The Matrix

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June 16, 2006
Planned Parenthood Celebration Jolted by Abortion Survivor
by Ted Harvey, assistant minority leader, Colorado House

She sings the anthem to applause, then her secret is revealed to stunned silence.
I want to share with you an awesome experience I had in the Colorado House of Representatives on May 8. It is a humbling experience to look back and realize that God used me to play a role in His divine orchestration.

I was leaving the House chambers for the weekend when our Democrat speaker of the House announced that the coming Monday would be the final day of this year’s General Assembly. He went on to state that there were still numerous resolutions on the calendar which we would need to be addressed prior to the summer adjournment. Interestingly, he specifically mentioned that one of the resolutions we would be hearing was being carried by the House Majority Leader Alice Madden, honoring the 90th anniversary of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains.

As a strong pro-life legislator I was disgusted by the idea that we would pass a resolution honoring this 90-year legacy of genocide. I drove home that night wondering what I could say that might pierce the darkness during the debate on this heinous resolution.

On Saturday morning, I took my 8-year-old son up to the mountains to go white-water rafting. The trip lasted all day. As we were driving home, exhausted and hungry, I remembered that I had accepted an invitation to attend a fundraising dinner that night for a local pro-life organization. One of my most respected mentors had personally called me several weeks earlier and asked me to attend, so I knew I’d have to clean up and head over.

After our meal, the executive director of the organization introduced the keynote speaker. I looked up and saw walking to the stage a handicapped young lady being assisted to the microphone by a young man holding a guitar.

Her name was Gianna Jessen.

Gianna said “Hello,” welcomed everyone, and then sang three of the most beautiful Christian songs I have ever heard.

She then began to give her testimony. When her biological mother was 17 years old and seven and a half months pregnant, she went to a Planned Parenthood clinic to have an abortion. As God would have it, the abortion failed and a beautiful 2-pound baby girl was brought into the world. Unfortunately, she was born with cerebral palsy and the doctors thought that she would never survive. The doctors were wrong.

Imagine the timing! A survivor of a Planned Parenthood abortion arrived in town just days before the Colorado House of Representatives was to celebrate Planned Parenthood’s “wonderful” work.
As I listened to Gianna’s amazing testimony, the Lord inspired me to ask her if she could stay in Denver until Monday morning so that I could introduce her on the floor of the House and tell her story. Perhaps she could even begin the final day’s session by singing our country’s national anthem!

To my surprise she said she would seriously consider it. If she were to agree, she wanted her accompanying guitarist to stay as well. A lady standing in line behind me waiting to meet Gianna overheard our conversation and said that she would be willing to pay for the guitarist’s room. Gianna then said that she would think about it.

As I was driving home from the banquet, my cell phone rang. It was Gianna, and she immediately said, “I’m in, let’s ruin this celebration.” Praise God!

When Monday morning came, I awoke at 6 a.m. to write my speech before heading to the Capitol. As I wrote down the words, I could sense God’s help and I knew that this was going to be a powerful moment for the pro-life movement.

Following a committee hearing, I rushed into the House chambers just as the opening morning prayer was about to be given. Between the prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, I wrote a quick note to the speaker of the House explaining that Gianna is an advocate for cerebral palsy. I took the note to the speaker and asked if I could have my friend open the last day of session by singing the national anthem. Without any hesitation the speaker took the microphone and said, “Before we begin, Representative Harvey has made available for us Gianna Jessen to sing the national anthem.”

Gianna sang the most amazing rendition of The Star Spangled Banner that you could possibly imagine. Every person in the entire chamber was completely still, quiet and in awe of this frail young lady’s voice.

Due to her cerebral palsy, Gianna often loses her balance, and shortly after starting to sing she grabbed my arm to stabilize herself, and I could tell that she was shaking. Suddenly, midway through the song, she forgot the words and began to hum and then said, “Please forgive me; I am so nervous.” She then immediately began singing again and every House member and every guest throughout the chambers began to sing along with her to give her encouragement and to lift her up.

As I looked around the huge hall I listened to the unbelievable melody of Gianna’s voice being accompanied by a choir of over 100 voices. I had chills running all over my body, and I knew that I had just witnessed an act of God.

As the song concluded the speaker of the House explained that Gianna has cerebral palsy and is an activist to bring awareness to the disease. “Let us give her a hand not only for her performance today, but also for her advocacy work,” he said. The chamber immediately exploded into applause — she had them all in the palm of her hand.

The speaker then called the House to order, and we proceeded as usual to allow members to make any announcements or introductions of guests. For dramatic effect, I waited until I was the last person remaining before I introduced Gianna.

As I waited for my turn, I nervously paced back and forth praying to God that he would give me the peace, confidence and the courage necessary to pull off what I knew would be one of the most dramatic and controversial moments of my political career.

