The RAnts of RA

Pro-Life marchers heading to the Supreme Court

After the many years I spent picketing, rallying and rescuing Ohio infants at the Center for Choice II, in Toledo, Ohio, I never dreamed I would live to see the day that the children might some day be saved  from certain death. If you haven’t heard the news, let me be the first to share a much cherished moment.

The headline reads: “Ohio House approves abortion ban after heartbeat,” when Reuters announced that the Ohio House of Representatives had voted to ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detectable, which can be as early as six weeks.

Reuters — Columbus, Ohio reported…

COLUMBUS (Reuters) – The Ohio House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detectable, which can be as early as six weeks.

The House voted 54 to 43 for the ban, along party lines, with most Republicans voting in favor.

If enacted, the law would be a challenge to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling which upheld a woman’s right to an abortion until the fetus is viable outside the womb, usually at 22-24 weeks.

Republican Ohio House Speaker William Batchelder said he knows this bill will face a court challenge.

“We’re writing bills for courts,” he said.

The bill now goes to the Republican-dominated Ohio Senate.

The Ohio House also passed two other abortion restrictions Tuesday, one that would ban late-term abortions after 20 weeks if a doctor determines that the fetus is viable outside the womb. Another bill excludes abortion coverage from the state insurance exchange created by the federal health care law.

The late-term ban already was passed by the Ohio Senate.

Neither bill was as contentious as the heartbeat legislation, which does not contain exceptions for rape, incest or the life or health of the mother. [continue reading…]

Here I am living on the “Left Coast,” with these screwy laws and values, while the victory is being won in – of all places – The State of Ohio. We used to own a small family farm back in Curtice, Ohio. My daughter and I cared for over 300 French Angora Rabbits, they started out as a 4-H project but turned into much more. We used to raise our own pigs, chickens, ducks, turkeys and so many more, we had a goat once that was simply a riot.

We had those old metal rocking chairs sitting outside by the back door. It was common for us to go out and butcher 10 or  20-chickens and  invite friends over for a BBQ. We’d sit outside, the guys might play some touch football, the kids would play on the swing. As I sat in the chair the goat would come over and nuzzled  my hand trying to get me to pet him. He was a little Nubian goat and smart as  a whip. He would jump up in the chair next to mine and circle round and round, just as if he were trying to cop a squat (sit in the chair, with his legs over the edge)   to copy me. He was so cute.

Many members of our church, New Life Assembly of God, in Oregon, Ohio would picket, sidewalk councel and rescue (with Operation Rescue) unborn children  with peaceful demonstrations. Once we used kryptonite  bicycle locks and locks and chains to close the place down, until the police came. The leaders arranged  a truce, we unlocked our chains and went peacefully to jail. We were allowed to return to the rally after being booked, so long as we promised not to chain up again. We help up our end of the bargain.

A few weeks later the Center for Choice II sued the group collectively for $14 million in a RICO  suit, which the protestors won after a lengthy two-year battle. What a sweet victory it was. The people of Ohio are hardworking, honest folks who understand just how precious life is. God doesn’t make mistakes.

Last night I watched as a deer, who had been hit by a car near our house, suffered and died in agony for 2-hours waiting for the Sheriff to come and shoot it. Just two-days prior I had watch this magnificent young buck as he grazed  in our yard. I took pictures, which I will share in my next article. He struggled for hours trying to stand as he was pinned under some dead bushes in our yard. His front shoulder was fractured, he was frightened and bleeding from his mouth. I cried as I waited, unable to come to terms with his inevitable death. My heart is still broken.

Our business is here in California, we have friends here and have met some terrific people but this state has broken my heart. The laws here in California  are cruel and unfair. From where I am sitting, all I see are liberals who can’t seem to see past today. People who don’t understand business and the way economics work, should not be allowed to effect change that will be detrimental to ones own future well-being.

Tonight, I am celebrating along with the unborn children of Ohio. Bless their souls. I can’t count how many nights I’ve spent in prayer for the infants of this country. This is an answer to many prayers. Who knows, at the rate California children are slaughtered (believe me it is slaughter) Ohio may grow to become the most populated state in the country. Think about it.

I miss you Ohio! I may live in California but my heart remains with you.

According to a July 2, 2011 NPR article…

Statistics compiled by NARAL Pro-Choice America show that 29 governors – including Kansan Sam Brownback – now oppose abortion, up from 21 before the 2010 elections.

And 19 states have House and Senate memberships that are “solidly” opposed to abortion, up from 16 last year. Eight states have what NARAL characterizes as “solidly pro-choice” legislatures, down from 10. [continue reading…]

Related Articles:

• Ohio House Bans Abortion… in a heartbeat!
• Abortion Wars: Taking It To The States

Why on God’s green earth should the government use our tax dollars to bailout GM and Chrysler?

According to an AP article, released today, GM CEO Wagoner to step down at White House request, GM and Chrysler have received $17.4 billion in bailout money and have requested an additional $21.6 billion.

My question begs an answer. Why on God’s green earth should the government use our tax dollars to bailout GM and Chrysler?

