Friday, April 12, 2013
Where are our Priorities At?
As you all know I do not like to touch on political/societal issues as I really want to keep this blog focused on life and living it the best with the most fulfillment that we all can.
I just read a story that made me want to vomit and I felt compelled to share it all.
I will include a link to the article below, but I have to warn you, it is hard to read. I will provide a brief summary for those of you who do not think you can stomach the full article.
Essentially this Dr. named Kermit Gosnell has been operating an abortion clinic in Pennsylvania since 1979. Pennsylvania law prohibits abortions past 24 weeks. Dr. Gosnell's practice focused on performing illegal abortions, ones past the 24 week mark.
The way he performed these abortions was that he would give the women medication to induce labor. Once the baby was born he would cut their spinal cords in half with scissors.
His primary clientele were women who were very poor and often minorities.
It is believed that he performed 100's of abortions this way. At least two women died while being treated at his clinic.
His staff was untrained. He had a 15 year old high school student performing work that only a licensed medical professional with years of training should do.
Many women who came to his clinic were infected with diseases from Dr. Gosnell reusing unsanitary equipment.
The list of atrocities goes on and on
If you would like to read the entire article I read, click here. Again I must warn you it is very very hard to read.
Throughout all this going on for the last 30+ years, reports were filed, complaints were made, and yet nothing was done to shut this down! Dr. Gosnell should have been in jail years ago, yet he was allowed to continue on doing what he was doing, and nothing was done!
Why?
My next question, how come we have not heard about this? Why is this story not national news? Why does our National Media put a higher weight on where Jay - Z and Beyonce choose to go on vacation than alerting the public that there are Dr. Gosnell's out there doing horrible things and encouraging us all to be vigilant?
My final question, what is our responsibility? If the media is an industry and it supposedly gives us, the consumers, more of what we want to be informed about, does that mean we as a society have become so disconnected that Jay Z's vacation and the fight at the Dodgers baseball game has become so important to us that it allows the Dr. Gosnell's of the world to operate free from the public eye?
Does it mean that we are failing in not putting enough pressure on our political leaders to stop bickering and focus on holding agencies accountable that should be put in place to stop the Dr. Gosnell's? It seems with each passing day we become more ok with the fact that politicians fabricate, twist, embellish, and just plain out lie about the truth. These are the people that represent us and we as a society are ok with that?
What can we as a society do to change to help ensure a case like Dr. Gosnell's never happens again? ( I guess I had one more question ;) )
I believe that we need to all step back and acknowledge the power that each and every one of us posses - the power to change - the power to do good.
We posses weapons of change that we did not several years ago, mainly social media. We live in a world where an unknown can become a household name over night after their video goes viral on Youtube. We make this happen by passing on information, we have the power to spread information. With this power, we can make hero's, we can right wrong's, and we can bring about change.
What ways can we use the power of social media to better hold ourselves, our elected leaders, and our media outlets accountable?
How can we better be the change we wish to see in the world?
I would love to hear your thoughts, please share below.
Note this is a very sensitive topic please be respectful of everyone's thoughts and feelings.
Carpe Diem,
Jesse
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I guess many people are so caught up in their own stresses, that all they look for is news that relaxes them. They don't care about the harsh reality!
ReplyDeleteIt's up to the few who do care and look a bit further then their own surroundings to make the world aware of this!
Thanks for posting Jesse ... Facebook will spread this worldwide!
Thanks for posting this Jesse, really proud of you that you are just saying hey, whay isnt this reported, regardless of whatever your personal view may be you are seeing this isnt right to hide the facts. Abortion, number one procedure done in the US yet its never on tv like open heart surgery. If there were really nothing wrong with it, why is it hidden, why is this story hidden? We are hurting society and especially women so deeply by convincing them that doign this to their unorn baby will bring a resolution to their conflict. My heart goes out to all moms who find themselves in this situation but abortion only kills their child and puts a forever weight on that poor mom.
ReplyDeleteI think you said it well yourself, people don't believe they can do anything about it so they ignore it. This story is appalling. The worst part, this is only one example of many ways our society is falling. Thanks for posting. More of us need to believe in the power of our voice.
ReplyDeleteThis is horrendous, I also have many questions after reading the article and will post on all of the social media channels I have. There is something very wrong on a spiritual level as well as on the physical with these people and ALL who were involved with this business. The doctor may be the head of this but all who were involved should be held accountable as well, imho.
ReplyDeleteThings like this are hidden because the people who know about them are involved with the deceit. Shame and guilt keep people silent because they do not want to take responsibly for there actions themselves.
People that have the power and the connections to unearth these kind of stories should do so, if enough people are aware things tend to at least get noticed and could change.
To feel as a woman the pain of having to do an abortion on all levels is hard enough but to have to live with the shame of having it done this way and that you gave your consent for this to happen makes me wonder why these women felt there was no other way out for them, why would they CHOOSE to do this to themselves and their unborn children. There is something really wrong with this way of thinking that on any level someone thought that this was ok.
It almost goes to show you that you can convence yourself anything if it suits your needs and your desires. So sad. Those people were not thinking about the consequences of their actions.
With that said, thank you for posting this and using your status to further something that you beleive is clearly not right, this is what we need more of. Those who will stand up and have courage to do the hard things, the things that are uncomfortable, that make people look at you and SEE the truth. That is the only way things will change is by bringing them to the light, things can only stay hidden if they are in the dark. xo
Wow that is heavy reading, so disturbing! Appalling that something so abhorrent like that clinic could run for so long, even after multiple inspections!
ReplyDeleteI am at a loss why this hasn't been reported sooner on a larger scale. This morning on our news in Australia we heard all about the minute details of your President's tax return. But I have never heard this story, which surely is far more important? It's not just about abortion, it is about the abuse and exploitation of those who have little choice in their life.
Having said that, from my understanding the US does not have a very good public health system. In Australia the right to top medical attention is a right extended to EVERY citizen. I don't need insurance to go to hospital- I recently had surgery and I did not pay a cent, from the initial consults (about 6 in total) to the surgery to my stay in hospital. I don't pretend the system is perfect, but if I have medical issues I know I can get help and won't be turned away because I don't have private insurance. Perhaps therein lies the problem, your citizens on the bottom end of the scale are left with few options. This is a sobering overview: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_in_the_United_States
It is disgusting, the whole sorry thing. Thank goodness there are good people in the world who aren't afraid to tackle these issues, like yourself Jesse. Getting the word out, encouraging widespread rage and condemnation against such atrocities, it is important that even in tough times we maintain our moral compasses. And maybe it is time to move some of that money being spent on "defense" to overhaul the public health system.