Unborn Child
By MIKE O'NEAL
Thermal Bdt News Journal
It'* been called the "dreaded complication" ? the
times when babies survive abortions.
What happens to then?
Take a case in point that occurred in Omaha,
Nebraska in September, 1979. A mother lying in a
hospital bed at the University of Nebraska Medical
Center screamed in the middle of a quiet night, bring
two obstetrics nurses running into the room. The
mother had been injected 30 hours earlier with a salt
solution which normally kills the fetus and causes the
patient to deliver a mass of lifeless tissue.
However, in this case, like hundreds and possibly
thousands of others every year, there was a "complica
tion" ? life.
When the nurses turned on the lights in the room
they found under the covers not a stillborn fetus but in
stead a live 2W pound baby boy, crying and moving its
arms and legs there on the board.
The squirming infant was gathered in loose bed
covers by a nurse, dashed down the corridor and taken
not to an intensive care nursery but instead deposited
in the stainless steel drainboard by a sink in a large
closet where bedpans are emptied and dirty linen
stored.
The head nurse phoned the patient's physician who
told the staff to leave the baby where it was, "just to
watch it for a few minutes, that it would probably die in
a few minutes."
The incident was not alone:
? In February, 1975 in Boston, Dr. Kenneth Edelin
was convicted of manslaughter, neglecting to give care
to a 24 week old infant after a 1973 abortion. Witnesses
said Edelin held the infant down, constricting the flow
of oxygen through the umbilical cord and smothering
it. He was the first and only American doctor ever con
victed on charges of failing to care for an infant born
during an abortion. However, the Massachusetts
Supreme Court overturned the conviction on the
grounds the jury had been given improper instructions.
? In July, 1979 in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in
Los Angeles an apparently stillborn infant was
delivered after a 23 week problem pregnancy was ter
minated. Half an hour later the baby made gasping at
tempts to breathe, but no efforts were made to
resuscitate it because of its size (18 ounces) and the
wishes of the parents.
The baby was taken to a small utility room that
was used, among other things, as an infant morgue.
Told of the continued gasping of the baby, the doctor in
structed the nurse to "leave the baby there ? it will
die." Twelve hours later a nurse returned to work and
found the infant still alive, still gasping in the closet.
The doctor then agreed to have the baby boy transfer
red to an intensive care unit where he died four days
later.
? A baby girl in Florida, rescued by nurses who
found her lying in a bedpan, is five years old now and
doing well.
This latest and most shocking chapter in the
lifetaking Saga of this country's hundreds of thousands
of abortions annually was brought to life this week by i
the Knight-Ridder newspapers. A common thread in
their story was the callous disregard for obvious signs
country who perform abortions. The incidents have
come to light, not through doctors but nurses and other
hospital support personnel who have been shocked at
what plainly must be called the murder of unwanted in
fants in the name of abortion.
In numerous hospitals across the country nurses
have silently rebelled against such practices, and now
many major hospitals refese to perform abortions
after the 20th week ? and even then the infant is over
five months old.
The sanctity of life indeed appears to be slipping in
our country when medical personnel, sworn to save
lives, can take a Hve baby and leave it to ctte in a dark
broom closet and justify it somehow because nobody
wanted the baby in the first place. It makes abortion
what it really is in an overwhelming majority of cases
? simply a means of birth control.
And the only person who must pay for the mistake
is ? not the mother or the father but the unborn child.
While still an undergraduate student at the Univer
sity of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, I attended a Seals
and Crofts concert held at nearby Duke University. It
was the early 1970's and the duo was at the top of the
rock music charts. They interrupted their concert to
reveal their newest album, which they stated in ad
vance they were sure would be a commercial flop
because of the unpopularity of the subject they wanted
to confront their fans with.
