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I have a background in science and writing. I consider myself liberal, progressive, environmentally aware on many issues, but also believe that conservatism has a place and is valid.
History of Anti-Abortion Domestic Terrorism
URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-abortion_violence
Murders
In the U.S., violence directed toward abortion providers has killed at least 9 people, including 5 doctors, 2 clinic employees, a security guard, and a clinic escort.[4]
- March 10, 1993: Dr. David Gunn of Pensacola, Florida was fatally shot during a protest. He had been the subject of wanted-style posters distributed by Operation Rescue in the summer of the year before. Michael F. Griffin was found guilty of Dr. Gunn's murder and was sentenced to life in prison.
- June 29, 1994: Dr. John Britton and James Barrett, a clinic escort, were both shot to death outside of another facility in Pensacola. Rev. Paul Jennings Hill was charged with the killings, received a death sentence, and was executed September 3, 2003.
- December 30, 1994: Two receptionists, Shannon Lowney and Lee Ann Nichols, were killed in two clinic attacks in Brookline, Massachusetts. John Salvi, who prior to his arrest was distributing pamphlets from Human Life International,[5] was arrested and confessed to the killings. He committed suicide in prison and guards found his body under his bed with a plastic garbage bag tied around his head. Salvi had also confessed to a non-lethal attack in Norfolk, Virginia days before the Brookline killings.
- January 29, 1998: Robert Sanderson, an off-duty police officer who worked as a security guard at an abortion clinic in Birmingham, Alabama, was killed when his workplace was bombed. Eric Robert Rudolph, who was also responsible for the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing, was charged with the crime and received two life sentences as a result.
- October 23, 1998: Dr. Barnett Slepian was shot to death at his home in Amherst, New York. His was the last in a series of similar shootings against providers in Canada and northern New York state which were all likely committed by James Kopp. Kopp was convicted of Dr. Slepian's murder after finally being apprehended in France in 2001.
- May 31, 2009: Dr. George Tiller was shot and killed as he served as an usher at his church in Wichita, Kansas.[6]
A fifth doctor, George Patterson, was shot and killed in Mobile, Alabama on August 21, 1993, but it is uncertain whether his death was the direct result of his profession or rather a robbery.[7]
Attempted murder, assault, and threats
According to statistics gathered by the National Abortion Federation (NAF), an organization of abortion providers, since 1977 in the United States and Canada, there have been 17 attempted murders, 383 death threats, 153 incidents of assault or battery, and 3 kidnappings committed against abortion providers.[8] The attempted murders were:[9][10][4]
- August 19, 1993: Dr. George Tiller was shot outside of an abortion facility in Wichita, Kansas. Shelley Shannon was charged with the crime and received an 31-year prison sentence.
- June 29, 1994: June Barret was shot in the same attack which claimed the lives of James Barrett, her husband, and Dr. John Britton.
- December 30, 1994: Five individuals were wounded in the same-day shootings which killed Shannon Lowney and Lee Ann Nichols.
- December 18, 1996: Dr. Calvin Jackson of New Orleans, Louisiana was stabbed 15 times, losing 4 pints of blood. Donald Cooper was charged with second-degree attempted murder and sentenced to 20 years.[11]
- October 28, 1997: Dr. David Gandell of Rochester, New York was injured by flying glass when a shot was fired through the window of his home.[12]
- January 29, 1998: Emily Lyons, a nurse, was severely injured in the bombing which also killed Robert Sanderson.
Anthrax threats
The first letters claiming to contain anthrax were mailed to U.S. clinics in October 1998, a few days after the Slepian shooting, and since then, there have been a total of 655 such bioterror threats made against abortion providers. None of the "anthrax" in these cases was real.[13][9]
- November 2001: After the genuine 2001 anthrax attacks, Clayton Waagner mailed hoax letters containing a white powder to 554 clinics. Waagner was convicted of 51 charges relating to the anthrax scare on December 3, 2003.
