Americans and other US residents have fundamental rights protected by the Constitution or the Supreme Court. Abortion, in my opinion, is one of those fundamental rights, and in Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court declared it so. Together, in a 7-to-2 vote, the Justices decided that the right to an abortion was protected within the right to privacy, which had been recognized in Griswold v. Connecticut.
As such, no state can outlaw abortion within the first trimester. Politics, religious or other moral beliefs should have no influence on that right – as it should be. Morally, many women may make the personal decision to not have an abortion, but those personal beliefs cannot be forced upon others.
Today the abortion debate is centered on the Pro-choice v. Pro-life campaigns. Those who are pro-choice belief it’s unfair, inappropriate, or simply unconstitutional to take the right to an abortion away. Pro-lifers believe that it is murder, and they see the “bundle of cells” being destroyed as human life, regardless of how small that life may currently be. Both arguments have valid reasoning. I, however, am of the opinion that a fertilized egg, or a bundle of cells, is nothing more than just that - it has no consciousness, regardless of potential or not.
For those who don’t care about personal beliefs, here are different sorts of arguments out there for abortion. Women who generally abort are women who are not prepared for the hardships of pregnancy, labor, and, obviously, motherhood. This can be financially, emotionally, or even spiritually. An unprepared mother cannot possibly raise a child wholly – it could lead to permanent damage, or simply a very unhappy home life. Obviously, that may not always be the case, not even the majority issue. But to force an unprepared woman to have a baby is unfair not only to the mother, but also to the child.
The obvious remedy is adoption.
Not all women want to give up their child though. And with some callousness, I must say at least the adoption agencies don’t get more children than they already do. The adoption system is already overrun with children who go from foster home to foster home, and some children never get adopted. Why would anyone want to add to that? But, for the Pro-choicers who don’t believe life starts at conception, abortion is the perfect remedy to both problems.
A third issue is that women who are desperate enough to abort will find a way to do it, and will push their own safety aside to get it done. There have been cases of women overdosing on drugs, throwing themselves down stairs, and using coat-hangers, among other things – all to get rid of that small bundle of cells.
It is the right of the woman to decide her future. Mistakes are obviously made, but abortion is a fundamental right regardless of the reason behind the choice. And I, for one, refuse to give up that right without a fight, regardless of who gets elected to whatever office, or if Supreme Court changes its mind. The government is in place to protect the rights of the people – don’t let them take this right, this oh-so-necessary right, of all woman-kind.
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2 comments:
I have really enjoyed reading your blogs these past five weeks or so, and seem to agree with most of your opinions and ideals on things; especially this one. The main thing I don't understand about this topic though is why people feel it is necessary to take other peoples rights of an abortion away. If pro-lifers want to have the baby no matter what, then they can choose to do that. But they shouldn't try to impose their beliefs on a law that would completely restrict all others from not being able to get an abortion. That is just ridiculous that people feel they have that kind of authority to make absolute decisions for other people. So in this topic as well as the others I agree with you 100%. Good work.
This article pretty much sums up my views on the subject. I completely agree with you. The choice of abortion should be left in the woman's hands. If a woman is not prepared to be a mother why should the law force her to. If a woman isn't prepared, or if it was an accident, or they can't give a baby a good life then that woman should have the choice to get an abortion. And the Pro-life groups' argument about the baby being a “bundle of cells” is not very good I must say. An appendix is a “bundle of cells”, a liver is a “bundle of cells”, your whole body is a “bundle of cells” but that doesn't stop doctors from removing an appendix or anything else if it's necessary. I think your opinion and your whole article is really good and well supported.
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