Today's New York Times has an article about religious groups that are using sonogram machines at anti-abortion pregnancy centers, as a way of talking women out of having abortions. It's working:

Sixteen months ago, Andrea Brown, 24 years old and unmarried, was desperate for an abortion, fearing the disappointment of her parents and the humiliation she might face.

While frantically searching the telephone book one day, she came across the Bowie Crofton Pregnancy Center and Medical Clinic, a church-financed organization that provides counseling and education about sexual abstinence. The receptionist told Ms. Brown that the clinic did not perform abortions or make referrals but that she could come in for an ultrasound to make sure her six-and-a-half-week pregnancy was viable. When she did, everything changed.

"When I had the sonogram and heard the heartbeat - and for me a heartbeat symbolizes life - after that there was no way I could do it," Ms. Brown said recently as she revisited the clinic and watched her daughter, Elora, now 9 months old, play at her feet....

This is a trend -- Focus on the Family, the story tells us, "has budgeted $4.2 million in the current fiscal year for the machines and on training on how to use them."

But I wondered what happens after one of these clinics prevents a pregnancy. And the story provides an answer, of sorts, at least with regard to the Bowie Crofton Pregnancy Center:

Besides pregnancy counseling and ultrasounds, the center also dispenses free prenatal vitamins, offers parenting classes and help with broader issues like health care, family budgets and résumé building.

So I went to the Bowie Crofton Web site and I clicked on "Life $ense Classes." Here's what I got:

The Bowie Crofton Pregnancy Clinic has developed Life $ense--a special series on topics important to women and men.

We invite you to take part in our free classes. Most people participate during their pregnancy, but participants are welcome whether or not they are expecting a baby. These classes are approximately 1-2 hours in length and are one-time sessions. They cover a variety of topics:

* Baby Basics
* Budgeting
* Considering Adoption
* Deciding Whether to Breastfeed
* Faithful Fathers
* Healthy Relationships
* Infant Health & Safety
* Parenting I: Family Life
* Parent II: Tools for Parents
* Spiritual Growth

Call 301-262-1330 to find out more.

That's it. That's all the Christian charity Bowie Crofton offers to women -- a few one-shot classes. You get the baby for eighteen years. They give you, maybe, a little adult education, and then vaya con dios.

Oh, and there's this:

Life $ense also allows you to earn a layette of starter items if you are in need.

Well, OK, that's a little better. ("Earn"? How exactly?)

However, if you've had an abortion, Bowie Crofton offers

PACE -- Post Abortion Counseling & Education. This counseling and support group is designed to help women and men who have been hurt by abortion. PACE provides a safe, confidential refuge staffed by counselors who are trained to help those suffering from Post Abortion Stress Syndrome. For more information on PACE, call 301-262-1330. All information and messages are kept strictly confidential.

So if you need to learn to hate abortion providers, liberals, and yourself for having an abortion, services will be provided for you on an ongoing basis. (There seem to be a lot of PACE groups around the country -- at this one the counseling process "lasts approximately 10 – 12 weeks.")

But if you need financial help or job training, well, show up for one class (if we have one suited to your needs) and then get the hell out. Or, maybe, "earn" a layette.