Category: Warning

Abortions Set for Another Record High in England and Wales

– September 18, 2020

Almost 110,000 abortions were carried out on residents of England and Wales between January and June this year, the Government has revealed.

Figures released by the Department for Health and Social Care indicated there had been an increase of more than 4,000 on the same period last year.

In the whole of last year, 207,384 abortions were carried out on residents, but pro-life campaigners say 2020 looks “set to eclipse 2019’s total”.

The number of abortions rose sharply in April, 4,500 more than the previous year, after the Government introduced ‘DIY’ home abortions at the end of March.

Under the rules, women can take both pills required for an abortion at home up to ten weeks, following a conversation with a doctor.

There has been a subsequent uptake in medical abortions, rising from 72 per cent of all abortions between January and June 2019 to 82 per cent over the same period this year.

Right to Life UK’s Catherine Robinson called the findings a “national tragedy”.

She said: “Every one of these abortions represents a failure of our society to protect the lives of babies in the womb and a failure to offer full support to women with unplanned pregnancies.

“This year we’ve come together as a nation and made great sacrifices to protect the vulnerable from Covid-19.

“Sadly, at the very same time as protecting one group of vulnerable people, we as society have also ended thousands of young vulnerable lives through abortion.”

https://christiannews.net

Pandemic has accelerated adoption of digital currency: ECB President

Turner Wright – September 11, 2020

The pandemic has seen consumers adopt digital payments in increasing numbers and the trend was accelerating, said the President of the European Central Bank (ECB) Christine Lagarde.

She also indicated a panel of euro-zone central bank officials is set to reveal a verdict on a European central bank digital currency (CBDC) imminently.

Speaking at an online conference hosted by Deutsche Bundesbank on Sept. 10, Lagarde, stated that EU residents had embraced digitalization, with e-commerce sales increasing roughly 20% between February and June, even as total retail sales declined 1.2%. She said the volume of online payments had experienced “double-digit growth rates” since the start of the outbreak.

“The pandemic has served as a catalyst, accelerating the transition towards a digital new normal,” Lagarde stated. “A vast majority of consumers expect to continue to use digital services as often as they do now or even more often.”

Other institutions have reached the same conclusion as data comes in regarding the economic fallout of COVID. An August report from Singapore’s DBS Bank stated that “the ongoing pandemic has added fuel to the move toward a society with less cash dependence.”

Lagarde supports the ECB developing a CBDC to address the move towards digitalization, in addition to faster and cheaper cross-border payments. Last September, when she was the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the ECB president said she would focus on ensuring EU institutions adapt to the changing financial environment by being open to crypto.

https://cointelegraph.com

Suicides Among U.S. Kids, Young Adults Jumped 57% in Past Decade

Alex Tanzi and Wei Lu – September 11, 2020

(Bloomberg) — Increasing numbers of American children and young adults died by suicide in recent years, and the Covid-19 pandemic threatens to continue the trend.

Suicide rates among youth ages 10 to 24 increased by 57% between 2007 and 2018, data released Thursday from the National Center for Health Statistics shows, rising from almost 7 per 100,000 population to nearly 11. Comparing three-year averages from 2007 to 2009 to the time period between 2016 and 2018 brought the increase down to 47%.

The U.S. suicide rate among all age groups was 14 per 100,000 in 2018.

“There are many reasons to suspect that suicide rates will increase this year too, not just because of Covid-19 but because stress and anxiety seem to be permeating every aspect of our lives,” said Shannon Monnat, co-director of the Policy, Place, and Population Health Lab at Syracuse University.

The 2016 to 2018 suicide rate among those between ages 10 and 24 was highest in more rural states including Alaska, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and New Mexico. Alaska topped that list with 31.4 young suicides per 100,000 population.

Northeastern states — including New Jersey, Rhode Island, New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts — showed the lowest rates. Despite their relatively small numbers, New Jersey experienced a 39% rise, New York saw an increase of about 44%, and Massachusetts showed a jump of 64%.

Rates more than doubled in New Hampshire, and the majority of states showed an increase between 30% and 60%.

https://www.msn.com

New teen comedy ‘Unpregnant’ seems to suggest that abortion is nothing but a barrel of laughs

Michael McCaffrey – August 31, 2020

The trailer for HBO Max’s Unpregnant appears to ignore the moral complexity of abortion in favor of promoting an insidious amorality on the issue. This is a poor message to send out to impressionable young girls.

Unpregnant is the controversial new abortion buddy comedy movie set to premiere on HBO Max on September 10.

The film, based on the novel of the same name, tells the story of Veronica, a pregnant 17-year-old girl, and her friend Bailey, as they go on a wild and wacky road trip from Missouri to New Mexico so that Veronica can get an abortion.

In its trailer, Unpregnant sells itself as a zany road picture where hilarity ensues when a goofy odd couple of teenage girls steal a car and try to hop a train on their epic odyssey down the yellow brick road to abortionland.

The road picture narrative is a long time Hollywood staple. Think Bing Crosby and Bob Hope with their numerous “road to” musical comedies of the ’40’s and ’50’s… except in Unpregnant, Crosby and Hope are teenage girls crossing state lines to get an abortion. Hilarious!

