July 30, 2009

George Tiller Murder: Preliminary Hearing Set for Scott Roeder

Per NPWF:

A preliminary hearing for Scott Roeder, the man charged with the May 31 murder of Kansas abortion provider George Tiller, is set for Tuesday, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports. …

In related news, the New York Times on Sunday examined the life and career of Tiller…

According to the Times, advocates on both sides of the abortion-rights debate “have been measuring the larger ramifications” of Tiller’s murder. Abortion-rights opponents are “bracing for a drop in support, especially from those in the murky middle ground of the debate.” …

Meanwhile, the Kansas City Star on Sunday included an interview with Roeder, during which he said he was “elated” that Tiller was dead and that he considers killing abortion providers to be justifiable homicide. …

More at the link, including links to cited articles.

Related: George Tiller

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June 6, 2009

Clarity Quote of the Moment: Reaping the Harvest of the Seeds of Hatred

I was shocked to learn that President Obama and others said they were shocked that Dr. George Tiller was murdered in cold-blood while serving as an usher in his Kansas church. If you believe that you reap what you sow then the murder of Dr. Tiller is not shocking at all.

What we are seeing could be the harvest of the seeds of the vile and unrestrained anger and hatred that have been planted, spread and nurtured by the sleazemeisters of the Right Wing — self-described media stars and politicians who claim to be true conservatives, real Republicans, and patriotic Americans exercising their First Amendment rights.

— Larry Gellman
Seeds of Hatred — Reaping the Harvest
HuffPo, June 6, 2009

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June 5, 2009

Obama Appoints Radical-Right, Anti-Abortionist Catholic to Faith-Based Council

“While the administration favors reducing the need for abortion by reducing unintended pregnancies, Kelley has made clear that she seeks instead to reduce access to abortion. That is an extremely disturbing development, especially coming this week in the wake of George Tiller’s assassination.”

— Sarah Posner

Much more after the press release:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — June 4, 2009 — Jon O’Brien, president of Catholics for Choice, issued the following statement today about the announcement that Alexia Kelley had been appointed to be Director of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Department of Health and Human Services:

The antichoice organization Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good (CACG) has announced that Alexia Kelley, its co-founder and former executive director, has been appointed to be Director of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Department of Health and Human Services. Ms. Kelley’s appointment would be a defeat for reason and logic and calls into question whether President Obama’s administration is serious about reducing the need for abortion. And, while it may not gain many headlines, the impact and significance of this appointment should not go unnoticed.

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June 3, 2009

Dear DHS, Secret Service, and FBI: Dog Whistle Calls for Deaths of Two Presidents, Others

Would you G-men and -women kindly do something about Dan Holman before we have another catastrophe in this country?

At least put him under 24/7 surveillance — goodness knows Holman is a helluva bigger threat to domestic security than the targets of any of the wild goose chases your bosses sent you on during the Bush years.

By the way, do your bosses know what a dog whistle is?

Here’s the money quote:

Dan Holman [”Missionaries for the Preborn Iowa”]: I believe that all abortionists are deserving of death, and they are not the only ones. There are politicians and judges and others who support this murder that are also deserving of death.

Drew Griffin: Would you care to name names, Dan?

Dan Holman: George Bush, Barack Obama. Any politician that gives our tax money to Planned Parenthood and organizations that kill babies are participating in the killing of innocent children deserve the same penalty.

More from CNN.

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Tiller Murder: Pat Robertson, You Helped This Happen

Ronald Brock’s “Truth Truck” targeting Dr. George Tiller

“I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way — all of them who have tried to secularize America — I point the finger in their face and say: ‘You helped this happen.’”

— Jerry Falwell, on the cause of the September 11th attacks, to which Pat Robertson replied: “Well, I totally concur.” (”700 Club,” September 13, 2001)

Well, Pat, regarding the assassination of Dr. George Tiller three days ago: I really believe that you helped this happen.

And I’m not speaking figuratively, but literally.

