Testimony on the Preborn Non-Discrimination Act, SB 1033

I took this as we were leaving the Capitol Wednesday evening.
The mockingbird called to me and stayed put while I took its photo.

I'm preparing for my talk tonight at the University of North Texas in Denton hosted by the UNT Eagles for Life, but I wanted to put up a couple of quick posts with my oral and written testimony on the bills that were heard last Wednesday before the Senate Health & Human Services Committee as well as some other information. I have additional posts planned regarding last week, probably two or three more. Instead of doing some very long posts, I'm going to divide them up into groups of testimony by subject or theme. 

I want to start now, however, with the first pro-life bill we testified in favor of: the Preborn Non-Discrimination Act ("PreNDA"), Senate Bill 1033. You can read the text of the bill and follow its progress on Texas Legislature Online. I like this bill a great deal and think that it shows the humanity of all unborn, which we all so need to promote and help others understand. There are many exceptions to the 20-week abortion ban Texas put into place in 2015 and it amounts to nothing short of discrimination in many cases. That should not be. That's not pro-life. Importantly, the bill also provides some very real help for those facing such a pregnancy. I am always in favor of more information and more help to people facing any difficult situation and think we owe it to them. 

When I was working on my testimony at the hotel Tuesday night, I was in the business office trying to print my written testimony to submit. A man came in after midnight to do the same. I had a feeling he was "one of us." We started talking and he told me his story. Daniel Crawford and his wife, Kelly, faced such a pregnancy and carried their baby, Abel, to term knowing he was probably going to die soon thereafter. He did. But, as Daniel told me, "We loved him for 15 days before he went to be with our Lord." In the midst of that grief, they started an organization to help others facing similar circumstances, Abel Speaks. They were without much help, support, and information as they navigated their way through a devastating diagnosis. There is such beauty in what they did and in their testimony given before the Senate HHS Committee. 

The Crawfords were not alone. We heard from so many who did likewise.  You can see the entirety of the testimony here. Some were given grim diagnoses and recommendations for abortion and their sweet babies are now sweet children. Some have disabilities, but all are loved and valued and were given every chance at life. No preborn baby deserves anything less. Families facing this situation need support not a quick recommendation for abortion and no other information. That doesn't honor the unborn child's humanity or the parents either. Texas Right to Life reported on the testimony as well. 

Also important to the discussion is that babies at this age can feel pain. They are human, after all. That they have potential or actual disabilities, health problems, or whatever, does not change this fact.  Again, we have a 20-week abortion ban here but there are very broad exceptions. My friend, and roommate in Austin, Dr. Sheila Page, gave powerful testimony on this very fact.

I always learn so much from her and have been blessed to listen to her and get to know her better since we first met in 2013.

In my testimony, I wanted to focus on the discrimination aspect of this and  how that mentality leads to euthanasia and overall disregard for all human life. (You'll note a theme among my posts lately. I am deeply disturbed and concerned about the way society views humanity and the effects and consequences of that.) I also wanted to point out how the failure to give women this information is not providing informed consent. There has always been a double standard here - even among feminists. I've heard feminists say, on the one hand, women are powerful and should be completely autonomous and decide who lives and who dies. Then they say, on the other hand, women are fragile and should not be given too much information lest they be scared away....from what? Abortion? Medical professionals sometimes oppose these bills and why would that be? In any other context it would be medical malpractice to perform a procedure on a person and not provide them the information they need for full and complete informed consent. Why the double standard? So they might not choose something else? Like life, maybe? I think the idea that pro-abortion people want fewer abortions becomes harder to believe sometimes just by listening to what they say.

Anyway, we were only give two minutes, which is hardly enough time to say anything very useful, so many of us submitted written testimony as well. Mine follows the video of my oral testimony.

