| catbobclark | My comments aren't so much in response to this question as they are to all the (angry) posts I've read below.
My OPINIONS: I believe a woman does, in fact, have the absolute right to choose what to do with her body. However, except in cases of rape or forced incestuous relationships, once a woman has become pregnant SHE HAS ALREADY MADE THAT CHOICE. To "choose" abortion is no longer a choice of what to do with her own body but rather a choice of what to do with someone else's life -- a choice she does NOT have the right to make.
Okay, so what if the woman doesn't want to have a child. First of all she shouldn't have made the choice to become pregnant, but now that she has, she needs to weigh the options. The most logical choice is to give the child up for adoption. That brings me to all the sad stories here about children that were never given up for adoption and lived a life of hell and neglect by their "mother" and/or foster homes -- sometimes leading to feeling of "I wish I had never been born" which is a very sad statement.
So how about this. It would appear to me the that problem is more in the system of adoption in the US more so then it is with all these other debates about abortion. If the adoption system worked like it's supposed to (matching the millions of "parents" who want to adopt with the millions of unwanted children/newborns out there) then abortion wouldn't be nearly so much of an issue. Why not take the money that's spent on abortion and use it instead to "fix" the adoption process so it's a win-win situation for everybody.
And one thought (that might draw a lot of ire from some folks) would be for a woman who has fallen into a pattern of getting pregnant and using abortion as a means of birth control to make the "choice" to be sterilized? With all the medical breakthroughs out there it is generally a procedure which can be reversed later should she "choose" to do so. |
| nicoolio | Well, how about this hypothetical question to quantify what an embryo's life is worth:
You are in a burning building, and there is a batch of 30 frozen embryos. There is also a five year old child in the next room. You can only save the batch or the child. They're all humans. Assume that the 30 embryos are viable and would live to be healthy adults if brought to fruition.
Which one?
What if the child is your own? |
| nicoolio | Well, how about this hypothetical question to quantify what an embryo's life is worth:
You are in a burning building, and there is a batch of 30 frozen embryos. There is also a five year old child in the next room. You can only save the batch or the child. They're all humans. Assume that the 30 embryos are viable and would live to be healthy adults if brought to fruition.
Which one?
What if the girl is your own child? |
| squirmbergler | i forgot. I met my half brother from my fathers side when i was 17, and glad of it
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| squirmbergler | say a woman is killed in a botched robbery later to find out she was carrying a child, perp is charged with two murders. same woman never robbed, later that day has an abortion, charged with nothing. the thought is she could have been planning abortion but killed on the way 2 murders, but if it is her choice none what so ever. I disagree with them but early on should not be illegal, but discouraged.
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| antonioluo | just commentin so u no i was here |
| JamesW. | Consideration: I was an un-wanted child... Abortion was a thought, but not acted upon. The abortion came about, emotionally through my childhood and while in adulthood.
My Mother, unmarried was seeking something that would qualify her life and her ideals of unconditional love. With the needs and demands of a baby; I was sacrificed.
If a woman, is considering abortion--she is not ready for children or take upon the understanding of a child and his or her needs.
If a parent is not ready for a child, the child and the community can suffer.
I was bounced around from home to home, four times--before the age of 12. I recognized, only...that, I was a burden. A burden of proof.
I have lived my entire life, feeling like an outcast, a burden, ugly, not desired, emotionally disregarded. I have not regarded or desired anything, but the love and respect that I should have been in receipt of, at birth.
Instead, I have had to challenge and seek out attention and response from strangers, because I could not qualify a family that did not want to qualify me.
