“Do
what you feel in your heart to be right, for you’ll be criticized
anyway.”-
Eleanor Roosevelt
I've been trying to figure out for a
while now what my first blog post should be about. One of the things
I'd considered writing about was abortion, however, I thought that
since this is such a sensitive issue I should wait until I had
already posted a few other things as to not tick people off right
from the start of my blogging. I decided that blogs are to write
about things that you care about or are passionate about and no
matter what I write about I'm sure I will irritate at least one
person so I might as well start with something worth writing about.
Winston
Churchill said, “You have enemies?
Good. That means you stood up for something in your life.” and
novelist, Brad Thor said, “I think freedom of speech
includes the freedom to offend people.” I think they're on to
something.
I also thought today would
be an excellent day to finish writing and finally get this posted
because forty years ago yesterday, abortion became legal. More than 53
million abortions have been performed since Roe v. Wade was decided
back in 1973.
I would appreciate it if you would
read this no matter what your views are on the subject. Worst case
you'll waste 20 minutes of your life. 20 minutes that 3000+ plus
babies are denied every day.
As I'm sure many of you know, abortion
is something I have strong opinions on and something I share my
opinions on as frequently as I can. I recently got into a discussion
with someone on Facebook about abortion, so if you have already read my comment on
that post a lot of this is the exact same thing I already said. Bear
with me though because I did throw in some new stuff! For the sake of
exploring both sides of the argument for those of you reading it who
are pro-choice, I am posting the conversation I had with this person
but with some more arguments on my part added in.
Before I post the
discussion here are just a few of the many heartbreaking facts about
abortion:
~More than 53 million
abortions have been performed since Roe v. Wade was decided back in
1973.
~When
you total up all forms of abortion including those caused by
the abortion drug RU 486, the grand total comes to more than one
million abortions
performed in the United States every
single year.
~The number of American babies killed by abortion each year is roughly equal to the number of U.S. military deaths that have occurred in all of the wars that the United States has ever been involved in combined.
~A study showed that 86% of abortions are done for the sake of convenience.
~Planned Parenthood alone performs over 300,000 abortions per year.
The following is the conversation I had with someone on Facebook about abortion. My comments are in purple and his are green.
(Referring
to this video - Obama: Babies are a "punishment) Somehow I'm just now seeing this. I am DISGUSTED by his [Obama's]
comment. Congratulations America. You have re-elected a man who just
said babies are punishments. I have seen that people have put things
on Facebook about how even if you don't like the President you still
need to show respect and blah blah blah. Why should I respect someone
who has no respect for another human being?
I
also love how he compared babies to STDs...
I
think that you have misinterpreted what he was attempting to say,
Azriel. On the topic of sex, and the consequences there of, Obama was
pointing out the importance of education because if someone is
sexually active, and is not aware that they are at risk or does not
believe that the risk is significant, they may contract an STD or get
pregnant because they did not use protection. Both, dealing with an
STD and being pregnant (whether you decide to go through with the
pregnancy or not), can be extremely difficult. When he says he does
not want them to be punished with an STD or a pregnancy he means to
be saying that both of those are consequences, intended or not, of
unprotected intercourse. He is not saying that a new born baby is a
"punishment" in a literal sense, nor is he comparing a baby
to an STD. He is saying that dealing with either can be extremely
difficult (similar to dealing with a punishment) and should be
avoided, if wanted, through education.
I
see your point. However, he specifically says "If they make a
mistake I don't want them punished with a baby".
Despite what I said above I do understand that he's not saying a baby is a punishment in a literal sense, but it shouldn't be dealt with like a punishment. It's a result. If someone isn't aware of the risk of having sex or doesn't believe it's significant then they are clearly too young and immature to be doing it. Every action has some sort or result. It's disgusting to me how many women get abortions because of THEIR lives being "ruined". They only think of themselves. There was a poll in 1988 asking women who had gotten abortions why they did it. These are the statistics-
21% said they were not ready for the responsibility.
21% said they could not afford the baby.
16% were concerned about how a child would change their lives.
12% blamed a relationship problem.
11% felt they were not mature enough.
8% said they had all the children they wanted.
1% were the result of rape and incest.
Why didn't they think of these things before they had sex? How many women have you ever heard of that didn't know that unprotected sex can get you pregnant? There are a lot of ignorant people in this world but I am sure everyone voluntarily having sex knows what they are risking. (Pregnancy wise. Perhaps they aren't aware of the severity of STDs.) Once they make that choice they shouldn't have any other choices (abortion) except keeping the baby or adoption. I just feel that if you get pregnant (especially because of choices you made) you need to deal with the results of your actions because, at that point, it's not just about you.