Testimony in Support of SB 1033

April 10, 2019

By: Kassi Dee Patrick Marks, JD

I submit this written testimony in support of SB 1033. Among other things, this bill addresses two critical areas which demonstrate an inconsistency and hypocrisy in the law in the context of abortion which leads to a devaluing of all human life, including the preborn child and women, who are not provided the protection they deserve. First, it addresses ongoing legal discrimination against the most vulnerable segment of the population that is no less worthy of protection from such lethal discrimination in this case than anyone else. It closes the gaping loopholes in Texas’ existing law that allow for late-term abortion of a viable child even for nebulous reasons such as the “prevent[ing]…a substantial risk of serious impairment to the…mental health of the woman.” Second, it requires true and full informed consent on the part of the mother as to the preborn child’s actual condition and palliative care measures available should the worst case scenario be realized. This is information not currently offered. 

Society has an inherent disregard for – and, in some cases – actual contempt for certain human life deemed less worthy of dignity, protection, and the ability to continue living. For the preborn, we now see efforts to stop laws that would prevent rendering care even to those infants born alive despite an abortion attempt. This level of societal depravity must end and we in Texas can do something to roll this back. This bill is an important step in that direction. 

First, this bill addresses discrimination against the preborn. One of the last widely acceptable means of discrimination in our society, including among many who consider themselves “pro-life,” is that which is against preborn who may be ill, disabled, an undesired gender, and so forth. We also see this discrimination extended to those already born who are ill, the disabled who are ill, or simply the elderly who are ill and permitted (and even encouraged) by the laws in Texas allowing for the withdrawal of and refusal to provide healthcare to them as well. We’d not have one form of discrimination without the other. Not only does the current law allow for this discrimination against the preborn to continue, it actually encourages it based on the breadth of the reasons allowing late-term abortions of viable infants. The result of this legally sanctioned discrimination is the certain death of people whose lives are no less worthy of value, care, and protection than anyone else. 

The bill also specifically prohibits abortion based on discriminatory reasons such a gender, ethnicity, race, and the “probability of diagnosis of or having a disability of the woman’s unborn child” or by the “use of force or threat of force to intentionally injure or intimidate a person in order to coerce the performance or attempted performance of an abortion based” on these reasons. It would prevent abortions based on a non-life threatening disability or even suspected disability of the child and other discriminatory reasons and is based on existing anti-discrimination laws that hypocritically and inconsistently do not currently extend to the unborn. How can we expect any life to be valued if the least among us are routinely and easily discarded for the pettiest of reasons? Second, this bill addresses the lack of information given to women prior to an abortion which results in a medical procedure being performed without informed consent, something that would, in any other context, be violative of the law and medical ethics. The one area of “medicine” where is it permissible and encouraged to perform a procedure without obtaining fully informed consent is in the area of abortion. Indeed, both practitioners of this macabre procedure and lobbyists do everything they can to avoid fully informing a woman of the nature of the procedure, the true condition of her unborn baby and his or her state of development, the risks and complications of the abortion procedure, and the negative long-term consequences of undergoing such a procedure. Far from empowering a woman, proponents of abortion seek to keep her ignorant and push her into a something she may not have chosen had all the facts been given her beforehand. 

Under this bill, such a late-term abortion would be restricted to those preborn children who receive a diagnosis of a life-threatening disability but only after the mother receives information about perinatal palliative care which includes care from the moment of diagnosis to the delivery of the baby and possible death. This care includes not just medical care, but also social and mental health care, and counseling. The term “palliative care” also includes health care provided by maternal-fetal specialists, obstetricians, neonatologists, anesthesia specialists, clergy, social workers, and other individuals focused on alleviating fear and pain and ensuring the pregnant woman, her preborn child, and her family as a whole experience a supportive environment. The informational materials will also include information about services for the provision of this care and medical assistance benefits that may be available. 

Currently, an expectant mother receives a grim diagnosis and a recommendation to abort without any other information and without recommendations to other specialists to learn more about the diagnosis and a second opinion. Decisions are made hastily – and out of fear and even ignorance – because information is not made readily available to a woman. This is largely because the mindset of too many is that no child should be given the opportunity to be born with such a diagnosis and so the woman is “encouraged” to make a decision where certain death looks like the best and only option. Everything about the current system prevents informed consent and ensures discriminatory abortion under the law. 

