THE NUMBERS DON'T LIE

It's been eight days since Jason Collins became the first active male athlete in American team sports history to announce he is gay. A short article was posted on Crosswalk's blog this morning drawing attention to some staggering numbers.

"In the first eight days after NBA player Jason Collins announced he was gay, the news media covered the story in 2,381 places -- but in the first eight days of the trial of abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell and his "House of Horrors" facility, the media covered the story in only 115 places, meaning that Collins' "gay" news received more than 1,970 percent more news coverage, CNSNews.com reports. In addition, a search of the news coverage of the Gosnell trial, which started on March 18, shows there have been a total of 1,876 stories, still less than the amount of Collins stories in eight days. Collins, who plays center for the Washington Wizards, announced he was a homosexual in a self-written article for the Sports Illustrated website on April 29. Gosnell is charged with five counts of murder and 263 other criminal offenses related to his abortion business in Philadelphia; the jury is still deliberating."

There is an eery consistency to the priorities reflected in these numbers. Our ultimate value is placed on legitimizing any lifestyle an adult chooses to adopt and maintain while simultaneously legitimizing the denial of any life at all to the most helpless among us. It's a horrifying indictment on the cultural moment we find ourselves in.