It is easy to see why pro-life advocates are up in arms over Unpregnant, as the trailer makes the film appear to be a piece of pro-abortion agitprop specifically designed to antagonize them by making light of abortion and demonizing Veronica’s Catholic parents as “Jesus freaks.”

2020 has been a banner year for decidedly pro-abortion films with Unpregnant, the critically acclaimed drama Never Rarely Sometimes Always and the indie dramedy Saint Frances, which all have an amoral attitude toward abortion, all being released.

Notice I described these films as ‘pro-abortion’ and not ‘pro-choice’, and that is because pro-choice implies a grappling with the moral gravity of the abortion decision, whereas pro-abortion removes any moral dimensions at all, and reduces abortion to being akin to getting a nose piercing.

https://www.rt.com

Austin City Council Allots $250K for ‘Abortion Access’ While Cutting $150 Million From Police Budget

– August 26, 2020

AUSTIN, Texas — The city council of Austin, Texas has voted to not only to cut and redistribute $150 million from its $423 million police department budget, but to also earmark $250K for assisting mothers with the logistics of obtaining an abortion.

While state lawmakers last year passed a law banning funding of abortion facilities, the City is reportedly attempting to work around the law by making the funds available for abortive mothers seeking transportation and lodging, rather than giving the funds to the abortion facilities themselves.

Senate Bill 22, which went into effect last September, declared, “a governmental entity may not enter into a taxpayer resource transaction with an abortion provider or an affiliate of an abortion provider.”

Soon after the legislation became law, Mayor Pro Tem Delia Garza and Council Member Gregorio Casar put forward an amendment to allot $150K for the expenditures of abortive mothers, such as those traveling for an abortion or obtaining childcare while they are away.

According to The Statesman, this year, Council Member Leslie Pool proposed allotting another $100K for “abortion access,” on top of the $150K that was marked last year but never utilized.

She stated that economic hardships due to the coronvirus pandemic necessitated the additional funding, telling the outlet, “We know the need is out there in the community, and we know we have an increase in need.”

https://christiannews.net

Appeals Court Rules Va. School District ‘Discriminated’ by Not Allowing Girl to Use Boys’ Restroom

– August 27, 2020

RICHMOND, Va. — A 2-1 panel with the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has again ruled that a Virginia school district discriminated against a female student who identifies as male by declining to allow her to use the boys’ restroom.

“[W]e hold that the board’s restroom policy constitutes sex-based discrimination and, independently, that transgender persons constitute a quasi-suspect class,” wrote Judge Henry Floyd, appointed to the bench by then-President Barack Obama.

He stated that “[n]o one questions that students have a privacy interest in their body when they go to the bathroom,” but the school district “ignores the reality of how a transgender child uses the bathroom: ‘by entering a stall and closing the door.’” Further, those with gender identity issues do not present a “peeping tom” threat as they will “mind[] their business like any other student.”

“Put another way, the record demonstrates that bodily privacy of cisgender boys using the boys restrooms did not increase when Grimm was banned from those restrooms,” Floyd said. “Therefore, the board’s policy was not substantially related to its purported goal.”

He also opined in his ruling that “[j]ust like being cisgender, being transgender is natural and is not a choice.”

Floyd asserted that transgenderism is “not a psychiatric condition,” but simultaneously stated that those who struggle with their gender “are up to three times more likely to report or be diagnosed with a mental health disorder as the general population” and noted that “[g]ender dysphoria is defined in the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.”

Floyd was joined in his opinion by Judge James Wynn, Jr., also an Obama nominee. Judge Paul Niemeyer, nominated by then-President George H.W. Bush, dissented.

https://christiannews.net

Judge Halts Idaho Law Prohibiting Males Who Identify as Females From Competing in Women’s Sports

– August 18, 2020

BOISE, Idaho — A federal judge nominated to the bench by President Obama and renominated under President Trump has placed a halt on an Idaho law that expressly prohibits biological males from competing in women’s sports.

“The court recognizes that this decision is likely to be controversial,” acknowleged Judge David Nye on Monday. “While the citizens of Idaho are likely to either vehemently oppose, or fervently support, the Act, the Constitution must always prevail.”

“[T]he Act on its face discriminates between cisgender athletes, who may compete on athletic teams consistent with their gender identity, and transgender women athletes, who may not compete on athletic teams consistent with their gender identity,” he said.

“Hence, while the physiological differences the defendants suggest support the categorical bar on transgender women’s participation in women’s sports may justify the Act, they do not overcome the inescapable conclusion that the Act discriminates on the basis of transgender status.”

As previously reported, in February, Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, proposed the “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act”, House Bill 500, which expressly prohibits biological males from joining women’s athletic teams.

“Athletic teams or sports designated for females, women, or girls shall not be open to students of the male sex,” the legislation reads in part.