In addition, this bill would restrict abortion also to only those cases where there is a medical emergency for the mother as that is defined in §171.002(3) “a life-threatening physical condition aggravated by, caused by, or arising from a pregnancy that, as certified by a physician, places the woman in danger of death or a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function unless an abortion is performed.” Truthfully, almost no abortion – especially a late-term abortion – would meet this definition because many times to the extent that the pregnancy itself is causing those risks, the post-viable preborn baby can be delivered prematurely and both the mother and baby receive medical care. Abortion is not healthcare and does not treat any medical condition. Killing a child at this stage does nothing to help the mother. Ending the pregnancy by delivering the child alive and treating both mother and baby helps everyone and affirms all life. 

This is life affirming legislation that this state needs for the sake of women, preborn children, and society as a whole. When society under color of law, targets the least among us as unworthy of life and disposable, how can we expect any life to be valued by the average person? No action occurs in a vacuum. These philosophies grow and spread and we see that in how society now views euthanasia and how Texas law treats the ill which we discuss today as well. We’d not be there without abortion. All life has value. And, if we are to err at all, we err on the side of life. Always.

I will be posting more videos soon and discussing them. In the interim, you can see a number of them on my friend Yvette D's YouTube page. I really appreciate her taking the time to do this and sharing them with me.

I am so grateful for all those who came out to support these bills. As Texas Right to Life reported, the support of the bill was overwhelming.

It says a great deal about an organization and an issue when you get numbers like that. I'm going to be writing more about that in the future as well. 

Note that the companion bill to SB 1033, which is HB 2434, is being heard before the House Health & Human Services Committee Wednesday, that is, tomorrow. If you can get down there to register in support of the bill or testify in support of it, or both, please do so. It matters a great deal to show those who represent us what we want.

Texas is not as pro-life as it could be. At the end of life, it is the worst. We're going to talk about that next. We can make a difference and the show of numbers matters to the difference we can make because those who lobby against these life-saving bills are quite monied and politically well-connected and influential. We have to make up the difference in numbers and hard work.

So, that's our first update on the testimony.

UPDATE: I should have mentioned that the bill was left pending in the Committee. At some point we hope that they will vote it out of the Committee so it can be taken up by the full Senate.

Thanks for reading!

Report on the Dialogue, Not Debate Event at SMU

It's been a busy week as I said it would be. I did go down to Austin to testify Wednesday on what ended up being three separate life-affirming, life-protecting bills. I'm going to blog about those soon. My good friend is still getting some video clips prepared. You're not just going to see my testimony and some of those who supported the bills, but also some of those who opposed them. It's going to be educational for you and I think further validate some things I've been saying on this blog for years. But right now, I want to tell you about the discussion panel at SMU Thursday night. 

I've been debating within myself (not dialoguing) about how best to present a report on the Dialogue, Not Debate event at SMU. It was rather eye-opening for some reasons that had nothing to do with the abortion issue itself. Rather than summarize what happened, I'm going to just link here the full video of the exchange and commend it to you for your education, awareness...and prayer for all involved. 

For my part, I wanted to meet this audience where it was and really get people to think about how the disregard for some life leaves everyone vulnerable. I also wanted to get people to think past the immediate shock, surprise, fear, and panic that might accompany the discovery of a pregnancy rather than just run to abortion as a solution. Sometimes the unexpected can be a blessing if we step back and stop trying to control each situation and see each change to that as something wrong, bad, and which must be prevented. In other words, as Christians would say, "Let go and let God." I also wanted everyone to know that we are all made in the image and likeness of God. Whether one believes that or not, one needs to hear it. 

I do want to highlight or expand upon a few points that you will see in the video and some things that I was unable to say for the sake of time, etc. 

