Abortion

President Obama's attempt at a "compromise" in his new contraceptive coverage rule seems to have backfired and only further fanned the flames among evangelicals and conservative Catholics.

"Southern Baptists and people of other various faith communities are outraged with President Obama's so-called compromise on his administration's abortion mandate," Dr. Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, told The Christian Post.

"What people need to consider is this so-called compromise clearly goes against our First Amendment rights," added Land. "Even Catholic women who use or have used contraceptives don't want the church or a religious institution to bear the cost. In his attempt to mollify his radical pro-abortion supporters, President Obama has declared that individual conscience is subject to government edict." more >>

Most certainly not the only drive-thru funeral parlor in the U.S., the Robert L. Adams Funeral Home in Compton, Calif., does stake claim to being the only business of its kind in the state that offers viewings for those who may want to honor the dead from the comfort of their vehicles. 

The Robert L. Adams Funeral Mortuary, opened in 1974, did not arrive at the drive-thru concept purely to cater to those who may be pressed for time and find a drive-by departing to be most convenient. 

According to the funeral home's office manager, the drive-thru service is primarily intended for elderly visitors who may find it difficult to move or for those who are physically impaired. more >>

A Canadian documentary bashing pink ribbon fundraising efforts as commercial and devoid of actual substance is profiting from the skepticism created by Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Pink Ribbon, Inc., a film based on a 2008 book, made a small splash after it was unveiled at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. It was screened in a few Canadian theatres last September. A Dec. 19, 2011 YouTube trailer garnered a few hundred views from YouTube and Facebook.

However, the trailer of the movie has gained more American interest since the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation largely recognized by its pink ribbons was skewered for dropping grants with the nation's leading abortion provider. more >>

Some of Capitol Hill's leading Catholic Democrats are breaking with President Obama and arguing that a health care reform rule mandating Catholic hospitals to hand out contraceptives should be removed, if not significantly altered.

"I think the White House made a good decision in including a mandate for contraception coverage in the [health care act] insurance policy," said Obama's former DNC Chairman Tim Kaine, in a WHRV radio interview. "But I think they made a bad decision in not allowing a broad enough religious employer exemption."

Kaine, along with Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey and House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Larson, are the core of a chorus who are encouraging Obama to find an alternative solution. Other Democrats who have expressed concern include freshman Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Rep. Daniel Lipinski of Illinois. There are reports that Vice President Joe Biden also agrees with the group but is publicly silent on the issue. more >>

The former vice president at the center of the controversy over Susan G. Komen foundation funding for Planned Parenthood is charging that Planned Parenthood orchestrated a "premeditated" liberal press and social media attack on Komen – describing "guerilla tactics" designed to pressure the foundation into funding the organization.

In an interview with Atlanta reporters, Karen Handel said Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), which has been aware of the decision for months, orchestrated a backlash upon announcement to boost donations and advocate pro-choice convictions that have little to do with fighting breast cancer, which is the mission of the Komen foundation.

"Everybody was taken aback by the fact that this (the PPFA backlash) was premeditated, orchestrated," she said. Planned Parenthood reportedly has a billion-dollar budget and could have easily weathered the $700,000 grant loss, Handel said. more >>

A former Obama official expressed his disappointment in the Obama administration's decision to mandate coverage of contraceptive, abortifacient and sterilization services without an exemption for all religious institutions morally opposed to using those services.

The contraception mandate is "inconsistent with who Barack Obama is, at least as I see him," Ambassador Douglas Kmiec, professor of constitutional law at Pepperdine University School of Law, said in a Tuesday interview with The Christian Post. "I've always admired him for his desire to find common ground among people and his desire to not divide people in any way that can be avoided."

Kmiec, a Catholic, was a Republican and had worked in the Reagan and George H. W. Bush administrations, but he supported Obama in 2008. He wrote an editorial about a month before that election arguing that a Catholic can, in good conscience, vote for Obama, because, Obama is a "bridge builder" and someone who seeks to lessen political division in the nation. more >>