I will always seek that qualification, but I will forever try to overcome it and seize moments, not mom. Living for the moment can provide nothing, but a lackluster look into the future, via of the outsider. |
| conservative1 | This question does not have a correct answer. Abortion should be illegal. |
| tnkmenard | Why are most people who are for abortion against prostitution? If a woman should have a right to do what she wants with her body, why can't she sell it? Secondly, I am against abortion (and prostitution) because it is by definition murder. Doctors officially call a patient’s death when that person's brain waves cease. Brain waves begin at about 40 days of gestation. Most women don't even know they are pregnant before this development occurs. Therefore you are killing a human being with brain waves, You Are Committing Murder. Why should the government pay for murder? |
| V | Nobody really wants to get an abortion, and getting one is a really personal decision. But if it is legal (as it should be, being a basic medical procedure), then choosing to not fund it is the same thing as making it illegal for those who can't afford it. |
| bobbyeddy | Abortion could be flunded by the Government in cases of rape / incest / for individuals having no access to insurance |
| biolabranden | Seriously. This issue is a no brainer. Pregnancy is a personal issue. I pay taxes for public services that can only be accomplished by government, not to pay for someone's abortion. Pay for your own medical procedures or don't have sex off birth control. |
| emk | Did the government get them pregnant? Wait, is this in case Bill is lurking around the white house again? |
| Princessmommy | Not every person who gets an abortion got pregnant by not using protection. Sometimes protection fails. The way I feel about it is that it is ultimately up to the woman whether she wants to abort or not. There are tons of kids in the system waiting to be adopted. There are tons of kids who never get adopted. If you can not afford a child then either add another to the adoption system in hopes of someone wanting the child or abort and learn your lesson from whichever path you choose.
Using abortion as a form of birth control is wrong, in a case of rape or incest the choice is up to her.
For 2 adults that made the choice to abort, they made the mistake and it should come out of their pocket. For someone underage, those places should have a payment plan but Medicaid or any other insurance company should not have to pay for it. |
| dawilla | I cannot understand how what goes on biologically in the body of any human being is the government or any OTHER individuals concern save that of the person(s) going through it. Would you want the government to decide with all their redtape whether or not you were deserving of a life-saving operatio? Last time I checked those consent forms for surgery were decisions based on the INDIVIDUAL and their family only. The very fact that this is an issue being debated in government is ludicrous. Lets say abortion was illigeal, what then? Sure adoption is a possible option, but lets look at a likely situation. As a minority woman, I often wonder just how many said 'White Republicans' are willing to adopt a black or hispanic child that may be addicted to heroin from the moment it's born because the mother was a drug addict and it was Illegal for her to do something about it. Hey lets also talk about the healthcare cost if the kid has severe medical issues, and not to mention if she does get paralyzed for life because she sought some back alley quack to help her and taxpayers have to pay for her to be on disability. Abortion should not be the first line of action, but we should emphasize sex education, pregnancy prevention, and heck even abstinence in the schools. Drum it into their heads until its automatic. I believe this is not an issue for the government to contest, because lets be honest, people want to cry and moan about how the child should have a right to live, but which one of you is going to take care of it? Obviously the woman is seeking abortion because she can't, and what business is it of anyone's to make a decision that has nothing to do with YOUR body or YOUR life. Moral outrage? I'm sorry wasn't aware you were the creator. All joking aside will you open your home and wallet to an heroin addicted developmentally disabled African-American child? Tough question isn't it. |
| dawilla | I cannot understand how what goes on biologically in the body of any human being is the government or any OTHER individuals concern save that of the person(s) going through it. Would you want the government to decide with all their redtape whether or not you were deserving of a life-saving operatio? Last time I checked those consent forms for surgery were decisions based on the INDIVIDUAL and their family only. The very fact that this is an issue being debated in government is ludicrous. Lets say abortion was illigeal, what then? Sure adoption is a possible option, but lets look at a likely situation. As a minority woman, I often wonder just how many said 'White Republicans' are willing to adopt a black or hispanic child that may be addicted to heroin from the moment it's born because the mother was a drug addict and it was Illegal for her to do something about it. Hey lets also talk about the healthcare cost if the kid has severe medical issues, and not to mention if she does get paralyzed for life because she sought some