I mentioned during this event a book that would inform women of their fertility because it had come up from the pro-abortion side that one of problems women face and why they need Planned Parenthood is because there is just not enough information about fertility and it's hard to find on the internet, etc., etc., etc. One book that helped me navigate Natural Family Planning, which I found was presented in an overly complicated way in Catholic books, was Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. I think women are smart and capable of reading and understanding the written word. I also think that certain motivations are exposed when you present a simple solution to a problem they raise - there's no information on fertility; here's a book; people don't have money for books... - tells us a great deal. Other than that, I'll let their response speak for itself.

Another thing I will note is that Dr. Kanter admitted that the government could withdraw all funding from PP and it would not go anywhere. In other words, PP doesn't need our government dollars. That is excellent to know next time the subject comes up in the legislature. As for the PP's argument that the provision of abortion is only 3% of what it does, that is inaccurate. A look at the study showed how those numbers are cooked. They also claimed that they do mammograms; you know, the usual things. You'll see links below for some of the things I reviewed. Not everything was said that I wanted to, but you have to make some calls about what points to press and which ones just aren't relevant to the overall message that needed to get across.

Then, I want you to understand the difference between abortion and preterm parturition which is the procedure that is done when a pregnancy is truly life-threatening to a woman. As I mentioned in my part of the panel discussion, there is a night and day difference in intent, purpose, and how the baby is treated. Indeed, if possible, the baby is saved. In the article I was referring to, Dr. Donna J. Harrison, stated: "There is a night and day difference between elective abortion and separating a mother and her unborn child for the purposes of saving a mother's life (preterm parturition)." Dr. Harrison continued:

There are times when separating the mother and her unborn child is necessary to save the life of the mother, even if the unborn child is too premature to live. In those tragic cases, if possible the life of the baby will be attempted to be preserved, and if not possible, the body of the unborn child is treated with respect, recognizing the humanity of the life which is lost in the separation.

A doctor friend of mine has expressed to me how other doctors recoil in horror at the use of the term "abortion" for these medically necessary procedures. They do not consider them the same because they are not in intent and how the baby is treated. They are not done primarily to kill the baby, whereas that is exactly the case with abortion.

As for abortion to save the life of the mother once viable or near the general viability mark, that is never necessary. As I say in my written testimony in support of SB 1033 which I will blog about later, you do not have to have abortion for that. Again, that is a case where the baby can be saved as well; at the very least, we try to save him or her. Killing the baby in that circumstance does nothing to save the mother whose life is threatened by the pregnancy. You can end a pregnancy and save both lives. Again, you would not use the abortion procedure, but preterm parturition. I was reminded recently that a baby born at 21 weeks in 2017 thrived despite the odds. Medicine is getting better and better and that is partially why I think we see arguments based on viability and when life begins going out the window and being replaced with versions of those doesn't matter, the woman decides who lives or dies.

I'm told by some in the audience that it was a hostile crowd. I sensed that only slightly - and you see me interact with one woman who was being slightly disruptive at times - and I certainly expected it. But I sensed that a great many were paying attention. I talked to half a dozen young women afterwards who sought me out to talk, seek advice, and thank me, in addition to those who organized the event. While on stage, I was primarily focused on delivering a message of love and hope and life for everyone. It is not complicated when you look at it that way. Yes, there are complicated situations; but respecting life is not complicated. There are scary, unexpected situations. But fundamentally, if we value all life, things actually become simpler. Not necessarily easier, but simpler.

This idea that life is complicated; who knows when it begins; who cares when it begins, we're women, we have the power to give and take life...is, frankly, disturbing and appalling. As I said in my talk, yes, we have the power to give life but with that comes great responsibility. As women, we have a responsibility to nurture and protect life, especially that which we carry. Men, of course, have that responsibility, too. But in this case, the idea was that women call all the shots and the best man was one who said, "If you get pregnant, babe; it's all up to you."

