Samantha Pierce

Death Benefits If you divide the total number of abortions provided by Planned Parenthood in 2006 by 365, you find out that they performed an average of 793 abortions a week day -- presuming they operated 24/7/365. If you knock off weekends and holidays, it's probably closer to 250 days, which brings the total up to 1158.6. That converts to roughly, five years worth of American casualties in Iraq every three and a half DAYS. That's just appalling.

Today is supposed to be the day of reckoning for a select group of prosperity gospel megachurches. 'Prosperity Gospel' Churches' Spending Reports Due . Monday is the deadline for some popular mega-churches to report to Congress on how they spend their money. These churches all preach wealth as an essential part of faith. Steve Inskeep speaks with religion professor Anthea Butler about "prosperity gospel." These churches have long been critisied for unethical financial practices. I'm not expecting much. There is something firmly planted in the American mind that the government can't hold religious types accountable for their actions. Things never go well when religious folk think themselves above or outside of secular law and responsibilities. That's the same kind of attitude that perpetuates the Catholic priest child sex abuse scandals. Previous posts: What are they doing with the church people's money? Televangelist Scandal for a new generation

Fear over vaccines and autism The recent legal decision has been miscast by vaccine opponents. In truth, this case was treated separately from other autism cases being evaluated by the federal court because the child involved has a rare mitochondrial disorder leading to an encephalopathy or neurological condition with autism-like symptoms, and thus is unrelated to the rest of the population. And, despite the findings of the court, there is no scientific evidence that this child's condition was affected by her receipt of recommended childhood vaccinations. This was a legal decision, not one supported by scientific evidence. There now have been 16 separate, independent studies undertaken in five countries, involving millions of children, that have found no link between vaccination, vaccines or vaccine preservatives (namely, the mercury-based thimerosal) and autism. We have more data supporting this lack of association than for most other "known facts" in medicine. The sheer...

Today I am thankful for/that: Spring flowers, even if said flowers are now buried under a few inches of wet snow. Ethan's arm is nearly fully recovered. As long as he's not thinking about it he can fully extend it. What are you thankful for?

Hubby tagged me with this so here goes. 1. What translation of the Bible do you like best? ESV, modern English that preserves so much of the poetic nature of the original texts. I love it. 2. Old or New Testament? What hubby said, "Uh ... they're both the Bible. I spend more time in the Old Testament just because it's bigger and takes longer to get through." 3. Favorite Book of the Bible? Proverbs. I just spent a few years going through Proverbs with my Bible study group. It really grew on me. 4. Favorite Chapter? Isn't a favourite book enough? 5. Favorite Verse? Proverbs 17:1. Not because it's particularly encouraging but because I've experienced it to be so true. 6. Bible character you think you're most like? Most are so dysfunctional that I try not to be too much like any of them. Maybe Timothy's mom because her kid turned out alright (2 Timothy 1:5). 7. One thing from the Bible that confuses you? I wouldn't say I'm conf...

I've been writing down some of the more amusing things the kids have been saying lately. They often leave me speechless. Here they are in no particular order. *** Sophia: Mommy it sound's like the human-midifier is making some noise. *** Sophia: Mommy why are we waked up? Me: What? Sophia: Why are we waked up if it's not spring yet? *** Me: Oh your feet are cold! Sophia: Yes they are cold, I know that mommy. *** Ethan (to Sophia): Don't touch it! I'm butching it. I'm butching the beef. (It was orange playdough and he was "butching" his "beef" with a spoon.) *** Me (to Ethan standing on the back step without a coat with Isaiah right behind him also without a coat on a day when the predicted high temp was 20 degrees): Get back in here! Are you nuts? Ethan: Yes, I am. Note to self, do not ask rhetorical questions of children. *** Sophia (upon discovering that the seed tray that the kids had effectively turned into a sensory table was go...

Today I am thankful for/that: Nap time, mine. Modern medicine. The wild imaginations of children. Forgiveness. Sacrifice. Redemption. Comfort in the time of sorrow. The promise of eternal life. What are you thankful for?

Ethan turned had a birthday today. I have memories from when I was his age. It's a strange thing to contemplate. More photos or the festivities are at my picture blog .

I saw this beautiful sight as I was running in and out doing errands today. Sophia excitedly joined me as I took pictures with my new camera. Winter aconite and Sophia's finger. There are a couple more pictures from today at my picture blog .

Today I am thankful for/that: Spring, it will happen eventually. Birthdays. Ethan's cast comes off tomorrow. I'm ready to give is arm a bath and a good scratching. Hopefully he won't need another one. Our Medicaid Service Coordinator, she does a lot of work in finding ways for us to help support the boys' development and education. Ethan and Sophia can actually be nice to each other once you explain in clear simple details how that works. Upon rushing up the stairs after hearing the toilet flush I found Isaiah in the bathroom grinning broadly while simultaneously pulling his pants up and putting the toilet seat back down. What are you thankful for?

Insightful comment from a reader on this post : We have a 7-year-old daughter who suffered TBI when she was ejected from a vehicle at ten days old. Even though she is a people person (friendly, conversational, and very, very affectionate), she exhibits enough autistic behaviors (inability to play appropriately or imaginatively, hand-flapping, no eye contact, displays extreme distress for no apparent reason) to keep me thinking about the similarities. She has made a dramatic recovery from her original prognosis ("This child may never walk, talk, or see."), but she is still years behind her peers developmentally. I have never bought into the vaccination theory. (I have a nephew with autism who's never had a vaccination of any kind.) Since entering (and embracing!) this sub-culture of special needs kids, I have often wondered whether autism is not just another form of injury to the brain. Perhaps there is not "the same level of contentiousness" surrounding TBI, bec...

