Where Are The Mothers Of America?

C. Ward Kischer
Dec. 18, 2006
Reproduced with Permission

In 1963 the first of several "Beach" movies was produced, most of them starring Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. In "Beach Party", one hilarious scene shows Morey Amsterdam, along with three accompanying adults, stumbling into a beach club in which the boys and girls [some attired in their bikinis] were shown gyrating, twisting and jiggling to loud rock music. After viewing the scene a few moments, Amsterdam's jaw dropped, and with wide opened, unbelieving eyes, he said: "Where are the mothers of America?"

The inference was that mothers could and should control the behavior of their young. In those days, mothers, indeed, had more control. They certainly were not killing their young to the tune of more than l,000,000 abortions per year since 1973, and a total of nearly 48,000,000 to date [2006]. The extrapolation of Amsterdam's query is that mothers Do have complete control of the nurturing and protection of the embryo and fetus during their pregnancy; but, all too often mothers abandon their biological and moral responsibilities.

In his "Tonight" show, Jay Leno often includes a segment of "Jaywalking" in which he asks rather simple, mundane questions of , mostly, college age girls, like: "In what year was the Declaration of Independence written?", or, "Who is buried in Grant's tomb?" Most of them haven't the slightest of the correct answer. What, then, should we expect young girls [and even boys for that matter] to know of the basics of pregnancy; that is, what causes pregnancy, where it occurs, and what are the consequences of pregnancy, especially as they refer to the new, individual human life?

First things first. Fertilization of a woman's egg [I hate that term; it should be - oocyte] by a sperm causes pregnancy. The optimal place where fertilization takes place is in the upper third of the fallopian [uterine] tube. Let there be no mistake about it: pregnancy begins with the fusion of the sperm and the egg [see Carlson, Bruce M. 1994. Human Embryology and Developmental Biology. Page 3. Mosby, St. Louis.]. It is NOT at implantation, in spite of what Planned Parenthood and others may claim. This is because the developing embryo takes about 5 to 6 days before getting to the uterus, where it will implant. All the while, development of the new individual human being is taking place.

Nurture, care and protection of the individual human life does NOT begin at birth. For the first 5 to 6 days this is afforded by the fluids and the enclosure of the uterine tubes.

When the embryo begins implantation in the wall of the uterus, the placenta begins to develop. This is the extraembryonic organ which will bring the mother's blood very close to the blood of the embryo, and later to the fetus. The division between the uterus and the fingerlike processes of the placenta is so thin that exchanges of oxygen from mother to embryo and fetus,and carbon dioxide from embryo or fetus to mother is easily made.

It used to be believed that the placenta acted as a barrier to noxious agents from mother to embryo or fetus, but this is simply not so. Most bacteria are large enough that they cannot pass from mother into the placenta. However, there is no barrier to viruses. A case in point is the virus causing measles [Rubella] [for a thorough discussion of the placenta, see Larsen, William J. 2001. Human Embryology. Third edition. Chapter 15: Fetal Development and the Fetus as Patient. Churchill Livingston, New York.] Also, the HIV virus can be easily transmitted across the placenta. Therefore, the health of the mother is supremely important in a pregnancy.

More important are the nutritional substances which freely cross into the placenta and into the new individual human life. Amino acids, for example, the building blocks of proteins, are a huge nutritional source. To accent the importance of the nutritional source for the embryo or fetus from the mother, and the significance of this in development, and quite possibly beyond [after birth, that is], we should recall the stunning research performed by Roger J. Williams, Professor of Chemistry at The University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Williams was a biochemist and the discoverer of the B vitamin, pantothenic acid. He published more than 278 articles, books and papers. [see website: http://bioinst.cm.utexas.edu/williams/.] His credentials have been impeccable. The thrust of his research was on the relationship between nutrition and behavior. One aspect of his studies centered on reducing varying amounts of amino acids in the diet of laboratory rats and then observing subsequent behavior. In some cases he found aggression was markedly increased.

The message for pregnant moms is self evident. It is well known that pregnant alcoholic moms produce fetal alcohol syndrome [FAS], or fetal alcohol effects [FAE], in their newborns. The damage is permanent. But, bear in mind, that while the pregnant mom is drinking alcohol, she is depriving herself, and her embryo or fetus, of the needed and required nutrition. Most FAS individuals have attention deficit disorder [ADD] or attention deficit hyperactive disorder [ADHD]. Binge drinking is also known to produce FAS or FAE. Alcohol is lethal to the neurons, which interrupts the neural circuitry. There are also disorders in growth patterns, which can be seen in facial plate dysmorphia, and in subsequent behavior patterns as well.

I remember a book published back in the '50s entitled: "You Are What You Eat", current version [2005] by Gillian McKeith, an english author. The same holds true for the embryo and fetus. Moms, THEY are what YOU eat.

Perhaps the worst and most offensive disregard by mothers for the nurture and protection of their unborn comes from Norah Vincent, who wrote in The Village Voice, that she could do anything she wanted during a pregnancy, and if the newborn came out defective, so what! That is what the government is for, to pay for the care [or disposal] of that individual [for the full quote of Vincent, see Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Pregnancy, this website].

Here we should consider that famous and all inclusive term used by the feminists, most often as a weapon, CHOICE. They say it is their body, their choice. Well, Doe v. Bolton, adjudicated on the same day as Roe v. Wade [1973] did, indeed, provide them with choice. According to that case, it is their choice to abort the baby minutes, or even seconds, from a normal delivery, for, among others, emotional reasons, which could be feelings of depression or anxiety.

It has been said you can tell the character of a man, or woman, by how he/she treats his dog, or his/her mother. Can we, similarly, tell the character of a nation from how it treats its unborn? Dr. Robert George, Professor of Politics at Princeton University, has said: "Abortion is the original sin of America". If that is so, then if partial birth abortion is to be our legacy, it will be the evidence that we have already descended into hell.

It's bad enough that moms go through abortions, partial birth abortions and illegitimacy, but, then, many go through a progression of glorifying single moms. Mothers and potential mothers make choices in each category. But, it is virtually never mentioned that the first choice they make is to have sexual intercourse with the consequences being pregnancy. They claim abortion is a choice, or, like Norah Vincent, [see FAS and Pregnancy, this website] to damage the unborn they carry is also a choice, never mind the consequences. But, they never mention the first choice of having sexual intercourse, which leads to pregnancy, and other choices.

There is such a thing as responsibility. Is it responsible to avoid sexual intercourse, say through abstinence until marriage? Absolutely, it is. Is it responsible to avoid alcohol, drugs and noxious elements in the diet if the possibility, or reality, of pregnancy is present? Decidedly, it is. Is it responsible for the mother to be vitally concerned for the well being of her unborn, from day one, I might add, until delivery? Most definitely, it is. Is it responsible for the mother to want to bring their newborn into a home of both a father and a mother, either their own, or an adoptive one? Yes, it is. Last year out-of-wedlock births in the United States reached an historic high, overall of 37%, with 70% in the black community and nearly 50% in the hispanic community. Let's not sugar coat this problem. It is both destructive and expensive.

If it were possible for me to utter the sound of a dinosaur, I would ask with a resounding roar: Where Are The Mothers of America?

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