back alley quack to help her and taxpayers have to pay for her to be on disability. Abortion should not be the first line of action, but we should emphasize sex education, pregnancy prevention, and heck even abstinence in the schools. Drum it into their heads until its automatic. I believe this is not an issue for the government to contest, because lets be honest, people want to cry and moan about how the child should have a right to live, but which one of you is going to take care of it? Obviously the woman is seeking abortion because she can't, and what business is it of anyone's to make a decision that has nothing to do with YOUR body or YOUR life. Moral outrage? I'm sorry wasn't aware you were the creator. All joking aside will you open your home and wallet to an heroin addicted developmentally disabled African-American child? Tough question isn't it. |
| Obama08 | If a woman was forced into having a child and the result of the brutal act was pregnancy i believe it IS the womans right to choose to have an abortion. Why should the mother and the child suffer because the mother was raped? For all the other cases, people make mistakes, a fertilized zygote does not have feelings and is not even close to be a developed human. If people were to just use a condom or be on birth control, they would not have to resort to having an abortion. |
| Dreuis | Rachel, I agree that it is a baby but it affects more than just the woman having the procedure done |
| Rachel Few | "It affects no one but the women?" Why is everyone forgetting about the human child growing inside the woman? It IS a human & it DOES feel the pain. |
| sjasikoff | Hey Dylan - I bet you don't support the death penalty for everyone who "assaults" a person. |
| Mastersin08 | I'm still not quite sure why this is always such a heated and sometimes ugly debate. Our healthcare and welfare system already funds several different types of family planning techniques, adoption policies, and foster programs while Medicaid/Medicare will pay for almost every type of birth control on the market today. I believe that the spirit of this question is "should our government programs already in place be expanded to include abortion as an alternative?"...and my answer to that question is yes. I would much rather see a woman who couldn't or didn't want to be pregnant any longer seek a professional method of resolving that pregnancy than to seek out some "back-alley" doctor to perform a medical procedure for which my taxes would have to pay for her disability for the rest of her life. A woman having an abortion affects NO ONE except herself and her relationship with her higher power. And as for all those "sluts" out there having sex and getting pregnant all by themselves...we should be canonizing them, not denigrating them. |
| Rachel Few | dylan, that is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. You make it sound like the baby's in her womb brandishing a knife. It's not assault. It's an innocent little baby that doesn't deserve to die. It didn't do a damn thing wrong. The woman & the man did the wrong thing by not taking responsible actions beforehand in most cases. Were you aware it actually hurts the baby when they abort it. It has pain receptors. It feels it all. And to not care is just disgusting, lazy and selfish. What happened to adoption? Would you murder your 2 year old if the child suddenly became inconvenient? You would be charged with murder. It is a separate life that you are growing. two separate entities joined temporarily. Different brain functions, etc. It all makes no sense & you're trying to justify being lazy & not owning up to your responsibilities. I wish your mother had ripped your body apart while you were still inside of her. |
| berozier | I can't answer this question because my answer is not available: The government should NEVER participate in the funding of abortion. |
| RonaldsMyHero | Dylan, you are the posterchild for the liberal cause. Nice work! |
| dylankdb8 | If the fetus is a human life abortion is justified. A fetus imposes pregnancy when a woman doesn't want it. If a person besides the fetus did what it does, society calls it assault. If the fetus is just like any other human then uninvited pregnancy is assault too. This applies even when women consent to sex. Consenting to sex doesn't imply consenting to pregnancy. To say that the fetus can impose its body on another human being in a way no other human can is the ultimate double standard and truly puts fetal life above the mother. |
| Stone | The main problem with the argument againt abortion is that it never brings up birth control. If you truly want abortion to end, then start educating and promoting people to act more responsibly in the bedroom. I myself was an unwanted child and had a hellish childhood because of it. If my parents were thoughtful enough to realize they didn't want to have children and used birth control, that would have been the best. The next best thing would have been giving me up for adoption. After that, it's abortion in my opionion. I have had many moments in my life when I wished I was never born. |
| oneone | Opposing abortion is easy if you are not the one in the difficult situation. Those who oppose abortion have not done EVERYTHING to try to end it-----massive education of contraceptives BEFORE children are sexually active is needed. |
| Bfl061 | This makes me so incredibly angry. Abortion IS murder. Why don't people realize this? It isn't the woman's choice.. that is a selfish thing to think. ugh!! I just get SO outraged by this.. |
