Hypocrites, Misogynists and “A War on Women,” oh my!
Behind tweets, Facebook posts and articles, these are the emotionally charged tantrums that are viciously hurled at anyone who defends the life of the unborn child from the moment of conception.
Today on a WWL New Orleans radio talk show Dr. Damon Cudihy, an OBGYN from Lafayette, Louisiana, entered into a discussion with Raegan Carter, the Senior Director of Public Affairs and Education for Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast. All were surprised when, after a short break, the radio host announced “Ms. Carter and her organization choose not to have that debate!”
In other words Ms. Carter and Planned Parenthood felt it would be in their best interest to retreat halfway through the conversation. This gave Dr. Cudihy the opportunity to clear up several misconceptions of not only the Hobby Lobby case but also the pro-life platform.
After Planned Parenthood withdrew their representation from what was supposed to be an opportunity for two opposing sides to articulate their viewpoints, Dr. Cudihy clarified that, in fact, Hobby Lobby’s concerns are not centered on all contraception, but rather those that act as abortifacients, and therefore conflict with the owner’s morality.
A National Right to Life Analysis offers clarification into the heart of the matter:
“The five-justice majority rejected the Obama Administration’s attempt to force family-owned for-profit corporations to directly purchase health insurance covering certain drugs and devices that violate the employer’s religious and moral beliefs. The Court held that this application of a provision of Obamacare violates a federal statute, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.”
Here the real issue is presented: being federally mandated to make a decision that contradicts ones personal beliefs, which in the case of Hobby Lobby this is providing abortifacients.
When Ms. Carter was present she argued that Plan B is nothing more than contraception, again missing the real issue of Religious Liberty. However, Dr. Cudihy explained that science says life begins when a “full compliment of chromosomes” is present. This point is known as fertilization and happens 4-6 days before implantation. Therefore, anything used to terminate this distinct set of chromosomes terminates the existence of an embryo and in effect kills a baby. It was here that the scientific evidence superseded twisted semantics and resulted in the retreat of the pro-abortion representative.
Even though the discussion was terminated prematurely, because Ms. Carter left the talk show, Dr. Cudihy further articulated the science behind the pro-life movement. He explained that typically the pro-life supporters are painted to stand solely on ideology, which for some is a driving force, but that does not encapsulate the entire movement. Those that stand in defense of human life from the moment of conception are actually “the ones grounded in sound science,” as they agree with embryologists that life starts when the distinct chromosome makeup is created. He continued to say that it is the abortion industry that is deeply rooted in ideology, because they hold so strongly to the belief that abortion should be a fundamental right even though some agree that the fetus is a baby. For a movement that stands on its advocacy for choices, it seems that the abortion industry holds a limited scope because it only advocates for a woman to make one choice, the choice for abortion even if it creates an ethical dilemma for the one making that choice.
This monologue ended in disappointment as Dr. Cudihy expressed his desire to get into civilized discussion with the opposition, but he was robbed of this opportunity because Planned Parenthood and Ms. Carter chose to withdraw their presence. Today, all who are invested in either the pro-life or pro-abortion side were able to stand together and see that when facts coincide with emotionally charged rhetoric, emotions fade and the truth prevails. True character was shown today on both sides of the issue, and while we can expect justification for Ms. Carter’s early flee her retreat speaks volumes to us all.
LifeNews Note: Sarah Mary Toce is the Regional Coordinator and Legislative Liaison for Louisiana Right to Life.
