As usual, you are absolutely right in your assessment.
Words do matter and all sense of moral culpability seems missing from the rhetoric of the Right-wing responses today.

I've been against abortion since I was in the womb. My mother left an abortion clinic in January 1982, I was too be her 3rd abortion. I don't condone the killing of George Tiller, having met many abortionists over 3 states and speaking with many women who left and had their babies. I stayed friends with many of them. Don't label us with the pro-choose to kill extremist they are thoughtless and don't have all life with value and respect. I will continue to believe and help women when they want it. Since most abortion clinic are on big parking lots, its hard to get close. When they walk to us its because they want too, if they don't at least they did have a choice and I was able to assist them. You don't know therefore you're opinions are just that. I've been there, and you haven't.

We thought about posting this on a page on this site where there’s a list of pro-choice groups that donations are being encouraged to go to, but after reading Christina’s post we think it might better go here. We think that in part because we want to be gently critical of her post. We think the tone of some of Christina’s writing and this post in particular is a little alarmist, almost panicky to the point of not being clear at all what pro-choice activists can do in response to an obviously hideously violent act, which as she points out has similarities to killings of abortion providers back in the 1990s. But also, to summarize with quotes, Christina writes:

1) “Many in the pro-choice movement believed that the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) law, passed in 1994 in response to Gunn's murder, was responsible for reigning in violence against abortion providers. Clearly that is not the case.”

2) “In fact, it didn't abate after FACE, as we've seen. It was not until a comforting anti-abortion president did they calm down and stop the murder, bombing and harassment spree.”

and then as if to conclude with those statements as premises, she writes:

3) “Holder and his Justice Department should take note of the chatter and move aggressively against this form of domestic terrorism.”

But FACE was focused more on anti-choice protest like clinic blockades, not murder or other more violent forms of anti-choice terrorism. The NAF page on the FACE act gives a good summary.

FACE was not so much intended to directly target individuals and groups engaging in the most violent forms of anti-choice terrorism, but it did set an important legislative precedent and gave desperately needed funds to federal law enforcement to investigate and counter less violent forms of anti-choice actions like clinic blockades. We can’t easily find stats right now on anti-choice protest and various actions over the 1990s, but we think if one finds them one would see an increase beginning in the Republican administration of George W Bush with the 1989 US Supreme Court ruling in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services, increasing with attempts to pass in Congress a form of a Human Life Amendment, increasing dramatically after the 1992 election of Bill Clinton, and then a gradual decrease in overall anti-choice extremist activity beginning about two years after the 1994 FACE act. The decrease might more accurately be said to have occurred perhaps in small part because of the FACE act, but also because of a reaction against right-wing extremist groups after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, and also in part because right wing groups got preoccupied (or were diverted) into other activities like the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal beginning in 1998, Y2K (year 2000) millenarianism, survivalism, etc. Proving a causal relationship between those disparate other events and a decline in clinic violence is difficult, but it’s easier to show how FACE was at least helpful in reducing some forms of clinic violence. If FACE wasn’t responsible for at least helping de-escalate anti-choice violence, then what was – besides the election of George W Bush? I'm sure Christina does not mean to overemphasize the reaction of right wing groups overall and anti-choice groups in particular to the election of (supposedly) progressive Democrats but it's not something that most academics and activists not affiliated with the Democratic party would emphasize so strongly, in particular Suzanne Staggenborg and Dallas Blanchard (and also this book).

And if the election of George W Bush was the most important factor in reducing clinic violence, specifically murder, we have to wonder if Christina thinks we'd be much better off, or Dr. Tiller might more likely be alive today if John McCain would have been elected instead of Barack Obama. Perhaps if Obama was at least promising as much to pro-choice activists as Bill Clinton did when he was elected we might think different, but Obama is trying harder than Clinton did to reach out to pro-life constituencies, and he doesn't really seem to be getting the resistance that Clinton did when he was elected from the religious right.

The killing earlier today of Dr. Tiller is a tragedy which is not easily helped by posting a lot of words of thoughts and arguments on anti-choice violence and what we think should be done about it. We’ve been following the news closely, including some of us who really haven’t been in touch with each other in over 10 years, since events like this were much more in the news, and public opinion was more solidly pro-choice. For now we’ve agreed this post summarizes the best suggestions we have for pro-choice activists in response to the tragedy today.