It states that puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones do not resolve concerns about fairness, pointing to a 2019 study that concluded that males who ingested the hormones over a 12-month period still “had an absolute advantage” over their female competitors.

https://christiannews.net

The Satanic Temple Raffles Free Abortion, Admits that Aborting Unborn Babies is a Satanic Ritual

Steve Warren – August 7, 2020

The Satanic Temple (TST) has announced it’s raffling a free abortion to promote the organization’s religious abortion ritual, while it argues that its members’ religious rights are exempt from any state laws or any regulations that might block access to abortion services during the first trimester.

According to TST, the free abortion can be medical or surgical and is transferable upon request.

Headquartered in Salem, Massachusetts, TST describes its new Satanic abortion ritual as a “spiritual experience designed to instill confidence and self-worth in accordance to TST’s religious beliefs.” The organization contends those who practice the Satanic abortion ritual are exempt from being subjected to waiting periods, mandatory counseling, forced viewing of sonograms, and reading materials as required in many states.

“TST bases its assertions of abortion mandate exemptions on the protections provided by State Religious Freedom Restoration Acts or RFRA, which generally prohibits the government from substantially interfering with a person’s free exercise of religion,” TST said in a press release.

The Satanic Temple claims their abortion ritual as practiced by its members is exempt from the existing abortion regulations on the basis of religious liberty. They point to the 2014 Supreme Court ruling that Hobby Lobby as a business had the right not to cover birth control, including abortifacient drugs, as a part of its health care program for its employees, because of its religious beliefs that viewed such a practice as immoral.

TST says all abortions by its members are religious acts of Satanism and protected under the ruling.

https://www1.cbn.com

Netherlands contemplates expanding assisted suicide for people over 75 ‘tired of living’

Jeanne Smits – July 27, 2020

(LifeSiteNews) – A draft law proposing the legalization of assisted suicide for people over 75 who are “tired of living” has been presented in the Second Chamber of the Dutch parliament by Pia Dijkstra, of the D66 progressive “social-liberal” party. While there is a relatively small chance that the proposed law will be able to cross all legislative hurdles – this usually takes at least nine months – before the present cabinet steps down, Dijkstra made clear that her main objective is to push the theme to the fore in order to be extensively discussed.

The idea of allowing people to choose to leave this life for personal reasons has been around for some time in the Netherlands. Since euthanasia became legal in 2001, pressure groups have been working to extend the scope of “chosen death” in the name of personal autonomy. People who consider their life to be “complete” should be allowed to put an end to it even when they do not comply with the legal conditions: “unbearable suffering,” either physical or psychological, due to a serious or terminal medical condition, absence of available treatment, no perspective of improvement of their condition.

The principle of assisted death for people who are “done with life” is gaining traction in the Netherlands. Four years ago, in 2016, it was the ruling Dutch cabinet that promoted a new provision in the euthanasia law, via a letter signed by Health Minister Edith Schippers and Justice Minister Ard van der Steur. The proposition never came to Parliament because of the general elections that were to take place one year later, and liberal as the Netherlands are, it shocked public opinion.

But lobbying has continued, in particular on the part of the National Association for a Chosen End of Life (NVVE) that had applauded the cabinet’s initiative.

Over the last years, the Dutch government has decided to consult the population before a similar proposition is examined. Commission Wijngaarden, as it is known, was created in 2017 to consult “senior citizens” to find out how many are actually “tired of living.” It appeared as a way of avoiding inevitable confrontations between Christian and Christian Democrat parties with more liberal parties in a country where forming a government is impossible without political alliances.

Second Chamber member Pia Dijkstra decided to accelerate the process, promising last September that she would “soon” present a draft law.

https://www.lifesitenews.com

We Are Experiencing Economic Devastation On A Scale That America Has Never Seen Before

– July 30, 2020

For a very long time we have been warned that a U.S. economic collapse was inevitably coming, and now it is here.  Fear of COVID-19 and unprecedented civil unrest in our major cities have combined to plunge us into a historic economic downturn, and nobody is exactly sure what is going to happen next.  On Thursday, we learned that U.S. GDP was down 32.9 percent on an annualized basis last quarter.  That officially makes last quarter the worst quarter in all of U.S. history, and many people believe that this new economic depression is just getting started.  But of course not all areas of the country are being affected equally.  According to USA Today, states such as Hawaii, Nevada, Michigan and New York were hit particularly hard last quarter…

Every state was walloped last quarter, though ones that rely heavily on travel and tourism, such as Hawaii and Nevada, were hit hardest by the downturn, according to employment figures analyzed by economist Adam Kamins of Moody’s Analytics. Michigan, the heart of the nation’s auto industry, was slammed as consumers put off car purchases. And densely populated Northeast states struck by the most severe virus outbreaks – like New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts – absorbed among the heaviest economic losses as governors shut down earlier and residents stayed home.

Originally, the mainstream media was telling us that the U.S. economy would come surging back to life during the third quarter, but we continue to get more signs that indicate that the economy is starting to slow down again.

For example, the Labor Department just released some new numbers that were more than just a little bit startling.  If you can believe it, another 1.434 million Americans filed new claims for unemployment benefits last week.  That was an increase over last week’s revised number, and it represents the second week in a row that initial claims have risen.

Overall, new claims for unemployment benefits have now been above one million for 19 weeks in a row.

http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com