Women have a right to choose. They have a right to choose whether or not they have sex. Sadly, some of them are denied that right., but that does not give them an excuse to take away another human beings life. Abortions are legal, however, killing a pregnant woman is a double homicide or manslaughter against the infant (in most states.) So clearly they recognize that an unborn baby is a life. So why should the mother, the one who got pregnant (in most cases) because of choices she made, the one who is supposed to love her baby more than anyone, have the right to kill her unborn child?
As for him comparing a baby to and STD, I know that he's not literally comparing the two it just irritates me that he put them in the same category. They're both consequences/results, but they're not both punishments.
Despite what I said above I do understand that he's not saying a baby is a punishment in a literal sense, but it shouldn't be dealt with like a punishment. It's a result. If someone isn't aware of the risk of having sex or doesn't believe it's significant then they are clearly too young and immature to be doing it. Every action has some sort or result. It's disgusting to me how many women get abortions because of THEIR lives being "ruined". They only think of themselves. There was a poll in 1988 asking women who had gotten abortions why they did it. These are the statistics-
21% said they were not ready for the responsibility.
21% said they could not afford the baby.
16% were concerned about how a child would change their lives.
12% blamed a relationship problem.
11% felt they were not mature enough.
8% said they had all the children they wanted.
1% were the result of rape and incest.
Why didn't they think of these things before they had sex? How many women have you ever heard of that didn't know that unprotected sex can get you pregnant? There are a lot of ignorant people in this world but I am sure everyone voluntarily having sex knows what they are risking. (Pregnancy wise. Perhaps they aren't aware of the severity of STDs.) Once they make that choice they shouldn't have any other choices (abortion) except keeping the baby or adoption. I just feel that if you get pregnant (especially because of choices you made) you need to deal with the results of your actions because, at that point, it's not just about you.
Women have a right to choose. They have a right to choose whether or not they have sex. Sadly, some of them are denied that right., but that does not give them an excuse to take away another human beings life. Abortions are legal, however, killing a pregnant woman is a double homicide or manslaughter against the infant (in most states.) So clearly they recognize that an unborn baby is a life. So why should the mother, the one who got pregnant (in most cases) because of choices she made, the one who is supposed to love her baby more than anyone, have the right to kill her unborn child?
As for him comparing a baby to and STD, I know that he's not literally comparing the two it just irritates me that he put them in the same category. They're both consequences/results, but they're not both punishments.
Your
point is very well worded, Azriel. However, some would argue that
there are a few key points that are not included.
Simply
because someone is "aware" that they are putting them self
at risk of a pregnancy does not mean that they truly understand that
they can ACTUALLY get pregnant. This plays into the mentality of:
"Well I know it can happen, but it can't happen to me".
People often believe they are invincible. I, for example, don't
always lock my car because I don't believe that I will be robbed; I
truly do understand that robbery is a very real thing though. In this
sense, someone may be fully aware that people get pregnant by having
unprotected sex but may still hold a mentality that it can't happen
to them. This is extremely important to be aware of because social
pressure is all around us in our teenage years, and most people are
not strong enough to step above it.
Now,
I would not want to simply point out how our minds work
psychologically because we all have had different experiences through
out our lives that have shaped how we think. For this reason, I would
like to also point out that a male bodied individual, physically,
will have the greatest sex drive in their entire life in their
teenage years. My point in saying this is not random, let us tie it
to a scenario: A young teenage girl falls for a guy that she really
enjoys being around, they spend a lot of time together and eventually
start dating. After a few months, due to the boys intense sex drive
that he is experiencing in his teenage years, he begins pressuring
the girl into sleeping with him. At first she says no, but she has
really fallen for this guy and does not want to lose him, so she
gives into the pressure and decides it is okay.... In this scenario,
it is probably very likely that the two of them would use a condom at
first because they are mostly aware of the risk and have never
engaged in sexual activity before. However, after some time of
sleeping with one another while using a condom, she finds that she is
not even worried about getting pregnant anymore. The boy may, by this
time, possibly be pressuring this girl into having sex with him with
out a condom in hopes of having better sex. Of course the girl could
refuse, but she is afraid of losing the boy that she had lost her
virginity to and possibly fallen in love with, so she says yes
because satisfaction in the short term is most always chosen over
satisfaction in the long term. therefore, if she can have sex without
a condom now, and makes this boy very happy, she will hardly think
about the consequences (especially since by now she has built up this
"invincibility" mentality). Although this scenario is very
specific, it doesn't even come close to being the only scenario where
a young girl can develop an "invincibility" mentality.