Arson, bombing, and property crime
According to NAF, since 1977 in the United States and Canada, property crimes committed against abortion providers have included 41 bombings, 173 arsons, 91 attempted bombings or arsons, 619 bomb threats, 1630 incidents of trespassing, 1264 incidents of vandalism, and 100 attacks with butyric acid ("stink bombs").[8] The first clinic arson occurred in Oregon in March 1976 and the first bombing occurred in February 1978 in Ohio.[14] More recent incidents have included:[4]
- December 25, 1984: An abortion clinic and two physicians' offices in Pensacola, Florida were bombed in the early morning of Christmas Day by a quartet of young people (Matt Goldsby, Jimmy Simmons, Kathy Simmons, Kaye Wiggins) who later called the bombings "a gift to Jesus on his birthday."[15][16][17]
- October 1999: Martin Uphoff set fire to a Planned Parenthood clinic in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, causing US$100 worth of damage. He was later sentenced to 60 months in prison.[18]
- May 28, 2000: An arson at a clinic in Concord, New Hampshire on resulted in damage estimated at US$20,000. The case remains unsolved.[19]
- September 30, 2000: A Catholic priest drove his car into the Northern Illinois Health Clinic after learning that the FDA had approved the drug RU-486. He pulled out an ax before being shot at by a security guard.[20]
- June 11, 2001: An unsolved bombing at a clinic in Tacoma, Washington destroyed a wall, resulting in US$6000 in damages. [18]
- July 4, 2005: A clinic Palm Beach, Florida was the target of an arson. The case remains open.[18]
- December 12, 2005: Patricia Hughes and Jeremy Dunahoe threw a Molotov cocktail at a clinic in Shreveport, Louisiana. The device missed the building and no damage was caused. In August 2006, Hughes was sentenced to six years in prison, and Dunahoe to one year. Hughes claimed the bomb was a “memorial lamp” for an abortion she had had there. [21]
- September 13, 2006 David McMenemy of Rochester Hills, Michigan crashed his car into the Edgerton Women's Care Center in Davenport, Iowa. He then doused the lobby in gasoline and then started a fire. McMenemy committed these acts in the belief that the center was performing abortions, however Edgerton is not an abortion clinc.[22]
- April 25, 2007: A package left at a women's health clinic in Austin, Texas contained an explosive device capable of inflicting serious injury or death. A bomb squad detonated the device after evacuating the building. Paul Ross Evans (who had a criminal record for armed robbery and theft) was found guilty of the crime. [23]
- May 9, 2007: An unidentified person deliberately set fire to a Planned Parenthood clinic in Virginia Beach, Virginia.[24]
- December 6, 2007: Chad Altman and Sergio Baca were arrested for the arson of Dr. Curtis Boyd's clinic in Albuquerque. Altman’s girlfriend had scheduled an appointment for an abortion at the clinic. [25]
- January 22, 2009 Matthew L. Derosia, 32, who was reported to have had a history of mental illness [26]rammed a SUV into the front entrance of a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Paul, Minnesota.[27]
Organizations calling for open violent actions against legal Abortions:
URL:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_of_God_(USA)
Army of God (AOG) is an extremist anti-abortion organization that sanctions the use of force to combat abortion in the United States. HBO produced a documentary on the Army Of God entitled Soldiers In The Army Of God.[1] Clayton Waagner's fake anthrax letters have resulted in their being mentioned among terrorist organizations at the FBI.[2]
AOG supports the Second Defensive Action Statement, as produced by the Defenders of the Defenders of Life, which reads:[3]
- We the undersigned, declare the justice of taking all Godly action necessary, including the use of force, to defend innocent human life (born and unborn). We proclaim that whatever force is legitimate to defend the life of a born child is legitimate to defend the life of an unborn child.
- We declare and affirm that if in fact Paul Hill did kill or wound abortionist John Britton, and accomplices James Barrett and Mrs. Barrett, his actions are morally justified if they were necessary for the purpose of defending innocent human life. Under these conditions, Paul Hill should be acquitted of all charges against him.
The American Coalition of Life Activists (ACLA) was a pro-life activist group that was the subject of controversy for its series of Wanted-style posters.
During a 1995 meeting, the group unveiled a "wanted" poster that listed the names and addresses of a "Deadly Dozen" abortion providers. The poster accused them of "crimes against humanity" and offered a $5,000 reward for the "arrest, conviction and revocation of license to practice medicine" of these physicians. The poster was published in Life Advocate magazine. A second poster targeted a specific person, Dr. Robert Crist, offered a reward for persuading him "to turn from his child killing," and included his name, address, and photo.
In 1996 it revealed its "Nuremberg Files" which included dossiers on abortion providers, politicians, judges, clinic employees and other abortion rights supporters. The ACLA claimed that these dossiers could be used for trials for "crimes against humanity" when the nation's laws changed to prohibit abortion. Neal Horsley, an activist, published the information on his website. His website greyed the names of those injured and crossed out the names of those killed by anti-abortion activists.
-------------------------------
Here we have a clear and present danger of continued domestic terrorism by Americans against other Americans who think that they are justified by God and are also anti-government as well.
Scary Stuff.
(6/2/2009 EDIT: URL: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/specials/interactives/_national/clinic_violence/index.html?SITE=YAHOO&SECTION=HOME
This is a CNN interactive on the the History, its pretty good for the all knowing liberal media)
@AJ - First do you have any evidence at all that the murders were commited by a liberal? I know he was islamic and very religious, which to me says that the murders were from a religious fanatic, but Liberal, you relly have to back it up before calling me a hyporcrite. Proves my point well, religious extremists are a danger in our country both Christian and Islamic.