The various pro-choice groups mentioned in so many other blog posts we’ve read today are obviously worthy organizations which deserve support. If we had to pick a few we’d pick the National Abortion Federation and the Feminist Majority Foundation/Fund because they are leaders in clinic defense work, and National Network of Abortion Funds is of course the leading national source for funds for abortion services for individual women who can’t afford the full cost of their procedure. If you’re otherwise inclined to donate, by all means do.

But if your money is very limited and you’ve got the time to do some activist research on your own, we’d suggest other ways to lend your support. There’s two good reasons why:

(1) we may hear in the near future of suggestions from Dr. Tiller’s family or his staff for specific organizations to donate to in his memory, and

(2) if you, the reader thinks a little more deeply about what Dr. Tiller did which was so significant in helping women, you might find on your own local clinics and supporting organizations like his which you might more directly donate to or otherwise support.

Dr. Tiller was a provider of accessible late-term (after 24 weeks, or third-trimester) abortion. There are other providers, surely, as despite better medical techniques which prevent pregnancy complications and detect fetal abnormalities earlier in pregnancy, women who discover late in their pregnancies medical conditions in their bodies (or in the fetus) which would possibly lead to serious medical complications or stillbirth probably can usually get referrals to doctors who essentially do what Dr. Tiller did. But it simply isn’t true what another late-term abortion provider, Dr. Warren Hern, is quoted as saying in today’s Los Angeles Times that he (Dr. Hern) is "the only doctor in the world" now left providing very late-term abortions.

Dr. Hern may possibly be the only one left who is advertising what he does and in the way he does, but it’s probably about as accurate to say he’s the “only doctor in the world” left doing third-trimester abortions as it was to say that Dr. Martin Haskell, a physician who in 1992 gave a presentation to the National Abortion Federation titled Dilation and Extraction for Late Second Trimester Abortion invented that particular procedure, which incidentally is often the safest method for inducing late-term abortion. Dr. Haskell named that procedure dilation and extraction (or D&X), but he did not invent the procedure. We can’t find quotes attributed to Dr. Haskell that say he “invented” D&X but subsequent reporting, especially after National Right to Life began a campaign against that procedure in 1995 imply as much. One can look at medical textbooks from 100 years ago and older and see described techniques for removing stillborn (or thought to be stillborn) fetuses which are little different. That’s another issue, but what links the quote attributed above today to Dr. Hern and –in a different context a decade ago – Dr. Haskell is a kind of overstatement for propaganda or public relations reasons (or perhaps careless reporting) which to say the least is problematic to pro-choice activists.

While there certainly must be other providers of late-term abortion than Dr. Tiller and Dr. Hern, one needs a referral to get an appointment with most of them, they don't get patients who choose them on their own by going to the phone book or internet and referring themselves, which was what some of Dr. Tiller's client base came from, self-referred patients. Dr. Tiller and his staff evaluated patients and based on if their case met Kansas’ criteria for allowing late term or possibly post-viability abortion – whether or not continuing the pregnancy would threaten the health of the woman – and if the criteria was met, the women could be admitted and an abortion performed.

The death of Dr. Tiller may close the clinic which he was most closely associated with, Women’s Health Care Services, and it will affect women who were going to be going to his clinic in the near future, but surely there will continue to be other clinics who advertise that they provide at least second-trimester procedures. They at least would be likely to refer women who are further along in their pregnancies than they are designed to doctors, probably individual physicians and surgeons, who do third trimester procedures. You may not find them as easily as you might a provider like Dr. Tiller, but if you get involved with a local pro-choice group – maybe, for example, a local affiliate or chapter of one of the groups mentioned above – and if you’re sincere in your interest, you’ll learn of local clinics which might either provide or refer women for second-trimester and later procedures, and once you learn of them donate directly to them. Many of them may have the ability now to take donations, and some may be nonprofits or offer sliding scales which would obviously benefit from donations.

