The law to raise standards at abortion clinics was signed into law and as  result, abortion clinics in Texas are closing:

The most significant abortion center closure — in the 40 years of legalized abortion since the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision– was made public today when Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, Inc. announced that it was shutting down its abortion facility in Bryan/College Station, Texas after fifteen tumultuous years in business.

Shawn Carney, 40 Days for Life campaign director, said: “As the birthplace of 40 Days for Life and the place where Abby Johnson resigned after eight years working for America’s largest abortion chain, this is a huge victory for the entire pro life movement! Peaceful and prayerful local opposition to abortion is ending abortion from the grassroots up.

This news comes courtesy of 40 Days for Life.

Make no mistake: These were not places that “help” women or their health. We can celebrate these closures as the victory that they are.

When I read about “brochoice” I did a blog post too. But I was really angry and Faye cordially suggested that we not publish that one. Friends don’t let friends publish angry rants.

So thankfully, Miss Rebecca Richmond at National Campus Life Network was able to collect herself and write something useful. Bravo, Rebecca. You have succeeded where others have failed.

For the uninitiated, “Brochoice” is part of the Texas Debacle–fighting over new pro-woman, pro-life legislation down south has gotten ugly in that state. “Brochoice” is what happens when a man decides he needs to motivate men to stand up against the new legislation, which raises standards in abortion clinics and outlaws abortions when the baby could actually be born alive. Why does he stand up to make his voice heard? Because restrictions on abortion put a damper on your casual sex life.

It is so good to see men standing up for the ladies.

If you’d like to read more about Brochoice, take it away, Rebecca. I can feel my blood pressure rising and it’s early in the day.

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Faye adds: Well, I think friends can let friends post ‘angry’ rants. It’s when it comes to explosive, incendiary or nuclear rants that a friend should offer another perspective.

Some pro-lifers from the Canadian Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform were acquitted of trespassing charges for displaying their signs in the Calgary airport in 2011. A good ruling.

A lawyer for eight members of the Centre for Bio-Ethical Reform said a judge’s decision to acquit them of trespassing for displaying anti-abortion signs and distributing leaflets at Calgary International Airport is another positive ruling for freedom of expression. “It’s encouraging for free expression rights generally,” John Carpay said outside court on Monday, following provincial court Judge Allan Fradsham’s decision. “Decisions like these ones have persuasive influence on other court cases. It is a positive addition to the body of case law regarding free expression rights.”

…is Kellie Leitch. I don’t know much about her but she voted no on the Woodworth motion, M-312, which was a parliamentary motion, not a bill, to examine when life begins. Rona Ambrose was promoted to health.

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Faye adds: Ouch. From Andrew Cohen:

Leitch arrived in Parliament when the Conservatives cruelly disowned the incumbent in her riding, Helena Guergis. When Leitch talks of the rights of women, she would do well to remember that she is where she is because a woman was drummed out of the party.

Your dating culture on campus, courtesy of the Pill. There’s so much I could say about this article but I’ll limit this comment to a short reflection on how the Pill changed our world, drastically and dramatically. Not too long ago (should have realized this earlier) I began to realize that the sexual revolution is not mythical. And one effect is apparently the loss of romance.

At 11 on a weeknight earlier this year, her work finished, a slim, pretty junior at the University of Pennsylvania did what she often does when she has a little free time. She texted her regular hookup — the guy she is sleeping with but not dating. What was he up to? He texted back: Come over. So she did. They watched a little TV, had sex and went to sleep. A generation of women faces broad opportunities and great pressures, both of which help shape their views on sex and relationships. Their relationship, she noted, is not about the meeting of two souls. “We don’t really like each other in person, sober,” she said, adding that “we literally can’t sit down and have coffee.” … “I’m a true feminist,” she added. “I’m a strong woman. I know what I want.” At the same time, she didn’t want the number of people she had slept with printed, and she said it was important to her to keep her sexual life separate from her image as a leader at Penn. “Ten years from now, no one will remember — I will not remember — who I have slept with,” A. said. “But I will remember, like, my transcript, because it’s still there. I will remember what I did. I will remember my accomplishments and places my name is hung on campus.”

