I've had two unplanned pregnancies in my lifetime, one when I was a junior in college, another when I was packing my bags to leave my first marriage.
Their names are Sean and Brendan.
Abortion was illegal when I got pregnant the first time, in 1968. It was legal the second time, in 1973.
In neither case did I consider having an abortion. It never occurred to me to end either pregnancy. Didn't do it then. Wouldn't do it now.
There are those who might presume from this that - surprise, surprise - I'm anti-abortion.
Not true.
I'm pro-choice. I chose against abortion.
...what many people fail to realize is that there is plenty of room in the pro-choice movement for those who are personally opposed to abortion for themselves. That's the whole point. Pro-choice is not a synonym for pro-abortion. It's a synonym for pro-reality.
Where we get into a muddle is, what we should do about it? On one side, there are those who would outlaw the procedure. Ban it. Pass punitive laws. Criminalize pregnant women and their doctors.
On the other side are those of us who want to lower the number of abortions by making contraception more easily available; by acknowledging that experience is not the best teacher and that kids need realistic sex education; by changing the culture of young men, who feel that protection is the girl's problem.
....I would argue that the words "smart" and "man" don't carry quite the same legitimacy as "pregnant" and "woman." Men are not the stakeholders here, not unless they've been pregnant college students; or pregnant and broke; or - you know what? - pregnant and just plain can't do it.
That's when the rubber meets the road - perhaps because the rubber failed to do its job in the first place.
We women are perfectly capable of deciding this for ourselves, woman by woman. I'm happy with my own choices, but they were just that. My choices.
No woman should be even mildly interested in letting lawmakers and judges make the choice for her - no matter what her choice might be.
Reminder, this is from a woman which should carry more weight than opinions from any man, even if he's President of the United States.
I am a man, but I agree with Beth's views. My stance, after much soul-searching, is that...
- This is a woman's issue.
- It is an individual's moral choice.
...so that is why I am also Pro-Choice.
One comment about the Pro-Life side. They see abortion as killing a baby because their faith says human life begins at conception, therefore abortion is murder. Note that in #2 above I underlined "moral" in the phrase "moral choice." That is the rub, abortion is murder only if you believe human life begins at conception + should have no exceptions. If your personal faith or ethical values do not agree, well then....
What is wrong with the Pro-Life stance is they want to use the law-of-the-land to force everyone to adopt or practice their moral belief. That is an unconstitutional stance, it is not freedom of religion to force anyone else to practice your personal beliefs. Decisions on this issue belong with individuals, individual women.
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