Pro-Lie

Pt.1.

America is the land of freedom- the land of choice. With that freedom comes decisions. Decisions that mark our future and mold our paths into the sand of time. Over and over again people debate, they cry out for truth, for reality, and yet the two sides never waver- despite obvious truth. Many great heroes like Martin Luther King Jr. have fought for rights of people great and small. They have poured their heart and soul into speeches and writings- imprints on time that cannot be erased.

Pro-life and pro-choice are two sides of a great debate over abortion. Pro-choice, believing that the mother has the right to choose, and pro-life, believing that the unborn child should live no matter what harm might come to the mother.

Men and Women who call themselves “pro-life” strongly believe that it is the government’s duty to preserve human life, whether or not birth will have negative effects on either the mother or the child. Pro-life people believe a baby should be born whether or not the mother allows it, or what sort of conditions the child will mature in. Unfortunately a common misconception follows pro-choice, many mistake pro-choice to be pro-abortion, when in fact many pro-choice would not get an abortion themselves. Pro-choice is the belief that mothers should have access to safe and easily accessible abortion. Let’s break it down. There are four main types of abortions; The abortion pill, surgical abortion, vacuum aspiration, and dilation and extraction. Depending on the trimester many different ways can be used.

Pro-life people say that a child is innocent and capable of feeling. Therefor its death is the equivalent of murder. However, science states that a fetus cannot feel pain until about 27 weeks in. That means that the majority of abortions happen before the fetus can feel pain, in the first two trimesters. Many states have banned third trimester abortions due to this. While the child may be innocent, it cannot feel pain. Pro-choice regards the fetus as unthinking tissue, this provides the question ‘when does personhood begin?’ The fetus develops a brain after five weeks, but the question of its cognitive abilities remain. Can the fetus think? According to ‘Learning Rx,’ kids’ pre-development stage runs through the ages two through seven. The pre-development stage is when the child learns about the world, develops a personality, and developes feelings. The child has no cognitive thoughts or feelings at the fetus state. Many pro-life supporters would battle this with the statement, “Life begins at conception.” This is true and should be taken into consideration.

 Many pro-lifers are pro-life because of their religion, but several things in the bible contradict their cause. Life begins at conception from a scientific standpoint but according to the bible (Genesis 2:7) “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” This clearly shows that life begins at the first breath; not conception.

According to ProCon.org, “Access to legal, professionally-performed abortions reduces maternal injury and death caused by unsafe, illegal abortions.” Before abortion was legalized in the case of Roe vs. Wade, women would frequently try to induce abortions by using coat hangers, knitting needles, or radiator flush, or by going to unsafe “back-alley” abortionists. Many women died because of this procedure.

Pro-lifers believe that abortion is promoting a society where murder is justified. This is anything but true. If nobody could get a safe abortion not only would more women die because of back alley abortions but we would be promoting a society where pre-established lives are worth nothing. Because giving birth is so dangerous, many women lose their lives every year. In a place without access to abortion, women who are incapable of having children due to young age or body deformities, would be dieing. People who already have established lives, friends and families traded for a squalling infant who (though it could be something great) could also be a serial killer. Is trading pre-established lives even worth it? In a world without abortion we would be promoting complete government control, while we’re at it why not let them just decide whether you can have your cancer treatment?

A common pro-choice argument is women who receive abortions are less likely to suffer mental health problems than women denied abortions. This is untrue. Must women expressed initial relief. Later, however, many women feel extreme pain and guilt after having terminating their pregnancy. According to iowartl.org “-within the first few weeks after the abortion have found that between 40 and 60 percent of women questioned report negative reactions. Within 8 weeks after their abortions, 55 percent expressed guilt, 44 percent complained of nervous disorders, 36 percent had experienced sleep disturbances, 31 percent had regrets about their decision, and 11 percent had been prescribed psychotropic medicine by their family doctor.” They go on to state “500 aborted women, researchers found that 50 percent expressed negative feelings, and up to 10 percent were classified as having developed “serious psychiatric complications.””

Thirty to fifty percent of aborted women report experiencing ***ual problems, of both short and long duration, beginning immediately after their abortions. These problems may include the following: loss of pleasure from intercourse, increased pain, an aversion to *** or males in general, or the development of a promiscuous life-style. Up to 33 percent of aborted women develop a longing to become pregnant again in order to “make up” for the lost pregnancy, with 18 percent succeeding within one year of the abortion. This leads to many teens hastily marrying, wanting to give their “make up” child a full life.

