The Facts of Life

1946 Pages·2010·33.6 MB·English

Facts of Life Homepage
The Facts of Life
by Brian Clowes, PhD
The Facts of Life is a comprehensive reference guide that is intended to answer basic
questions on a variety of life issues. It has been distributed all over the world in both
print and electronic formats, and the print version has been translated into German,
Spanish, Korean, Italian and Portuguese.

Father Paul Marx, O.S.B., 50-year pro-life veteran and founder of Human Life
International, has called it "The last word on pro-life/pro-family issues ... Truly a
complete manual for all those promoting life and the family." The Facts of Life has also
been highly recommended by Joseph Scheidler, President of the Pro-Life Action League,
reformed abortionist Bernard Nathanson, M.D., and well-known pro-life activist Rabbi
Yehuda Levin.

This web site includes a greatly expanded and updated version of the popular book, and
gives you more than 2,500 pages of pro-life information. To begin, select a chapter
below from Table of Contents.

The Facts of Life Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Surgical Abortion
Chapter 2: Abortifacients
Chapter 3: Exceptions for Abortion
Chapter 4: China's Forced Abortion Program
Chapter 5: Holocaust Analogy of Abortion
Chapter 6: The Racism of Abortion
Chapter 7: Maternal Deaths Due to Abortion
Chapter 8: Historical Christian Teachings on Abortion
Chapter 9: Catholic Church Teachings on Abortion
Chapter 10: Jewish Faith Teachings on Abortion
Chapter 11: Scripture on Abortion
Chapter 12: The Miracle of Fetal Development
Chapter 13: Fetal Pain
Chapter 14: Fetal Experimentation and Tissue Transplantation
Chapter 15: Assisted Reproduction
Chapter 16: Cloning
Chapter 17: Sex Education & School-Based Clinics
Chapter 17: Sex Education & School-Based Clinics
Chapter 18: The International Abortion Situation
Chapter 19: United States Abortion Statistics
Chapter 20: Demographic Impacts of Abortion
Chapter 21: Contraception
Chapter 22: Natural Family Planning
Chapter 23: Euthanasia
Chapter 24: Eugenics
Chapter 25: Pro-Life Organizations
Facts of Life: Chapter 1: Surgical Abortion

The General Definition of "Abortion"
A Comparison of Abortion to Ethical Surgical Procedures
The Definition of "Abortionist"
The Different Types of Abortion
The Different Types of Surgical Abortion
• How a Suction Abortion is Done
• How a Dilation and Curettage (D&C) Abortion is Done
• How a Dilation and Evacuation (D&E) Abortion is Done
• How a Saline Abortion is Done
• How a Dilation and Extraction (D&X) Abortion is Done
• How a Prostaglandin Abortion is Done
• How a Hysterotomy Abortion is Done
• How an Intercardiac Injection Abortion is Done
"Menstrual Extraction"
Selective Abortion (Pregnancy Reduction)
How Abortion Mills Dispose of the Remains of Aborted Babies
Abortion and Authentic Women's Health Issues
• The Number of Women Who Died from Abortions in the USA Before Roe v. Wade
• The Number of Women Who Currently Die from Illegal Abortions Worldwide
• The Legalization of Abortion Does Not Improve Maternal Health
• Common Physical Dangers of Surgical Abortion
• The Connection Between Breast Cancer and Abortion
• The Common Psychological Problems that Abortion Causes
The Common Psychological Problems Abortion Causes to Fathers
Further Reading: Surgical Abortion Definitions, Methods and Effects
Facts of Life: Chapter 1: Surgical Abortion: The General Definition
of Abortion

The General Definition of "Abortion."
The term "abortion" has traditionally meant the intentional or unintentional expulsion of
the preborn child from the uterus before he or she has reached the age of viability
(defined as the point after which the preborn child can survive outside the womb with or
without medical assistance). In practice, though, abortion in a number of countries
(including the United States, Canada and the People's Republic of China) is legal until
the moment of birth. In fact, some abortion methods such as dilation and extraction
(D&X), the "partial birth" abortion, are designed to kill the preborn child when the birth
process is almost complete.

At the other end of the spectrum, more and more drugs are being developed whose only
purpose is to destroy the life of preborn children after fertilization (the union of the sperm
and ovum) and before implantation of the embryo or zygote in the mother's uterus.

The Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), the United Nations World
Health Organization (UNWHO), the American Medical Association (AMA), the American
College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and other pro-abortion
organizations now falsely define pregnancy as beginning at implantation, and not at
fertilization. In this manner, these groups claim that abortifacient drugs and devices
such as the birth prevention pill and the intrauterine device (IUD) do not cause early
abortions, because they say that a pregnancy does not exist before actual implantation.

