Limping into the 47th Year of Roe

Two months ago, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) published new nationwide abortion statistics—for 2015—which means that the most current federal abortion totals are already three years out of date. And they’re grossly incomplete at that, thanks to California’s decades-long abdication. The state with the largest population and the highest number of annual abortions has made an ongoing habit of not collecting or reporting abortion data. California uses public funds to pay for almost 90,000 abortions a year, but it won’t publicly disclose how many unborn Californians are killed each year by abortion. For that we must rely on estimates from the Guttmacher Institute, whose love-affair with abortion easily rivals Planned Parenthood’s own. And Guttmacher’s “current” abortion statistics are even more dated than the CDC’s.

For all these reasons, I started gathering state-by-state abortion data several years ago and using it to extrapolate annual…

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What Does the Kermit Gosnell Film Add to the Decades-Old Abortion Debate?

Last Wednesday, I spent a rare workday afternoon at the movie theater—watching the provocatively-titled new film Gosnell: The Trial of America’s Biggest Serial Killer. Truth be told, it’s not a movie I much wanted to see, but I felt a professional obligation to do so. After all, it’s not every day—or every decade—that a movie about abortion comes to the local cineplex. David Daleiden has called it the best movie about abortion ever made, but let’s be honest, that is an exceedingly small category.  

By way of reminder, Kermit Gosnell is the former Philadelphia abortionist who was convicted in 2013 of murder in the first-degree, for killing three born-alive babies who had survived the abortion process. Gosnell used scissors to finish the job. He was also found guilty of performing 21 abortions on babies who were past Pennsylvania’s 24-week limit and of violating the state’s 24-hour…

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What if Colin Kaepernick Were Protesting Abortion Instead?

I sort of enjoy playing devil’s advocate. Could that be a spiritual gift?! Either way, I find the furor over Nike’s Colin Kaepernack ad to be a bit perplexing, especially since no one had yet seen the commercial when the firestorm first began. By way of full disclosure, I’m a Nike guy. I have been since the 6th grade—when I started caring enough about sneakers to pay extra for the swoosh. And if my beloved Clemson Tigers or Washington State Cougars ever switched their uniform contracts to Under Armour or Adidas, I would honestly struggle to root for them. That’s crazy, I know, but I’ve become rather snobbish about branding.

More to the topic at hand, Nike is in the business of selling shoes, and they’re very good at it. I can only assume then that they’re taking on Colin Kaepernick—and all his baggage—because they think he will help them sell more shoes. And they’re probably right. The now-released commercial isn’t going to supplant Mars Blackmon in the Nike pantheon,…

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Abortion Insights from a Low-Budget Masterpiece

I’m a big fan of the movie Blue Jay—in large part because it caught me completely by surprise. And also because I have a soft spot for early 90’s nostalgia, especially when it includes a reference to Toad the Wet Sprocket. I knew nothing of Blue Jay going in, except for who was in it. All two of them. Mark Duplass and Sarah Paulson. The problem is, by recommending the film in this context I’m actually doing it a disservice. I’m spoiling the third act by implication. But there’s nothing for it. It’s been more than a year since I first happened upon this low-budget masterpiece, and I still can't see a good way to proceed. Either I say nothing, and hope you discover it by accident, or I prime the pump and give away the climax.

If you’re at all inclined to watch, add Blue Jay to your Netflix watch list; then forget about it. Stop reading here, and don’t come back to the movie until you can’t remember why it’s there. Maybe then you can experience it as I did. For everyone else, I’ll start you with a warning.…

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Abortion & the Accidental Horcrux

I was a college student when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone first hit the bookshelves, so I didn’t pay it much mind. Ten years later, when the world-beating series ostensibly came to its conclusion, my two young children were still too young to notice. Thankfully, my family and I eventually caught on. We may have been late to the party, but the Potter books and movies are now a permanent part of our library, and we return to them often. I can’t say I’ve read The Deathly Hallows as often as theologian Jerram Bars, but I do share his appreciation for its themes. Of course, it was the penultimate book…

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The Rubin Report on Abortion

I’ve been a regular listener to The Rubin Report for more than a year now. I’ve tried to get my kids to listen as well, but it’s a tough sell. You see, each episode is little more than a one or two-hour conversation between host Dave Rubin and a heretofore-unheard-of guest. How many teenagers—or adults—have the patience for such an investment? But the payout for those who endure is significant. I’m not saying that each episode is a world beater, but I almost always learn something new and frequently come away with a profound desire to make better use of the life I’ve been given. Would that more sermons did as much!

Topically, The Rubin Report is hard to pin down. Both the guest list and subject index are an eclectic mix, but it’s surprising how often abortion comes up. I say “surprising” because Dave Rubin is a comedian by trade—and a socially-progressive one at that. That’s not usually the m.o. of someone who wants to have a serious discussion about abortion. Nevertheless, it is Rubin’s assertion that abortion is never discussed…

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