RSSThe Choice is Yours
Recently, I attended a health policy conference and somewhere between the candidate positions on health care and Medicare/Medicaid, the abortion topic was presented; immediately… a level of tension grew in the room…
There is a long and ongoing debate about mothers-to-be and their right to an abortion. This topic has become extremely polarized between those that believe in the right to life and those that are pro-choice. Right to life advocates that life, from conception to natural death, is a gift from god to be cherished and protected in all circumstances. The Pro-Choice organization believes that women have absolute sovereignty over their bodies and any imposed restrictions on that autonomy is obstruction of a civil liberty.
The two sides are clear in their message and both have rational logic to explain their points of view…so how do we codify a solution to this moral issue?
In Roe v. Wade (1973), the Supreme Court mandates that abortions are only legal in certain stages of pregnancy. This resolution is stemmed from research that suggests that in the beginning stages of pregnancy a fetus has not yet developed and cannot be considered “a threatened life.” But the liberties that were secured in Roe v. Wade are slowly diminishing; some common abortion procedures were outlawed in 2007 based on the notion that the births were being terminated to far into the pregnancy (therefore minimizing the time-period women are legally able to get an abortion during their pregnancy).
Currently, there are over one million unborn children a year that never see their first day of birth…some feel this is evidence that abortions are essential to the growing number of women using the service and therefore should be federally funded. Others believe that it is an epidemic and that resources should be targeted toward the prevention of pregnancy and promoting different lifestyles.
By allowing the procedure to be subsidized, many women will no longer feel as monetarily limited in their choices about pregnancy…BUT…it will cause a serious uproar with faith-based hospitals and practitioners (which are 20% of US health systems). Under such a law, they would be legally bound to provide services that are contrary to their religion.
A fairly new bi-partisan effort has been introduced called The Pregnant Woman Support Act (H.R. 3192 and S. 2407). This bill is believed to be the neutral ground or compromise between the two notions. The bill includes, but is not limited to, more funding for pregnancy prevention services and resources, it provides childcare to low income and student parents, increasing funding for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Nutrition program, and most importantly, it ensures that pregnant women are not denied health care by insurance companies and coverage is continued for newborns. The bill is aimed at reducing all the issues or hurdles that may lead a woman to resort to an abortion and provide support for those who decide to keep their child. (In essence, the bill will refute ideas that conservatives want women to keep the babies but will not offer support after birth)
OK…enough of the legislative background…
I tend to lean toward the pro-choice stance but I do have reservations about how abortion is used. I believe that a women are entitled to do what they wish their bodies but then again…I hate the fact that many women are careless and use abortions as birth control (to those women…I have to say “Grow up and take some responsibility in your actions and in how you treat your body…it is your temple after all”)
Then that leads me back to the same question when I hear debates on the subject, “How do we step back from our moral beliefs to establish a fair law on the matter? I personally believe that we should not impose laws/regulations based on ethics…but I’ve learned that societal laws are filled with some level of moral principles.
The Pregnant Women Support Act is well-intentioned…and may reduce the amount of abortions if properly funded but I do not expect it to settle the abortion debate…it attempts to solve the debate by not addressing the main issue…
Lastly…I know many women may not agree with me….but we tend to leave the fathers-to-be out of the discussion which I see as unfair. I’m not saying that the father of the unborn child should have an equally weighted opinion on the life of the child but doesn’t his opinion matter? I mean he will be responsible for child support if his partner decides to keep it…I know that some women don’t know who the father of their expected child is…but that’s a discussion for another day….for those that do know…should the law include guidelines for them considering their lives will be affected.
7 Comments, Comment or Ping
Talisman
Oh Damn!!! One of the hot button issues of our times! Okay, it seems this bill MAY somewhat address one of my gripes - pro-lifers who want every child born, regardless of the mother’s situation but once the child is born, financial and other support are no where to be found. That has always pissed me off about the pro-lifers. As for the pro-choice crowd, I’ve seen far too many “hood moms” use abortion as a form of birth control - that also pisses me off.
Okay, to the topic at hand, should the man have a say in the decision whether or not to abort the fetus? On the fair & consideration tip, I’d say yes, IF he is a good and supportive man, evidenced by his past actions; but the woman should have final say simply because SHE MUST CARRY THE BABY. Men will never experience the joy (hell?) of childbirth, nor are a rising majority of men currently dealing with the reality that they have to raise and support their children, leaving to mothers all alone to fend for themselves. So, mothers should have final say and veto power. Period.
