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“Not Really Asking.” Representative Sims and the Threat to Reason

Posted: May 10, 2019
By: R. J. Snell, Ph.D.

Over the last several days, videos of Pennsylvania State Representative Brian Sims accosting protestors quietly praying outside of a Philadelphia-area Planned Parenthood clinic have received wide notice and commentary. In one video, Sims appears to offer a financial reward to … Read

Persons, not Compost: How to Think About Dead Bodies

Posted: February 15, 2019
By: R. J. Snell, Ph.D.

“Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Familiar words to many, a reminder of the shortness of life and the need to use our time well. While some may find the sentiment morbid, it is actually a … Read

New York’s Take on Fundamental Rights

Posted: January 18, 2019
By: R. J. Snell, Ph.D.

In recent days, news outlets have reported on the likely passage of the Reproductive Health Act (RHA) in New York state. Among other changes, the RHA repeals the requirement for abortion to be performed by a licensed physician and expands … Read

Suffering Elders In Our Families: How Does One Respond?

Posted: October 3, 2018
By: Frank J. Moncher, Ph.D.

A frightening trend is quickly emerging in this country, and it promises to muddy the waters when it comes to confronting the reality of aging loved ones. Today, there are seven jurisdictions in the United States where Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS) … Read

Designer Grandchild: Wealthy British Couple Paid to Create a Grandson

Posted: September 24, 2018
By: E. Christian Brugger, D.Phil.

Two grandparents in the United Kingdom have confirmed the adage that if something can be done, no matter how bizarre, somebody will eventually do it. According to the U.K.’s Mirror Online, these grandparents, described as “extremely rich,” created a designer … Read

Reversing Roe v. Wade and Its Implications for Women and the States

Posted: September 19, 2018
By: Margaret Datiles Watts, J.D.

Anthony Kennedy’s retirement and the ongoing confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh have reignited the national conversation on reversing Roe v. Wade and its implications for women and the states. There are many public misconceptions surrounding this issue, … Read

Do Illegal Immigrants Have Constitutional Rights?

Posted: January 16, 2018
By: Margaret Datiles Watts, J.D.

Over two hundred years of Supreme Court law have established that persons who enter the country unlawfully and bear no connections to the U.S. do not have the full scope of affirmative constitutional rights of a U.S. citizen. This long-standing … Read

The Embryo Before the Physician

Posted: November 16, 2017
By: Dr. Pilar Calva, M.D.

The first event in the formation of a human being is the fusion of the ovum and the spermatozoid into a single cell; this is known as conception. From this single cell, the embryo develops continually, in an uninterrupted process, passing from one stage of differentiation to the next. At no point in this process can the embryo be said to be anything other than what it was in any previous stage. This process will not cease until death. Read

Gene Editing and the Welfare of Embryos

Posted: November 9, 2017
By: E. Christian Brugger, D.Phil.

In February 2017, the US National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine summarized its conclusion from a 2015 International Summit on gene editing. The summit gathered nearly 500 scientists, ethicists and legal experts to discuss ethical concerns raised by the new gene-editing technologies. Other than gestures and innuendos, no traditional ethical reasoning made it into the report. It is purely utilitarian: destroying human embryos is justifiable if at the service of the greater good. Read

Repairing Lost Consciousness in PVS Patients

Posted: October 25, 2017
By: E. Christian Brugger, D.Phil.

Patients who experience cycles of sleep and wakefulness but with no evidence of awareness of self or environment are said to lie in a vegetative state. When the condition endures for at least one month, the state is tagged “persistent.” Hence the diagnostic term Persistent Vegetative State. Unfortunately, in the minds of many people, persistent means irreversible. Yet, reports of PVS patients recovering consciousness are well documented; and studies demonstrating the ability of PVS patients mentally to communicate are numerous. Read