From The Desk Of Pastor Paul Viggiano

Who wants Proposition 85 to fail in November?

The California measure requires a doctor to notify a parent or guardian of an under-18-year-old-girl 48 hours before aborting the girl's baby.

By Paul Viggiano

Proposition 73 is making another go at it, this time as Proposition 85; the measure requires a doctor to notify a parent or guardian of an under-18-year-old-girl 48 hours before aborting the girl's baby.

Perhaps my 50s are showing, but a stupefied paralysis overcame me when this measure failed to win voter approval last November. Black-and-white films reeled in my head of Aryan boys and girls liberated from the limited knowledge and wisdom of their incompetent parents and ushered into the loving and omnipotent arms of the government who would transform them into model citizens.

As a student, and as a teacher, I recall the necessity of getting notes from parents for missing school, field trips, exams by the school nurse, a work permit to wipe off tables at the Redondo pier and delivering papers for the Daily Breeze.

But any 13-year-old girl can find herself under the bright lights of this grotesque and invasive chemical or surgical procedure if her boyfriend is willing to ride her to the clinic on the handlebars of his bike. If she's lucky, she'll have the assistance of a nameless social-service agent or moderately recognizable government educator. For some reason, we're voting for this over Mom and Dad.

From where is this "let's-keep-the-parents-out" wisdom generated? I thought there was conventional agreement that there should be dialogue between children and their parents, especially during trying times. Do we truly prefer a detached public servant over a loving, albeit struggling parent? Do we not believe, in the final analysis, that parents will be the superior decision makers regarding the best interests of their children?

Always willing to be swayed by good argumentation, I listen attentively to the arguments against Proposition 73, which will be before California voters in November as Proposition 85. Few are willing to argue that the government cares more than parents.

It would appear that the only good argument for keeping Dad and Mom in the dark is the possibility that Dad is the perpetrator, as the measure's opponents have argued. Is this one good argument actually good?

I tried to make a list of all the people who would oppose this proposition. Who would be happiest to see it fail? Who would benefit most from no-questions-asked abortions for the under-aged? Planned Parenthood obviously has something to gain. I'm sure the American Civil Liberties Union would have a party, and certainly there are kids who don't want to be forced to talk to their parents about these terribly important and personal issues.

But it became readily apparent that it's the pedophile parent who has his fingers crossed. The father who has impregnated his own daughter is head and shoulders above all on the list of people who want this proposition to fail. The last thing an abusive dad wants to deal with is communication with the authorities. And what about his wife?

Would Mom not insist that the perpetrator-dad take their daughter to the clinic where he must stand before doctors and nurses? Of course they've done this hundreds of times so they profile him. They begin asking questions:

What if they ask who the unborn child's father is? Are they going to be curious as to why the father doesn't care? Mom would sure like to know. What if someone suggests a DNA test? Will he not start sweating? The last thing in the world he wants is to face the music.

It is that evil, abusive and depraved parent, above all, who is hoping this will once again fail. No questions asked of his daughter and no questions asked of him. Nervously wringing his hands as he listens to the propaganda against the ballot measure and wondering if enough people will "buy it," he spoils for a defeat.

Think of the atrocious cycle:

The frightened teen is allowed to go through this no-questions-asked-no-mom-no-dad process, and the vile parent -- the poster-parent used to defeat the proposition last fall -- is given the freedom to do what we all know he'll continue to do until he's put behind bars or his scarred-for-life daughter is old enough to leave home. What tragic irony!

Yes, I am pro-life. But one need not be pro-life to see the absurdity of defeating Proposition 85. Unless you truly believe the government is better equipped than parents to deal with the difficult and intimate issues surrounding teenagers, this must be made law. And the one good reason offered by opposition to this law may be the biggest reason to have it.