{"id":10701,"date":"2012-02-02T05:00:05","date_gmt":"2012-02-02T11:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.austincnm.com\/?p=10701"},"modified":"2012-02-04T12:20:25","modified_gmt":"2012-02-04T18:20:25","slug":"komen-breaks-ties-with-planned-parenthood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2012\/02\/komen-breaks-ties-with-planned-parenthood\/","title":{"rendered":"Komen breaks ties with Planned Parenthood"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>
\nVS<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This story broke early Tuesday afternoon<\/a> as I checked my FB feed and saw \u2013 no, not from a fellow pro-life Catholic \u2013 the story was linked up by one of my most pro-choice {and not to mention, agnostic} friends. I kind of chuckled to myself at the irony of finding out the victory from her, of all people.<\/p>\n

As I linked up the story to various places and shared the news, it became evident that while the news itself is something to be commended and lauded as good news, the faithful would no doubt land on two sides of this victory; those who are optimistic, seeing no further reason to withhold financial support of Komen, avoiding the onslaught of pink and \u201csave the tatas\u201d slogans everywhere in the month of October, and those who are cautiously optimistic.<\/p>\n

I have to admit, I was one of those who was initially elated at the news. Being the creator of Catholic Sistas<\/a>, I immediately went into \u201ccurrent events\u201d mode, grabbing the nearest contributor I could find on chat or private message to see what, if anything, we could put together on such a short notice. Two of my contributors, a mother\/daughter duo are breast cancer survivors and have had much to say through the month of October when the pink onslaught was at its highest. Their cautious optimism served as a reminder that while the news is, yes, a huge victory for the pro-life movement, it is still not a 100% slam dunk for Catholics \u2013 realistically, nothing is. So\u2026I pushed for a positive slant on the article that went live today documenting their feelings on the break between the two corporate giants<\/a>, while addressing the very real concerns that we, as Catholics, face with organizations like these. It would be too easy {and a heckuva lot more fun} to just throw caution to the wind and be all \u201cyippee\u201d about this news, but the more we got down to the nitty gritty of the article, the more evident it became that the phrase \u201ccautiously optimistic\u201d was the direction we needed to take. Fortunately, the two views didn\u2019t really oppose each other. It was easy to focus on the positive of a secular organization \u201cseeing the light\u201d while retaining the concerns for the faithful.<\/p>\n

The two big concerns with Komen regarding Catholics after the split occurred, were its connection to stem cell research {which they have since publicly refuted since yesterday<\/a>} and the promotion of oral contraception {read: two big no-no\u2019s from a Catholic point of view}.<\/p>\n

I started to focus on another way to celebrate this victory as news pundits started to speculate on whether this was a true split and whether it hinged only on the government investigation. For me, I looked at this as a kind of self-induced expos\u00e9 on Komen\u2019s part. If<\/strong> Komen decides to rescind the split and refund Planned Parenthood, the days of sticking their heads in the sand like an ostrich will no longer fly\u2026excuse my pun. The fact that the two companies are and have been<\/strong> in bed with each other is no longer a question of “if” but a well-known fact. Prior to yesterday, it was an issue that was swept under the rug and largely ignored by the media.<\/p>\n

One additional thing that has come to mind since the stink over Komen\u2019s split has been evident on their Facebook fan page<\/a>. Despite the obvious vitriol as demonstrated by folks who are outraged over Komen\u2019s actions, it started to weigh on my mind exactly where this anger was coming from. And, I decided it had to be related not<\/strong><\/em><\/span> to the principle of the thing, or that they were actually pulling money from Planned Parenthood, but rather that it was a huge jab at the marketing and brand imaging of Planned Parenthood.\u00a0Have you noticed how not a single Planned Parenthood representative<\/em> has stated the difference in money that Komen gave vs. what the government gives? Let\u2019s do some simple math. Komen gave roughly a half a million dollars to Planned Parenthood each year\u2026the government gives over<\/strong> $350+ million<\/strong> dollars.\u00a0In terms of funding, we are comparing apples to oranges. However, by the cries of the outraged on the SGK fan page, you\u2019d think Komen sliced a major financial artery. No\u2026I really think the outrage has little to do with money\u2026or even the false impression that Planned Parenthood somehow has the corner market on women\u2019s services {the very same services that Planned Parenthood provides \u2013 minus abortion, obviously – can be found at Lone Star Circle of Care<\/a>}. Komen\u2019s funding was a drop in the bucket compared to what Planned Parenthood gets from the government. By putting it in perspective, we can conclude that the outrage is not about money – though, if you are one for dramatics, you can go to Planned Parenthood’s website<\/a> and see how they are playing the victim card and asking for donations to cover the gap in money lost by Komen, even going so far as to say Komen was the reason they were able to perform mammograms<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So, while we watch the news continue to unfold about this split, let us be ever mindful of our responsibilities as Catholics, upholding the dignity of all life. We can be excited about this news on a secular level, but our job of praying continues.<\/p>\n

