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Opinion: The sword belongs in its sheath. Killing of George Tiller a ‘Malchus Moment’
Catholic Online ^ | 6/1/09 | Deacon Keith Fournier

Posted on 06/01/2009 6:00:53 AM PDT by tcg

All who know the objective truth about the dignity and value of every human life, from conception to natural death and at every moment in between, should decry this horrible act of violence. It must be unqualifiedly rejected and condemned within the Pro-Life community because of our unwavering conviction that every life, at every age and stage, has dignity and must be respected, protected and honored. This bedrock conviction should inform a “whole life/pro-life” ethic in those who gather under the banner of being Pro-Life.

A moral analysis tells us that the killing of a defenseless George Tiller is similar to the killing of every defenseless child in the womb who dies due to procured abortion. Both acts of killing are evil. Both must be completely rejected. Both should be decried by every person who is Pro-life.

We reject intentional abortion because every procured abortion is the killing of a member of our human family. The dignity of that little human person in the first home of the whole human race cries out for changing the unjust approach to giving protected status to intentional abortion in America. However, this dignity is present in all human persons, even those with whom we disagree and those whose actions we decry.

(Excerpt) Read more at catholic.org ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Editorial; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: abortion; choice; georgetiller; prolife; tiller
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To: rdb3

That’s why we must push back. I’m thinking along these lines.

1. Tiller had a violent, criminal past.

2. Obama welcomed violent anti-government killers, Ayers and Dohrn.

3. All truly pro-life groups have condemned the killing of Tiller.


101 posted on 06/01/2009 7:10:16 AM PDT by xzins (Retired Army Chaplain, Pro Deo et Patria)
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To: nonsporting

I like that.


102 posted on 06/01/2009 7:10:49 AM PDT by knarf (I say things that are true ... I have no proof ... but they're true)
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To: tcg
Both should be decried by every person who is Pro-life.

Nope. Not this pro-lifer.
103 posted on 06/01/2009 7:11:45 AM PDT by ChocChipCookie (Earth: It's not your mother, it's just a big rock.)
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To: ROLF of the HILL COUNTRY
This case is more appropriately viewed as an intercession on the behalf of the defenseless against he who would murder them. Although the choice of venue was heinous; the taking of a life to save another’s life is allowed under THE LAW.

The threat must be imminent.

Grammar nit: "...defenseless against he him who would murder them." The prepositional phrase "against him" requires an objective case (him), not nominative (he).

104 posted on 06/01/2009 7:12:27 AM PDT by nonsporting
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To: Alberta's Child

OK — and I don’t defend vigilantism at all. Killing to defend property is never justified in my opinion. Killing is only justified in defense of life. I am one of the few people on FR who thinks Joe Horn should be in jail for manslaughter.

My only point in this thread is to make it clear to people that Tiller is not someone who was doing something we merely considered wrong — he was doing something illegal.


105 posted on 06/01/2009 7:13:36 AM PDT by soccermom
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To: TomOnTheRun
You make good points there, Tom . . . but I'll repeat something I posted on another thread yesterday on this same topic:

I've long speculated that the heavy-handed tactics the government used against groups like Operation Rescue in the late 1980s and early 1990s are a very big reason why some people have resorted to violence against abortionists.

As an astute observer pointed out some years ago (it may have been after the Slepian killing in Buffalo, NY), attacks on abortionists were almost non-existent until the government began forcibly removing peaceful demonstrators from public areas outside the offices and homes of abortionists.

106 posted on 06/01/2009 7:13:36 AM PDT by Alberta's Child (I'm out on the outskirts of nowhere . . . with ghosts on my trail, chasing me there.)
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To: TomOnTheRun
“..someone attempting to impose by violence a policy that one has not yet been able to get in place through democratic means?”

I guess you don't know much about the Teller case.

The PEOPLE HAVE PUT THE POLICY IN PLACE (the law) THROUGH DEMOCRATIC MEANS. Their legislature enacted a law against ALL partial-birth abortions except to save the life of the mother (which doctors will tell you is NEVER necessary! If they need to save the mother's life; a Cesarean section is the appropriate procedure.)

Corruption in the executive branch state prevented that law from being enforced against Tiller, who had blatantly ignored the will of the people and continued performing the horrid procedure at will.

Tiller was a genuine monster; how he could attend ANY church is mind-boggling.

107 posted on 06/01/2009 7:16:16 AM PDT by ROLF of the HILL COUNTRY ( The Constitution needs No interpreting, only APPLICATION!)
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To: ketsu

“Then you’d better start convincing people that re-electing Obama is a bad idea and donating to the RNC/conservative party of your choice then. Nobody said living in a democracy was easy.”