While I waited, a prominent reporter from one of the major Denver newspapers walked over to Gianna and told her that her rendition captured the spirit of the national anthem more powerfully than any she had ever heard before.

Finally, I was the last person remaining. So, I proceeded to the microphone and began my speech.

Members, I would like to introduce you to a new friend and hero of mine — her name is Gianna Jessen. She is visiting us today from Nashville, Tennessee, where she is an accomplished recording artist.

She has cerebral palsy and was raised in foster homes before being adopted at the age of four She was born prematurely and weighed only 2 pounds at birth. She remained in the hospital for almost three months. A doctor once said she had a great will to live and that she fought for her life. Eventually she was able to leave the hospital and be placed in foster care.

Because of her cerebral palsy, her foster mother was told that it was doubtful that she would ever crawl or walk. She could not sit up independently. Through the prayers and dedication of her foster mother, she eventually learned to sit up, crawl, then stand. Shortly before her fourth birthday, she began to walk with leg braces and a walker.

She continued in physical therapy and after a total of four surgeries, she was able to walk without assistance.

She still falls sometimes, but she says she has learned how to fall gracefully after falling for 29 years.

Two years ago, she walked into a local health club and said she wanted a private trainer. At the time her legs could not lift 30 pounds. Today she can leg press 200 pounds.
She became so physically fit that she began running marathons to raise money and awareness for cerebral palsy. She just returned last week from England where she ran in the London Marathon. It took her more than eight-and-a-half hours to complete. They were taking down the course by the time she made it to the finish line. But she made it, nonetheless. With bloody feet and aching joints, she finished the race.

Members would you help me recognize a modern-day hero — Gianna Jessen?

At this point the chamber exploded into applause which lasted for 15-to-20 seconds. Gianna had touched their souls.

Ironically, Alice Madden, the majority leader and sponsor of the Planned Parenthood resolution, walked over to Gianna and congratulated her.

As the applause began to die down, I raised my hand to be recognized one more time.
Mr. Speaker, members, if you would allow me just a few more moments I would appreciate your time.

My name is Ted Harvey, not Paul Harvey, but, please, let me tell you the rest of the story.
The cause of Gianna’s cerebral palsy is not because of some biological freak of nature, but rather the choice of her mother.
You see when her biological mother was 17-years-old and 7-and-a-half months pregnant, she went to a Planned Parenthood clinic to seek a late-term abortion. The abortionist performed a saline abortion on this 17-year-old girl. This procedure requires the injection of a high concentration of saline into the mother’s womb, which the fetus is then bathed in and swallows, which results in the fetus being burned to death, inside and out. Within 24 hours the results are normally an induced, still-born abortion.

As Gianna can testify, the procedure is not always 100 percent effective. Gianna is an aborted late-term fetus who was born alive. The high concentration of saline in the womb for 24 hours resulted in a lack of oxygen to her brain and is the cause of her cerebral palsy.
Members, today, we are going to recognize the 90th anniversary of Rocky Mountain Planned Parenthood…”
BANG! The gavel came down.

Just as I was finishing the last sentence of my speech — the climax of the morning — the speaker of the House gaveled me down and said, “Representative Harvey, I will allow you to continue your introduction, but not for the purposes of debating a measure now pending before the House.”

At which point I said, “Mr. Speaker, I understand. I just wanted to put a face to what we are celebrating today.”

Silence.

Deafening silence.

I then walked back to my chair shaking like a leaf. The Democrats wouldn’t look at me. They were fuming. It was beautiful. I have been in the Legislature for five tough years, and this made it all worthwhile.

The House majority leader wouldn’t talk to me the rest of the day.

Was it because I introduced an abortion survivor, or was it because we touched her soul? She could congratulate an inspirational cerebral palsy victim and advocate, but was outraged when she discovered that the person she congratulated was also an abortion survivor.
The headline in The Denver Post the next day read “Abortion Jab Earns Rebuke.” The majority leader is quoted as saying, “I think it was amazingly rude to use a human being as an example of his personal politics.”

Yes, Representative Madden, Gianna Jessen is a human being. She was when she was in her mother’s womb, and she was when she sang the national anthem on the floor of the Colorado House of Representatives.

The paper went on to quote Gianna, stating she was glad I told her story.
“We need to discuss the humanity of it. I’m glad to be able to speak up for children in the womb,” she said. “If abortion is about women’s rights, where were my rights?”

All I can say is, “Glory to God!” He orchestrated it all, every minute of it, and I was so honored to have been chosen to play a part. May we all continue to be filled with and to fight for the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ!

If you haven’t seen it, be sure to see the movie Who Killed the Electric Car?. It’s an excellent documentary, with the facts in the movie carefully double and triple-checked.