| cbj | This is really simple: Abortion = Murder (BTW that is one of those 10 no-no's people like to ignore... for now) |
| kevink66 | The Federal government should stay out of this issue. Leave it up to the states... The FED messes up whatever they touch. |
| bigskyal | Those that want NO taxes going to abortions should support rest of us to say NO taxes for war. |
| Hilary_Is_A_HOTTIE | I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'll go beyond saying that the government should totally fund all abortions. The government should actually pay the women who get abortions as long as they agree to donate the fetus to stem cell research. It's a woman's right to do what she wants with her body and if she wants to do the virtuous thing and donate part of it to a science that will SAVES LIVES then she should be rewarded. |
| la chavez | as for those who think that it is just a womans responsibility........ who do you think contributes to the baby? i know that a woman doesnt get herself pregnant. now i am not saying that the woman is not responsible; but the man is equaly responsible. as for men calling a woman a "slut"; who contributes to the name? Men who give her that name! i dont believe in name calling and especially toward women. noone should ever talk about women or men in that manner b/c they could very well be your children or wife/husband someday.
like i stated before abortion for abuse matters only! |
| la chavez | abortion is a very touchy subject. I feel that if you willingly consent to intercourse then you should pay the price. If you are raped then you should have the right to choose.
also if you are a child then you should have the abortion; if unconsentual. i say this b/c many children are abused and have to live and suffer the rest of their lives b/c they have no money to have the abortion. |
| CA conservative | I guess I'm becoming pretty cynical 'cause anymore I don't worry about Roe vs Wade being overturned. The reality is that it would take a bunch of men to decide that they don't want the possibility of free and irresponsible sex that comes with no accountability beyond "oh, ok, well I know a good clinic you can go to". I don't care what they claim, there are not enough virtuous men in politics or behind the bench to overturn a new leaf let alone RvW. What IS the male version of "slut" anyway??? |
| JLynn | I'm really on the fence in regards to this question, because I believe in a woman's right to choose her life path...but as for the government, ie: medicaid...being responsible for the costs, I'm not sure where I stand. As a personal choice, abortion would not be my choice. |
| johndoe | 1 (Athiest 4 the cause) I (who is has to help pay for the abortion) never forced her to have sex. She chose to commit the act of reproduction and she took the risk of reproducing. I cannot see how killing anyone is protecting them but More importantly you need to answer were you got those adoption facts? I know a family that adopted so I don't think every parent out there adopts a child just so they can neglect and abuse them. Thats what kittens are for (I am only joking I like cats and I have 4). Also who would try to raise a kid if she didn't like him?
2 (Lindsey) Though I am aginst welfare anyway I would rather spend the money helping him live than killing him. Its one of those moral issues we irrational right wingers have. Like not foceing people into slavery for an economy based soley on cotten.\
And to everybody who really cares about me calling unnamed women in general sluts if you have sex with anybody without any commitment what so ever then I would call you a slut or at best really stupid. If you commit the act of reproduction then you should be willing to accept the risk of, you know, reproducing. |
| Lindsey | To those of you who "don't want to pay for some slut's abortion" Said "slut" probably already has a few kids, doesn't have a good job and is on welfare... so instead of paying for her abortion you'd like to pay for the rest of the kids life?? That makes sense... I don't agree that abortion should be a means of birth control, however the only 100% effective birth control is abstinence and teaching that in school has obviously failed! |
| TruBluTopaz | I think part of the problem is that too many people are using pregnancy and children as social bartering chips. There are plenty of sources for free and lowcost birth control, but too many ignorant women think they can manipulate a man into a long term relationship via pregnancy. If a woman truly doesn't want to get pregnant, they CAN and SHOULD take steps. But too many people think life is like a soap opera, or worse, like "Sex And the City"-free sex, no repercussions, no guilt, no bad endings. |
| atheist_4_the_cause | "Oh no, I said a dirty word but thats the way it is folks. 95 percent of abortions are birth control. With the knowlege that plastic wrap is redily availible in every home I say agian, I should not have to pay for any irresponsible, immature, slut's choice, who doesn't understand the simple consept of keeping her legs closed, to commit infantcide. I work hard for my money and I would rather it be used to kill dangerous people, like Sadamm Hussien, Osama bin-Ladin, or Tookie Williams than some unborn baby who at the most will kick its mother while inside the womb. If you don't like it then welcome to the internet and free speach."