As I said there, the time to decide you don't want to be a mother is before you are pregnant. And, yes, I did say that if the choice is between an abortion if you get pregnant and a 50 cent condom, use the condom. Am I pushing contraception now? No, I am not and I said that. However, you have to meet your audience where they are in these situations. Many are far from that point and if I can do something to plant a seed where they begin to question this "easy solution of abortion" then I am going to do that and not distract them by an unyielding anti-contraception rant - which they were expecting anyway and were surprised not to get. The audience will tune me out and we lose any effort to save any baby. The other panelists will focus on that rather than the ugliness of abortion and those saying certain life is not valuable and not to be protected. I wanted to stay focused on that mentality. Sometimes you have to make a judgment call and I did just that.

One thing I've learned, especially in the last year and a half, is that people are complicated and life is complicated. That is true. The issue of abortion, however, is actually simple. Unborn babies are human from the moment of fertilization and worthy of protection. (If you are interested, the article about the zinc fireworks set off at fertilization is here.) But the issue becomes complicated because, as with everything else, people are broken, man is in a fallen state, and everyone is on a journey. (It's made more complicated by people, including clergy, acting like there is some uncertain point at which the unborn are human and worthy of protection and by feminist or anti-life politics; e.g., that life does not begin until the born baby takes its first breath and experiences life. Watch the video.) We are to keep progressing forward even as we fall backwards constantly. Yes, there is black and white morality. But the application of it to each person in their particular state gets difficult. You push someone too far before they are ready, they will usually quit - and bitterly so. There is a balance that has to be reached.

None of us are there perfectly yet, that is, in that perfectly moral state without any sin or temptation to sin. We fall every day and our pride often prevents us from even seeing it, much less correcting it as we should. We try to move forward toward perfection and we are called to strive toward that every day in every way. But if we tell people who are far from God or who say they believe in God but are far from the idea that there is a right to life that X (no contraception) is the only way for them, when Y (non-abortifacient contraception rather than an abortion) gets them a little closer and doesn't cause death, maybe that will help them get closer to X (no contraception) and even to Z (where they reject the idea of abortion entirely), we are doing them a greater service than painting them in a corner they don't understand, and cannot yet, and where they harden their hearts against the entire idea of a right to life for the unborn (and others). I recognize that the contraceptive mentality often leads to the abortion mentality, especially in these circumstances. I fully believe that and I've said so for years. We'd not have had Roe v. Wade but for Griswold v. Connecticut (which established the right to privacy in the context of contraceptive access). But, again, this is a situation where we take baby steps and do what we can to try to get people to do the least harm as we hopefully help them progress toward a consistent ethic of life.

It was a unique experience for me to be on this panel and it was enlightening. I hope I also planted some seeds and represented life well. Please pray for all who participated and listened to this discussion. Pray for a society that begins to value all life and want to protect it again. My introductory remarks were from the heart. Society has become depraved with this idea that we kill whoever we think is inconvenient or not utilitarian, who is too old, feeble, disabled, potentially with a birth defect, an undesired gender, or whatever. The reasons are as endless as they are wrong. We have to take back the culture. I have not done enough. We can probably never do enough. But let's look for more ways to do that anyway and do our best.

Remember: We err, if we are to err at all, on the side of life. Always.

Thanks for reading! 

P.S. If you're interested in some of the other things I mentioned, the sources are as follows:

Regarding Federally Qualified Healthcare Centers and the services they don't provide, I reviewed this article, this one, and this one.

Also, the Texas Healthy Women's program is here. As you know, I have been critical of the Texas Women's Healthcare Program as I see it as a primarily contraceptive program, including abortifacient contraceptives, but in this case, they needed to see that there is something other than PP even for that which does not provide money for abortion.

Pro-Life Activism Day in Austin on April 10 & Much More!

Really Early Monday Morning Greetings!

This is a quick post to make you aware of Texas Right to Life's Pro-Life Activism Day which will be Wednesday, April 10, 2019. More information and updates will be here, but here's a quick summary of things as they stand now:

Join Texas Right to Life for a Pro-Life Activism Day at your Texas Capitol. This will be a packed day full of inside legislative updates, a chance to meet your elected officials, and time in the House and Senate galleries.

