God have mercy on us!

For the first time in five years, the number of abortions done in the state of Nebraska actually increased 6%. According to the report issued by our health and human services department, 3,990 unborn babies lost their lives at their mothers' requests in 2003.

If you can stomach the sad news, read on.

Some 3,096 women cited socio-economic reasons for seeking abortion. Remember that "socio-economic" can mean her boyfriend threatened to leave her if she didn't abort. Or her parents made her. Or her career might be hampered with this pregnancy.

Only 160 women cited "health of the mother." The report says 766 women said their artificial contraception failed.

The age range of the women is interesting. Teen abortions only made up a bit more than 12%. Most abortions are requested by women in their 20s and 30s. Education level and income were not reported, but last I read, even Planned Parenthood's own statistics acknowledged that most abortions are sought by educated middle-class women, not the poor, ignorant, youngsters that abortion proponents cite as why this procedure should remain legal.

Greg Schleppenbach, director of pro-life activities for the Nebraska Catholic Conference, said, "Every single one of those statistics represents a dead child, a wounded mother and a society that is increasingly coarsened in its regard to the dignity of human life."

There's a lot of wounded women walking around my state -- and yours -- today. Whether they regret their choice or not, they need our prayers. So please, take a moment to pray for them.

--Sparki