Vaccine Fixation But Where’s the Education No one can deny that it’s important to understand what causes autism. But the concerns about a vaccine-autism link have quite diverted the attention of the public, and of the autism community itself, from concerns about education, therapies, and services that autistic children and autistic adults need today and now, from an individualized, appropriate school program to employment to housing opportunities. Neither the New York Times nor Time magazine, nor most of the media, has been giving sufficient attention to these issues and to the need for sufficient funding and trained teachers and staff. Is this because there is the assumption, the thought, the hope that—-if we can only pinpoint the cause of autism, no one will have to worry about special education, supported employment, and group homes and other supported living environments? Emphasis added. That's a mighty good question don't you think?

Without preamble this exchange occurs. Hubby: If a baby is really part of its mother then you have four arms right now. Me: And two heads. Hubby: And if the baby is a boy you've got a couple of testicles. Me: And if its a girl four ovaries. Hubby: How can something with different DNA be part of you? Is a parasite part of you? Me: No. He's grading papers right now. He earlier commented on the remarkable fact that the human genome consists of a prime number of chromosomal pairs (23).

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . My sister emailed me this little gem to the left yesterday. I couldn't resist sharing it. Spitzer Resists Calls to Resign New York governor Eliot Spitzer resisted mounting calls for his resignation Tuesday, as he first tried to work out an agreement with prosecutors not to file criminal charges against him. [snip] Mr. Spitzer won't resign until he reaches an agreement with the government not to pursue charges, say those familiar with his legal team's thinking. A poll released late Tuesday found that 70% of New Yorkers think Mr. Spitzer should resign, while 66% believe he should be impeached and removed from office if he doesn't. "It's a big thumbs down," said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, which conducted the poll. "It points to just how politically untenable his position is right now." Even if Mr. Spitzer resigns, 49% of New Yorkers said he should face cri...

I had to drink a cup of coffee this morning to get my eyes to open all the way. That clock may say 7:00 AM but my body knows full well that it's 6:00 AM.

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . So how long is it going to take before Governor Spitzer's imminent resignation becomes an actual resignation? The longer he waits the slimier he looks. It's one thing to be caught in hypocritical and morally reprehensible behaviour. It is several magnitudes worse to try (apparently) to weasel out of the consequences of such behaviour. For the sake of the state and the government that he once promised to clean up Eliot Spitzer needs to depart the governor's mansion, now. State Republicans are already planning to start impeachment proceedings if Spitzer doesn't depart soon. As more details come to light I can't really blame them.

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . Now that the initial shock over Elliot Spitzer's involvement in a prostitution ring is starting to wear off, and as Spitzer has yet to resign, I'm feeling less sorry for him. Spitzer is now being caught on a bed of nails that he made for himself ( Spitzer Gets Spitzered ). Spitzer earned his place on my people-I-will-never-vote-for list with his pursuit of crisis pregnancy centers in New York city some years ago. In fact I created that list just for him. I find it ironic that Spitzer had to cancel his morning meeting with an abortion rights group that was advocating for a particularly repugnant abortion rights law because of the prostitution scandal. A note to New York state Republicans, y'all might want to stop talking now. Really.

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . Updated Uh... NY Governor Linked to Prostitution Ring NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Times is reporting that Gov. Eliot Spitzer has told senior advisers that he had been involved in a prostitution ring. Spitzer is scheduled to make an announcement Monday afternoon. Spitzer officials wouldn't immediately comment on the story. Spitzer, 48, is married and has three daughters. Details about the prostitution ring were not immediately clear. UPDATE 1-NY Gov. Spitzer tied to prostitution ring - NYT Spitzer was due to make an announcement at 2:15 p.m. EDT (1815 GMT), the Times said. As state attorney general before being elected governor in November 2006, Spitzer was sometimes called the Sheriff of Wall Street for his prominent role in investigating financial cases. A Democrat, he entered the governor's office promising reform but soon entered into a conflict with Republican leaders in the state Senate, slowing his agenda. He has been married ...

Updated Day light savings time (DTS) is a cruel joke played on parents with small children. Instead of having my usual 2.5 hours to get everyone ready for church I've now got 1.5 ours to strong arm 4 people into washing up and putting on clean clothing all at the same time. For the next few weeks I will be dragging myself, hubby, and my kids out of bed before any of us are ready thanks to this arbitrary messing with our internal clocks. I'm not the only one who hates DTS , really hates DTS . Update: Adding to my discontent is the sheet of ice holding the doors closed on the minivan.

Cross posted at Say Anything: Reader blogs . Autism is in the news again. This time some of the usual suspects are hoping that the public will believe that a child with a pre-existing mitochondrial condition who had a reaction to a vaccine is proof that vaccines cause autism. The NPR report on this has the headline, Case Stokes Debate About Autism, Vaccines . Julie Gerberding, who heads the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said, "The government has made absolutely no statement indicating that vaccines are a cause of autism." "That is a complete mischaracterization of the findings of the case and a complete mischaracterization of any of the science that we have at our disposal today." But that remains a hard sell to parents of autistic children , such as Becky Estepp of Poway, Calif. She says the reaction her son Eric had to a hepatitis B vaccine in 1998 was immediate and severe. Emphasis mine. That sentence really should read "a small and unrepresent...

Updated Yeah it's actually Friday but still, today I am thankful for/that: Clothes washers and dryers. The kids have been jumping into a lot of muddy puddles this week. Warm days to go for a walk and play in the park. Ethan didn't get hit when he took running across the mall parking lot yesterday. Isaiah in underwear. Nasal decongestants, they may have saved me from a sinus infection. The reddish stuff I found in Isaiah's ear the other morning turned out to be liquid eyeshadow. What are you thankful for?