What have they done for us? The big three automakers have closed plants across the nation, and moved their production lines to Mexico and goodness knows where else. Why don’t they ask the Mexican government to bail them out? What are they doing for workers here in the U.S.A.?

I used to buy only American made cars, only to discover that just because those big corporate executives lived and operated right here in the United States, the parts are made and assembled by cheap labor in third world countries.

I no longer worry about supporting the big three because they don’t care about American workers, they only care about their bottom line. So, let them sing the blues to Obama. He doesn’t care about America either. He is trying to bankrupt this country and send all the money we’ve toiled to earn overseas, so that we can be taken over by his African home boys.

Schwarzenegger Sells California Out to Gambling Casinos

by Kathryn Bowen

Whoever coined the phrase “Ignorance is bliss” must have been talking about the 35 million Californians trusting that their governor and their elected officials are actually doing their job with respect to gambling casinos run by Indian tribes in our state.

“Bliss” is what Governor Schwarzenegger has been selling the public while he sells the State down the river by granting the largest expansion of gambling in history to 5 casino tribes.

In the wake of Californian’s support of Prop 1A, former Governor, Gray Davis, negotiated gambling compacts with Indian Tribes. Millions of voters succumbed to a brilliant marketing campaign that casino tribes invested nearly $100 Million into, equal to a presidential election, to persuade voters to change our State constitution and direct gambling monopolies to Indian tribes. I was one of those voters.

Here’s the bad news.

At this moment, your elected representatives in California are just about to vote on whether to grant 5 casino tribes, consisting of just 1,876 people, the ability to expand willy-nilly despite the impact on our communities, families, children and ultimately the financial future of California.

This is just the beginning; 67 additional tribes with gaming compacts are waiting in the wings and the Governor may not inform the public when renegotiations commence with these tribes.

The reality is the revenue promised for the state through gambling expansion will not materialize. The Governor and his advisors know this and should probably buy a new calculator because they know the expected income is neither measurable or enforceable!

Thousands of emails, letters, phone calls and exhaustive testimony attempting to alert our elected officials of endless issues regarding jurisdiction, regulation, accounting and disastrous social costs have fallen on deaf ears.

Hearing Loss

The reason for the hearing loss? Could it be the massive unregulated tribal contributions flowing into political campaigns of the majority of our elected officials in our State Capitol?

In fact, tribes poured $429,600 into the campaigns of just fifteen assembly members who held an “impartial” hearing on problematic regulatory issues with the compacts and will be key in deciding their fate. How impartial can they really be when taking money from the same tribes that will benefit from their vote? By any definition, this is a profound conflict of interest.

Making matters worse, the Minimum Internal Control Standards (MICS), the only federal regulatory leg left to oversee the integrity of the games and to collect the money, has been eliminated from the compacts.

What does this mean? These so-called compacts are really contracts that will cement a permanent partnership between the State of California and loosely regulated gambling casino tribes for the next 25-years, without the ability of the state to audit and collect the money or to ensure fair gaming for the patrons.

Casino tribes have kicked federal regulators off their land claiming sovereignty. What makes the state think its going to be any more successful especially given the fact there are simply not enough enforcement resources?

Moreover, Schwarzenegger privately brokered 25-year, multibillion dollar deals without so much as an economic study to show how expanded gambling will impact the people of California.

Given the fact that 80% percent of gambling revenue comes from households with incomes of less than $50,000 a year, don’t you think you need a study to show what this spread of gambling is going to do to the state?

What kind of representative government balances its budget on the backs of its poorest and most vulnerable citizens? Even Russia and other countries around the world who believed that gambling actually produced economic vitality have come to their senses and banned or closed most of their casinos due to the economic strain caused their economies.

Once again, our elected officials are going for the quick fix approach to fixing the state’s budget problems instead of assessing the long-term effects of really bad policy.

What does California get? We all get to sit by and watch our regional economy redirect billions in disposable income (taxable sales) into “sovereign tribal governments” who are not bound by the U.S. Constitution, remain outside regulatory laws and pay no taxes on their $23 Billion profits.

This massive federal scandal’s tentacles have found their way into every corner of our government through corrupt campaign finance loopholes. From the White House on down to local county governments who are faced with the dilemma of how to stand up to tribes who exploit their ancestral suffering to bully local governments into giving them what they want.

Wake up California! The gaming tribes’ plight no longer has anything to do with civil rights, justice or historical reparations, but rather with self-indulgent gambling expansion under the guise of self-determination.

About the author:

Kathryn Bowen is an expert and activist on government regarding gambling across the country.

Issues include: tribal expansion, tribal sovereignty, tribal sovereign immunity, political corruption due to unlimited funds from casino tribes both in local and state government, civil rights, equal protection issues communities struggle with due to representative government becoming too reliant on big gambling dollars. Member of the legal subcommittee team involving a lawsuit filed by Preservation of Los Olivos (POLO) and Preservation of Santa Ynez (POSY) against the federal government in 2005. This suit was filed as an appeal to the Bureau of Indian Affairs decision to accept privately purchased land by the Santa Ynez Band into federal trust status without proper representation of community interests. Writer/Producer of documentary “Big Gambling Dollars and Politics at Work”