Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Feast of Saint Gwen

(Lucky you, 3 posts from me in one day! LOL)

Here is just another reason why you should know what you are voting on. Missouri has another amendment up for vote, that is well worth mentioning - Amendment 3, the Tobacco Tax Initiative. I have seen the "Vote No ads", but all they mention is the higher tax on tobacco, and that people will just get their tobacco out of state, therefore lost revenue for the State. But there is much more to this! What the following article does not mention, is that some of this money could go to cloning (or what the proponents term as SCNT - same thing).

Here is more info from Missouri Right to Life -
Vote “NO” on the Tobacco Tax Initiative (Amendment 3)

For pro-life reasons, social justice, and moral common sense, the tobacco tax initiative should be defeated.

The proposed constitutional amendment to tax tobacco products in order to raise money for health care poses significant problems for pro-life citizens. The most serious is that the initiative fails to contain any language preventing the money from being used for abortion and abortion referrals.

It is expected that the Tobacco Tax Initiative will raise as much as $500 million per year in new funds. The funds will be split among several categories of uses, including a large percentage for “medically necessary health care services for individuals with incomes that are 200% or less of the federal poverty guidelines.” The federal courts have ruled that all “medically necessary” procedures, including abortion, that are performed within a given practice setting funded by Medicaid (e.g., outpatient services, inpatient surgeries, ambulatory surgeries), must be paid for unless the Hyde Amendment prohibits them. Missouri courts often follow federal interpretations of a legal term. The Initiative says that its funds shall pay, among other things, for “medically necessary services” for eligible persons. Planned Parenthood may well see an opportunity and apply to get some of that money.

Not surprisingly, abortionists always consider abortion to be “medically necessary.” In 1997, Dr. Warren Hern, the abortionist who wrote the leading medical textbook on abortion procedures, stated, “I will certify that any pregnancy is a threat to a woman’s life and could cause grievous injury to her physical health.” Once a procedure is certified as “medically necessary” by the abortion doctor, it may become practically impossible to challenge its eligibility for payment by the state government. Missouri courts are likely to hold that the Initiative money must pay Planned Parenthood for all “medically necessary” abortions.

If the initiative passes but citizens are lucky, the state will apply to have the tobacco tax revenues approved by the federal government for the state’s Medicaid plan. If the money becomes Medicaid money, then the long-standing Hyde Amendment will apply, and most abortions will no longer be covered by the tobacco taxes. How many lives will be lost until such federal approval is sought and obtained?How long will it take? Will approval ever be granted? No one knows.

Furthermore, it is not just abortion that is a problem here. Other moral principles are offended by the initiative.

The tobacco tax would be a regressive tax that would hurt ordinary folks far more than other people because the cost of cigarettes is proportionally a greater part of their monthly budget. Even worse, the health care system of the state would become dependent on Tobacco Tax revenues. Funding health care would appear to be the main goal of the initiative, since 17.5% of the money is earmarked for programs to reduce the use of tobacco, while 82.5% goes to health care. Either the state is serious about reducing tobacco use, or it is not. If it is, is it sensible to make the health care system dependent on a major source of revenue that will dry up if anti-smoking efforts are successful? And if the state is not serious about anti-smoking efforts, then it will be forced to become a hypocrite. Obviously, no matter how much the State officially discourages tobacco use, the last thing it will actually want is for tobacco use, and the money it generates for the health care system, to be substantially reduced. It is wrong to enact hypocrisy as official state policy.

Victory! An Update

Feast of Saint Luke the Apostle

I just wanted to give an update on a past post. My son informed his great grandmother, that the signs should be removed, and why. She immediatly had him remove the signs! I wanted to add that my grandmother was on the fence on the stem cell issue. She was going by what she had heard on the news & ads. Once she was told what the FULL ammendment really says (which is NOT what will be on the ballot) , she changed her mind. Keep praying!!!!

Food for Thought

Feast of Saint Justus of Beauvais

This was sent to me by a friend (Thanks Jack!)

The Stranger

A few years after I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on.As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me good from evil, and Dad taught me to obey. But the stranger...he was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with adventures, mysteries and comedies.If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball game. He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind.Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to the kitchen for peace and quiet. (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home... not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad squirm and my mother blush.My Dad didn't permit the liberal use of alcohol. But the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and pipes distinguished. He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.I now know that my early concepts about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked... and NEVER asked to leave.More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you could walk into my parents' den today, you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures. His name?....

We just call him, "TV." He has a younger sister now. We call her "Computer."


I wrote Jack back to thank him for this reminder. He replied, "A lot of food for thought. I however am not of the "no TV in my house" school of thought. A TV set like a computer, like a machine gun, is an INanimate object. It cannot do ANYTHING by itself, and it can be used for good or evil. TEACH your children to THINK for themselves and only BAN something when they can't abide." I agree. In fact, we do not have cable, but do have a TV and watch it (we are LOST fans). But, I will admit I get lazy at times, and this is a nice reminder. Thanks again Jack!

