 18. (2) A substantial component of these associations was explained by a series of confounding social, family, and individual factors (notably child intelligence, early attentional problems, and family sociodemographic disadvantage) that were associated with both early conduct problems and later life opportunities. (3) Further analysis suggested that linkages between early conduct problems and later educational underattainment and unemployment (after adjustment for confounders) were mediated by a series of adolescent behavioural processes including patterns of peer affiliations, substance use, truancy, and problems with school authority."
Friday, May 26, 2006
Internal Hospital Memo Provides Evidence of Sex-Selective Abortion in Canada
www.lifesite.net
Western Standard magazine, one of the few conservative publications in Canada, has acquired an internal document from Women's Hospital in Vancouver which shows that abortions are carried out at taxpayer expense when the reason is merely that the parents are not satisfied with the sex of the child. The cover story of the June issue of the magazine, which is arriving in mailboxes this week and is set to hit newsstands next week, reports moreover that similar to countries where sex-selective abortions are rampant, the birth ratio in certain communities in Canada with large Indian and Chinese populations is becoming increasingly skewed against girls.
...
Western Standard magazine, one of the few conservative publications in Canada, has acquired an internal document from Women's Hospital in Vancouver which shows that abortions are carried out at taxpayer expense when the reason is merely that the parents are not satisfied with the sex of the child. The cover story of the June issue of the magazine, which is arriving in mailboxes this week and is set to hit newsstands next week, reports moreover that similar to countries where sex-selective abortions are rampant, the birth ratio in certain communities in Canada with large Indian and Chinese populations is becoming increasingly skewed against girls.
...
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Can the Seamless Garment be Sewn? The Future of Pro-Life Progressivism
www.stthomas.edu
Pro-Life Progressivism and the Fourth Option in American Public Life
Thomas C. Berg.
Prophetic Politics: A New Option
Reverand Jim Wallis
Panel: Prospectives on Pro-Life Progressivism
The Consistent Life Ethic: A Look Around, A Look Ahead
John L. Carr
The Consistent Life Ethic
Sidney Callahan
Unraveling the "Seamless Garment"
Susan Frelich Appleton
Another Social Justice Tradition: Catholic Conservatives
Kevin E. Schmiesing
The Consistent Ethic of Life: A Proposal for Improving its Legislative Grasp
Helen M. Alvare'
Sacred Monkeys and Seamless Garments: Catholics and Political Engagement
John P. O'Callaghan
Can the Seamless Garment be Sewn? The Future of Pro-Life Progressivism
Kevin Doyle
The Coherence and Importance of Pro-Life Progressivism
Mark A. Sargent
American Catholics and the Structure of Life Attitudes
Ted G. Jelen
Faith and Values in the Public Arena: An American Catholic in Public Life
James L. Oberstar, M.C.
Pro-Life Progressivism and the Fourth Option in American Public Life
Thomas C. Berg.
Prophetic Politics: A New Option
Reverand Jim Wallis
Panel: Prospectives on Pro-Life Progressivism
The Consistent Life Ethic: A Look Around, A Look Ahead
John L. Carr
The Consistent Life Ethic
Sidney Callahan
Unraveling the "Seamless Garment"
Susan Frelich Appleton
Another Social Justice Tradition: Catholic Conservatives
Kevin E. Schmiesing
The Consistent Ethic of Life: A Proposal for Improving its Legislative Grasp
Helen M. Alvare'
Sacred Monkeys and Seamless Garments: Catholics and Political Engagement
John P. O'Callaghan
Can the Seamless Garment be Sewn? The Future of Pro-Life Progressivism
Kevin Doyle
The Coherence and Importance of Pro-Life Progressivism
Mark A. Sargent
American Catholics and the Structure of Life Attitudes
Ted G. Jelen
Faith and Values in the Public Arena: An American Catholic in Public Life
James L. Oberstar, M.C.
Monday, May 15, 2006
In India, Gender Is a Life-and-Death Issue
Newhouse A1
``All girls' parents must pay dowries," Radhika says. "We will take loans and pay it back bit by bit. It might take up to a year's time."
Though dowries are illegal in India, the law is widely ignored and the Devis fear a third daughter will send them over the edge financially. Instead, they hope for a son to one day provide for the family. He would fetch his own dowry upon marriage, take care of his parents as they grow old (India has no social security program) and carry on the family name.
In India's male-dominated society, especially the northwest, this logic is one reason parents abort an estimated half-million female fetuses each year. The practice, called female feticide, has been responsible for at least 10 million female abortions since 1985, according to a controversial study published in January in the Lancet, the British medical journal.
``All kinds of famines, epidemics and wars are nothing compared to this," said Punit Bedi, a New Delhi gynecologist. "In some parts of India, one in every five girls is being eliminated at the fetal stage.
``It is a genocidal situation."
...
``All girls' parents must pay dowries," Radhika says. "We will take loans and pay it back bit by bit. It might take up to a year's time."
Though dowries are illegal in India, the law is widely ignored and the Devis fear a third daughter will send them over the edge financially. Instead, they hope for a son to one day provide for the family. He would fetch his own dowry upon marriage, take care of his parents as they grow old (India has no social security program) and carry on the family name.
In India's male-dominated society, especially the northwest, this logic is one reason parents abort an estimated half-million female fetuses each year. The practice, called female feticide, has been responsible for at least 10 million female abortions since 1985, according to a controversial study published in January in the Lancet, the British medical journal.
``All kinds of famines, epidemics and wars are nothing compared to this," said Punit Bedi, a New Delhi gynecologist. "In some parts of India, one in every five girls is being eliminated at the fetal stage.
``It is a genocidal situation."
...
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Asociación de Víctimas del Aborto [Association of Victims of Abortion]
Asociación de Víctimas del Aborto [Association of Victims of Abortion]
Translated version of http://www.vozvictimas.org/
Medical consequences of the abortion caused in women
Translated version of http://www.vozvictimas.org/
Medical consequences of the abortion caused in women
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