Since these girls are completely unencumbered from pregnancy concerns (though not STIs, as rising rates of those will attest) they can have casual sex and worry about the really, really important things in life. Like getting a good transcript. Don’t we all just sit back so very often with a glass of fine wine and reflect on that critical piece of paper?

I appreciated reading this, from Jill Stanek. It’s an interview, a discussion between a pro-life activist and a pro-choice activist. Here’s the pro-life question:

I so often hear wild exaggerations from the other side that I never know if and when they think something is a real emergency. I asked Robin about this. Do they see these particular times as truly alarming?

And here’s the pro-choice answer:

I can only speak for myself and a lot of activists I have talked to,” Robin responded. “‘The sky is falling’ is a bit extreme, but I do think there has been a significant shift. The language has changed, the tactics have changed. Local stories – such as when Ohio added abortion restrictions to their budget, or when North Carolina gutted that bill – are now national news events.  There is a sense that abortion access could be changed forever. People who weren’t necessarily engaged are paying attention. The public is becoming more aware that abortion isn’t a settled issue, which many believed was until now.”

Interesting.

(h/t)

When you hear about forced sterilizations, one hearkens back to Margaret Sanger’s day–the founder of Planned Parenthood who appreciated and advanced the cause of eugenics. Or 2010, as the case turns out.

The situation in California is pretty simple: Between 2006 and 2010, the Center for Investigative Reporting reveals, nearly 150 female California prison inmates were sterilized without their fully informed consent.

The author writes this:

The major reason to force people to give up their reproductive potential (among the most natural of all rights), as California did, is a determination by the state that their crimes deprive them of even the most basic of rights. It’s the same thinking that results in the casual acceptance of rape behind bars and dozens of other horrible things. And this casual type of dehumanization, in turn, undermines the most fundamental teachings of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

I agree.

Friends: Aid to Women is a pregnancy centre next door to an abortion clinic in downtown Toronto. They are asking for help, see below. This does seem like a good opportunity to get on the street level and help more women. Spread the word.

We have an opportunity for a suitable co-tenant at our downtown Toronto location and are hoping that you can assist us in our search.

As you may know, Aid to Women is a unique kind of crisis pregnancy centre. Our office and counselling space is located next door to the ‘Cabbagetown Women’s Clinic’ abortuary. Our primary focus is on counselling the women who are entering the abortuary, or who mistakenly walk up to our office thinking it is the abortuary.

…Ideally we’d be located at the street level next to the abortuary, but that space has never been available to us. This spring, however, the store that occupied the street level space closed its doors and we have the opportunity we’ve wished for nearly 20 years.

Renting the street level commercial space presents us with a unique opportunity to dramatically increase our effectiveness. We know that asking women to enter our offices on the second floor discourages many women from accepting our offer of counselling.  … Our visibility and our outreach would become so much more impactful.

The landlord has offered the main floor space to us, but the cost of the monthly rent, (as well as the property tax and utilities payments) is very challenging for us.  We are currently in a long-term lease for the second floor, so would need to cover the carrying costs for the whole building. We are trying to negotiate a more reasonable rental fee, because we feel that this opportunity may not come along again for some time, if we let it go.

So, for all the above reasons, we would like to reach out to our non-profit, pro-life friends to ask whether you would know an organization, or be interested in sharing our space in the house. If we move our office and counselling space to the main floor, the office space upstairs (recently extensively renovated) will be available for sublet to someone else. We are hoping to share the space with the new tenant because we will require access to the kitchen and the storage area on the third floor. Over time, this access would likely diminish as we would progress to renovate the space downstairs to accommodate our needs.

We are reaching out to you for assistance in finding a suitable co-tenant. If you think your organization may be interested, or you know of an organization that is looking for reasonably priced office space downtown Toronto , please drop us a line and let us know at [email protected].

Thank you kindly,

Elena Repka, on behalf of the Aid to Women Board of Directors

President

I liked both Barbara Kay’s article and Tasha Kheiriddin’s on why women know less about the news.

Both are reasonable responses to a study I posted about yesterday.

What is unreasonable as an explanation is the assertion that there is a “historic hangover,” whereby women believe news and politics to be a man’s domain. But there, Tasha is right too-the study author probably wants another grant somewhere down the line and academia is extraordinarily unforgiving of those who use common sense when it comes to gender difference.