Pro-lifers believe that abortion reduces the amount adoptable children. While this is true, (According to Guttmacher institute, “The estimated effect of abortion legalization on adoption rates is sizable and can account for much of the decline in adoptions, particularly of children born to white women, during the early 1970s.”) many other factors play in why a women would get an abortion. In many cases, it is unsafe for a woman or teen to get an abortion. Imagine a raped fourteen year old, having this child would cause serious harm to her body and possibly even kill her. It is understandable- if not correct- to assume her getting an abortion. To put a child into adoption also costs money. “The mere act of having a child in a hospital can cost between $3,000 and $37,000 in the United States.” according to bustle.com vs. an average $300 for an abortion.

Sometimes women who were planning on having an abortion choose not to abort their children and to raise them. Here is a quote from a close friend of ours whose mother had planned on aborting him: “I found out when I was twelve, and I couldn’t sleep. I remember thinking that every time she said ‘I love you’ it was a lie.” Our friend is very glad he was not aborted (And obviously, so are we) as he would never have had a chance at life. While aborting a fetus may just be killing tissue, that tissue still has a chance at life. That tissue could cure cancer, or prevent aids. That unborn child could become someone great. What if Martin Luther King Junior was aborted?

The two sides of the abortion fight may never waver. Both pro-life and pro-choice have invalid and valid points. Women need to think carefully about their decisions before deciding to have or not to have an abortion. Think before you have unprotected ***. Nobody wants to be forced to make these decisions. As said by Frederica Mathewes-Green “No woman wants an abortion as she wants an ice cream cone or a Porsche. She wants an abortion as an animal caught in a trap wants to gnaw off its own leg.” Abortion is legal and despite Pro-life’s desire to change it, it must and will remain that way. While both sides disagree on the morality of abortion both agree that nobody should die because of an unsafe abortion. Think before you fight, think before have ***, and be careful which road you choose to take if you become pregnant.

Answering pro-life points

“Just because we are pro-choice does not mean we are pro-abortion. It means we understand your choice is none of our **** business, and we will always fight for your right to choose.” -FCKH8.com

To be clear, we (the authors) are pro-choice, not pro-abortion. After 30 weeks, the fetus is capable of surviving on its own. While we believe in women’s right to choose, this crosses the line in morality. Despite this we will always stand for a mother’s choice, despite our own personal opinions.

Pro-lifers state that it isn’t fair that the fetus doesn’t have a voice to speak out about their opinion on their own ‘murder’.

~The fetus isn’t a thinking person- it is no one yet. Yes, it is alive, but it doesn’t have any feelings whatsoever. According to ‘Learning Rx’, kids’ pre development stage runs through the ages two through seven. The pre development stage is when the child learns about the world, develops a personality, and developes feelings. The fetus has no cognitive thoughts or feelings at this state, it’s hardly alive at all.

Pro-life supporters claim that a women having an abortion is as crimeful as manslaughter

~By definition, murder is, “the killing of one human being by another.” Our argument is again, this fetus is not a PERSON yet: it is a homosapien larvae, but not a living, thinking, loving, feeling, human being. When a serial killer commits the crime of murder, they are killing a person who has an already established life/meaning- possibly a family, and is someone who has feelings. Technically, having an abortion is the equivalent of squashing a bug.

They believe that the child should be preserved even if the family doesn’t wish to keep it after it is born. The pro-life side believes that it is better to have the family give the child up for adoption than for it to have been aborted.

~The newborn child put into adoption will most likely live a lonely, rejected, even abusive life, and through all this stress could end up becoming a drug dealer, or committing suicide. If the child is lucky, and has been adopted by a good family, good for them. But, not every child’s life is a remake of Annie. That being said, it can cost thousands of dollars to put a child up for adoption- vs. $300 for an abortion.  “The mere act of having a child in a hospital can cost between $3,000 and $37,000 in the United States.” according to bustle.com. Not to mention that adoptees are 4 times more likely to commit suicide than their non-adopted peers.

Pro-lifers could care less about the wellbeing of the mother. Teen moms usually are not physically ready to give birth, so for them, bearing a child would be fatal.

