I came across an interesting article today. It's extremely difficult for something new to be written about abortion but I think someone finally did. It's worth the read.

http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=8b3d16b8-4e61-4fa3-a039-84a9cb7d7a34&p=1

I'd love to hear other people's opinions on the subject. I'll probably need to re-read it myself before I get too deep into it with anyone.

I'm pro choice. That doesn't mean that I want everyone to get abortions, just that men shouldn't make decisions on something that doesn't involve our bodies.

did you even read the article?

About the article, I agree.A woman can do whatever they wanna do with their bodies, but they dont have the right to do anything to their children's body, especially to kill the children. I'm against abortion actually...

To all ladies: If you dont want to have a baby, then dont have sex in the first place. It's better than to have sex with someone, being pregnant and aborting a fetus in the end.

Originally posted by juliet

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About the article, I agree.A woman can do whatever they wanna do with their bodies, but they dont have the right to do anything to their children's body, especially to kill the children. I'm against abortion actually...

To all ladies: If you dont want to have a baby, then dont have sex in the first place. It's better than to have sex with someone, being pregnant and aborting a fetus in the end.

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Havent read the article yet but i disagree with this statement, not ALL women CHOOSE to have sex. I doubt my opinion will change my opinion on the matter of Abortion.

I'm just giving a friendly reminder for all the girls around...I didnt say that "all woman choose to have sex"...

What I mean with "A woman can do whatever they wanna do with their bodies", is not just about sex. Its about diet, hygiene, life, exercise.... etc.(its in the article).

Ice: I doubt there are many that argue with the abortion of a child conceived after a rape.


My favorite part of the article is where it talks about how courts have the ability to arbitrarily decide when life begins.

I also liked this quote: "Some put the question in terms of a woman's right to control her own body. That would be valid enough in the realm of smoking, diet, liposuction or sex -- but abortion? Abortion means controlling someone else's body."

I am not 100% opposed to abortion but I have a real problem with the people that abort a child that is simply inconvenient.

oh, and I like this quote too, "Living in an epoch that is selfish as well as matriarchal, our lifeboats are no longer marked "women and children first," only "women first." We invent euphemisms, such as "choice" for killing, and sophomoric dilemmas, such as pretending not to know when life begins, to ensure that nothing hinders Virginia's quest for Santa Claus. No obstacle must interfere with her goal of self-fulfillment -- least of all an issue (as it were) of her healthy sexual appetite."

Read the article!!!!

I beleive abortions should only happen in the extreme case of the parents having no chance of funding their child, if no orphanage(sp) is available.

That and Icewaves point.

Yes, I read it

anyway, I found this part interesting: "They must cling to the illusion that a court can actually choose for life to "begin" at some arbitrary point"

yeah, why don't people who truly understand the process make the decisions based on their scientific knowledge?

One could argue that life begins at the moment of conception, but is a being that is 100% incapable of most functions that define a human truly "alive"

well, there is another part that I really liked and I think it goes along with what you said...

"They must pretend not to recognize something that a cat recognizes: the difference between things alive or dead..."

an animal realizes when a woman is pregnant and react differently to them. Although I can't think of anything specific I'm sure that it has been studied. Either way I think this article makes a good point in the abortion debate.

Again I don't think most people who engage in any debate on abortion are at either end of the extreme. I doubt there are many people who are okay with abortions at any stage of pregnancy and I'm there aren't many who are 100% opposed to abortion in any and every case.

well, there are people who believe it isn't ok in any case, and there are some people who think it's always ok. I think the best solution would be to limit abortion to certain scenarios or limit the number of abortions a person can have total

yeah, I just think the majority of the debate is pretty close to the same position....

either way yes there needs to be more limitation not less. I really dislike the idea of having underage girls able to get abortions without a parent there. That just seems insane to me. They're not old enough to drink or vote but they can get an abortion.

Part of the problem in this debate is that there are illegal/unsafe ways to abort a child which many people will try if legal avenues are no longer available.

And that's why there needs to be some middle ground. There can't be abortion without restrictions and there can't be no abortions period. There needs to be a compromise somewhere

I know someone that rescently got an abortion, and they really wanted it so bad they were gona do anything for it, and they got to the hospital, and she cried for three hours thinking about how the baby would feel, and how she was a murduer and every thing the people protesting it say it was terible, and she still got the abortion so i think that people should make there own choises and have to suffer what comes from it.

and no i didnt read the artical but im ging to after this post

well, I honestly think that this sort of thing needs more attention. There is an emotional cost to abortion that isn't talked about a whole lot. I think it also needs to be studied in some way. I don't know how but I'm sure there are people that do that sort of thing.