Friday, October 13, 2006

South Dakota's Pro-Life Vote

Looks like Missouri has a comrade in arms. Let's not forget about our friends up north. This came in my inbox this morning.

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Let's pray for the people of South Dakota up over the next several weeks as the November 7th vote on the state's 100% pro-life law approaches. Polls are polls, but God can change hearts. Please pass this on to others and ask them to pray specifically for South Dakota in the coming weeks in preparation for November 7th's vote.

For those who can help in other ways: www.voteyesforlife.com (They have quite a nice campaign going on. Only if this passes in SD do any of the others states remotely have a chance of their own.


Lord, pray for the people of South Dakota up to you as they prepare to vote on the state's abortion law. Please soften their hearts so that they may receive the pro-life message in the next few weeks. Help them understand that You are the Author of Life, at all times, in every circumstance. Convict their hearts so that as they enter the voting booth on November 7th they cast their votes for life.

For those who have closed their minds and hearts to the Truth, place people in their lives as witnesses. Let the stories of the women exploited by abortion, the voices of the children spared death at the hands of an abortionist, and the testimony of those who have seen the destruction of abortion firsthand move them. Give them the courage to change their minds and vote YES on November 7.

Finally, we ask for abundant blessings on our pro-life friends in South Dakota.
Give them inestimable strength, endurance and wisdom in the coming weeks.
Let their light shine bright. Let their message of hope and love draw their fellow residents to them. Bless each one for their selfless efforts to protect the least of these---the preborn.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
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Stem Cell Research Vote - What is printed on the ballot is misleading - For or against, be sure you know what you are voting on!

This is a HOT topic in Missouri right now. Whether you are for or against, you have the obligation to know exactly what you are voting on. What is actually printed on the ballot is VERY little - there is only so much room on the ballot. What is printed on the ballot, is very misleading to what the WHOLE Amendment says!

This may be a Missouri issue, but only for now. The nation is watching this closely. What happens when we vote in November, will have an influence on what other states will do. PLEASE pray for us! The supporters have MILLIONS of dollars - we are outspent. BUT, we can out-pray them!


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JILL STANEK, October 11, 2006 http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=52389


Consider the iceberg, of which only the tip is visible.
Such is the SHORT Missouri Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative to be voted on next month. Beneath it looms a titanic constitutional amendment.

Amendment Two, as it is called, is a proportional Titanic. At five pages and 2,000 words, it is half the length of the entire United States Constitution. Its opening paragraph - conveniently omitted from promoter Missouri Coalition for Lifesaving Cures' website - lists 45 sections of the Constitution of Missouri it would incredibly delete or change.

Amendment Two is also a linguistic Titanic. Crafted by researchers and groups with financial stakes in its passage, it is packed with convoluted legal and scientific jargon chopped up and buried in various places so it really says the opposite of what they say it says.


Why would Show Me State voters - of all voters in the land - agree to drastically alter their own Constitution to ends no one can predict, all to force speculative science experiments on themselves forever? Even without knowing Amendment Two's specifics, doing so would seem schizophrenic.

And specifically, Amendment Two is full of lies. Here are four whoppers:
1. "No person may clone or attempt to clone a human being."

In actuality, Amendment Two would force cloning on Missourians.
Crafters knew people overwhelmingly oppose cloning. So to authorize cloning while maintaining they were not, they simply changed the definition of cloning to say a clone isn't a clone unless implanted in a mother's uterus.This is like saying you are not you unless you are in your house. If you leave your house, you are no longer you. You are a thing. And if you are caught outside your house, you can be dissected and sold for parts.Crafters said while they banned cloning, they endorsed "somatic cell nuclear transfer." This is like banning the killing of humans but endorsing the killing of Homo sapiens. Somatic cell nuclear transfer is cloning. Google "somatic cell nuclear transfer" or its shortcut, SCNT. Look it up on Wikipedia. The embryonic stem cell/cloning industry's dirty little secret is they need to clone to stand any chance of making good on their hype. While embryos are unique humans with their own genetic codes that would make treatment matches difficult, clones are human replicas that would provide exact matches.

2. "No human blastocyst may be produced by fertilization solely for the purpose of stem cell research."

They want us to believe Amendment Two would make it illegal to create embryos just for experimentation. But another part of the amendment authorizes researchers to purchase embryos from in vitro fertilization clinics, which it would permit to create "any number of human blastocysts" Ask any Missouri university student about the recent proliferation of college ads offering big bucks for eggs by in vitro clinics, and recall the middleman concept.

