The murder of George Tiller (can we please stop calling him “late-term abortion provider George Tiller”?) is at one end of a continuum of violence and harassment that many health care professionals endure every day. I know this because my sister works for Planned Parenthood in Minnesota, where she’s jeered at and threatened by name on a daily basis. A man once stood outside her house for hours in a paramilitary uniform. That’s why the murder of Dr. Tiller fills me with such white hot rage. In our oasis of enlightenment, it’s also hard to imagine that, because of this campaign of terror, women in many parts of the country don’t have access to basic health care. In South Dakota and many other rural areas, Planned Parenthood provides the only available basic reproductive health services. I imagine that the right wing will now howl about being thrown in with the domestic terrorists behind this crime, even while Bill O’Reilly and co. continue to inflame the thuggery. I imagine they will continue to get away with this, just as they continue to successfully drive the agenda for the national media (just look how they’re successfully framing Sotomayor). There’s nothing I can do about that. But I can and will make a donation to Planned Parenthood in Dr. Tiller’s name. I hope you will also consider doing so. Update: Various pro-choice groups will be holding a vigil for Tiller at the South end of the reflecting pool at Cal Anderson Park at 6 PM today (Monday).