So the Associated Press implies that the bigger threat of terrorism to this country comes from ... pro-lifers? Here's how the AP tells it:
When it comes to fears about a terrorist attack, people in the U.S. usually focus on Osama bin Laden and foreign-based radical groups. Yet researchers say domestic extremists who commit violence in the name of their cause — abortion or the environment, for example — account for most of the damage from such incidents in this country.
The AP's reporting is simply a smear. Violent episodes against abortion clinics have been quite rare, especially in the last decade. Even the stats from National Abortion Federation (pdf) reveal this.
In his book On Message, Life Dynamics' Mark Crutcher sums it up best: "The image of abortion workers having to dodge a hail of automatic weapon fire just to get from their car to the clinic door is utter nonsense." Crutcher notes that in the years 1993 and 1994, the worst period of violence in pro-life history in which five abortionists and clinic workers were killed, more farmers and twice as many hairdressers were murdered on the job. (The total number of murders that have occurred since Roe v. Wade passed in 1973 is seven.)
We've addressed this kind of attack against the pro-life movement before: here.
The AP owes its readers an explanation, but we won't hold our breath. As NB's Warner Todd Houston reported a while back, the MSM has ignored physical violence against pro-lifers by abortion supporters. See also this article from WORLD magazine.
HT: LifeNews.com, reporting the excellent Raw Story piece by John Byrne.
—Dave Pierre is the creator of TheMediaReport.com and a contributor to NewsBusters.
