As most followers of this blog and/or citizens of Montgomery County MD know, several months ago Montgomery County followed Baltimore City in legalized persecution of pro-life pregnancy centers. In Montgomery County, the thinly-disguised vendetta was led by Councilwoman Duchy Tractenberg. I wrote to her at least a month ago, and just today received her reply in my email box. I reproduce it word for word below, in green color.
Dear Resident:
Thank you for your letter regarding Resolution 16-1252, which passed on February 2, 2010. The amended resolution requires that all Montgomery County pregnancy centers that do not have a licensed medical professional on staff must notify clients of this fact by posting at least one sign in their waiting room.
During the consideration of this regulation, widely disparate views were heard and fully considered. I understand that reproductive health issues resonate deeply with people and that we did not agree on this particular issue. However, I am sure that we can both agree that protecting the health and well being of women in Montgomery County is important. And providing optimal information on reproductive health in a timely manner defines a more favorable health outcome for every woman.
Thank you again for your letter. I welcome all input from county residents and appreciate your taking the time to tell me how you feel on this issue. If you have any further questions or comments, please feel free to contact my office directly.
Sincerely,
Duchy Trachtenberg
Councilmember
So there you have it. The hearing to which she alludes was held on December 1st. I attended and recorded it. Various pieces of it, along with commentary, appear throughout this blog. Now generally, these hearings are archived on the County's official website, and they are available for viewing. However, oddly enough (ahem!), this hearing remains "unavailable" after over three months have lapsed! My, my! I wonder why! Surely it can't be because most of the council behaved like biased buffoons now, can it? Just for giggles, here's the link. http://stream02.montgomerycountymd.gov:8080/mgasp/mcg/VideoPlayer.asp?VideoID=517 Make sure that the date is set to December 1, 2009 and that the segment is set to "15". When the thing finally (if ever it does) becomes available, please advise me via comments.
Meanwhile, I invite you to review past postings and commentaries. I'll reiterate that Duchy Trachtenberg is a past MD president of NOW. One of her office aides, in June, was elected to the national presidency of NOW. Most of the councilmembers lent their names to NARAL in the latter's October fundraiser, allowing themselves to be designated "champions of choice" (Ike Leggett did that, too). One more time I whisper a phrase in your electronic ears: "CONFLICT OF INTEREST".
I've no bones saying this, although some knickers will be knotted. Forcing pro-life pregnancy centers to post those signs simply because they're pro-life is akin to the Nazis forcing Jews to wear those yellow stars simply because they were Jews.
The good news is that every one of these folks is up for election this coming November. We can send them packing.
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