The Catholic Church teaches that abortion is not only "the expulsion of the immature
fetus," but is also "the killing of the same fetus in any way and at any time from the
moment of conception."[1]
Therefore, the honest, accurate and complete definition of the general term "abortion"
would be "the intentional or unintentional expulsion of the preborn child at any time after
fertilization and before the natural birth process is completed."

Go to Next Topic: A Comparison of Abortion to Ethical Surgical Procedures

Return to Surgical Abortion Table of Contents

Footnotes to "General Definition of Abortion"
[1] The Pontifical Commission for the Authentic Interpretation of the Code of Canon Law,
Statement of November 24, 1988, quoted in "Church Elaborates Definition of Abortion."
National Catholic Register, December 11, 1988, page 3.
Facts of Life: Chapter 1: Surgical Abortion: A Comparison of
Abortion to Ethical Surgical Procedures
A Comparison of Abortion to Ethical Surgical Procedures.

One of the most pervasive myths advanced by the pro-abortion movement is that
"abortion is health care," and should therefore be made as widely available to the public
as possible.

Abortion is a completely unique surgical procedure, profoundly different in many ways
from ethical surgery, as shown in Figure 1-1.

Because it stands alone in its objectives, performance, and results, abortion is bound to
have numerous attributes that set it apart from every other kind of surgery.

Figure 1-1
Comparisons Between Elective Abortion and Ethical Surgical Procedures
Criteria Elective Abortion Ethical Surgery
Purpose of To kill To heal
Procedure
Informed Consent
Informed consent Not required Required by law
Husband's consent Legally banned Usually expected
Husband informed Often legally banned Always
Parental consent Often legally banned Required by law for minors
Parents informed Often legally banned Required by law for minors
Pre-Operation
Facility licensing Not required Required by law
Advertising Routine and extensive Almost never
Payment Cash or credit card Insurance
Counseling Usually a farce If required
Counselor
qualifications 'Pro-choice' ideology Professional degree
Second opinion Strongly discouraged Strongly recommended
Pre-op examination On the operating table Mandatory and detailed
Correct diagnosis 10-15% performed on
non-pregnant women Surgeon disciplined if
incorrect
incorrect
The Procedure
Procedure style Assembly-line Individual, detailed care
Recovery In the taxi As required
Tissue disposal Incinerator or garbage Humane, dignified disposal
Surgical training Not legally required Required by law
Non-medical reasons 99+% 1% - 10%
Post-Operation
Psychological Frequent Varies; usually rare
trauma
Counseling for Complications 'fiction,'
trauma say As required
pro-abortionists

Go to Next Topic: The Definition of "Abortionist"

Return to Surgical Abortion Table of Contents
Facts of Life: Chapter 1: Surgical Abortion: The Definition of
Abortionist
The Definition of "Abortionist."

The 1871 statement of the American Medical Association (AMA) on abortionists defined
them as "Men who cling to a noble profession only to dishonor it. ... false brethren ...
educated assassins, these modern Herods ... These men who, with corrupt hearts and
blood-stained hands, destroy what they cannot reinstate, corrupt souls, and destroy the
fairest fabric that God has ever created ... under the cloak of that medical profession ...
monsters of iniquity."[2]

The medical profession's current definition of "abortionist" is "one who performs criminal
abortions."[3]

The logical, truthful and complete definition of "abortionist" is "anyone who commits
direct surgical or chemical abortions, legal or illegal, whether they be a medical doctor,
nurse, midwife, or lay person."

This divergence in terms exists because the primary focus of the medical profession is
the mere legality of the procedure, while the primary concern of pro-lifers is the stark
reality that an abortion, whether it is legal or not, always take the life of a human person.

The medical profession insists that only those who commit criminal (illegal) abortions
should be called abortionists. It has two reasons for such semantic subterfuge: (1) The
term "abortionist" carries with it the strong connotation of an unskilled and unprincipled
hack and must therefore be avoided; and (2) the term "abortion" and all its derivatives
denote a bloody and barbarous procedure, and therefore also must be shunned.

Because abortion is entirely incompatible with the healing mission of the medical
profession, it is intrinsically disreputable. Abortion is not medicine or health care.
Therefore, pro-lifers should always use the term "abortionist" to describe someone who
commits abortions, whether the procedures are legal or criminal. Terms such as
"abortion doctor," "abortion provider," and "abortion clinic" should always be strictly
avoided because they lend an air of respectability and even benevolence to those who
have murderously betrayed an honorable profession.