Here is the tentative schedule for the event: 

9:40am: Auditorium doors open10am: Event begins, check-in, head to gallery10am-10:40am: House gallery10:50-11:50am: Legislative briefing, Q&A, update from Pro-Life elected official12:00-1:10pm: Lunch on own 1:15-3pm: Meetings with legislators & testify in support of Pro-Life priority bills3pm: Adjourn 

We look forward to seeing you in Austin on April 10! 

For more information, please email RLentz@TexasRightToLife.com 

Yes, I will be there. Not only that, a big announcement was made just this past Friday. Look at this!

HUGE news! The Senate Health and Human Services Committee just announced today that it will hear TWO Pro-Life priority bills on our Activism Day next Wednesday! These are Senate Bills 1033 (ending late-term and discriminatory abortions) and 2089 (protecting Texas patients from hospitals pulling the plug). You will have the chance to witness the legislative process at work firsthand, and we need you to make your Pro-Life voice heard in support of these bills at this integral step in the their progress.

Yes, I plan to testify in favor of these bills, one of which is a great priority of mine. I will save detailed discussion of the bills themselves for my written and oral testimony at this time, but know that these bills are meant to protect life at both ends of the pro-life spectrum. I cannot be more grateful that testimony is being taken on both on the same day and during the Pro-Life Activism Day to boot! God's Divine Providence is shining on these efforts. 

Always remember that we are all made in the image and likeness of God and because of this all lives are worthy of, and due, respect and protection. Age, disability, illness, socioeconomic status, and whether you're in the womb or a hospital bed make no difference and cannot change this simple fact and our duty to protect life. Indeed, the more vulnerable life is, the more obligated we are to protect it. Remember what Jesus said about caring for the least of these. Matthew 25:45. 

Please pray for this legislation and all those heading to Austin for the Pro-Life Activism Day and to support legislation that protects life in the womb as well as vulnerable lives at risk of having their life-sustaining care withdrawn against their will in order to hasten their death. As you know, this is legal in Texas, but hopefully not for too much longer. 

If you cannot go to Austin, you can pray for those who can and those making the decisions. That is the most important thing of all. 

It's going to be an unusually busy week and a half for me in terms of pro-life activism. I will be in Austin for this important day and testimony, then back here in Dallas Thursday for the SMU "Dialogue, Not Discussion" event, and then next Tuesday, up to Denton for a pro-life talk there. You can read more about both of those events in my last post. Remember these are open to the public. I'd recommend them for high school age students and older.

I will provide reports on everything and keep you up to date as best I can. In the coming days and weeks, I would hope and expect some movement on these bills and I'll provide updates as I can. However, as a personal note, Orthodox Holy Week begins April 22 and I will be withdrawing from the world as best I can as we make the final preparations for entering the Church on Saturday, April 27, and celebrate Pascha. Please pray for us. ☦

As always, 

Thanks for reading! 

Updated Again: Save the Dates! Two New Speaking Engagements

Hi, All!

I have two very exciting speaking engagements coming up and they are open to the public. I hope to see you all there! 

"Dialogue, not Debate: A Pro-Life & Pro-Choice Discussion Panel" - Thursday, April 11, 7:30-9:00 PM at SMU

First, SMU's Mustangs for Life and the on-campus feminist group, FEM (the Feminist Equality Movement), are co-hosting an event called "Dialogue, not Debate: A Pro-Life & Pro-Choice Discussion Panel." The event is described as:

Mustangs for Life & SMU FEM cross the aisle and join forces to spark discussion regarding crucial human rights concerns, most notably the topic of abortion in America.

The event will involve a riveting discussion panel of four individuals: two professionals and two students. Audience members (that's you!) have the opportunity to ask questions!

The goal of this event is to quell hostility and negative stereotyping between the two sides and come together to find common ground.

Whether you're Pro-Life, Pro-Choice, or undecided, we hope you will leave this event more informed and sympathetic toward people who hold different values than you.

This event is free & open to the public!  

I met some Mustangs for Life in January at the Boots on the Ground Do No Harm Conference. Fabulous, committed pro-life young people wanting to educate others. They have asked me to be their professional representative. FEM will have a representative from Planned Parenthood. I am honored to have been asked to participate.

