Abortion: A woman's right to choose

Legal Human Rights
1

Under what condition is abortion justifiable?

  • It’s the woman’s right to choose, regardless.
  • If the life of the mother is at risk.
  • Leave it in God’s hands.
  • It’s never justifiable. The protagonist should have taken precautions.

0 voters

I can’t choose any of them because it’s difficult. I always thought it’s the woman’s choice, untill I came here and saw so many girls going for abortions at the Obgyns. Once I was waiting for an apointment (just a check-up!) and 3 girls went in for abortions in one hour. A woman that works at my school has been pregnant twice in 3 years and had both aborted…when I saw she wasn’t in class I asked my boss if she was ok and she just said ‘Oh yes, she went to take care of her baby’

take care…grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

I also spoke to her afterwards and neither her nor her husband wants to do something to prevent more babies. This I don’t agree with. But then, if I got an abortion today…and I think to myself, well, it’s only a couple of weeks old, it’s OK, then why am I bothered with people doing it often…if the being isn’t alive to me yet.

sigh…I have no idea how I feel actually.

2

I don’t really know anything about legal stuff and politics.

I just want to point out that I know quite a few kind, compassionate women and men (not stereotypical death-penalty-advocating right-wingers!) who choose not to be party to the taking of human life in any form because in their experience it causes great suffering to all involved. Of course, logically and morally, this also means that they don’t condemn women who have had abortions as “bad people” or anything like that.

I really don’t know what should happen with the law about this stuff, especially as many people take their own courses of action regardless of what the law says. I’m not in favor of backstreet abortion clinics!

But I wish society gave more support to those who do choose to have their babies. More financial support if they choose to keep the baby; and much more encouragement and support for adopters too. I know it costs tax money but I feel that it could benefit society as a whole, both materially and in terms of happiness.

That’s just my personal view, and I don’t want to judge people or cause any offence. It’s a very difficult, emotive issue.

3

[quote=“joesax”]

But I wish society gave more support to those who do choose to have their babies. More financial support if they choose to keep the baby; and much more encouragement and support for adopters too.[/quote]
Mr Sax you are the voice of reason in a wilderness of crap. :notworthy:

4

Somebody on a prior (censored) thread actually posited that some women use the abortion option as a means of birth control. I was in the process of critiqueing this assumption when I was cut off. Opinions? Let’s keep it clean.

5

My two cents:

  1. With over 6 billion people already on Earth we are not in dire need of more people. But a fetus should not be considered with dis-respect, especially after the first tri-mester. After that time, many consider it to have at least some viability to be born.

  2. Birth control (and in fact abstention from wanton sex) is a good thing.

  3. Women preparing to give birth should be wanting and expecting the child and if not the child should be expected to be put up for adoption. Adoption is a good thing for many adoptees and the adopters who otherwise can not have any children or perhaps want to help take care of unwanted kids because they are able to.

  4. Steps should certainly be taken to avoid unwanted pregnancy.

  5. Late term pregnancy should not be aborted unless extenuating circumstances apply where the fetus will likely be born with gross defects or the mothers life is in danger.

  6. A live birth is a living person and to kill it is MURDER. No matter if the initial purpose was to abort.

  7. Abortions should not be used as a form of birth control. And if an abortion is to be carried out under the free choice of the mother (who should be the primary decision maker), then it should be done while the fetus is in a very immature stage of development. Certainly under 12 weeks.

  8. Abortion clinics should have counselors able to provide counseling, realizing that many pregnant women can be in a state of anxiety or under quite some stress and may make a different decision if all the options (including adoption) are made known to her.

  9. The consequences of abortion are far-reaching and profound. This fact should be explained.

Note: in the previous thread, I mentioned a friend confided in me his experience with abortion. And a certain poster said my input should not count because which woman would confide in men such as us. Before the thread was locked, I was going to say that my input is relevant because that friend I mentioned is in reality MYSELF. And the woman who discussed her abortion (of OUR child) was my then WIFE. And certainly I had a major role in the decision to go ahead with that abortion. I want to say that I regret that decision. And I would make a different decision could I go back in time. I wouldve preferred to have a healthy son or daughter . Who could be 14 today.

Therefore my view now in a nutshell is that pregnancy should be avoided if not ready to have a child. And if she is pregnant to consider carefully before going ahead to abort. Because in actuality that may be your only chance to have a child in this life and you just dont know it. Think carefully and if at all possible choose to give birth. Your decision IS indeed FATEFUL.

6

Tommy, you didn’t VOTE!

7

yes I did , I voted for number 2

8

I cannot vote, because in my side of teh world, our lovely government officials -corrupt lot- have colluded with teh Catholic church -more corrup lot, washing funds for the drug cartels- to keep this option away from the masses, as well as any other resemblance of birth control, or control over anything.

Meanwhile, hundreds of girls under 9 die every year or are yes, literally, “punished with teh burden iof pregnancy” and children they cannot afford to feed. If they live, they are ostracized from societey, education is a distant dream, and men in general think they are like “batism pools” where everyone can get their hands in. In summary, a social disaster.

Then the kids grow up in teh stteet, as mom works and there is no social network to take care of teh kids, and we have the gangs, which in turn are gunned down regularly by extreme right groups who feel that is the best way to keep the rich neighborhoods safe and control crime. Which is really ironic, since those same right heads are also leaders of the drug trade, colluding to invest funds with the Catholic church…

You get my meaning.

I just pary that someday we will have a reliable, cheap form of contraception, that can be used in children, so that they will at least have a fighting chance. That, and that the karma sowed will be reaped.

9

I’ll add mine, since I didn’t get to post in the last one…

I work with many different employees, and their primary reason for aborting is financial hardship.

These are the few I’ve witnessed.