Go to Next Topic: The Different Types of Abortion
Return to Surgical Abortion Table of Contents

Footnotes to The Definition of Abortionist
[2] Quoted in William Brennan, Ph.D. "The A.M.A. on Abortion: Anatomy of Contrasting
Policy Statements." The National Pro-Life Journal, Fall 1980. Pro-Life Publications, Inc,
pages 16 and 17.
[3] Benjamin F. Miller, M.D., and Claire Brackman Keane. Encyclopedia and Dictionary
of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health (Third Edition) [Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders
Company, 1983].
Facts of Life: Chapter 1: Surgical Abortion: The Different Types of
Abortion
The Different Types of Abortion.

There are a number of medical and legal terms for the different types of abortion, both
intentional and unintentional, as shown in Figure 1-2. These are listed below.[4]

The different types of surgical abortion procedures are described later in this Chapter.

Figure 1-2
Types of Intentional and Unintentional Abortion
Complete abortion: When all of the contents of the uterus (i.e., the preborn child and
the placenta) have been expelled from the uterus.
Criminal [illegal] abortion: Any abortion committed outside the parameters set by
law. For instance, an abortionist commits a criminal abortion if he aborts a minor
without her parent's permission in a state with parental consent laws, or if he commits
a D&X abortion on a woman at 28 weeks gestation for convenience purposes in a state
where third-trimester abortions are banned except in the case of severe fetal
anomalies.
Early abortion: An abortion within the first trimester (i.e., first 12 weeks) of a
pregnancy.
Habitual abortion: Spontaneous abortion (i.e., miscarriage) occurring in three or more
consecutive pregnancies. Women who suffer from habitual abortions account for the
majority of miscarriages.
Incomplete abortion: An intentional or unintentional abortion in which parts of the
preborn child and/or placenta remain within the uterus.
Induced abortion: An intentional abortion brought on by mechanical (surgical) or
chemical (abortifacient) means.
Inevitable abortion: A condition marked by vaginal bleeding and cervical dilation that
indicates an impending miscarriage that cannot be prevented and follows a condition of
threatened abortion.
Infected abortion: An abortion associated with, and possibly caused by, an infection
of the uterus or the genital tract, such as that caused by a venereal disease.
Missed abortion: When a woman does not miscarry a preborn child who died more
than eight weeks previously.
Septic abortion: An abortion associated with, and possibly caused by, an infection of
the uterus.
Spontaneous abortion: The medical term for a miscarriage. This term is very
important for pro-life activists to remember, because many medical statistical
important for pro-life activists to remember, because many medical statistical
categories and subsequent medical treatments (such as delivery of a child) do not
distinguish between intentional and spontaneous abortion.
Therapeutic abortion: The current medical literature equates "legal abortion" with
"therapeutic abortion." The definition of the word "therapeutic," however, mean
"treatment of disease."[4] The use of the term "therapeutic" is another pro-abortion
attempt to sanitize a repulsive act, and it also implies that pregnancy is a disease - an
assertion many pro-abortionists have made directly.[5]
Threatened abortion: A condition that usually includes vaginal bleeding but not
cervical dilation and may or may not lead to a condition of inevitable abortion.

Go to Next Topic: The Different Types of Surgical Abortion

Return to Surgical Abortion Table of Contents

Footnotes to The Different Types of Abortion
[4] Ibid.
[5] Here are just three of many examples of the pro-abortion assertion that "pregnancy is
a disease."
(1) Alan Guttmacher, M.D., former Medical Director of the Planned Parenthood
Federation of America (PPFA), asserted, "The [birth control] pill, in my opinion and that
of my colleagues, is an important prophylaxis, perhaps the most important, against one
of the gravest sociomedical illnesses extant. That, of course, is unwanted
pregnancy" (Senator Gaylord Nelson's (D-WI.) Hearings on Competitive Problems in the
Drug Industry, by the Senate Subcommittee on Monopoly, Select Committee on Small
Business, Part 16, page 6,572, February 25, 1970).
(2) Mary S. Calderone, M.D., another former Medical Director of PPFA and co-founder
and President of the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States
(SIECUS) said, "We have yet to beat our public health drums for birth control in the way
we beat them for polio vaccine; we are still unable to put babies in the class of
dangerous epidemics, even though that is the exact truth" (Medical Morals Newsletter,
February-March 1968).
(3) Abortionist Warren Hern has said "[Pregnancy] is an episodic, moderately extended,
chronic condition ... [and] may be defined as an illness ... treated by evacuation of the
uterine contents" ("Is Pregnancy Really Normal?" Alan Guttmacher Institute's Family
Planning Perspectives, January 1971, page 9). Hern also describes pregnancy as an
"illness" and a "host-parasite relationship" (Abortion Practice [Philadelphia: J.B.
Lippincott, 1990], pages 14 to 17).