3. "No stem cells may be taken from a human blastocyst more than 14 days after cell division begins."

They want us to believe Amendment Two would make it illegal to grow embryos older than two weeks for experimentation. The loophole is the amendment's dishonest definition of blastocyst, so while researchers may not grow embryos in petri dishes more than two weeks, they may grow embryos in uteruses indefinitely.

4. "No person may, for valuable consideration, purchase or sell human blastocysts or eggs for stem cell research or stem cell therapies or cures."

They want us to believe Amendment Two would prohibit the sale of embryos and eggs. The loophole is the amendment instead would let people and businesses receive "reimbursements for reasonable costs" not just for buying and selling but also for "processing, disposal, preservation, quality control, storage, transfer . and lost wages to the donor."

Why the push for Amendment Two?

Among other things, Amendment Two paves the way for Missouri public funding of embryonic stem cell/cloning research. This would:

1.. Let researchers keep patents for themselves, which they would have to share with private investors;
2.. Eliminate the need for results, which private investors demand (and is why they're not investing), and force accountability for wild promises;
3.. Let researchers keep any profits for themselves, which they would have to share with private investors.
Amendment Two also forbids legislators from overturning it.

If you don't believe me on all this, read and understand Amendment Two for yourself. And if you can't understand it, why would you vote for it?


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Sunday, October 08, 2006

Victory won....victory lost? But the war is not over!

Feast of Saint Reparata




As you may know, Missouri has a huge vote coming up on stem cell research (which I oppose strongly! - By the way, I am all for ADULT stem cell research which has been PROVEN, but that is NOT what this amendment is about). My grandmother, whom I dearly love, was on the fence. I have talked to her about it, but it was my 13 year old son who finally convinced her - he even got her to put a sign in her yard (she is not a "sign" person). ...or so we thought..........

Yes, the "Vote NO" sign is still up, but today, he noticed she has two more signs in her yard, one of which is for Claire McCaskill! She is SUPPORTING the amendment! AND she claims to be CATHOLIC!!!!!!!!! In fact, she even says it on her "about" page" on her campaign;s website - even naming the churches she is a member of! And she supports ABORTION! Oh my! My heart hurts!!! When she says she is "Catholic", even mentioning the parishes she belongs to, well, that can be confusing - know what I mean?!?!?

This is why it is confusing when a so-called "Catholic" supports abortion, etc -

"1- If Claire is such a great Catholic, why doesn't she get married in the church now that her druggie X is dead and start attending Church regularly.2 - How did the Notre Dame High School, a private Catholic girls school in the city have $21,000 to be one of Claire's largest contributors. Something stinks here. Catholics have become the most selectively hypocritical group that exists"
(taken from http://thesource.typepad.com/thesource/2006/09/catholic_and_de.html)

Monday, October 02, 2006

Rally Time!

Feast of Guardian Angels

(Aren't you lucky! Two posts from me in one day! LOL!!!)

Yesterday afternoon was the Missouri Right to Life Annual Life Chain. We went. My son lasted the whole time (it was hot & sunny). My daughter ended up on the hill in the shade. My children worried about all of the cars that whizzed by, that seemed to ignore us. I pointed out all of the cars that slowed down. Besides, I told them, if we get one person to change their mind, then it was a success!

Oh, there was one little girl there that had a t-shirt that said "Former Embryo". I think all of us will get that shirt!

Anyway - here are my pro-lifers! BTW, my son said it should not be called "pro-choice" but "pro-murder". That's right, dear son! A friend said, "I think fewer people would not be "pro-choice" if they called it murder, like it really is."

The Unlimited Love of a Mom

Feast of Guardian Angels

Ok, so we have our indoor plants outside. Well, one day we see a caterpillar on one; the next day it was in a cocoon! COOL! Science experiment!!! LOL! We built a cage - cut out 2 windows out of a cardboard box & covered the openings with saran wrap, then put the plant & cocoon in there. I thought it had died, because it seemed it was in the cocoon for a week longer than it should have been - but I was wrong (first time for everything! LOL!) It came out this morning!

So, smart mom that I am, I thought I would take pictures. In the course of it all, the butterfly made a mad escape! In the process of stopping it, I knocked my hand onto it & stunned it. My daughter thought I had murdered it & started bawling. But once I got it back into its 'cage', it shook it off. So I take more pictures. It makes another mad dash! This time it succeeds! I have to deal with another crying episode from my daughter. She spots it in the tree. So with the help of a net, and after 3 tries with it flying onto another part of the tree each time, I finally catch it & save the day! My neighbor saw the whole thing & told her husband "Now that is love!" LOL!

Anyway, here are a couple of pictures of the yet un-named butterfly.

Here is its former home, the pupa/chrysalis-


Here it is a few hours after its emergence-