Abortion

There are a few subjects I distance myself from on the radio show. I’ve never been a big fan of talking about the conflict in Gaza — you don’t get anywhere and debate often turns to fisticuffs — and I like to keep my distance from the abortion debate for the same reason. Though I think emotion makes for great radio, I don’t enjoy spinning my wheels in a useless debate. Still, I can’t help but dive into the story of George Tiller’s assassination.

51-year-old Scott Roeder was more than just an anti-abortion radical hell-bent on putting an end to Dr. Tiller’s activities. Take a look at this informative background piece from McClathcy. Roeder was a member of a group called the ‘Freemen’.

Roeder, who in the 1990s was a manufacturing assemblyman, also was involved in the “Freemen” movement.

“Freemen” was a term adopted by those who claimed sovereignty from government jurisdiction and operated under their own legal system, which they called common-law courts. Adherents declared themselves exempt from laws, regulations and taxes and often filed liens against judges, prosecutors and others, claiming that money was owed to them as compensation.

Scott Roeder was clearly a nut. He openly supported the murder of abortion doctors in the past and even subscribed to the controversial Prayer and Action News publication. His family says Roeder suffers from various mental issues and he often obsessed over the radical elements in the abortion debate. Roeder also made it a point to visit Shelley Shannon, in jail for a previous assassination attempt on George Tiller. He gave Kansas police every sign in the world that he was going to put a bullet in Tiller’s head. And then he did it.

Here’s how it happened…

Dr. Tiller was serving as an usher at the Reformation Lutheran Church in Wichita. The service began at 10:00 a.m. and Roeder approached the doctor shortly after. Tiller, absent his bodyguard who normally accompanied him around town, was helpless as Scott Roeder entered the foyer where he was visiting with about a dozen other people. Roeder pulled out a handgun and fired once at Tiller. The doctor slumped to the floor and died almost immediately. Two of doctor Tiller’s companions approached Roeder and the weapon was pointed at them as well. Then, Scott Roeder jumped in his powder-blue 1993 Ford Taurus, complete with a jesus fish on the bumper, and drove off into the distance. He was arrested just hours later.

The congregation inside the church was confused at first. Most folks thought the single gunshot was from the percussion section of the band, a sound effect of some sort or even a child popping a baloon. It wasn’t until the screams of a woman (a witness to the shooting) reached the inner portions of the church that anyone realized something had gone wrong. A church official tried to keep everyone calm. ‘Please be seated. Please remain calm. We have had an incident and we are taking care of it. Remain in your seat.’

President Obama has already taken a firm grip on this new political football while saying he’s ‘shocked’ and ‘violence is not the answer to resolve differing opinions on abortion’. There are plenty of people who took issue with Dr. Tiller’s profession and the vast majority of them will find Roeder’s actions heinous. Most protesters aimed to convert the doctor, not kill him.

Like it or not, the abortion debate is front-and-center once again. Between the uproar surrounding President Obama’s speech at Notre Dame and the assassination of George Tiller, the topic is gaining steam across the board. All the President needed was some ‘outrage’ to help drive his agenda and now he has just that. I’m guessing Obama has no major plans to nationally legalize late-term abortions but any attempt to roll back current law will have a whole new set of obstacles to overcome.