Now
sure, she has made every decision so far by herself, and all along
the way she could have said no, but the psychological, physical, and
social aspects have played heavily against her. But as you say, every
individual has a right to choose what they want to do with their body
and has the right to say no just like they have the right to say yes.
Due to her decision, she allowed the opportunity for an egg cell to
be fertilized and became pregnant.
At
this point, we must look at simple facts, a fertilized egg NEEDS the
female body that it implanted in in order to survive. Literally, if
you took a fertilized egg out, it will die on its own. Due to this,
many would argue that, at that point, a fertilized egg is an
EXTENSION of the female bodied individual, emphasizing that an
individual can live on their own. This means that the fertilized egg
is still the body of the women and, as we agree, she has the right to
choose what she wants to do with her own body, the same way she chose
to put her body in the position to get pregnant.
You
may point out that the fertilized egg is a human being of itself
already because it is a potential human, or in the process of
potentially being a living human being (not all fertilized eggs will
survive even if a female bodied individual chooses to continue with
the pregnancy; this can happen for very many reasons), or you may
argue that the fertilized egg is feeding off the women on its own,
therefore it is a life in itself. But if you agree to that, then you
must agree that millions of potential human lives are killed every
single time a male bodied individual ejaculates. Why do you have to
agree to that? Because a sperm cell, similar to a fertilized egg
cell, has the POTENTIAL to become a living human being, if provided
with the right circumstances. But what about being able to feed?
Every time a male bodied individual goes through the process of
becoming aroused, engaging in sexual behavior, and ejaculating, the
millions of sperm cells travel through the reproductive track and
EVERY SPERM CELL IS FED fructose when passing the seminal vesicle.
Even without using a contraceptive method, millions of these sperm
cells will be unable to find an egg cell and be flushed out of the
uterus and die, similar to the contents of the uterus being flushed
out during an abortion.
If
you choose to disregard everything that I have stated so far, then
let me make one more point. You also stated that women who have
abortions are only doing it out of selfish reasons. To this, myself
and many others would disagree; not ALL women who have abortions are
being selfish. A woman who does not have to resources to raise a
child may choose to not go through with a pregnancy because she does
not want a child to be born into a life in which they can not be fed
what a child would need to be healthy, can not be given the proper
medical attention, or maybe can not be living in a sanitary
environment. Someone may choose to end a pregnancy for the child,
rather than for them self. But what about adoption? Unfortunately,
the adoption system does not always work the way that we play it out
to work.
Despite
that, an individual may simply believe that it is more wrong to have
someone else raising their child, or may believe that it will
adversely effect the child's life and, again, choose to end the
pregnancy for the child, rather than for them self, at which point,
one must choose the lesser of two evils, and that will totally depend
on their own values and beliefs.
First,
let me say that the following is in no way meant to pass judgment on
any woman who has made a decision based on the world's teaching of
conception, life, and abortion. As said by Maya Angelou, “We do the
best we can with what we know, and when we know better, we do
better”.
Let me make it clear, too, that I am not only vehemently against abortion for the child's sake, but also out of compassion for the mother (and the father, who is also losing a child.) I think a lot of women are uninformed about the short term and long term effects abortion can have on them. Women who have abortions are more likely to have issues with substance abuse, they're more at risk for breast cancer, it can cause problems with future pregnancies (including preventing future pregnancies). Aside from the physical side effects abortion can cause many emotional side effects (Some father's of the baby also struggle with some of the same emotional issues.).
A British survey in several women's magazines asked women if they regretted abortions. 248 women replied. Of the 248: 26 said they had a few or no regrets about their abortions, 9 other women said they were undecided about their abortion experiences, 204 of the 248 women said they deeply regretted their abortions. They did a follow-up survey asking 96 women whether they would have gone through with the abortion had they known the medical and emotional problems abortions can cause. 64 of the women answered no. The survey found some of the women who had abortions had severe problems afterward, including 14 who had seriously contemplated or attempted suicide, 15 who had developed alcohol addictions, and 3 who had severe eating disorders, 5 confessed to abusing drugs, several had emotional breakdowns and another 4 said they got pregnant again quickly to have "atonement" babies. Knowing that; (assuming you didn't already know it before.) what seems like the better choice, abortion or adoption?
Once mothers considering a potential abortion are given the opportunity to hear the baby's heartbeat (via sonogram), at least eighty percent reevaluate their choice, with at least sixty percent choosing life.
