Giving the Matrix the Finger(s)

The full story of Michael Grumbine's battle against the "abortion Matrix" was told by Tim Drake in July 2008. A short summary follows.

Mr. Grumbine's three teenage daughters were trying to help promote a pro-life event at their high school. He wanted to help, so he had some flyers printed up, then he donned a dark suit and sunglasses, ala Mr. Smith from the Matrix movies. He borrowed an ultra-light powered para-glider and circled above his daughters' school, dropping leaflets on the sidewalk and school grounds.

The leaflets said "Fight the Matrix!" on one side. On the other side it warned students that they should not look at or talk to the people in front of the school, that they were in the Matrix and must do as they were told. Naturally, the more the teachers of the school told the children not to pick up and read the flyers, the more they wanted to, and then to go and see what the pro-life event was all about.

However, Mr. Grumbine suddenly started losing altitude. Thinking that the air intake on his engine was blocked by a stray flyer, he reached back to clear it, and two of his fingers were taken off by his propeller, forcing him to make a hasty landing.

Mr. Grumbine's efforts caused many students who would not otherwise have accepted pro-life literature to investigate what the group had to say. We should all be more open and inventive in promoting the culture of life, although we should also be careful not to lose any fingers.

Additional reporting on this story (with photos) can be found here.