And ABORTION is legal, funny how you denounce it but do it with a caveat every time, it's hard to take a condemnation of murder followed by another condmention, stop trying to have your ckae and eat it to.
Well AJ, the mantra is that "Liberals are destroying the Nation" a blankent statement made by the RW every day of the week. I see no reason given the poltical and religious terror to tie all of it to the Right Wing in this country, since most of this violence is coming fron the Right. And also the reason it's hard to buy ammuniation as well becuase the gun nuts are buying it all and making it more expensive. MAybe we will see the rise of more militant anti-government groups; a good nod to David Koresh, don't you think.
I'm for the abortion rights for women, it's LEGAL in this country. I won't take your bait, nor do I think your argument of infanticide is valid.
Also, please PRAY that more of your religious fundematlasit fanatics KILL more abortion doctors and bomb more clinic's.
"...pro-lifers on this site and across the nation have denounced the murder of this doctor despite his choice to participate in infanticide...."
....Despite his choice to participate in infanticide? How is this a real condemnation of murder, I think it's just a cover and you people are silently applauded that what you consider justice is served by another martyr.
Read the news--he was motivated by "politics and religion" (his own words on capture). That aside, I note you don't condemn the action still.
And LEGAL? You're going to hide behind that thin screen on this issue that clearly divides this democracy-- when a living child is made dead--remember, he performed late term abortions.
It's indefensible (since we're dealing in death), but as long as it's "legal" it's all ok. Well then, (and this is not a life or death issue--but liberals will wreck cities and businesses and peoples careers about it) I guess no gays should be married in California then--the people decided "legally" against that. And so none in Wisconsin can marry either (No more complaining then from you or your brother!)--Which way do you want it? Oh, I see, the "liberal way"--the one that's politically conveniant to you. OOOOPS!!
Got you again!
You liberals support animal rights and the environment, and gay marriage issues, and terrorists in American-run prisons, and all these other "projects" but you can't support human life at the most basic level? I'll ask you again (you've dodged the question three times now) how can you reconcile your position--or is it your position that your hypocrisy is your politics?
I'll be waiting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
@AJ - What are his poltics? Get me evidence that he was a liberal? You know like I dug up on Jim Adkison were he wrote that he kileld the people in that church becuase he hated gays and liberals!!! Until you can the burden of proof is on you.
Sure you can complain about the law and fight against it, but silently comndoning domestic terrorsim when it suits your POV is indefensible, Sorry you didn't get me at all, nice red herring though.
My position is that I think abortion, a women's choice over her own body, trumps that of the fetus or a man's right to interfere with her body. After all we are not the incubator for the fetus.
I don't have to reconcile my position, you have to reconcile your tactic approval of using domestic terrorism against abortion providers and liberals.
When did I condone the actions of violence or murder?--read the posts--but way to try to dodge the topic (again.) Nothing on my "legal" analogy? And you've reststed a very thin position I've asked you to support--and now women or "incubators"--oh, Brave New World!
As to the guys politics, did you read the story? It's an on-going investigation; the cops have said though that he targeted this recruiting center because "he opposed US military operations"--while it may be an assumption; I'll take the risk to hazard he's NOT conservative!!! There's the proof--quit with the games and answer if will you condemn the attack on these soldiers--it's a simple question? Last chance!!! Your silence suggests you support his actions!!!! That (will) make(s) you a traitor.
There is nothing in the report that states he killed for POLTICAL ideology. At this point it seems a religious attack.
Yes I condemn the attacks on the Soldiers. Your such a whiner. And your tactics are so cheap.
Just as I condmen the tactic approval of anti-aboration domestic terrorism by the right.
Aj - BTW the traitor thing is so old, get a new line.
Thank you!
I stand by the quote above from the news articles I've read.
it seems these liberal don't understand it. its not murder if you murder a liberal for abortion. its selve defense. ajohnson911s right, the shooter is not a conservatie hes a christian the only extreme thing is that more christians dont take actions. i agree with ajohson. you should repent jacob.
Okay, who left the door to the insane asylum open?
Jacob Pickard: While you are at it, why don't you provide your readers with a list of the thousands of babies murdered during partial-birth abortions and the doctors who killed them? Just a couple years or so would suffice, although I don't think you'd have enough space on your blog site.
Amy - So you approve of Domestic terrorism if it targets abortion doctors? Just as I thought.
Trying to skew the domestic terrorism issue is to typical of you militiant right wingers.
