By Barb Shelly, Kansas City Star editorial page columnist
Operation Rescue, the aggressive anti-abortion group based in Wichita, Kan., made tracks to distance itself from the murder early this month of abortion doctor George Tiller.
But now the group, which hounded Tiller for years, is turning its sights on LeRoy Carhart, the Nebraska-based physician who regularly assisted Tiller.
Operation Rescue has put out the word that it wants to hear from women who sought abortions from Carhart in the last five years. It's doing a "research project" on Carhart, according to its website.
If experience is any guide, this "research project" will result in unverifiable and downright bogus allegations, which the group will make public. It's the sort of information that just might inflame an unbalanced person like Scott Roeder, the man accused of shooting Tiller in his church -- where, by the way, Operation Rescue had protested and disrupted services numerous times.
But when tragedy occurs, Operation Rescue's leaders are shocked and appalled. Or so they say.
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It's Barb's side that offers the bogus allegations
http://www.cjonline.com/interact/blog/groenhagen/2009-06-25/newspaper_publishes_letter_with_bogus_claims
So, uh, Danno? Question for you.
Planned Parenthood Inc., the masters of inflaming the public
If PPI is so good at inflaming the public, how come there haven't been any incidents of pro-choice people shooting pro-lifers or blowing up Operation Rescue offices?
I would guess
...that editing my comment was intended to protect some individuals. Nice job in proving my point, Yael.
DanBeyer -
Nice try - but it won't happen. The Star's famous in-depth investigations in the Sunday Star will NEVER include investigating abortionists. Even if someone at the Star thought about doing it, the far-left supporters of our supposed-objective paper would raise hell and nip it.
.
Also DanBeyer - for the Star to do an investigation of the abortion industry, the report would be like "the fox watching the hen house", which means they wouldn't find anything to report. It would be like Kim Jung Il saying he had no nukes.
First
yes the Star is very much against the tactics of Operation Rescue. As are most rational people. But then again, this is the Star.
And the whole "pro-choice" "pro-abortion" semantics debate? Who cares. I see that exchange here as nothing more than pettiness. Again. I'm sure Interface was dying to use stupid and idiot in his comment--as he always has been allowed to do.
Third, artwill, Kay Barnes is a Friend of the Star--no criticism will be given on this site. In fact, go re-read the Star's endorsement of her when she was running for Congress. I believe the words were "her knowledge and experience are needed in Washington."
Womb with a View
There are many silly comments on this site. Let me note, in response to one poster below, that the Star does virtually NO investigative reporting and that includes especially the P&L and other projects backed by the "developer" buddies of Barnes-Cauthen who are placing much of KCMO's assets and revenue in its pockets. This is by far more of a threat to quality of life in KC than this issue.
But, the silliest comments by far on this site are those identifying pro-choice with "pro-abortion." I for one and certainly many others favor the use of public and charitable resources to assist women who wish to bear THEIR children. One can favor the choice of a woman without being in favor of abortion. This should be clear and easily understood by all except simpletons or the most ideologically motivated. To confuse the two is a sick ideologic/theocratic motivated ploy. Additionally, the call for police action that comes between families and their physicians is dangerous to medical practice and human welfare. Just think for a moment where this might lead. There are private spheres of life, and I don't want wombs with a view. If you have religious scruples, I welcome you to them, but don't try to press these on me. You will have a real battle if you do.
They won't do it Dan.
Babs and the Star are 100% in the tank as being pro-abortion. Also PP as an organization and many of their employees ARE pro-abortion, where do you think those hundreds of millions in 'excess money' (that's what they call their profit since they are supposed to be 'non profit') comes from? It isn't from selling prescriptions to minor children without their parents knowledge, it's from abortions.
If PP really cared about women's health they would:
Provide referrals for low cost mammograms.
Be the first in line to report rapes of underage children.
Be more than willing to have their surgical abortion clinics abide by all medical safety standards that apply to any other outpaitient surgical facility including surgeons/oral surgeons offices where minor procedures are performed. This one really get's me. Why, if you claim to be in business to protect women's health, would you fight any attempt to require your surgical clinics to abide by the same required safety standards as an oral surgeons office, or other outpatient surgical center?
Bab's and the Star won't do any investigative reporting. The only 'investigative reporting' the Star apparently does any more is investigation of the alcohol available in the P&L district.
how about you do it Dan ?
Get a police commission and have at it.
You could start with a rent-a-cop badge and work your way up from there.