ETA: Since this post went live, Komen has since publicly rescinded their decision<\/a> to pull funding from Planned Parenthood. Breaking news is extremely fluid at this point, and we want to encourage you to keep following news sources, both secular and Catholic news to stay up to date.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

VS This story broke early Tuesday afternoon as I checked my FB feed and saw \u2013 no, not from a fellow pro-life Catholic \u2013 the story was linked up by one of my most pro-choice {and not to mention, agnostic} friends. I kind of chuckled to myself at the irony of finding out the victory… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[4,92],"tags":[289,576,574,251,575],"class_list":{"0":"post-10701","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-blog","7":"category-news","8":"tag-abortion","9":"tag-funding-cut","10":"tag-komen","11":"tag-planned-parenthood","12":"tag-sgk","13":"entry","14":"has-post-thumbnail"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4498,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2011\/09\/really-knowing-both-sides-review-unplanned\/","url_meta":{"origin":10701,"position":0},"title":"Really Knowing Both Sides (Review: “Unplanned”)","author":"Lindsay Wilcox","date":"September 6, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"I pray every time I pass a Planned Parenthood. I have also prayed outside Planned Parenthood clinics that do abortions here in Austin and back home in D.C. I pray for a world where no one will desire abortion. I don't think making abortion illegal will change hearts, but it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/6292042_73459e213d-300x231.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10745,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2012\/02\/two-guys-a-girl-and-a-catholic-podcast-episode-42-toilet-texting-and-pink-slime-hamburgers\/","url_meta":{"origin":10701,"position":1},"title":"Two Guys a Girl and a Catholic Podcast Episode 42 – Toilet Texting and Pink Slime Hamburgers","author":"2GGCP","date":"February 2, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Episode 42 [powerpress] Feedback: Feedback from Phil Current Events: Texas Rally for Life coverage and reports from Catholic Bishops and the HHS Mandate http:\/\/www.kvue.com\/news\/Obama-administration-draws-Catholic-ire-over-health-care-rule-change-138364554.html Letter from Bishop Vasquez: http:\/\/www.austindiocese.org\/resources\/general\/4793.pdf For more information and to contact your U.S. Reps: www.usccb.org\/conscience Here\u2019s a link to a white house petition page to rescind\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Two Guys, a Girl and a Catholic Podcast"","block_context":{"text":"Two Guys, a Girl and a Catholic Podcast","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/podcast\/2guysagirl\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/08\/2GGCP-LOGO2-300x231.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":41660,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/09\/join-austins-40-days-life-efforts\/","url_meta":{"origin":10701,"position":2},"title":"Join Austin’s 40 Days For Life Efforts","author":"Elizabeth","date":"September 23, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I've told the story before of my first experience standing outside of Planned Parenthood during prayer vigil. It was the summer before I graduated and was completing an assignment for a photojournalism class. I'd supported pro-life organizations and prayed at prayer vigils, but never directly on the sidewalk outside a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pro-Life Waco","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/IMG_6684.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":33248,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/01\/four-words-ill-never-forget\/","url_meta":{"origin":10701,"position":3},"title":"Four Words I’ll Never Forget","author":"Lauren Gulde","date":"January 23, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Four years ago, my son Jonathan found me sitting in front of my laptop, tears running down my cheeks. I had read an email and had been stunned to tears and silence. I was in shock with joy. The email was about Abby Johnson, the director of our local Planned\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "ACNM"","block_context":{"text":"ACNM","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"fourwords","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/fourwords-630x420.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":38066,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/02\/how-to-support-sb-521-put-sexual-education-back-into-parents-hands\/","url_meta":{"origin":10701,"position":4},"title":"How to Support SB 521: Put Sexual Education Back into Parents\u2019 Hands","author":"Martina","date":"February 27, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"UPDATE The House hearing for HB 1057 will be on Tuesday, April 2 at 2:00 p.m. or upon adjournment of the House. This means it could be later than 2 pm. The hearing could go late in the evening. \u00a0 After reading an article about new senate bill 521, the\u00a0Texas\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33594,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/01\/nbcparenthoodteenpregnancyabortion\/","url_meta":{"origin":10701,"position":5},"title":"NBC’s ‘Parenthood’ Addresses Teen Pregnancy and Abortion","author":"Rita Suva","date":"January 24, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"In its four season history as a television show, NBC\u2019s Parenthood has addressed issues that are honest, relatable and believable. From addiction to special needs children to infidelity to being a single mother to cancer to infertility issues to adoption to a soldier\u2019s return from Afghanistan and more, Parenthood has\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"'Parenthood': Drew Finds Out His Girlfriend Is Pregnant And Wants An Abortion","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/s-PARENTHOOD-TEEN-PREGNANCY-130108-large-150x109.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10701\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}