World Family Policy Center Newsletter

Leo H. Kahane

California State University

David Paton

Nottingham University Business School

Rob Simmons
Lancaster University Management School

Much has been made in recent months about the favorable affects on "unwantedness," and on the purported benefits to society of abortion in reducing later crime. The hypothesis is that the potential children aborted would have been unwanted and therefore would have displayed a higher propensity to become criminals.

Aside from the speculative and attenuated relation between cause and effect in this hypothesis, is the statistical uncertainty of the data relied upon in support of the argument. This week's highlighted scholar team relies on some excellent data from the UK to see if the purported findings from the US can be replicated elsewhere. Their conclusion that the data do not clearly support the "unwantedness" hypothesis cast doubt on both the theory and analytical conclusions from the earlier US study. This paper also provides an excellent discussion of the theoretical weaknesses in the earlier work.

The Abortion–Crime Link: Evidence from England and Wales

Abstract

Using data from England and Wales, we test the hypothesis that legalizing abortion reduces crime. The timing of changes in crime rates in aggregate data is generally inconsistent with this hypothesis. Using panel data on recorded crime from 1983 to 2001, we are able to replicate the negative association between abortion rates and reported crime that J. J. Donohue and S. D. Levitt found for the United States. However, this association breaks down under the scrutiny of robustness checks and is not present when we examine data on convictions broken down by age. Overall, we find no clear, consistent relationship between abortion and crime in England and Wales.

To download and read the entire paper, please visit http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1468-0335.2007.00627.x

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FEATURED NEWS ARTICLES

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1. Parental Involvement — not funding — is the Key to School Success

CitizenLink

April 9, 2008

Washington, D.C., spends more per student for public education than nearly every U.S. district, yet it consistently scores toward the bottom when it comes to academic progress.

It seems money is not the deciding factor when it comes to educational success. What is working? The twin pillars of accountability and parental involvement.

Nona Richardson, communications manager for the D.C. Public Charter School Board, said about 30 percent of D.C. students attend charter schools and are finding success, thanks to greater parental control.

“We have a core group of charter schools that are doing exceptionally well," she said. "We have some that are kind of in the medium range that we are really putting pressure on to get to that same level.”

To view the entire article, visit http://www.citizenlink.org/CLNews/A000007079.cfm

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2. Pro-Family Leaders Worldwide Back Romania's Efforts to Ban Gay 'Marriage'

The Christian Post

April 8, 2008

In an act of international solidarity to defend the institution of marriage, over 100 pro-family leaders from around the world signed a petition this week to defend efforts in Romania to outlaw same-sex “marriage.”

“We applaud the Romanian people for taking this courageous step in defense of a divinely ordained institution which predates governments and on whose health the future of society depends. And we encourage Romania’s Chamber of Deputies and others in the government to fully codify the proposed definition of marriage and, eventually, to so define marriage in Romania’s Constitution,” the petition reads.

Earlier this year, efforts by the pro-family Alliance of Romanian Families to gather 650,000 signatures to ban gay “marriage” and the Romanian Senate’s vote to amend the country’s constitution to define marriage as a “union between a man and a woman” came under attack by pro-gay groups who attempted to block the measures.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.christianpost.com/article/20080408/31846_Pro-Family_Leaders_Worldwide_Back_Romania%5C's_Efforts_to_Ban_Gay_%5C'Marriage%5C'.htm

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3. Study Shows Rise in Deep Sedation Used as Euthanasia in the Netherlands

LifeNews.com

April 9, 2008

Amsterdam, Netherlands -- A new study of the use of euthanasia in the Netherlands finds the number of patients killed via deep sedation is on the rise. Deep sedation involves using drugs to make terminally ill patients unconscious until death and the study finds doctors and patients are substituting it for euthanasia.

Researchers at the Erasmus University Medical Centre in Rotterdam found 1,800 people -- or 7.1 percent of all deaths in the Netherlands in 2005 -- involved deep sedation.

That percentage rose from 5.6 percent of all deaths involving deep sedation in 2001 while, during the same time period, euthanasia death fell from 2.6 percent of all deaths to 1.7 percent.

Judith Rietjens of Erasmus University told Reuters, “The increased use of continuous deep sedation for patients nearing death in the Netherlands and the limited use of palliative consultation suggests that this practice is increasingly considered as part of a regular medical practice.”

The study also found about 10 percent of those who received deep sedation had previously requested euthanasia or assisted suicide but had been rejected.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.lifenews.com/bio2397.html

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4. South Africa Residents Strongly Oppose Abortion New Poll Shows

LifeNews.com

April 9, 2008

Pretoria, South Africa -- A new poll of South Africans finds a strong majority of the residents of the nation oppose abortion and don't believe it should be used for social reasons. The results come despite the fact abortion has been legal for 12 years and that more than half a million abortions have been done in that time.

The Human Sciences Research Council released the poll on Wednesday and and found approximately 90 percent of South Africans say abortion is wrong.

