Nov 1, 1999

Over The Edge Page 3

Because of intellectual
and political timidity- not
to mention a crippled
democratic impulse-
Canada has long lost its
maturity to rationally
debate abortion laws.
The United States, on
the other hand, has a
more progressive view
of democratic  dis-
course. The resurgence
and direction of the
abortion debate down
there is shifting in a
manner that may be
surprising to many.

On October 21st, the
U.S. Senate revisited for
the third time in four
years a bill that would
ban certain types of

late-term abortions,
namely “partial-birth
abortions.” Abortion-

rights advocates prefer
the term “intact dilation
How

and evacuation.”

sterile.
procedure is quite grue-
some. A nurse from
Dayton, Ohio who testi-
fied before congress
described one thusly:
“The mother was six
months pregnant. The
baby’s heartbeat was
clearly visible on the
ultrasound screen. The
doctor went in with for-
ceps and grabbed the
baby’s legs and pulled
them down into the birth
canal. Then he deliv-
ered the baby’s body
and the arms- every-
thing but the head. The
doctor kept the baby’s
head just inside the
uterus. The baby’s little
fingers were clasping
and unclasping, and his
feet were kicking. Then
the doctor stuck scis-
sors through the back of

his niece and the baby’ Ss

In the next semester
more events are
planned, including criti-
cally acclaimed movies
from India that have not
been seen in Northern
British Columbia before.
More round table dis-
cussions and lectures
on subjects such as the
Naramada Valley dam
project and the
women’s movement in

India are also planned.
Other events such as a
reading by an_ Indo-
Canadian Author and
an evening of song, the-
atre and dance per-
formed by local Indo-
Canadian youth.

The two evenis held in
November have no
admission charges and
everyone is welcome to
attend.

In practice the

arms jerked out | ina
flinch, a startled reac-
tion, like a baby does
when he thinks that he
might fall. The doctor
opened up the scissors,
stuck a high-powered
suction tube into the
opening and sucked the
baby’s brains out. The
head collapsed, and the
body was removed and
discarded.”

Some may object to
this blunt description of
this “intact dilation and
evacuation” (infanticide
to straight shooters).
But to object to the
description is to admit
that the truth is discom-
forting, and that would
confirm that the sterility

of the description of the .

procedure, might not be
as sterile as the con-
science of its defenders.
The point of contention

ss caaens FS

14
geese

Pm

on the issue has now

become, as many abor-
tion

opponents have long
warned it would, not
whether legally pro-
tectable life begins at
conception but whether
legally protectable life
begins at birth.

In short: is there a
statute of limitations on
the reign of “choice.”
Opponents of a ban on
partial-birth abortions
argue that almost all
such abortions are
medically necessary.
However, a gynecolo-
gist from John Hopkins
University hospital testi-
fied that “over 90% are
elective” Opponents of
a ban on such abortions
assert that the baby is
killed before the proce-
dure, by the anesthesia
given to the mother.

we

(The baby “undergoes
demise,” in the stilted
words of Kate
Michelman of the
National Abortion and
Reproductive Rights
Action League. Does
Michelman say herbi-
cides cause the crab
grass in

her lawn to .“undergo
demise”? Such
Orwellian language is a
sure sign of crumbling
credibility.) However, the
president of the
American Society of
Anesthesiologists says
this “misinformation”
has “absolutely no basis
in scientific fact” and
might endanger preg-
nant women’s health by
deterring them from
receiving treatment that
is safe. The bill to ban
partial-birth abortions
that was debated in the

nr

Senate passed by a
vote of 63 to 34. But the
bill has little chance of
becoming law, as the
Senate was four votes
short of the two-thirds
majority required to
override President
Clinton’s expected veto.
“The president sis
opposed to this bill
because it does not pro-
vide for the rare excep-
tion of the health and
well-being of the moth-
er,” said White House
Press Secretary Joe
Lockhart. Legal analysts
have found that a provi-
sion for the “well-being
of the mother’ (“moth-
er’, interesting noun)
would render the bill
useless. *

Contiuned On

Page 9

With ; access to education,
you've got options.

Thinking about your education? Wondering how you'll pay for tuition?
Looking for employment opportunities? Youth Options BC is about
access to post-secondary education, expanded BC Student Grants,

student loan interest relief, jobs, skills and training.

Whether you’re in first year or fourth you've got options - lots of them.

— ==

qYouTHOPTIONS 4)

=

This is the way

1- 877- BC- YOUTH
www.youth.gov.bc.ca

ee

COLIN

Honourable Andrew Petter,
Minister Responsible for Youth