Values come and go

Michael Kraft’s letter (May 21) praising Gov. Daniels of Indiana’s signing of an anti-choice bill is a classic case of, “I believe in small government, except for things I want stopped.” Kraft claims Planned Parenthood clinics are commonly violating the Hyde Amendment. Not one crime has ever been prosecuted.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, over half of all abortions are performed on a small demographic: women who are not using contraception. Another large group is of women who have trouble correctly applying contraception.

There were 10,680 abortions performed in Indiana last year. How does the “social and fiscal conservative” Daniels plan to provide care and shelter for these babies and jobs for the parents? Remember, over 69 percent of these women are poor. There are many reasons for a woman to have an abortion. Often it’s being unable to support themselves and a child, in many cases (61 percent) children.

Kraft argues that this bill will prevent profound loss on women and families. An article in the New England Journal of Medicine shows no correlation with depression. The same holds true for a 2008 review by the American Psychiatric Association.

Jeff Bourget

Coeur d’Alene