The research group said South Africans believe abortion is wrong in cases when a family can't afford another child and even when there is a chance the baby could be born mentally or physically disabled.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.lifenews.com/int689.html

Pro-Life Advocates Head to Kosovo to Keep Abortion Out of Constitution

LifeNews.com

April 9, 2008

Pristina, Kosovo -- A team of pro-life advocates is headed to Kosovo to ensure the new nation's constitution is abortion neutral. The province of Kosovo declared independence from Serbia earlier this year and the draft copy of the new country's constitution removed legal protections for unborn children.

Pro-life advocates have been concerned the new constitution would transform the traditional Muslim and Orthodox Christian society by removing legal protection for the unborn.

The Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute (CFHRI) told LifeNews.com in February that Article 26 of the proposed document grants "the right to make decisions in relation to reproduction in accordance with the rules and procedures set forth by law."

It also gives each Kosovar "the right to have control over his/her body in accordance with law."

Pro-life campaigners on an international scale are concerned about the use of the term "reproductive rights" because UN committees have been misconstruing the term to mean the promotion of abortion.

To make sure that doesn't happen in Kosovo, a pro-life team will arrive in Pristina this week to meet with top government officials and religious leaders about the draft constitution.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.lifenews.com/int690.html

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5. Obama promises 'gays' 'strongest possible bill'

WorldNetDaily

April 10, 2008

In a sit-down interview with the "gay" magazine the Advocate, Sen. Barack Obama said, if elected, he foresees eliminating the military's "don't ask, don't tell policy" and passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, opposed by many faith-based groups that argue it would force them to accept homosexuals in leadership.

Obama indicated he wants the bill to include protection for transgenders, but acknowledged opposition in Congress is strong, noted David Brody, senior national correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network's news division, or CBN News.

"I think that's going to be tough, and I've said this before. I have been clear about my interest in including gender identity in legislation, but I've also been honest with the groups that I've met with that it is a heavy lift through Congress," he said.

"We've got some Democrats who are willing to vote for a non-inclusive bill, but we lose them on an inclusive bill, and we just may not be able to generate the votes," Obama continued. "I don't know. And obviously, my goal would be to get the strongest possible bill – "that's what I'll be working for."

Obama also boasted he's been more "vocal on gay issues to general audiences than any other presidential candidate probably in history."

To view the entire article, visit http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=61253

ABC Follows ‘Born Gay’ Script to a T: Good Morning America promotes the latest gay gene study, and marginalizes the opposing scientific voice by labeling him as religious.

Culture and Media Institute

March 28, 2008

ABC’s Good Morning America hit a grand slam today for the homosexual activist movement by airing a profoundly misleading segment that asks, “Can a Baby Be Gay?”

…Convincing the public that some people are “born gay” is a central strategy of homosexual activists, who are being aided by a compliant media that routinely fails to examine such claims. If sexual behavior is hard-wired like race, then moral considerations can be swept aside, homosexuality declared a “civil right” and governments can move against people who believe homosexuality is wrong.

The Good Morning America story follows the script proposed in the gay strategic manual After the Ball, by Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen. The two Harvard-trained PR experts set out to “overhaul straight America,” which was the title of an article out of which After the Ball was born as a full-length book in 1989.

The authors tell activists to use the media to portray homosexuality as in-born, and homosexuals as victims. The heavies in the drama are proponents of traditional morality –especially Christians—who are to be depicted as ignorant at best, and haters and bigots at worst. The authors further advise that under no circumstances should the public be informed of actual homosexual behavior. Over the years, the media rarely have veered from the script, and Good Morning America is no exception.

To view the entire article, visit http://www.cultureandmediainstitute.org/articles/2008/20080328160104.aspx

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6. U.K. scientist admits embryonic stem-cell research unsuccessful

GoodNewsDaily

April 11, 2008

A leading scientist in England has made the stunning admission that embryonic stem-cell research (ESCR) is simply not working.

Lord Patel of Dunkeld, chairman of the U.K. National Stem Cell Network, told The Scotsman that embryonic stem-cell research may never deliver treatments of diseases. For years, life advocates have been praising adult stem-cell research, which does not involve the destruction of human life and is already providing tangible benefits to humans. Destructive embryonic stem-cell research has not treated or cured one patient.

Destructive embryonic stem-cell research has not treated or cured one patient. “For the last 10 years, ‘the scientists,’ in order to win the political debates over ESCR … often wildly hyped the potential for cures,” Wesley J. Smith, senior fellow at the Discovery Institute, wrote on his blog. “Well, those ‘cures’ have not even appeared as distant silhouettes on the horizon yet, and finally, a few in the media are beginning to notice.”

To view the entire article, visit http://www.goodnewsdaily.net/modules/news/article.php?storyid=8175

Quote of the Day: “The happiness of the domestic fireside is the first boon of Heaven; and it is well it is so, since it is that which is the lot of the mass of mankind”