But what is sooooo strange ... is the complete lack of any woman on the site sharing your zeal for this project.
Glad you are looking out for their wombs.
I formally call on Barb Shelly and the KC Star to investigate
For years now one group after another has performed sting operations on Planned Parenthood Inc. and other abortionists catching them again and again refusing to report child rape. These sting operations were begun after more and more allegations that abortionists were refusing to report to the authorities adult men bringing under-age girls to their facilities for abortions.
Take for example Kansas' own Sherman A. Zaremski. An abortionist who surprisingly was never charged for covering up child rape, he performed abortions on 11 year old girl and her sister who were repeatedly raped by their pedophile step-father. The abuse resulted in four pregnancies, and the girl later gave birth to twins on her 12th birthday. He didn't think it necessary to report the continuing abuse to any authorities. Also too the number of civil suits against abortionists for just this criminal activity has been growing. Couple that with the fact that abortionists across the country are fighting against laws that would mandate reporting ALL instances of pregnancies of girls under the age of 15, that many law enforcement agencies including Johnson County as well as several state legislatures are looking into this now, and you've got more than enough probable cause to investigate this.
To show your readers once and for all if this is bogus or not.
What did I tell you?
Take for example Kansas' own Sherman A. Zaremski. An abortionist who surprisingly was never charged for covering up child rape, he performed abortions on 11 year old girl and her sister who were repeatedly raped by their pedophile step-father. The abuse resulted in four pregnancies, and the girl later gave birth to twins on her 12th birthday. He didn't think it necessary to report the continuing abuse to any authorities. Also too the number of civil suits against abortionists for just this criminal activity has been growing. Couple that with the fact that abortionists across the country are fighting against laws that would mandate reporting ALL instances of pregnancies of girls under the age of 15, that many law enforcement agencies including Johnson County as well as several state legislatures are looking into this now, and you've got more than enough probable cause to investigate this.
To show your readers once and for all if this is bogus or not.
Another of Dan's unfounded allegations. As regular as clockwork.
The problem here is that Phill Kline had 4 years to take care of these 'law-breakers' when he was state AG. And another 2 years as county DA.
Remember the charges Phill filed and the resulting trials? Yeah, me neither.
So I take it Dan is admitting Phill was a failure.
Cue the 'system is corrupt and Planned Parenthood pays off lawmakers' post fom Dan.
yep
Another target in their sights.
The tears shed by Operation Rescue leaders, and other anti-abortion activists, are as "..false as the tears of crocodiles". Now they are gearing up for an assault on his replacement and there are plenty of wackos with guns ready to take up the cause. Perhaps the DOJ will be more diligent this time and put the fear of God into their heads.
The DOJ pledged to investigate and charge those who aided and abetted the murder of Dr Tiller. I would hope that Cheryl Sullenger is first on the list. She has already served time for her past behaviour, so imprisonment may not mean much to her. Others though, might get the message.
Barb I want to know something
Why is Cheryl Sullenger allow to lobby in Topeka? Isn't she a convicted felon? She spent time in prison for conspiracy to fire bomb an abortion clinic. Her phone number was in Scott Roeder's car when he was arrested.
Why is she allowed access to lawmakers in Topeka? If felons can't vote, why can they lobby?
There goes Babs
Making unfounded accusations again. Babs, are you unaware that in the United States there is a little thing called the First Ammendment that guarntees Freedom of Speech? Any person has a constitutional right to speak out against actions that they feel are wrong.
You, of course, also have a constitutional right to free speech, but your comments come pretty close to a desire for censorship and wanting to stop others from exercising their own, constitutionally guarnteed, rights.
So are you going to do it Barb?
Come on now! If these charges of abortionists nationally, protecting pedophiles are bogus why don't you and this paper prove it once and for all?!
Of Bias And Unintended Consequences
"But now the group, which hounded Tiller for years, is turning its sights on LeRoy Carhart ..."
"It's the sort of information that just might inflame an unbalanced person like Scott Roeder ..."
We all have lenses or filters through which we see the world. Journalists are SUPPOSED to be less biased. But Barb, you apparently don't care, do you?
A couple of interesting things about this column:
(1) Pointing out in published writing the next person in Operation Rescue's "sights" is like shining a spotlight on the doctor ... for the very people you call "unbalanced." Way to go, Barb; if their goal truly were to promote murder of abortionists, you're aiding and abetting through media channels!