The album was entitled "Unborn Child," and the
rock duo paid to produce the disc themselves. The title
song is a touching appeal to mothers everywhere to
consider before hand their actions if contemplating an ,
abortion. Many rock stations refused to play the song,
and yet its only seemingly offensive nature was an ap
peal for life.
Oh. little baby, you II never cry. nor will you hear a suieel lullaby
Oh. unborn chUd. if you only knew. Just what your momma is
plannin' to do.
You re Mil a-clingin ' to the tree of life, but soon you'll be cut off
before you get ripe.
Oh. unborn child, beginning to grow, inside your momma, but
you 71 never know
Oh. tiny bud that grows in the womb, only to be crushed before
you can bloom
Momma, stop.' Turn around, go back, think it over.
Stop! Turn around, go back, think it over. Stop! Turn around, go
back, think it over.
Oh. no. momma, just let it be. youll never regret It. just wait and
see
Think of all the great ones who gave everything that we might
\ have life here, so please bear the pain
The battle against abortion is far from over. But
the battle to end the use of abortion as a means of birth
control and the slaughter of hundreds of unborn and
live born children every year must be won. The ter
mination of the life of one human being can only be
justified when it brings with certainty the death of its
creator ? the mother, or in such inhuman cases as
rape or incest.
Were that the situation in most or all abortions, the
outrage would no doubt be muted.
But who will ever know how many Albert Eins
teins, Midielangelos, Thomas Edisons, Abraham, Lin
colns or George Wastfiofllons the world will never know
because one more unborn child was murdered.
Living and Growing
Be A Friend To Yourself
By CARL MUMPOWER.
M.S.W.
Asheville Counseling Center
Most everyone's heard that
we all need friends. But have
you ever done much thinking
about what kind of friends we
might need? When I speak of
friends in this context, I'm
really talking about sources of
support. Things that lend us a
helping hand as we live our
lives and cope with the ins and
outs that go with that
endeavor. This list of potential
friends is long.
Memories can be a good
friend. Being able to look back
over your life and mentally
recall some of the special
things that have occurred, the
unusual opportunities that
you've experienced, and the
fonder times can have a stea
dying effect. Regardless of
how tough today is, some of
the good leftover tastes of
Carl Mumpower
yesterday can help you keep
your head above water.
Memories, most especially
the good ones, can be a good
friend. And one more thing
about your memory friends,
they're dependable in that
they're one of the few things in
life that no one can ever take
away from you.
Love can also be a good
friend. Not as much the kind
you receive, but the kind you
give. It seems that when we
give love, freely, without ex
pectation of a return, that we
get back even more than we
put in. This friend is special, in
hat when we are at our lowest
ind loneliest, we can call on
this fellow to pull us out. Like
a good pair of shoes, the more
we use this friend, the better
we feel. There's no bank in
town that can compete with
the return that our friend love
can give us, when we give
him.
Goals are another buddy
many of us could use. Without
goals, and the focus and direc
tion they provide, it's pretty
difficult to get on top of life.
Casting our fate to the winds
may make nice words for a
song, but for moat of us it's a
The News Record
ESTABLISHED 1901 ? NON-PARTISAN IN POLITICS
Sox 369 ? Marshall. N C. 21753 ? Phoft* (704) 649-3741
? ? ! ? I
'
G. NICHOLAS HANCOCK, Editor
JEAN BLANKENSHIP, Office Mgr. JULIA WILLIAMS, Advertising
JAMES L STORY,
I
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I. IMC
NC ?*? > yUK*
- 1 $5 50 6 W <jt
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guarantee of winding up
somewhere we don't want to
be doing something we don't
want to do. When we embrace
this friend, we up our chances
of living a meaningful life fill
ed with purpose and ac
complishment. This friend
opens our eyes and gives us
the courage of conviction.