Wow, JohnDoe. First, birth control is from an abortion...but lets stay on topic here. I'm for abortions, not to protect the female that got pregnant (which isn't necessarily just some slut), but to protect the baby to be. If someone doesn't want a child, why make them have it? These females will often refuse to take care of themselves and will not love the child after in many cases. Adoption is not this miracle alternative, either, because adopted children get abused in adoptive houses. Also, a lot of females would have an abortion, but not give their child up for adoption. This means that if you take the option of abortion away, they will be attempting to raise a child they probably won't love anyway. That will just cause more abuse, and more bad things to happen to the child. Even if you want to ignore all this, at least take into account that around 75% of people that abort, got pregnant due to a failure in a condom. You could have sex 1 time and get pregnant, and that would make someone a slut? |
| johndoe | Oh no, I said a dirty word but thats the way it is folks. 95 percent of abortions are birth control. With the knowlege that plastic wrap is redily availible in every home I say agian, I should not have to pay for any irresponsible, immature, slut's choice, who doesn't understand the simple consept of keeping her legs closed, to commit infantcide. I work hard for my money and I would rather it be used to kill dangerous people, like Sadamm Hussien, Osama bin-Ladin, or Tookie Williams than some unborn baby who at the most will kick its mother while inside the womb. If you don't like it then welcome to the internet and free speach. |
| ed2dae3 | The whole liberal myth about abortions to save a womens life is way overblown, especially when it comes to partial birth abortions. |
| pony92188 | Its really funny how you liberals think. You seem to think its terribly wrong when a soldier dies for what may have been for nothing but when a child is murdered there doesn't have to be a reason. Boy, that makes a lot of sense! O, but pardon me, i wasnt considering the mother's choice, as it is her child. It's not like women can't kill their children at any age, be they unborn, five or fifty. Yeah, abortion sure makes a lot of sense! |
| 1UCBear | If there are so many people willing to adopt, why are there so many overcrowded adoption homes? |
| Deathless1 | abortion ftw |
| nzd65z01 | The government should fund abortion when it's medically necessary when one cannot afford it, or in the case of rape/and or incest. |
| jemta | The government should be able to provide funding for those who medically need it and cannot afford it. |
| bafergsn | I don't think anyone should be referred to by the term slut, whether they have an abortion or not. Sure, I believe abortion is completely wrong, but I don't hate the people who have them. I wish more people would give their unwanted children up for adoption as there are plenty of people willing to adopt. |
| WolverBill | Hey Johndoe,
What about all the rich sluts who use abortion as birth control.
Our objective should be to reduce the NEED for abortion by improving sex education, making contraception available to those who want it at any age without parental consent, improving the economy to reduce poverty, providing a national health care system so that expectant mothers get proper care and infants get proper care after they are born...etc. Of course conservatives would not want to pay for those things...just make abortion illegal and let the resulting unwanted and unaffordable kids rot. |
| johndoe | Like I am going to spen my hard earn money because some slut couldn't practice safe sex which she should have learned in a class, agian I pay for. Get your onw money!!! |
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