Canada
MPs elected pro-life Conservative Andrew Scheer, a father of four, as Speaker of the House. In a 2009 with The Interim Scheer spoke about balancing his professional and personal life and how he always tried to be home in time to tuck his children into bed and not to schedule events on Sundays … The Hill Times reports that Stephen Harper is said to have ordered his MPs to not bring up “pet projects,” including abortion and gay marriage, but the one MP named in the story, pro-lifer James Lunney, said he has never heard such an order and that private members bills are permitted if they “conform to party policy” … In its re-released federal budget, the Harper government is extending tax credits to families, including a scheme to reward enrolling children in arts and crafts programs, and those who care for sick family members. The government estimates half a million families will benefit from the tax credits … NDP MPP Peter Kormos (Welland), a former Bob Rae-era cabinet minister who supports presumed consent for organ donation, announced that he is not seeking re-election in October … The New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal reports that pro-life citizens were present at a Vitalite Health Network board meeting to oppose the growing number of abortions at the Chaleur Regional Hospital in Bathurst where 119 abortion were committed in one recent 12-month period … According to the Adult Entertainment Association which represents strippers, upwards of 50 percent of the 1500 Toronto exotic dancers are university students. The AEA opposes a proposed bylaw that would require them to register with the city, fearing the young women would become stigmatized for life … According to a study from the Institute for Clinical Evaluation Sciences and St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, 25 per cent of new cases of HIV between 2006 and 2008 were women, half of which were immigrants … British Columbia polygamist Winston Blackmore was fined $147,000 by a federal Tax Court for failing to pay taxes. He claims that his community views him as their spiritual leader, and as such, should be given tax breaks … The Nova Scotia government is disputing a report that claims there are six suicides related to gambling in the province each year, according to a report commissioned by the previous Tory government, then shelved by the current NDP government … In a letter to Ottawa mayor Jim Watson, Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada executive director Joyce Arthur demanded Watson refrain from any future “Respect for Life” proclamations, saying that pro-lifers are misogynists. They also said the proclamation was inaccurate because preborn life, they claimed, is not human life … In order to secure hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer funds Toronto PRIDE organizers said it would not grant permission to march to anti-Semitic protesters. PRIDE spokesperson Elle Flanders insinuated Mayor Rob Ford is “homophobic” for not unconditionally supporting PRIDE … The Globe and Mail noted that according to child-rearing experts and psychologists, children view common-law relationships as unnatural. Amire Levine, a Columbia University researcher, said children “don’t really care about what’s cool and modern. They look for security for themselves.” Jennifer Reynolds, editor of Canadian Family Magazine, said, “kids are the ultimate little traditionalists.”
International
A Gallup poll shows that 72 per cent of Americans want some sort of restriction on abortion, while 61 per cent wanted it illegal in “nearly all circumstances,” and 45 per cent self-identify as pro-life … The Centers for Disease Control reported a drop of 8 per cent in the U.S. abortion rate … A University of Philadelphia study suggests that the downturn in marriage among youth is due to economic instability, not a lack of interest in the institution … On June 4, Slovakia held a Gay Pride parade. In attendance were 20 ambassadors, including Canada’s, who signed a petition demanding increased rights for Slovak gays … Abortion has increased by one third in British women over 40, according to U.K. government statistics. The increase is attributed to their increased sexuality and rates of divorce … European Commission President José Manuel Barroso blamed stay-at-home mothrs for Europe’s shrinking workforce, not an aging population, reduced further by abortion and contraception … Despite inconclusive studies on the effect of sex education on reducing the spread of HIV, the United Nations wants children as young as 10 to receive instruction on safe sex. Officials want to indoctrinate them about contraception before they are taught gender roles … Despite the fact that birth and fertility rates continue to spiral downward, the UN estimates that by the 2200, there will be over 10 billion people on Earth … Sex-selection in Asia has caused havoc on the continent’s sex ratio, which should be 105 males for every 100 females. The region with the worst ratio, the Chinese port city of Lianyungang has a ratio of 163 males for every 100 females. Mara Hvistendahl, author of Unatural Selection, attributes this to ultrasounds and abortion … A study out of Belgium indicates that organs harvested immediately after euthanization are better then those harvested from victims of accidents.