Categories
Abortion

NY Times article on proposed personhood amendments

Here is a link to an article in today’s New York Times on the personhood proposals pending in Mississippi, and being considered in several other states. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/us/politics/personhood-amendments-would-ban-nearly-all-abortions.html?_r=1 Richard M.

Categories
Abortion Late-term abortion

Sam Calhoun’s paper on Kermit Gosnell

Here is the abstract of Sam Calhoun’s paper on Philadelphia abortion provider Kermit Gosnell, and a link to the abstract and paper. Sam presented a version of this  paper at the University of Faculty for Life conference at Notre Dame in June 2011. “This article focuses on three of the atrocities committed by Philadelphia abortion […]

Categories
Abortion Constitutionality Sex-selection abortion

Michael Paulsen essay on sex-selection abortions

Here is a link to an essay by Michael Paulsen that was published today on the Public Discourse blog. http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2011/10/4149 After noting the practice of abortion for sex-selection, Paulsen discusses the prospect that a law banning abortion for reasons of sex selection might force the Supreme Court to confront the realities of its abortion case law. […]

Categories
Assisted suicide Death and dying Euthanasia International

Dutch proposal to expand meaning of “unbearable suffering”

Here is a link to a post on Wesley Smith’s blog about  a position paper from the Dutch Physician’s Association seeking to expand the factors to be considered in assessing whether a patient’s suffering is “unbearable,” thus making the patient eligible for assisted suicide.  According to the article to which Smith refers–“Until now, factors such as income […]

Categories
Abortion

Changing Minds, Saving Lives

“Changing Minds, Saving Lives” is the title of a good essay by Nicholas DiFonzo (Rochester Institute of Technology) in the November 2011 of First Things. The essay is based on a talk that Nicholas delivered at the 2011 University Faculty for Life conference, whcih was held in June at the University of Notre Dame. The essay […]

Categories
Abortion Bioethics

NCBQ and the Phoenix abortion case

The most recent issue of the National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly (Vol. 11, no. 3; Autumn 2011) contains several articles that continue the discussion about the Phoenix abortion case and related matters. The issue contains articles by Rev. Nicanor Pier Giorgio Austriaco, OP (Abortion in a Case of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension), Thomas A. Cavanaugh (Double-Effect Reasoning, […]

Categories
Uncategorized

Greenpeace pushes EU to restrict stem cell patents

AP reported yesterday that a ruling of the EU’s top court severely restricts biotech companies from turning a profit on stem cell patents in which embryos are used.   Surprisingly, the court responded not to religious groups or anti-abortion groups, but to the environmental group Greenpeace.  Greenpeace had challenged a 1997 patent on a technique developed by […]

Categories
Abortion International United Nations

San Jose Articles presented at UN briefing

The San Jose Articles were presented at a UN briefing today. The Articles, which challenge the widespread claims that international law supports a right to abortion, were discussed by Robert George and Grover Joseph Rees. See www.sanjosearticles.org. Richard M.

Categories
Philosophy

Abortion, Paternity and Fathers’ Rights

Earlier this year I posted a link to an editorial arguing that fathers should have a right to veto the abortion of their children.  I noted that the US Supreme Court struck down a Pennsylvania law that required husbands be notified of a wife’s intent to have an abortion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, notwithstanding that notification could be avoided by […]

Categories
Abortion Constitutionality Politics Presidential Actions

Robert George reflects on asking presidential candidates about Roe

Over at Public Discourse, in his new post, Reflections of a Questioner (http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2011/10/4055), Robert George evaluates the answers of Ron Paul and Mitt Romney to George’s question about what legislation each presidental candidate would propose to overturn Roe v. Wade. Professor George notes that this question raises a fundamental constitutional issue regarding the role of […]