  1. Employee already has 4 kids, and can’t support any more. His family doesn’t believe in adoption, nor do they want to spend money in keeping the pregnancy.

  2. My boss approached an employee about adopting the child. She even agreed to pay for the bills associated with the adoption. The employee refused, but didn’t never indicated any reason for her refusal. (My boss was sympathetic towards the employee, so she wanted to raise another child. She has two grown kids already)

For these employees it’s easier to just go to the clinic to just abort the pregnancy. Yet, they never would’ve considered adoption.

The last one I know of was from one employee, she had drowned her first daughter. I think for this scenario, it would’ve been better if she aborted.

10

There are many people here in Taiwan that use abortions as birth control. It’s not something I could ever do. Back home, the people I know that had abortions feel it for the rest of their lives…they feel bad about it and it takes a lot of thinking over before you do it. I feel that here it’s just another one of those ‘don’t think too much’ issues.

I am one of the lucky ones that never have to think about this kind of thing because sex with another woman can never lead to a child…and many times people use a condom and birth control and still fall pregnant. So it’s so hard to make up my mind to what is right and what isn’t.

Adoptions…I have a weird story. A friend of mine adopted a baby here…she lived across the street from someone who already had three kids , and whose husband was in jail. She wasn’t taking good care of the three either. My friend adopted the baby and moved back to Canada after a couple of years. Now, she gets contacted by the same woman saying she’s pregnant again…want it? (by another father)

to many adoptions are such blessings…but every single adopted person I know has rejection issues. Then again…what is worse…having issues or never living.

11

Ms 9, heartfelt contribution. I have to take issue with the “abortion as contraception” business, though. Abortion is mighty painful and traumatic. I can’t believe that anyone would choose that over the relatively less painful alternative that the oral/hypodermic/prophylactic choice offers.

12

I used the pill for a while here…and a majority of the local girls I told was against taking it. Many of them believe that it can affect having kids in the future…

13

To those girls who keep coming into abortion clinics to “take care” of their babies:

There’s a little rubber thing. It’s called a “condom”. It’s cheap. It’s easy to use. Use it.

14

Wouldn’t that be better addressed to the boys? There are chick condoms, but they’re pretty rare and rather weird. And perhaps some advice about what to do in the to be expected roughly 1% of the time they break?

HG

15

Ha, that’s what I thought, but now I’ve got two households to support. :wink:

Seriously, though, while I’m sure the OP meant well, his poll is fatally flawed.

Here’s what it asks.

[quote]Under what condition is abortion justifiable?

  • It’s the woman’s right to choose, irregardless.
  • If the life of the mother is at risk.
  • Leave it in God’s hands.
  • It’s never justifiable. The protagonist should have taken precautions. [/quote]

The choices given are all extreme. People should’ve had the ability to vote for reasonable compromise (such as the present law in the US).

Many people (including me) may feel the first option in this poll goes too far, as there ought to be some reasonable restrictions such as not permitting unfettered abortions of 8 month old fetuses.

On the other hand, the second option doesn’t go far enough. Yes, the woman should have a right if her life is in danger, but she should also have the right early on (the rights of a grown woman should outweigh those of a just fertilized egg).

So, the poll would better if it included an option something like this:

  • In the first trimester, or if the woman’s life is at risk

or

  • In the first trimester, or if the woman’s life is at risk, or in the second trimester with doctor’s consent

or something like that.

16

Precisely why I did not vote.

17

Sure… but the girls should be insistant, telling their fellas “No glove, no love.”

18

[quote=“lemur”][quote=“Mother Theresa”]
The choices given are all extreme. People should’ve had the ability to vote for reasonable compromise (such as the present law in the US).
[/quote]

Precisely why I did not vote.[/quote]

I almost didn’t vote for that reason, but then I thought “fuck the religious right” and voted for the first option even though it’s not really how I feel and I would’ve prefered to vote for the reasonable compromise option if it had been available.

19

Let’s suppose you represent right and wrong on a zero to ten point scale. I.e. 0 is completely ok and 10 is murder. How do you rate the following.

preventing conception with a condom
morning after pill
abortion at 8 weeks
abortion at 24 weeks
abortion just before birth
bashing the babies head against a wall just after birth

I’d say 0,0,1,5,10,10. I can sort of understand an extreme pro choice position like 0,0,0,0,0,10 more than I can undestand an extreme pro life position which is something like 5,10,10,10,10,10. The worst thing about the pro life position is that you’re likely to get more people taking later options on the list because you have banned the early ones. Of course, I can’t really accept the Herrod/Medea position of 0,0,0,0,0,0.

What’s your morality curve™?

20

[quote=“KingZog”]Let’s suppose you represent right and wrong on a zero to ten point scale. I.e. 0 is completely ok and 10 is murder. How do you rate the following.

preventing conception with a condom
morning after pill
abortion at 8 weeks
abortion at 24 weeks
abortion just before birth
bashing the babies head against a wall just after birth

I’d say 0,0,1,5,10,10. I can sort of understand an extreme pro choice position like 0,0,0,0,0,10 more than I can undestand an extreme pro life position which is something like 5,10,10,10,10,10. The worst thing about the pro life position is that you’re likely to get more people taking later options on the list because you have banned the early ones. Of course, I can’t really accept the Herrod/Medea position of 0,0,0,0,0,0.

What’s your morality curve™?[/quote]

0, 0, 0, 0-5 (depending on the situation), 0-10 (depending on the situation), 11. (This goes to 11.)

The “depending on the situation” includes such things as the medical necessity of the procedure (e.g. to preserve the woman’s life or health), whether the fetus is deemed viable, whether the fetus is grossly deformed and will die anyway, and many other factors that make the issue far from cut-and-dried.