I think this is a great idea. It is an indisputable fact that there is too much hostility and too-often an utter inability to engage in substantive civil discussion. People tend to demonize those with whom they disagree and assume the worst about them and their motivations. I have been guilty of this myself. But I have also come to learn, that despite the temptation, it is not a terribly fruitful way to approach things. The end result that we see is that whatever discussion there might be inevitably breaks down. You see it most clearly on social media, but also among "professionals" on talking head TV shows if you still watch those (we don't). The art of discourse among those who may fundamentally disagree has been lost, but that is not how this country was founded and that was not the case even a few decades ago. Read transcripts of debates from elections gone by. Read the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers. Sure, there was passion, but there was real substance and an understanding that the issues were critical. We need to find ourselves back in that place again; in other words, we need to elevate the discourse and our interaction among people. Heat needs to be replaced by light. I hope these goals are met and I will do my best. 

You can go to the Facebook event page to see any updates and let them know if you'll be coming. In case you do not have Facebook, the event will be in the Hughes-Trigg Center on the main SMU campus in Dallas, in the Theatre on the Bottom Floor.

UPDATE: Here is the flyer for the event with FEM's representative listed as well.

UNT Eagles for Life Pro-Life Talk - Tuesday, April 16, 5:30-7:00 PM

Next, just a few days later, I'll be headed up to Denton for the rescheduled pro-life talk with the Eagles for Life at the University of North Texas. I am excited about this as I met a member or two from this fine group in January as well. I will discuss euthanasia and Texas' "10-day law," AKA Texas' "futile care law," AKA Sec. 166.046 of the "Texas Advanced Directives Act" - which I just refer to here on this blog as "TADA." 

I will also give an update on what's going on down in the legislature with regard to all issues on the pro-life spectrum. Hopefully, we'll have some good stuff to report. Or, I might just rant a bit about lives not being protected and missed opportunities. Thus far, I'm not terribly impressed with the legislature this session but more on that here at a later time. At any rate, we will have a great time, learn about life, and what we can do to protect it and fight back against the Culture of Death. 

The address for this event is: 1155 Union Circle, Denton, Texas 76203 and will be in (room) Union 386. 

There is not a Facebook event page at this time, but their Facebook page is here.

The Facebook event page is here where you can see any updates and get additional information. 

I am very grateful for these opportunities to talk about pro-life issues to and with young people who are working hard to form and solidify their ideals, principles, and convictions. But please also remember these events are both open to the public. If you have a high schooler or if you are a "grown adult" and just want to come and hear what's going on, please feel free. I would be so pleased to meet you. 

Please pray for these efforts and all involved. 

Please also pray for all those down in Austin. The session is almost half over and time is running short. 

Thanks for reading! 

Speaking Updates: UNT to be Rescheduled; A&M Commerce Was a Delight

A&M Commerce Pro-Life Lions 

Hi, All!

Just a quick note to let you know that the talk I was to give at the University of North Texas in Denton on March 12 will be rescheduled. It turns out that it was scheduled during spring break. I'll post the new date and details when I get them.

I had a great time talking to the fabulous pro-life group at A&M Commerce last week. It was cold, the students were busy and exhausted from preparing for exams, yet they came and were engaged. I enjoyed so much being with them. They asked poignant, insightful questions and show a genuine love for and desire to protect all life. Thanks to you all for hosting me and for your kind gift which I continue to enjoy!  Keep being bright lights in this often dark world. 

My thoughtful gift from the A&M Commerce Pro-Life Lions 

That's all for now.

Thanks for reading! 

Upcoming Talks I'll Be Giving & a Quick Report on the Boots on the Ground Do No Harm Conference

I'm dropping this quick post to let you know that I'll be speaking at Texas A&M - Commerce next week about TADA, perhaps other pro-life topics, and legislative updates on all things pro-life. It is open to the public, so please RSVP here.