In 1990, California passed a state mandate that required that two percent of automakers’ sales in California had to be zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) by 1998. This would rise to 10 percent by 2003.

Electric vehicles represented the only way the automakers could meet this mandate. The auto companies protested. They also began leasing electric vehicles to California drivers. GM produced the EV-1, a very popular car with the owners. Production begins in 1996.

Under legal challenges from GM, in 2003 California eventually relaxed the mandate to allow hybrid vehicles to be included. In the same year GM, which had been leasing the cars, recalled all of the EV-1s and destroyed them. You could not purchase one, even if you wanted to buy it. They ended up in a landfill and were totally destroyed - not recycled as GM claimed. (You can watch them do this in the film.)

Why did GM do this? Why was the EV-1 really recalled? The film gives some really good information on this and includes many interviews with actors and actresses - who loved their EV-1s.

What you see and hear will shock you. This is an interactive film - get ready to shout your opinions as you learn the real story.

Another good web site on this is:
http://www.biz-architect.com/electric_vehicles_and_early_adopters.htm

Remember that battery technology today is making the electric car more and more practical. Also, the high production price today (that GM argues) would come down dramatically with mass production. Mass production won’t happen until the people are buying them.

Toyota took a risk in developing their hybrid. They made a long term investment in the development and were willing to lose money on their early sales. GM is investing in the hydrogen car, which is almost certain never to be accepted and has extremely difficult (if not impossible) challenges to develop and market.

Many electric cars are being developed today, but not by GM. One of the most interesting is the car developed by Telsa Motors with money from Elon Musk (PayPal cofounder), Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google) and Jeff Skoll (eBay). You’ll see the car briefly in the movie. Read about in in Wired, the August, 2006 issue. The same issue shows you how to use a Toyota Prius as an emergency generator if your power goes out.

Abbreviated Timeline:
1990: California establishes zero emissions standard
1996: GM begins production of EV-1
1997: Toyota announces Prius
2003: California weakens mandate under legal pressure form GM
2003: GM stops leasing EV-1s, recalls all them. Other EV car manufacturers do the same.

Studies have shown that global warming accounted for about half of the extra warmth in the waters of the North Atlantic in 2005. The year 2005 experienced a record 28 tropical storms including Katrina, Wilma, and Rita that all reached Category 5. Temperatures in the tropical Atlantic reached a record 1.6 degrees above the 1901 -1970 average. Global warming accounted for about half of this.
Reported by Kevin Trenberth and Dennis Shea of the National Center for Atmospheric Research and reported in a recent issues of Geophysical Research Letters.

There are several reasons for the rising price of gasoline:

1. An increased demand on the supply of crude oil from the global economy.

2. The government requirement to switch from additives with MBTE (which causes cancer) to ethanol and the increased demand this has put on the ethanol production by the refineries.

3. The damage to the Gulf refineries from the hurricanes has limited supply. Gas production is down 9% compared to 2005. Again, the Federal government bears a lot of responsibility here in not having the area ready and doing absolutely nothing about global warming, which appears to be the source of the increase in the number and power of the catastrophic hurricanes.

4. The extensive use of oil in the two wars in which the government is bidding against the consumer for limited crude oil production.

While all of these are important, the sudden increase in the price of gas is more likely from the ethanol shortage. That should have been predicted by the oil companies and the ethanol production started earlier and more aggressively. Why should the consumer pay for their misjudgment, particularly when they are making record profits from their mismanagement?

Both the President and Congress are full of talk about it, but that’s all it’s been. Why the inaction? Who is paying who for this corruption?

We can (and should) vote those jokers out, but one fact is true. There will be less oil tomorrow and it will be more expensive. At the local, state, and federal levels we have to acknowledge that and change to more appropriative life styles.

The major failures of the current administration could also well mean the demise of the Republican party for any political influence for more than decade into the future. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan predicts an independent and well financed independent presidential candidate will merge in 2008 or, if not then, by 2012. For more see:
http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/10/news/newsmakers/greenspan_book/

Bush went into both wars violating the Powell Doctrine with a personal agenda that has done major damage to the United States both at home and abroad. He refuses to fire Rumsfield and his team, the major force in mishandling the war and violating the Doctrine. And then we (the public) are fed false information to justify the mishandling. And Bin Laden is still at large.

Inflation - a hidden tax - is at record levels. Every time you purchase gas for your car, you are bidding for a limited resource that is being burned needlessly in Iraq with your tax dollars because the President has yet to learn anything from his wars. Now he stands on the threshold of a war with Iran, the country in cahoots with Bin Laden from the start.