I think we just need to stop talking about "choice" and start talking about consequences. I'm willing to bet that the physical and emotional damage from an abortion is higher than carrying a baby to term.

This is a bit of a toughie (not a real word ).

I've always said yes to abortions but there needs to be some restrictions.

But in the end unless everybody agrees on a middle ground it will be that only those that can afford an abortion will be able to get it (just like contraceptives in poorer countries).

Geeo you are right about the emotional/mental damage that these situations cause. I know some people that have lost their babys through still births, that was a very tough situation, i'd image it would be worse if you knowingly aborted a baby.

I've known somone that had an abortion (two actually) it's kinda like sayin if you can't do the time don't do the crime, honestly I believe that if you truly believe that you would not be a capable parent and/or you couldn't afford it, there's no use, but if you can be then don't take the easy way out because not only do you tend to piss of alot of people but you also HAVE killed a living being, but really it's up to how you think you can be.

Nejibro: yeah, but some people don't think it's a living being.... they think it's just some cells that are collected together. they think if the baby isn't viable on it's own then you can abort it. As in survive outside the womb. I think that argument is terrible because there are very few children that survive outside the womb unless they are taken care of completely by some sort of parent/guardian for several years. But some people still make that argument.

I must push this point though because I think it is important.... and you sort of said it in a way.... if you have sex, a very real possibility is that you will get pregnant. Aobrtion should not be a way to fix that problem. I think we need to find a way to prevent more teenage pregnancies in the first place which is another problem on it's own which if solved would bring down the abortion rate. Either way we need to find a way to prevent the need for abortions.

*sigh* I have a feeling that I am going to regret this.

Firstly, I read the article. While I give the writer brownie points for having read a little bit about Sparta, I must say that he does not really use it effectively because not only did he not delve he did not look at context of exposure. While I do think that it was harsh, I understand why they did it, as would anyone that actually took a class in Ancient Greek history. I also was annoyed that he used this argument to take a shot at women... I am sorry, but our society is far from matriarchal, and I have no idea what crack he is smoking if he thinks it is.

Secondly, I will admit that I have had an abortion. I was 17, the father was 19, and any further details are none of your damn business because I do not want to talk about it. Was it a hard decision? In some ways, it was the hardest choice I have ever made. Do I regret it? Sometimes, but ultimately I feel that it was the best choice available to me at the time. My family does not know about it, nor will they ever. I still feel sad about it, I used to get majorly depressed every year around the time it happened, but as years go by it becomes easier to deal with. I will admit however that I never want to have to get one again. I want children, but I am waiting til I am ready. It's called birth control.

And for the record, geeogree, I have met people that feel that no matter what abortions are bad. Doesn't matter if it was out of rape, incest, if it would kill you, nothing. And she was very firm about that. Yet she was fine with the death penalty. *shrug*

The whole debate over abortion is mostly over it's legality. It happened before it was legal, it has happened since their have been humans. Before vacuums it was herbs, and people tend to forget that. Honestly, the best reason I have for it staying legal is this: if some girl/woman you cared about (sister, best friend, daughter, whatever) was in a situation and was hell-bent on getting an abortion (we will say out of rape by the worst guy possible) which would you prefer, diy coat-hanger job in a remote location or safe sterile facility with a trained doctor performing the procedure? Honestly, think about that for a bit before you answer.

Oh... and you want to know how to prevent teen pregnancy? Allow the schools to talk more about it, don't be so anal retentive that they won't come to you as a parent to talk about it and then maybe you can make sure they are being safe and using some form of birth control! Trust me, they will have sex, they are not angels, and nothing that anyone can do will change that because that is how it has always been. It is human nature, deal with it. This tactic is especially important for girls, since even as a teen a boy can buy condoms, but not all do even when they should. Girls however, need a prescription to get birth control pills or depo shots or whatever they prefer. But, as a minor, parents are required to be in the room during doctor visits so she cannot ask discreetly for them. However, if the parents are approachable and she can talk to them about it, then next doctor visit they can all talk about methods of birth control and get it taken care of. Look, problem solved!

I am against abortion , sept in certain cases like rape,no chance at a happy life