Now to get back to responding to your comment...
Thinking your invincible is not ignorance though, therefore it's not excusable. If you have an invincible mentality you obviously know that there are risks, but as you said you just don't think it could happen to you. If you left your car unlocked and it got broken into there would be two people to blame; the person who broke into it, and you, since you knew the risks but decided you were immune. A long time ago my mom kept a spare key hidden in her car and it got broken into and her car got stolen. Even though it was locked she is still partly to blame for knowing the risks and still leaving her key in the car. Just like people who know the risks of tanning and continue to do it have no one to blame but themselves if/when they get cancer or a skin disease. That's like those people who become morbidly obese and sue McDonalds. They're not ignorant of what fast food can do but they continue to eat it, then another has to suffer. Just like with abortion. People know the risk of having unprotected sex but they do it anyway. They don't want to admit it was their fault and another innocent human has to suffer, or in this case, die.
There was a baby born last year at 24 weeks that weighed just 9 oz. (roughly the size of 2 iPhones) and she survived. 90% of abortions happen in the first 10 weeks. At 3 weeks babies get a heartbeat, brainwaves at 6 weeks, and fingers and toes at 7 weeks. How is that not a life? Babies have all the same parts and characteristics as any other human being. As I said in my previous comment the law clearly recognizes that unborn babies are living humans since killing a pregnant women is double homicide.
I tried to come up with an analogy and this is what I was able to think up: Imagine someone baked a pumpkin pie but said it wasn't a pie. Why isn't it a pie? It has all the same ingredients as any other pumpkin pie. It smells like a pie. Looks like a pie. Tastes like a pie. At what point does it become a pie? When it comes out of the oven? What is it then while it's still in the oven? Same goes for humans. Just like a pie becomes a pie as soon as you pour the filling in the pie crust--- life begins at conception.
Let me make it clear, too, that I am not only vehemently against abortion for the child's sake, but also out of compassion for the mother (and the father, who is also losing a child.) I think a lot of women are uninformed about the short term and long term effects abortion can have on them. Women who have abortions are more likely to have issues with substance abuse, they're more at risk for breast cancer, it can cause problems with future pregnancies (including preventing future pregnancies). Aside from the physical side effects abortion can cause many emotional side effects (Some father's of the baby also struggle with some of the same emotional issues.).
A British survey in several women's magazines asked women if they regretted abortions. 248 women replied. Of the 248: 26 said they had a few or no regrets about their abortions, 9 other women said they were undecided about their abortion experiences, 204 of the 248 women said they deeply regretted their abortions. They did a follow-up survey asking 96 women whether they would have gone through with the abortion had they known the medical and emotional problems abortions can cause. 64 of the women answered no. The survey found some of the women who had abortions had severe problems afterward, including 14 who had seriously contemplated or attempted suicide, 15 who had developed alcohol addictions, and 3 who had severe eating disorders, 5 confessed to abusing drugs, several had emotional breakdowns and another 4 said they got pregnant again quickly to have "atonement" babies. Knowing that; (assuming you didn't already know it before.) what seems like the better choice, abortion or adoption?
Once mothers considering a potential abortion are given the opportunity to hear the baby's heartbeat (via sonogram), at least eighty percent reevaluate their choice, with at least sixty percent choosing life.
Now to get back to responding to your comment...
Thinking your invincible is not ignorance though, therefore it's not excusable. If you have an invincible mentality you obviously know that there are risks, but as you said you just don't think it could happen to you. If you left your car unlocked and it got broken into there would be two people to blame; the person who broke into it, and you, since you knew the risks but decided you were immune. A long time ago my mom kept a spare key hidden in her car and it got broken into and her car got stolen. Even though it was locked she is still partly to blame for knowing the risks and still leaving her key in the car. Just like people who know the risks of tanning and continue to do it have no one to blame but themselves if/when they get cancer or a skin disease. That's like those people who become morbidly obese and sue McDonalds. They're not ignorant of what fast food can do but they continue to eat it, then another has to suffer. Just like with abortion. People know the risk of having unprotected sex but they do it anyway. They don't want to admit it was their fault and another innocent human has to suffer, or in this case, die.
There was a baby born last year at 24 weeks that weighed just 9 oz. (roughly the size of 2 iPhones) and she survived. 90% of abortions happen in the first 10 weeks. At 3 weeks babies get a heartbeat, brainwaves at 6 weeks, and fingers and toes at 7 weeks. How is that not a life? Babies have all the same parts and characteristics as any other human being. As I said in my previous comment the law clearly recognizes that unborn babies are living humans since killing a pregnant women is double homicide.
