Now Kate will have more time to tan.

From KELO-TV;

Planned Parenthood Lays Off SD Director

Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota said the bad economy prompted it to eliminate 9.5 positions, including the director of its two South Dakota clinics.

Kate Looby confirmed she was laid off, and said she understands it was a financial decision.

She has led the clinics since March 2003.

Planned Parenthood spokeswoman Kathi Di Nicola said the organization felt it couldn’t keep its public affairs staffing level and also maintain enough workers for health care services.

She said the other positions cut were in Minnesota, and stressed that the Sioux Falls and Rapid City clinics both will stay open.

Planned Parenthood has 28 clinics and 290 employees in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.

This is one of the better columns I have read about the issue of the Catholic church’s stance on racism. I wonder if Pastor(?) DooHickey will post this on his site . . .

Poor Allen, he had to call in the whaabulance. Wasn’t this the identical letter he wrote last time they lost? I wonder if he had to pay the Gargoyle Leader a archival fee to get it out of the vault?

There are many who say the battle to save the lives of the unborn should end. It’s divisive. It’s emotional. But is the issue settled?

Hey, Allen, it has been settled for a long time. And since Obama will probably appoint liberal judges and his new Secretary of HHS probably despises you, it’s probably safe to retire.

A majority of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1857 said certain human beings based on the color of their skin were not completely human.

So you are comparing the majority of SD voters to the Supreme Court of 1857? Man, Allen, you are so civically insightful. Sorry Al, but slaves are different then fertilized eggs. Ever try to get a fertilized egg to pick cotton for you? Kinda hard.

The U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals this year ruled that a mother is destroying the life of a separate, unique, living human being.

And there you go again, shooting holes in your own argument. Kinda sounds like the Majority got it right and the courts got it wrong. Too bad that measure you were pushing ‘Jail to Judges’ didn’t pass so we could put these justices away for their foolish ruling? Huh?

The Declaration of Independence guarantees the “inalienable” (God-given) right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

I agree 100%, but I don’t think you are interpreting it correctly. A fetus is attached to a woman until birth. A child doesn’t receive a name, a birth certificate, American citizenship or a social security number until it is BORN. Until you change that, the above right does not apply to fetuses.

We live in an experiment called self-government. No other country has allowed people to govern themselves. But the big debate our forefathers had was, “Are we virtuous enough to self-govern?” John Adams said.

Democracy is the greatest form of government ever. Yes it’s messy, but when done right it provides equality to every citizen. It seems you would prefer facism or theocracy? If so, time to pack the family jewels Al and move to the middle east (take Janklow with you).

Oh, you mean some Catholics are actually informed about the people running for the highest office in this country? Get out!

But 54 percent of Catholics voted for Obama, including many bishops.

This letter writer thinks that with the economy in the shitter, two endless wars in the middle east and our standing in the world at a all time low we should have picked our next president based on . . . yup . . . you guessed it . . . abortion!!!! Well guess what minnow-muncher, President elect Obama will do more to reduce abortions then McCain would have. He will most likely boot out Abstinence Ed funding, he will require doctors and pharmacists to do their freaking jobs by prescribing BC when a patient needs or wants it and he has appointed a brilliant man as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tom Daschle.

I’ll pray Rosary for yah.

Franklin, one of our greatest founding fathers was a diest

This letter writer tells Catholic Bishops where they can go when it comes to dictating legislation to our newly elected president.

In a secular society no one religion or moral view is given any special legal status or constitutional grounding. Christianity is not codified in our legal system or laws.

AND

In a theocratic society (as is the case in the current Middle East and our own Middle Ages), theological beliefs and dicta are codified in the legal and institutional foundations of the society. As history amply has demonstrated, such societies are the source of rampant bloodletting, violence and discriminatory practices.

But, do you think the theocrats will get it?

Kranz from the Gargoyle Leader has column on it; Even the Pro-Life weirdos are jumping ship;

Kathy Miles, D-Sioux Falls, state senator-elect from District 15, takes a strong pro-life position, but after the defeat of Initiated Measure 11, she worries the issue never will go away.

“I hear some people say they are tired of it. I am not sure what voters want right now. When you look at the amount of money spent to save babies in ICUs and, on the other hand, we are killing babies, we are sending mixed messages,” Miles said. “What are we going to do?”

Hey, Kathy, think about the $3 million spent on the campaign, how many kids could that have fed and clothed or at least educated about sex and birth control. What a concept!

At least one politician campaigning for re-election had found some confused voters. State Rep. Deb Peters, R-Sioux Falls, went door-to-door campaigning in her bid for re-election. She listened to a lot of people discuss their thoughts, including ones about the abortion measure.

“I had a lot of folks I visited with saying they were surprised about the abortion issue being on the ballot,” Peters said.

Especially since if it would have passed, it would not have stopped one single abortion!

I think Republican Joel Rosenthal sums it up pretty good;

The issue becomes more challenging for the pro-life faction with a pro-choice Democratic president-elect soon to be sworn in, he said.

“It is unlikely more pro-life judges will be appointed in the next four years,” Rosenthal said.

The Resemblance is Striking

He posted the below toon on his site without my permission, and seems to think the cartoon is about him, yet no where do I use his name or the name of his blog.

Local cartoonist Scott Ehrisman decided to feature me again today in a post titled Pastor Denial. At one point a few months ago some were suggesting he was infatuated with me - that kept him quiet for a couple months. I’m definately an enigma to him and his cartoon here reveals his confusion.

But it gets better, Mr. wipe his butt with the 1st and 14th Amendment calls himself a constitutionalist; I split my side reading that.

Ehrisman is all over the map on this one - I’m one who holds the Constitution in the highest regard - he’s the h8r, not me. But, whatever. 

I also enjoyed this comment, now he needs to judge people on the music they listen to and the band shirts they wear.

What do we expect from one whose favorite band has an CD called incesticide and he’s proud to have a t-shirt of the CD cover.

Steve, I’m no Kurt Cobain scholar, but I am assuming the word incesticide, something I’m sure Kurt made up, is a ANTI-INCEST statement. Just a wild guess. But I forgot, your type thinks it is okay for young girls to be subjected to having their sick rapist relative’s babies. Because hey, nothing like being forced to have the child of your uncle who raped you, because it is morrally the right thing to do.

I also enjoyed the comments of his Jim Jones like followers about me, very Christian like.

“ehrisman is just a bitter, lousy artist with nothing better to do.”

“I googled his name and NOTHING popped up, notta, zippo, zero. The guys an idiot, he’s got the talking points down, and he probably didn’t come up with that on his own either. Not to mention he’s got your hair parted down the wrong side and he calls himself an artist.”

“South DaCola is proof that the computer labs at middle schools are open extended hours.”

The collar and image is merely a form of symbolism, sorry you can’t see it, and sorry the pastor sybolism I used just happened to look like every other wacko-wannabe evangelist in this country.

Shouldn’t you be setting up shop in some small African country?

This letter writer makes a good point;

A recent poll was conducted in which 86 percent of South Dakotans responded that they were Christian. Either the vast majority of Christians in this state failed to vote on Initiated Measure 11, or they did not vote according to the guiding light of the Christian faith: the Bible.

I would also like to add that they voted to keep video lottery, a great burden on the taxpayers of this state, not a benefit. They also voted to keep the food tax in our state, another burden on low income families. I often find that though South Dakotans may call themselves ‘Christians’ by a majority, they are something entirely different in the voting booth.

I would also like to point out that many pastors and churches came out against Measure 11 because they knew if it passed it wouldn’t prevent one single abortion.

And now the Catholic Church wants to control policy in an Obama White House. Good Luck.