As for a fair law, there will never be one, as long as secular and non-secular thought exist side-by-side.
[Reply]
Terry
SB- Thank you for mentioning the role of the men because it often gets buried in mess of a controversy. While I agree that the mother should get the final say, this should be a joint discussion. Yes, there are plenty of dead beat dads bounce on their responsibilities, but there are even more who don’t. For the next 18 years of that child’s life, the issue of fatherhood parenting (or lack thereof) is going to have an effect.
People, please stop using children as punishment. I have always hated the argument to the tune of teaching people a lesson. It’s a baby, not a goldfish.
We handled this issue before on troubl but its worth mentioning again. If abortion were to be made illegal, what would the legal punishment be for women who have them? Check out the youtube video on this question. It’s a good one.
[Reply]
"a mom"
I do agree with women having choices but when there is a man involved who wants to be a part of the birth I think he should have some voice in the decision as long as he is willing to help support the child. Too many children are born into this world unwanted and unfortunately they are the ones that suffer. Women/Men have to realize that their actions can hurt innocent people when they are selfish. Having children is a choice that we take to lightly.
[Reply]
Cypher
Let me start off by saying if we take religion out of the picture then we have a more visible choice that could be made. Without religion the choice becomes whether or not the person or persons in question can handle the giant responsibility of bringing a child into the world?
I know, I know some people will say ready or not you were irresponsible and should deal with it. But thing about this for a second, first, some people are incapable of taking care of themselves much less a baby. Second, what about the women who get pregnant by rape? Shouldn’t they have every right to have an abortion? People who are against abortion can’t justify that one and if they did, all you have to say is what if that happens to your daughter?
In my eyes something that gets lost in the shuffle is the impregnator’s rights. If the man is fully capable and wants to take care of the baby he has absolutely no say so and if he doesn’t want and/or cannot care for the child he has no say so. In my opinion that’s fucked up. He wasn’t the only one being stupid at the time. You’ll know it takes 2 to tango.
Also to spice it up a little I tell you something nobody ever talks about but should be discussed. I think that women should have the right to choose BUT in some cases she should be required to have an abortion. That same person I was telling you about is crazy (no seriously crazy, takes pills for her mood and shit crazy) what if that makes her more apt to have postmortem sickness and kill the baby after it is born or worse? Some people shouldn’t have the choice in my opinion.
I am pro choice; don’t get me wrong. All I’m saying is some pro lifers would say the moral or right thing to do is to have the baby, I think SOMETIMES the right or moral thing to do is to NOT have the baby. That’s so far left it’s almost sounds right, doesn’t it?
[Reply]
*SB*
Cypher- you bring up a very good point…i feel that some woman should not be allowed to have children especially if they’re in unstable circumstances (and yes…that does sound very right)…but then there are those mothers who turn their life around because of their children…not to say that happens often but just to look at it from another perspective…
[Reply]
Broken
WWWOOOWW! This is a very touchy topic that upsets me. I understand everyone have a choice but it’s not a matter of which shirt/pants/shoes to wear… It’s a matter of life or death. I understand that my views may come across as a bit strong and I apologize to those that I may offend in advance but it’s time out for acting like dogs in heat! I understand that things happen 100%, but there are tooooooo many forms of birth control to keep having abortions. I know a couple females that have had a COUPLE ABORTIONS and that’s just foolishness. One of the main reason for ‘Sex’ was to multiply the earth w/ your husband/wife… not to see what dude/chick is working with or to past time and that’s where the problems come into place. It’s time for people to start thinking and stop laying down. Making abortions legal is not going to resolve the problem, it’s going to make it worse.
I saw a sticker on the back a semi that read, ‘It’s not a choice, It’s a baby!’ And I couldn’t have said it better myself.
[Reply]
"a mom"
I think that pro-life people have a lot of nerve trying to force you to have a child. I know that some women don’t need to get pregnant and that too many people are out there having Sex not Making love like people who are committed to each other. A baby is the result of love. There are too many of children out their that are unwanted. I don’t see all those pro-life people who want to force you to have a baby reaching out and adopting all these unwanted children. I wonder what would happen if all these women who were convinced to go nine months and bring a baby into this world. What if they put her newborn in a basket place them on the front lawns with a note saying “I hadem You take care of them.” If Bush came out on his front lawn and say a bunch of babies left on his lawn would him and Barbara raise the rainbow of children he forced women to have. I think not. I personally would not abort my child, but I would want the choice.
[Reply]
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