Jacob Pickard/LiberalHammer (why do you have two post names for commenting?): Where do you get the idea that I approve of domestic terrorism if it targets abortion doctors? Where do I say such a thing? I'd really appreciate it if you would refrain from putting words in my mouth. I do not approve of murdering abortion doctors. Abortion doctors are not innocent victims like the babies they kill, but they should not be killed for what they do. Now try to twist that statement, Jacob Pickard/LiberalHammer.
Amy - I don't know JS is screwed up, they can't seem to do anything correct and they don't seem to care.
You always end your condemnation with a caveat much like this man, "Operation Rescue condemned the killing as vigilantism and "a cowardly act." But its founder, Randall Terry, stressed that the anti-abortion movement should not tone down its rhetoric. He said the gunman was wrong to kill Tiller, 67, but that abortion opponents bear no responsibility for the action."
Tiller was "a mass murderer and horrifically, he reaped what he sowed," Terry told the National Press Club in Washington
URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_abortion_shooting_politics
Sounds like a case of blaming the victim, you know when a women is raped for wearing flashy clothing or showing to much cleavage.
A comdenation / non-comdenation.
Hollow very very hollow.
Jacob Pickard/Liberalhammer: Huh?
Amy - If you previously registered on JSOnline and used your email address, it won't let you log in. So, you have to use a different email address and new log in name in order to comment on here. In other words, it won't take the email that we all use to write our columns or the username. That's why you are seeing some of us with different usernames now. From Tami K.
Jacob…yesterday a left-wing liberal killed an innocent military recruiter and almost killed another. This was done from a left-wing, Islam believer who just hates. The latest story ties this man to liberalism and Islam. Is there a left-wing, liberal murderous theme going on against our soldiers and do you approve of this? Did you forget this?
However, many Christian organizations and news outlets, Like FOX News, denounced these killings and are 100% against such hate and killings. But have we even heard a peep from the hate filled, liberal MSM with their sadness for this fallen recruiter who was innocently killed and his partner severely wounded? Nope!!
When George Tiller was killed, nearly all the Christian and or anti-abortion groups came to his defense. One very extreme antiabortion group called Operation Rescue issued a statement condemning the murder. "We denounce vigilantism and the cowardly act that took place this morning," Troy Newman, the organization's president, said. Read the entire story and from a liberal who also points out his disagreement with the religious right. But he too is sick and tired of all the liberal hate from the MSM accusing anyone who was against Tiller and or abortion as an accomplice.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124398690567579389.html
haha
@Jim - Anti-Abortion Domestic terrorism is well documented without an opinion piece to try to twist the reality that Christian Extremistst blow up clincis and murder doctors. It would seem you guys should clean up your own mess and denouce these tactics without the "he still deserved it" caveats you tag all of your denouceations of murder with. It would go a long way. Again Just like AJ please back up that the killer was a "left wing liberal" give me a AP story or a Knight-Ridder Article. I was looking for something to back this "Left Wing Liberal" theory up but could not find anything. Regardless of it was poltical ideology or religious fanatism, I condmen this sort of violence. Murder and violence for religious or poltical ideology is wrong in all cases, I have always said this and I will always stand behined this. Then again, your the man that allowed a Physical threat to be transmitted trhough your blog against me even when you had moderation powers. I get why you don't understand. Blah Blah Blah, hate fulled MSM, your ab broken record with your rhetoric, get something new. Go back to tha all liberals are traitor thing again. it was much more interesting. And of course you again ignore the "tiller was a Mass murderer" after it was denounced by operation rescue. Why would the extreme christion right really care of 30 some years of extremism. Physical Intimidation works.
Hey Jake...how about this truthful data form the press about this situation.
"President Obama issued a statement condemning “heinous acts of violence” within hours of Tiller’s death. The Justice Department issued its own statement and sent federal marshals to protect abortion clinics. News anchors and headline writers abandoned all qualms about labeling the gunman a terrorist. An almost gleeful excess of mainstream commentary poured forth on the climates of hate and fear created by conservative talk radio, blogs, and Fox News for reporting Tiller’s activities.
By contrast, President Obama was silent about the military recruiter attacks that left 24-year-old Private William Long dead and 18-year-old Private Quinton Ezeagwula gravely wounded. On Tuesday afternoon – more than 24 hours after the attack on the military recruiting center in Little Rock – President Obama held a press conference to announce his pick for Army Secretary. It would have been exactly the right moment to express condolences for the families of the targeted Army recruiters and to condemn heinous acts of violence against our troops. But President Obama said nothing. The Justice Department was mum.
http://michellemalkin.com/
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Tags: abortion : militiant : extremists : domestic terrorism
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