Just so no one reading this thinks we’re inadvertently calling for “outing” second-trimester providers let’s say that we’re not suggesting people call up clinics directly and ask if they provide later-term abortions, rather we’re suggesting people get involved at the local level and find out what clinics in their community (or near them) serve women who need relatively later-term abortion. One might start out as simply as looking for clinics to offer your support to who serve poorer women, or who offer a sliding scale for abortion services, as they’ll more likely be seeking later term abortion because of delays or other factors making earlier term abortion (and perhaps better overall pregnancy care) less accessible to them.

In short, we’re suggesting you think local, and if you make some effort to do so you you'll find abortion providers who care for relatively poor women, or women who for whatever reason couldn’t make the decision to seek abortion earlier in their pregnancy. And we think you'll find some near you, if you look hard enough. Even if you live in the rural Midwest. Or even the deep South. Yes, even the deep South, even if you live so far out that you're down the road from something like the Cider House in that John Irving novel.

That’s how we think Dr. Tiller thought, and a good way, we think, to respect his memory.

I find the entire affair tragic. To be honest, we know little about the murderer, but I can make an educated guess he would call himself pro-life. Yet both men made the choice to take lives. Tiller felt he could choose to perform abortions, and his murder felt that while the lives of the unborn were off-limits, the life of this doctor was not. Both men valued choice above justice.

Oh, and your post is factually wrong. You said that abortions went up during the Bush years when in fact they went down (see factcheck.org). You also refused to back up your claim.

Your commentary, Christina, is right on point. There is embedded in the Force Birth Ideology an implicit disregard for mature human life and for acts of conscience. In this way, the movement has crossed the line into domestic terror for its entire history. "A terrorist is one who has no regard for the adversary."

Although I don't advocate violence, I have to say that upon hearing the news of Tiller's death - I felt Joyful! Joyful that pure Justice really exists. Some call this Karma - I don't believe in Karma but I do believe that nothing happens by coincidence - everything has a purpose. There are consequences to the decisions we make or don't make. Tiller viewed the fruit of human reproduction as nothing more than unwanted cells or flesh - something to be ripped from the mother's womb and discarded in the dumpster behind his clinic. With this type of perspective on life wasn't Dr. Tiller already dead? I mean he couldn't have been a happy man - you cannot continually "butt heads" with Life's Energy Source and expect "good things" to come your way, right? Anyway, I feel badly that I don't feel badly for Dr. Tiller. I feel a sense of Justice. We have lost Justice in this country and the world. Unfortunately, when Society loses its sense of pure Justice we will see some citizens take it into their own hands - no doubt - we will see more of this if the country doesn't take back it's moral traditions, uphold the Constitution, and start doing what is RIGHT!

Statement from Merle Hoffman

CHOICES Women's Medical Center

On The Issues Magazine

George Tiller was a friend, comrade and associate of mine for over a quarter of a century. I would share time and ideas with him at conferences, refer patients for his services and exchange holiday gifts with his staff. He, like so many abortion providers, was a person of courage, integrity and commitment to women's reproductive rights.

I am sobered, deeply saddened, but not surprised by his murder. Like all of us, he knew that THERE IS NO CHOICE WITHOUT PROVIDERS. Facing ongoing legal and violent harassment, he continued to work for women on a daily basis in the middle of this war zone that all providers share.

Keep reading here: http://www.ontheissuesmagazine.com/2009spring/2009spring_tiller.php

For historical perspective see Hoffman's Editorial from 1995, "Abortion Providers: The "New" Communists," written when violence against abortion providers and clinics was not uncommon.
http://www.ontheissuesmagazine.com/1995summer/hoffman.php

One thing that is also bothering me is that the media keeps saying that Tiller as one of the only providers of "abortions after 21 weeks" that's not true, he was one of the only people who provided abortions after 24 weeks. Saying "21 weeks" misinforms the populace.

"Well behaved women seldom make history."-Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

I am very much pro-choice, but I can't say I follow your criticism of peaceful pro-life groups. They see abortion as murder, and they have every right to say so. The vast majority also see Dr. Tillers death as murder, and can't be blamed for it.

Are you really saying we should censure people you disagree with? Are you willing to also blame environmentalists for eco-terrorism? Vegetarians and vegans for animal-rights terrorism?