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About Life Gauge
In 1973, the US Supreme Court ruled in Roe v Wade that abortion is a Constitutional right in America, nullifying West Virginia's law against abortion.
In
1993, the West Virginia Supreme Court ruled in
its Panepinto
decision that West Virginia's Constitution grants a right to abortion. The
decision assures, separately from Roe, that abortion is legal
in West Virginia, and it forces the state to pay for
abortions. * Either
decision, by itself, gives West Virginia's abortionists a right
to kill babies. As long as Roe or Panepinto stands, West
Virginia babies have no protection. Two decisions must be reversed. While the nation waits
for Roe to fall, Life Gauge is working on Panepinto. The
Panepinto decision can be overturned in two ways. One is for the
West Virginia Supreme Court to reverse the decision. This is unlikely. The other way to reverse the decision is for the
legislature to pass a
Constitutional Amendment that allows the people of West Virginia to vote to reverse it. Every
year, Life Gauge introduces a constitutional amendment to overturn Panepinto: Nothing
in this Constitution secures or protects a right to abortion In
2010 a motion was made on the House floor to bring this amendment directly to
the floor for an up-or-down vote. The motion lost, 64-34. But the
recorded vote is priceless. Sixty-four delegates went on record with votes
to keep abortion as a Constitutional right. Life Gauge's
goal is to see that motion made every year. Life
Gauge asks the people of West Virginia to ask delegates to help.
or requires the
funding of an abortion.
Life Gauge focuses its efforts on the places that are most likely to produce results.
The House, not the Senate. Elections for the House are more frequent, and the districts are smaller.
House Republicans, not House Democrats. They belong to a party that is ideologically pro-life, and Republicans are not under the thumb of the House Speaker, who crucifies Democrats who work against his wishes.
Younger
Republicans, more than older Republicans. The older ones are content with
the status quo. The younger ones think more is possible.
The more Life Gauge pushes
for protection, the more we see who stands in the way of that protection.
Many legislators who claim to protect babies are Life Gauge
Life Gauge's strategy
is to create recorded votes on amendments and motions that protect babies, and to tell the public
how legislators vote.
The public reaction must either replace legislators, or move them to protect
babies. Good legislators must help expose the bad ones.
1) Life Gauge proposes a Constitutional
Amendment to
undo the Panepinto decision. 2) Life Gauge asks
delegates to move the amendment
2) Life Gauge assigns a grade to every legislator based on votes and cooperation.
3) Life Gauge publicizes grades, and encourages the public to get involved.
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I began my abortion-related efforts in 1979, after driving to Atlanta for Francis Schaeffer's lecture/film series Whatever Happened to the Human Race? I became involved with Mississippi Right-to-Life over the next few years. When I came back to West Virginia in 1983, I started a local chapter in Gilmer County.
In the summer of 1990, I volunteered at the West Virginians for Life office in Morgantown. I was soon an employee, serving for more than a decade as the Field Coordinator, logging thousands of miles on West Virginia highways, educating the public and organizing local chapters. In 2000 I began to help at the legislature, where I soon realized that legislators play a grand hoax on the people of West Virginia. Masters of delay and deceit, they have taken 30 years to pass paltry legislation that does little for our babies. Though uninterested in bringing protection to babies, most legislators enjoy reputations as stalwarts for the unborn. To endorse so many of them, including the powerful leaders, is to help them do what they do best: throttle justice.
I started Life Gauge January 1, 2002, in order to more accurately evaluate the legislators. Asking them to introduce bills and motions, I discovered which legislators are sincere about protecting babies. Life Gauge's grades reflect the variety of legislators we have. For a more detailed history of Life Gauge, click here.
Life Gauge PO Box 313 Glenville WV 26351
Life Gauge is not a corporation, either profit or non-profit. It does not sell anything, either goods or services. Nothing about it is tax deductible. Life Gauge does no telemarketing, sends no mass mail fundraising letters, and pays no wages or salaries.
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