(2) Your column is obviously intended to be anti Operation Rescue (despite your helping them). Isn't that the kind of inflaming you deride Operation Rescue for? What an unbalanced person reads your column and then kills one or more Operation Rescue workers? Aren't you just as guilty as the provocateurs you criticize?
Pro-abortion is the right word. / Censorship is wrong!
The South's position in the war between the states was "pro-slavery", not "pro-choice", even though no one in the South thought that slavery should be mandatory. I've never met anyone who was "pro-choice" who was against abortion, just for the choice. So, let's cut the crap.
Note to the star, which censored my previous post: Censorship is wrong, especially for a newspaper. Now, is this post going to be censored. Seriously, you wonder why your paper is failing?
Again, nobody's "pro-abortion"
The argument is whether or not the legal choice to have the abortion should lie with the individual. There's simply not a "pro-abortion" camp out there, despite the anti-choice rhetoric.
Sometimes rhetoric is just that -- rhetoric.
Operation Rescue's murderous rage
Spare us the homilies. OR is dancing in the streets over Doctor Tiller's Assassination. Carhart is the next object of their ire and their fund raising.
Insinuations
The only one making insinuations here is DanBeyer.
Pro-abortion Shelly
Gee, another pro-abortion missive from the star. Can't figure out why more people aren't buying the star. Of course, with unfettered abortion, there are fewer people left alive to buy it.
pro-abortion?
pro-choice is not pro-abortion. Don't be ridiculous.
Actually pro-choice IS pro-abortion
pro-choice is not pro-abortion. Don't be ridiculous.
http://www.cjonline.com/interact/blog/groenhagen/2009-03-09/pro_choice_pro_abortion
Pro-choice
pro-choice is not pro-abortion. Don't be ridiculous.
Pro-chioce means pro-death. Don't be ridiculous.
try as you may to lie
nobody's "pro-abortion."
The sad thing is that, everyone -- anti-choice and pro-choice alike -- wants to see fewer abortions. Rhetorical baloney like that you're tossing about is absolutely silly, and actually makes it more difficult for the two camps to find common ground and work together to ensure that abortions are indeed a less common occurrence.
True, nobody's "pro-abortion"
The sad thing is that, everyone -- anti-choice and pro-choice alike -- wants to see fewer abortions. Rhetorical baloney like that you're tossing about is absolutely silly, and actually makes it more difficult for the two camps to find common ground and work together to ensure that abortions are indeed a less common occurrence.
They call it "pro-choice" which means if the baby lives OK but if they KILL the baby then that's OK too. Which means pro-choice is really pro-death. Let's make sure our terms are clear.
"unverifiable and downright bogus allegations"
Are you perhaps insinuating that the charges leveled against Planned Parenthood Inc. and other abortionists across the country for years that they're covering up child rape are lies?
I've got a great idea! I'm sure you've got some pull at the Kansas City Star! Why don't you and some of the others at the Star conduct an exhaustive investigation of those charges of abortionists nationally refusing to report to the authorities of pedophiles bringing underage girls to have abortions.
You say they are "unverifiable and downright bogus allegations", then use this newspaper to verify that they are bogus allegations!
To set the record straight once and for all!
Not going to happen is it Barb Shelly? You and this paper wouldn't get any more awards from Planned Parenthood Inc. would you?!
Dan, You're the one making
Dan,
You're the one making allegations against P.P. Why don't YOU verify your accusations instead of tasking a newspaper you clearly think is biased. Even if they did it, you wouldn't trust their findings. In light of your position as to the Star's credibility, your request lacks logic.
Yeah Dan - we are.
It sounds like cries against ACORN,
many are accused but few are charged.
Please - there are 50 states.
Based on your ( and really Dan ..if this was such a horrific problem I would expect, but we have had this conversation before , that there would be 10s of thousands of press and prosecutors and police crying out against this "problem".) there should be charges in every one of the 50 states.
How about just the Republican Governor led states ... How about those ??? Where are all those charges ...
Nope ?
Really ... whats that Shakespeare play - "Much ado about nothing " ?
"Turns it's sights"?
Oh , I get it like in sniper 's rifle "sights"?
"Aggressive", "tracks", "hounded", "turning it's sights on...", "put out the word", "But when tragedy occurs, Operation Rescue's leaders are shocked and appalled. OR SO THEY SAY(Wink Wink)."
Oh yeah, Barb I forgot the word "inflame"! Barb knows all about that word! She should, Planned Parenthood Inc., the masters of inflaming the public taught her well!
So much so they gave her their top award!
Oh they must have given up
trying to raise Roeder's bail money.