I'll also be speaking on March 12 at the University of North Texas in Denton. I'll post more details closer to time. 

I'm very excited about these opportunities that come in the wake of the Texas Right to Life Do No Harm conference which focused on euthanasia this year. I had a great time!

Let me tell you, that was a fantastic event and so well done in every way. It was a roaring success. While Texas Right to Life hosts a conference like this every year, this was my first time to attend. While I was there to speak, I enjoyed being an attendee just as much. 

I learned a great deal from every speaker there, including my friends John Seago and Emily Cook. It's one thing to hear people speak during their testimony before legislative committees and in meetings or casually. This audience and purpose was a different and I enjoyed their style of presenting in this context as much as I did what they had to say. 

As I mentioned in my last post, I was excited to hear Bobby Schindler speak in person which I had not had the opportunity to do before. He always has great, poignant insight into things and more and more stories of how people are being involuntarily euthanized all over the place. He talked a little about his sister's case and other cases his organization, the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network, is working on. His work is so vital and so few do it. 

The biggest surprise to me was Stephanie Gray, who I had not heard of before, but who is really an excellent speaker with so much substance to offer. Her talk addressed many of the common misconceptions about euthanasia and support for it. She took each argument for euthanasia and discussed how we can agree about that particular problem in principle but how we can take a pro-life approach to it. For example, one argument for euthanasia is that people are suffering and we should do something about that. Yes, that is a problem. But the solution is not to kill them. Perhaps we offer better pain management and so forth. It was very practical, but also delved into the philosophy of euthanasia as well. It can seem very compassionate until you start really looking at it. A number of those in attendance told me that they didn't see the problem with euthanasia until it was presented in a way to really think it through and see the consequences of it. Indeed. 

Stephanie also explained how nothing we do is in a vacuum and that what is promoted as one's individual choice that only affects them is far from the truth. She explained how very often people who "choose" assisted suicide or euthanasia really aren't doing so voluntarily. Rather, with each case that happens, it makes it more accepted and those who might not otherwise choose it do because they feel obligated to and not "be a burden" to anyone. (What a tragedy that people would think that of themselves and others rather people see what a blessing it is to help someone at the end of their lives and through sickness and show love and compassion and help that person prepare for death spiritually and otherwise. What a tragedy we don't offer more support to caregivers.) She said so much more. I highly recommend you grab one of her books or try to see her speak somewhere.

The panel I was on was full of really great, impactful experiences and education. But it contained exceptionally tragic experiences and I confess to struggling to maintain my composure until it was my turn to speak. Two persons on the panel, Sandra Hollier and Ebelechukwu Agu, had been victimized by this heinous law that they did not know existed until their loved one was in the crosshairs. It was powerful testimony. 

Another panelist, Dr. Sheila Page, is a doctor very experienced in difficult cases and medical ethics. It was interesting to hear what she had to say and discuss outcomes that defied expectations and challenged one's thinking and analysis about the initial prognosis (including recommendations to withdraw care) given when that person was sick. It was also interesting to consider how hospitals make decisions often based on a snapshot of one's life at it's worst without any context that affects the accuracy of those decisions. That has been my experience attending hospital ethics committee hearings as well.

My talk was about my experiences at ethics committee hearings, the effect on the families, and how little there is in the law for us to use to protect people given that there is a total lack of due process in the statute. I also addressed what we can do to fight this law in the current legislative session and education efforts so that others know of this law and can work against it. I encouraged those in attendance not to listen to any pro-life activist that tells them not to take up euthanasia and to focus only on abortion. That is wrong. It is all important. This is increasingly important even if it is the more difficult end of the pro-life spectrum. 

I very much regretted that I was unable to stay for Chet McDoniel's talk. I am sure that was an excellent presentation as well. I think being the last speaker at an event like this can be tough and I always hate to leave early. However, I'd been traveling much of that week and my youngest FaceTimed me to ask me to come home early. That was the most pro-life thing for me to do at that point and I made it home in time to meet him at the park with my beloved husband.

More very soon!

Thanks for reading!