That’s all well and good, but it doesn’t address the fact that there was a law in place to prevent late term abortions and it wasn’t enforced. Meanwhile, those babies would continue to be butchered for at least another 3 years. At least Tiller won’t be doing them any more. And we can only hope no one will resume the business.


108 posted on 06/01/2009 7:17:08 AM PDT by soccermom
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To: MrB

Great points all. Thanks for that contribution, and you are absolutely right. I’m no big fan of his, but as JFK once said “Those who make peaceful change impossible make violent change inevitable”, or something to that effect. I expect something like this to happen with immigration laws at some point.


109 posted on 06/01/2009 7:18:08 AM PDT by Hardastarboard (I long for the days when advertisers didn't constantly ask about the health of my genital organs.)
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To: MrB

I’m not endorsing the murder of Tiller, but there is no doubt he was the Kansas equivalent of Al Capone in Chicago 80 years ago.


110 posted on 06/01/2009 7:19:35 AM PDT by Nextrush (Sarah Palin is the new Ronald Reagan, I hope.)
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To: ROLF of the HILL COUNTRY
"Corruption in the executive branch state prevented that law from being enforced against Tiller, who had blatantly ignored the will of the people and continued performing the horrid procedure at will.

Then the proper course of action was to remove the executive through impeachment or election. Same for the prosecutors. Those were both lawful means of changing this.
111 posted on 06/01/2009 7:21:33 AM PDT by TomOnTheRun
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To: xzins

4. Obama called the killing of Tiller “heinous”. Did he really want to go there? When I think of what Tiller did for a living, and for which Obama elevated the governor of Kansas, the word “heinous” is the first word that comes to mind.


112 posted on 06/01/2009 7:21:42 AM PDT by soccermom
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To: MrB
Tiller was a serial contract killer, some of whose killings were illegal even under the present aborton regime. He should have been stopped by the State-- arrested, tried and convicted --- but he had powerful, corrupt protectors (including our new HHS director Sebelius) who effectively obstructed the enforcement of the law.

This reminds me of a statement attributed to Martin Luther King: "Those who make a nonviolent solution impossible, amke a violent solution inevitable."

113 posted on 06/01/2009 7:21:54 AM PDT by Mrs. Don-o (Speechless.)
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To: ketsu

“This is why you can impeach people.”

In the meantime, people are dying; and in this case, monstrously!


114 posted on 06/01/2009 7:24:26 AM PDT by ROLF of the HILL COUNTRY ( The Constitution needs No interpreting, only APPLICATION!)
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To: ketsu

Actually, YOU’RE arguing from an authoritative position, and as someone who lives here would know, you’re missing a LOT of information. So, I’ll dismiss your argument with the same... YAWN.


115 posted on 06/01/2009 7:25:08 AM PDT by MrB (Go Galt now, save Bowman for later)
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To: TomOnTheRun

Three women and five men vote on whether rape should be legal.

Ah, darn, the women lose.

I guess they’ll “have to work harder for the next election”.

Meanwhile...


116 posted on 06/01/2009 7:26:18 AM PDT by MrB (Go Galt now, save Bowman for later)
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To: Alberta's Child

“... attacks on abortionists were almost non-existent until the government began forcibly removing peaceful demonstrators from public areas outside the offices and homes of abortionists.”

You also make some good points but I am not convinced by them. Attacks may have been almost non-existent before that but they DID exist and rhetoric was ramping up further yet. I don’t believe it was unreasonable for the feds to assume that further violence might blow-up and take steps.


117 posted on 06/01/2009 7:27:47 AM PDT by TomOnTheRun
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To: TomOnTheRun

First of all, that was never going to happen. But larger point is you keep moving the goal posts. Every legal and rational avenue was taken to put an end to this butchering. There is such a thing as “extraordinary measures”. One should have to go through extraordinary measures, simply to see that a law is enforced. Does that justify vigilante behavior? Of course not. But stop being disingenuous about the notion that Tiller was merely doing what was within his rights. He wasn’t. He was literally getting away with murder, not because the law allowed him to but because he bought off those who are supposed to enforce the law.


118 posted on 06/01/2009 7:29:08 AM PDT by soccermom
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To: Mrs. Don-o

Looked it up - it was JFK.


119 posted on 06/01/2009 7:29:25 AM PDT by MrB (Go Galt now, save Bowman for later)
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To: tcg

I don’t hear the pro-choice crowd crying about the 50 million people who have not been allowed to live.

It’s definitely ILLEGAL for Mr. Tiller to have been murdered, but it’s legal to kill 50 million unborn people in the USA.

Mr. Tiller’s murderer will be punished, and hopefully Mr. Tiller is being punished.


120 posted on 06/01/2009 7:30:01 AM PDT by Dr. Scarpetta
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