Ted Gerk's Western View

Moral cowardice

Pro-lifers were treated to a scary expose of the life of a Canadian abortionist in September's Chatelaine magazine.

I'm sure the folks at the glossy feminist mag patted themselves on the back for a job well done: promoting a poor, frightened abortionist cowering in a corner thanks to all you nasty anti-choicers.

But it backfired.

First of all, rather than succeeding in presenting "Dr. G" as a hero, the article merely confirmed that the "backroom and backalley" life of an abortionist has never ended. Imagine going to medical school with grand plans of being the medical saviour of mankind, helping people find cures to their medical problems - only to have to go to work with a cardboard box under your arm so you can secretly commit an abortion.

In the coffee room, you speak with a hush ... you don't want your fellow compatriots to know what you do in secret.

But more than that.

Bravely and boldly

Imagine having such little regard for the faith of an institution that you bravely and boldly proclaim that you violate one of its most prized principles.

That is, you bravely and boldly proclaim it to a reporter who has promised to protect your identity, because, if discovered, you will be fired more quickly than Bill Clinton can drop his pants.

Of course, you will blame those nasty antis for your predicament. After all, they picketed you. Those antis are all a violent bunch!

Not!

The real truth of the story is simply this. Dr. G, whoever he is, is a moral coward. Like the coward who helped Sue Rodriguez end her life, he performs his specialty in the dark. He doesn't want his friends to know that he hates the Roman Catholic Church so much that he will violate its most fundamental of beliefs with a smile.

Joining the ranks of Jack Kevorkian (who helped a "patient" die in a church), his bravery is only in his mind. His bravado is but a mere blip. At least Henry Morgentaler had the courage of his convictions. Dr. G., well, he is just a coward.

But, pro-lifers, all is not lost. Circulate the Chatelaine article! Show the world (especially medical students) what life is like being an abortionist. Tell everyone who will listen that the abortion industry continues to attract physicians with the morality of a Dr. G., and that this industry is proud of plain cardboard boxes with suction machines hidden inside.

Imagine, seven years of medical school means you get to ply your trade in secret ... your instruments carefully hidden, fellow members of the medical community lied to.

Courage ... what a noble conviction!

Interestingly, the Toronto Star featured an article in 1985 about another such brave physician. His name was Josef Mengele. The article documented that while hiding from justice, Menegle resorted to the one profession a doctor can always resort to when unable to do anything else. Menegle was the leading abortionist in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Discovered after one of his women patients died, Mengele bravely plied his trade throughout South America.

In secret.
Just like Dr. G.
Ahhh, there's no life like it!

On another note, for those of you who are fans of Henry Morgentaler, there's a new web page devoted just to him. The Morgentaler Files page (http://www.interlife.org/morgentaler/) features hard-to- find information on Henry, much of it from a time when the media actually used the tools of critical thinking and asked hard questions. Most of the material is from secular sources, so we expect it to be well used by both pro-lifers and choosy journalists.