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June 2, 2009

Former Southern Baptist Convention 2nd VP Prayed for, Now Celebrates George Tiller’s Murder

“I, for one, am a happy camper.”

— Wiley Drake, on the assassination of Dr. George Tiller

Yeah, these anti-abortion extremists are really way out there on the fringe, aren’t they?

No, they’re not.

You and I might think of the Southern Baptist Convention as the far-right fringe, but the truth is, the SBC is about as mainstream (albeit ridiculously* conservative) as a Protestant denomination can get.

And here’s what Wiley Drake, the SBC’s former number-two, number-two man, has to say about the assassination of Dr. George Tiller:

“I am glad George Tiller is dead.”

Yes, it gets worse.

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Bruce Wilson: Anti-Gay Marriage Pro-Prop 8 Leader Called For Antiabortion Martyrs

“What I witnessed in Bartle Hall on December 31st 2002 was the antithesis of radical Islam. Instead of people wanting to blow themselves up to kill others, I saw young adults who were so radically in love with Jesus that they were willing to become martyrs for the sake of saving other people’s lives. Someone from the stage asked, ‘who here feels like they are called to die as a martyr for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ?’ Many hands went up throughout the stadium.”

This doesn’t surprise us, nor even alarm us as much as it probably should — because we know this stuff already, which is simply: Anti-choice activists and the anti-gay activists are the same people.

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June 1, 2009

Godson of Anti-Abortionist Extremism Takes Responsibility for Tiller Assassination, Asks Forgiveness, Puts Big Nail in Movement’s Coffin

“The people who stir up the fringe never take responsibility. But I’d like to say on this day after a man was murdered in cold blood for preforming [sic] abortions that I — and the people I worked with in the religious right, the Republican Party, the pro-life movement and the Roman Catholic Church, all contributed to this killing by our foolish and incendiary words.

“I am very sorry.”

Stunning piece from Frank Schaeffer, son of “the late Francis Schaeffer, a Reformed Presbyterian … influenced by Reconstructionism,” whose “widely distributed books and films of the 1970s and early 1980s are generally credited with providing an important catalyst for evangelical involvement in anti-abortion politics”:

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LifeNews.com Tries to Set Up Scott Roeder’s Insanity Plea, Conveniently Forgets the Rest of Ex-Wife’s Remarks

That’s what this telegraphs to us from the right-wing Christian, anti-choice site, LifeNews.com:

Scott Roeder, the 51-year-old Kansas man who authorities have detained as the only suspect in the shooting of late-term abortion practitioner George Tiller, may have suffered from mental illness. That’s according to his ex-wife, who said in a recent interview that Roeder always held extremist views. …

Then we get the typical, frantic attempt by the anti-choice movement to dissociate itself from Roeder:

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May 31, 2009

Surprise… Not: George Tiller Murder Suspect Scott Roeder Has A Record — And Operation Rescue Ties

H/T to FreeStateDem for digging up some revealing — but completely unsurprising — background on Scott Roeder (such as a 1997 report from the ADL which notes the “sovereign citizen and tax protester’s” 16-month prison sentence “for parole violations following a 1996 conviction for having bomb components in his car trunk”), suspected of the murder of Dr. George Tiller this morning.

Also of interest (and of no small significance) is this comment on the Operation Rescue Web site in response to the article, “Pray in May to Stop Abortion, Wichita, KS, May 17-20, 2007” (which, disturbingly, includes a link labeled, “Click here to view our hot new video about abortionist Tiller!” as if plugging a sex video):

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Where’s the Indignant Outrage Over the DHS Warning About Right-Wing Extremist Groups in the Wake of George Tiller’s Murder?

“This is particularly heart wrenching because George was shot down in his house of worship, a place of peace.”

— Family of George Tiller

So, the Department of Homeland Security’s assessment, “Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment,” was dead-on — not that we ever doubted that assessment for a minute, but to hear the right-wingers themselves talk, you’d think Barack Obama was leading the DHS in some big conspiracy to attack poor, little, shat-upon conservatives who never did anything worse than vote for John McCain.

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