Why legalized Abortion is a non-issue.
You have two sides of this issue, those who are pro-life and those who are pro-choice. Unfortunately the two sides are talking apples and oranges. The debate is not about whether abortion is right or wrong, it is about whether the government should be allowed to control what a woman does with her own body.
The pro-life people seem to think that abortion should be outlawed because they believe it is murder or at the very least it is “playing God”. To prevent this, they wish the government to intercede by making this option illegal. Make no mistake, every pro-lifer takes this position for religious reasons. To say otherwise is not only untrue, but an insult to our intelligence. Therefore, it is the will of the pro-life side to demand that the government uphold their particular “beliefs” and dictate what all of us can and cannot do, at least in regards to this rather private matter. So much for the division of church and state.
The pro-choice people wish only to be left alone. They don’t want the government telling them what they can and cannot do, especially with their own bodies. This is perhaps the ultimate invasion of privacy and thrashing of individual rights.
Now I’m not saying the pro-lifers don’t have a good point in this. I don’t think abortion is a very good option either. It certainly isn’t a convenient form of birth control. I can’t imagine any women going through all that every time she gets an unwanted pregnancy. Prevention through abstinence or birth control is the way to go. But the fact of the matter is that legal or not, women will still seek out this surgical option. If abortion is legal, women can go to a reputable doctor in a sterile environment. If not, well we all have heard the horror stories of coat hangers, back alleys and such.
The pro-life side believes that abortion is wrong and that is fine with me. But when they wish to push their beliefs upon us all, and have the government be their enforcer, that is where we must draw the line. Abortion, right or wrong, is a choice each woman should make for her self, according to her own personal beliefs. It is not the place of the government to decide for her.
The pro-life people seem to think that abortion should be outlawed because they believe it is murder or at the very least it is “playing God”. To prevent this, they wish the government to intercede by making this option illegal. Make no mistake, every pro-lifer takes this position for religious reasons. To say otherwise is not only untrue, but an insult to our intelligence. Therefore, it is the will of the pro-life side to demand that the government uphold their particular “beliefs” and dictate what all of us can and cannot do, at least in regards to this rather private matter. So much for the division of church and state.
The pro-choice people wish only to be left alone. They don’t want the government telling them what they can and cannot do, especially with their own bodies. This is perhaps the ultimate invasion of privacy and thrashing of individual rights.
Now I’m not saying the pro-lifers don’t have a good point in this. I don’t think abortion is a very good option either. It certainly isn’t a convenient form of birth control. I can’t imagine any women going through all that every time she gets an unwanted pregnancy. Prevention through abstinence or birth control is the way to go. But the fact of the matter is that legal or not, women will still seek out this surgical option. If abortion is legal, women can go to a reputable doctor in a sterile environment. If not, well we all have heard the horror stories of coat hangers, back alleys and such.
The pro-life side believes that abortion is wrong and that is fine with me. But when they wish to push their beliefs upon us all, and have the government be their enforcer, that is where we must draw the line. Abortion, right or wrong, is a choice each woman should make for her self, according to her own personal beliefs. It is not the place of the government to decide for her.
posted by Kevin Ruesch | 3:10 PM
3 Comments:
Boy, we need to talk, and my pro-life argument does not come from the religious angle. Sometimes you shouldn't speak in such absolutes.
- The keeper of the weasel
As a follow-up to my last post, I am a Libertarian as you know. Although I have told you I have a pro-life stand that is religious, I also have a pro-life stand that is not. The Declaration of Independence states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,..."
This clearly states that the purpose of government is to protect the rights of the citizens. The rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Now, when a woman chooses to have an abortion, she is "terminating a pegnancy." A very sterile way of putting it, you have to agree. Now, let's imagine the woman is pregnant and she is killed by the intent or neglect of a second party. Nobody has any qualms about charging that second party with two counts of murder, or manslaughter for the death of the woman and her unborn child. That second party isn't charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter and one count of unintentional termination of a pregnancy. Or let's say the woman miscarries. She doesn't go around saying, "We lost the fetus," or, "Pray for us. The zygote was accidentally terminated."
NO. She says, "I lost the baby."
The very fact that the second party mentioned earlier will be prosecuted for manslaughter in the death of both the mother and the child, says that the unborn child is in fact a person, and is in fact "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life," and the government is there to protect that right. Says it right there in the Declaration of Independence. PLAIN AS DAY.
As I have said before, and as you just said, the government should "protect the rights of the citizens". An unborn fetus is not a citizen. PLAIN AS DAY.
Secondly, as for as the second count of murder is concerned, just because the goverment declares or does something does not mean it is right or just. Whether the woman sees what she is carrying as a baby or just a fetus is based of her personal beliefs. Therefore, from her perspective, it may be murder or it may not. Still, the government should not meddle in such private affairs.
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