Congress - both Republicans and Democrats - share the blame in not standing up to Bush - making him accountable and bringing us a balanced budget. Public pork is at record levels. Citizens Against Government Waste, which has just released its latest book, defines $29 billion dollars of pork barrel spending. Alaska and Hawaii lead the list of pork spending. The big joke was Alaska’s $223 million bridge to nowhere when here in Oregon we can’t get money to fix I-205 or 217 for the high density traffic both get. Add the corruption to that, where the pork is used as currency to finance re-election. Anyone sitting in Congress now has a major, major problem this coming fall, whether Republican or Democrat.

JUST HAVE FAITH

1. The garden of Eden was in Iraq.
2. Mesopotamia, which is now Iraq , was the cradle of civilization!
3. Noah built the ark in Iraq.
4. The Tower of Babel was in Iraq.
5. Abraham was from Ur, which is in Southern Iraq!
6. Isaac’s wife Rebekah is from Nahor, which is in Iraq!
7. Jacob met Rachel in Iraq.
8. Jonah preached in Nineveh - which is in Iraq.
9. Assyria, which is in Iraq, conquered the ten tribes of Israel.
10. Amos cried out in Iraq!
11. Babylon, which is in Iraq, destroyed Jerusalem.
12. Daniel was in the lion’s den in Iraq !
13. The three Hebrew children were in the fire in Iraq (Jesus had been in Iraq also as the fourth person in the fiery furnace!)
14. Belshazzar, the King of Babylon, saw the “writing on the wall” in Iraq .
15. Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, carried the Jews captive into Iraq.
16. Ezekiel preached in Iraq.
17. The wise men were from Iraq.
18. Peter preached in Iraq.
19. The “Empire of Man” described in Revelation is called Babylon , which was a city in Iraq!

And you have probably seen this one. Israel is the nation most often mentioned in the Bible. But do you know which nation is second? It is Iraq! However, that is not the name that is used in the Bible. The names used in the Bible are Babylon, Land of Shinar , and Mesopotamia. The word Mesopotamia means between the two rivers, more exactly between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The name Iraq means country with deep roots.

Indeed Iraq is a country with deep roots and is a very significant country in the Bible.

No other nation, except Israel, has more history and prophecy associated it than Iraq.

And also . . This is something to think about! Since America is typically represented by an eagle, Saddam should have read up on his Muslim passages . . .

The following verse is from the Koran, (the Islamic Bible)

Koran (9:11) - For it is written that a son of Arabia would awaken a fearsome Eagle. The wrath of the Eagle would be felt throughout the lands of Allah and lo, while some of the people trembled in despair still more rejoiced; for the wrath of the Eagle cleansed the lands of Allah; and there was peace.

(Note the verse number!) Hmmmmmmm?!

God Bless you all - Amen !

The recent drama where the Democrats called for a closed session and the Republicans refererd to it as a “stunt” has lots of humor in it. The “stunt”, if you wish to call it that, is from the Republicans. The Democrats want serious answers as to why the Administration keeps failing. The Republicans want to stall things as they head into mid-term elections. As it is now, the Republicans will be dead on arrival as they hit the midterms; that is, they won’t be able to convince anyone to vote for them.

The Libby indictment is just a tiny hole in the dike. The hole gets bigger with time as who did what continues to unravel. Bush has lost all confidence of the people and other nations. To return to any level of confidence, there must be repentance and a major change in those who work with him. I mean if I had Defense chief that couldn’t win the war I’d get him out of there. If he led us into a war that shouldn’t have been there in the first place that is even more serious. If there was any question about the ethics of anyone I would get them out of there. I’d want a strategic team that is focused on integrity with strong visions and goals that the nation could take ownership on. Please, President Bush, give us that.

Rosa Parks is not just the African American hero. She is the hero of everyone that feels oppressed and cut down by forces they have little control over. She showed us that a simple act of courage in an obsure circumstance can have a ripple effect that is not only local or national, but global. She showed us that you can make a difference by acting locally with courage, standing up for what is right and just - even when those around you believe it to be illegal. She showed us that non-volence is the best alternative, and that you can win with non-violence.

Thank you, Rosa Parks.

Vonage dropped our business number when transferring our carrier to them from Qwest back in June and we were without our business number until August 12. This was filed with the FCC. We won’t bore you here with more about this, but if you are interested in the actual results of this from the FCC, here are the current reports:

http://www.netadventures.biz/vonageproblem.htm
As you might guess, Vonage says the fault is Qwest’s. Qwest says it is the fault of Vonage. FCC, which has authority and accountability for making sure this kind of thing doesn’t happen, isn’t doing anything (FCC is part of the Emperor has no Clothes Administration).
These reports and this page are not copyrighted. Feel free to copy the page or create links to it. I’d love to see a blog swarm on this. I want this page out of the noise level so we can get on to our real business.

Do a search today on Google for the word “failure”. Notice what is the #1 entry and what is #2. At least Google doesn’t play favorites.