I tried to come up with an analogy and this is what I was able to think up: Imagine someone baked a pumpkin pie but said it wasn't a pie. Why isn't it a pie? It has all the same ingredients as any other pumpkin pie. It smells like a pie. Looks like a pie. Tastes like a pie. At what point does it become a pie? When it comes out of the oven? What is it then while it's still in the oven? Same goes for humans. Just like a pie becomes a pie as soon as you pour the filling in the pie crust--- life begins at conception.
About 50% of the time, the unborn baby has a different gender than the mother and is, therefore, not part of the mother. An unborn baby also has it's own DNA, heartbeat, and body parts, therefore, it's not the same being as it's mother. ALL children need their mother or some other human to survive inside and outside the womb. Even some elderly people or mentally disabled people need help from another human to survive. At some point in our lives we all rely on someone else to survive. That doesn't make us any less human.
As for your argument that condoms/birth control pills are always an option, so is having the strength to break up with a guy that is pressuring you into doing things you don't want to do. Planned Parenthood gives out free birth control to most women (I believe you have to make under a certain amount of money but I don't remember exactly how much money). That being said there is no excuse to not get on birth control. There are 3 (obvious) relatively easy ways to not get pregnant: condoms, birth control pills, and abstinence. Nowadays, abortion is used as another form of contraception.
Girls cannot blame the guys for getting them pregnant. Regardless of whether or not she was pressured into it, they BOTH made a decision. She still let herself get pressured into it by saying yes.
Adoption is always the better option. If you cannot keep the baby because you feel you're not equipped to be a parent then you should put it up for adoption, if you really do have the baby's best interest at heart. If you have a toddler and decide you can't provide for him/her but you don't want to put it into the foster care system would it be okay to kill him/her? No. So why is it legal to kill that same baby before it's born?
Some
people say that abortions should be okay or legal if there is a
genetic disorder that could be passed down. That is nonsense.
Almost
anything
can be passed down. Alcoholism, physical features, genetic disorders,
depression and even cheating and promiscuity. That being said, every
child is probably going to inherit something bad from their parents.
Whether it's an addiction or a disorder, it's not a valid reason to
abort a baby.
“But if you agree to that, then you must agree that millions of potential human lives are killed every single time a male bodied individual ejaculates.” You're smart, so I'm sure you know that it takes more than just sperm to make a baby, therefore, sperm alone is not a life.
Does the child/fetus not have it's own rights? At this point, we both agree that women have a right to do what they want with their own body, correct? Then what if that unborn baby is a female? What about her rights?
I'd like to end with several quotes. I'm sure you've probably heard a couple of them before, but I'm going to say them anyway.
“I've notice that everybody that is for abortion has already been born.”- Ronald Reagan
"Even though you can't see them or hear them at all, a person's a person, no matter how small!" - Dr. Seuss
“To
say a child is unwanted says nothing about the child, but it says
much about the person who does not want his or her child.”- Jean
Staker Garton
I got this one from the Facebook page, Let's find 1,000,000 people against Abortion: “Here's something to ponder. If pro-lifers are wrong, and the unborn aren't human beings, we are guilty of trying to deny women access to an elective medical procedure. However, if pro-choicers are wrong, and the unborn are human beings, they are directly responsible for the violent deaths of, and have on their hands the blood of, over 55,000,000 innocent babies.”
"Either
life is always and in all circumstances sacred, or intrinsically of
no account; it is inconceivable that it should be in some cases the
one, and in some the other.” -Malcolm Muggeridge
"What
irony that a society confronted with plastic bags filled with the
remains of aborted babies should be more concerned about the problem
of recycling the plastic."--Winifred Egan
"If
the unborn is not a human person, no justification
for abortion is necessary. However, if the unborn is a human person,
no justification for abortion is adequate." - Gregory Koukl
“I
feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is 'Abortion', because it
is a war against the child... A direct killing of the innocent child,
'Murder' by the mother herself... And if we can accept that a mother
can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill
one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As
always, we must persuade her with love... And we remind ourselves
that love means to be willing to give until it hurts...”- Mother
Theresa
"If
we don't know if the unborn is alive, why take the risk? If it's not
alive, then why is an abortion
"If
the unborn is not a human person, no justification
for abortion is necessary. However, if the unborn is a human person,
no justification for abortion is adequate." - Gregory Koukl
While
the last 3 are all very similar they're equally profound.
I
appreciate you taking the time to read this and I'd love to get some
feedback and/or opinions you might feel like sharing! :)