Anything that can do that is in
deed a special friend. '
When talking about poten
tial friends, we certainly
wouldn't want to leave people
off our list. Good people,
meaning ones that make an ef
fort to be honest with you, sup
portive of you, and in tune
with you, can make the best of
friends. Unfortunately, it's
often difficult to tell a true per
son type friend. As a rule, true
people friends are those who
exult in your growth and ac
complishment rather than be
threatened by it. They'll care
enough to tell you what you
need to bear vs. what you want
to hear. They'll also be
available to you in the in
convenient as wed as conve
. I
Mjh^jnay. Wit
Arriving on Main Street here Saturday
afternoon after the Christmas parade had
begun, I parked my car at the lower end of
Main Street where I watched the parade as
it "turned around" and started back up the
street. I wasn't alone by any means as all '
parking areas were occupied by onlookers.
John Corbett, Walter Harrell and I patiently
and cooly stood on the street as the parade
slowly returned from the upper end of the
street. Also arriving too late to join the
parade, Clyde Roberts and his beautiful
horse joined the crowd.
The parade was impressive and cer
tainly was responsible for a large crowd be
ing in town on a clear but chilly afternoon.
The Merchants Association is to be com
mended for sponsoring the event. The lead
car bore Sheriff Ponder and the town of
ficials and the last unit in the parade was
pne of the four fire tucks bearing Santa
Claus.
The Madison Seminary float was real
nice and the Madison High Marching Band
looked sharp. Various "queens" and
organizations participated and everyone
seemed to enjoy the parade. Congratula
tions to Clifton Cook, deputy and jailer, for
goind a good job in "directing traffic" at the
lower end of the street, and to all those who
helped make the parade a success.
It doesn't seem possible that it has been
40 years since Pearl Harbor. But it's true
that Monday of this week marked the 40th
anniversary of the attack which occurred
on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941. 1 shall never forget
that Sunday when President Franklin D.
Roosevelt announced to the nation that
Japanese planes had attacked and
destroyed Pearl Harbor. "Bill" and I were
then living in Roanoke Rapids, N.C., where
I was employed at the Roanoke Rapids
Herald Printing and Publishing Company.
How time does fly!
With the installation of the Christmas
decorations on Main Street, we get the feel
ing that Christmas spirit is increasing as
shoppers are beginning to look for presents
and gifts. Several of the local businessmen
state that business is "picking up" and for
the next two weeks is expected to increase.
< Before going elsewhere to look for gifts,
why not look first with your local mer
chants? ?
? 1
The People Ask
9 9
? ?
The People Ask is a weekly feature of The
News Record. The public is invited to submit
questions on any local subject. The News Record
will endeavor to provide answers. Persons may
submit their questions by calling 649-2741 or by
mailing them to The People Ask, The News
Record, P.O. Box 369, Marshall, N.C. 28753.
We look forward to hearing from you.
tetters To The Editor
A Uni<IUe Christmas Gift
Editor:
With the dazzle of Christmas shopping, it is
easy to forget the reason that we celebrate this
one day more joyfully than all others.
In remembering that it is Christ's birthday,
we might also ask ourselves what gifts He would
choose for people in His community. Even more
appropriately, what gifts might He ask us to give?
Surely His first response would be to give to
those in need, for this is how He lived His life.
Those of us who fed called by this tradition have a
way of doing that right here in our county.
Neighbors In Need, a volunteer group dedicated
to the purpose of helping those in need, is offering
small greking cards with the following message :
"As a Christmas gift, a donation has been made in
your name to Neighbors In Need." An explanation
of the purpose of the group will also be enclosed.
What a lovely way to give a gift, and at the
same time assist our friends and neighbors.
Please keep this in mind as you write your
Christmas shopping list.
Jerry Plemmoos
Marshall, N.C.
-
on Week
Day was such a success last year that the 3 Is
planning to sponsor this event again ( year
week's activities rill be cheduled In a similar
Tli! nts rill assume heir nei Jobs n
Dec ii each of county as veil Ideal
young]
4 tt leaders of
ii wiping make this yi ir's program a:
IB president