~Here is a scenario from one of our sources:

“For instance: the adolescent is a typical girl, who has good friends along with family and is engaged in high school projects. As a result of her size, age, and physical maturation, she is unable to bear a baby to term. In her state abortion is against the law. She dies giving birth to the baby. The passing away of a young person is always heartbreaking. The whole area is in grieving. The duty of the newborn falls on the family, who is, by now, experiencing difficulty dealing with the loss of their child. Years after, the grandparents will need to reveal it to their grandchild that his or her mommy committed a mistake by making love, and passed away consequently. A life might have been rescued by aborting the possible one of another. ” When in our society did it become okay to trade a pre-established life for a non-established one? This is what pro-life unknowingly supports.

Once again, to be clear, we (the authors) do NOT support abortion. We respect the rights women have of their own bodies, but in some cases, people need to endure the consequences of their own stupidity. Abortion should never be used as a means of birth control. If a girl is going to die if she goes through with birth, it is okay and understandable for her to have an abortion.

It’s discrimination not to have your kid because of deformities.

~Not really, if your child is going to die within a few hours then why go through all the emotional damage and pain? Not only will the women suffer physical harm (giving birth) but watching her child die could lead to serious problems. “When performed by trained professionals, abortions are one of the safest procedures in medicine, with a death rate of less than .01 percent. The risk of dying while giving birth is roughly 13 times higher.” bustle.com. It is out right cruel to force somebody to go through that amount of danger for something that may not even live. Savita Halappanavar, a 31-year-old dentist, died on 28 October 2012 at University Hospital Galway in Ireland due to complications of a septic miscarriage at 17 weeks’ gestation after being denied an abortion. Her child died.

Mothers should accept the results of having ***.

~Women who have abortions do not necessarily consent. Many are victims of rape and ***ual assault. Why are they being forced into birth? Anybody who says this is promoting a society where victims of rape are punished and the rapists get to walk free. Most women are not victims of ***ual assault of some kind, this does not change the fact that 71% of women getting abortions used birth control of some kind, the most common being condoms. Women are not using this as a form of birth control, but rather as a last resort, possibly to save her own life. “Not all people who have *** choose to get pregnant, and even those who do should not be forced to continue a pregnancy. This essentially shames people for enjoying *** and makes it all about reproduction rather than pleasure or connecting with a partner. I would also argue that it is more responsible for a person to have an abortion if they know that they cannot care for or support a child.” says urge.org.

It’s not just the woman’s body involved anymore, now theres an infant growing in her.

~Ever heard of bodily autonomy? In America you cannot force any person to give you parts of their body without consent. This is known as bodily autonomy. Personhood and bodily autonomy says “An excellent example of this doctrine can be seen in the case of McFall v. Shimp.

In this case, Robert McFall was suffering from a rare bone marrow disease which would cause him to die if he did not receive a bone marrow transplant. McFall’s cousin, Mr. Shimp, was the only compatible donor available, but he refused to submit to the very painful process of having his bone marrow extracted. McFall took his plight before the court and asked the court to force his cousin to undergo the procedure. The court rejected McFall’s request and concluded that “for our law to compel defendant to submit to an intrusion of his body would change every concept and principle upon which our society is founded.”” No body can be forced to let anybody else use their body. By not allowing women to have an abortion you are giving women less rights than a corpse and giving a unthinking blob of tissue more rights than any born person.

Adding on to pro-choice points

No one should be forced to carry and raise the child of their rapist.

~Adults and children go through serious counseling due to their past ***ual harassment/rape. People have been violated- and for most the memory haunts them day and night. If a woman goes through one of these incidents, and becomes pregnant with her rapist’s child, mentally, how can she live with the shadow of this horrid experience for the rest of her life? Even if she chooses not to keep the child, the pain of pregnancy combined with mental strain is too much for any healthy human being to endure. Nine months of sickness and pain all to grow a child that you never wanted- a child forced upon you by a disrespectful, disgusting man. Despite T.V. shows promoting pregnancy as some wonderful thing that makes you glowing and happy, it hurts. Not only are your feet from being spread out by extra weight, but your whole body. You are constantly sick and in bad moods, all for the child of a monster. Women who have abortions do not necessarily consent. Why are they being forced into birth? Anybody who says a raped women should have to carry her child to full term is promoting a society where victims of rape are punished and the rapists get to walk free.

Making abortion illegal will not decrease abortion; it will only make drive it underground and make it less safe.

~ This i***tremely true. In the words of an anonymous user:

“There is no such thing as ‘no abortions.’ There is only such a thing as ‘no safe abortions.’” Before abortion was legalized in the twenty-five years prior to 1973 an estimated averaged 250 deaths a year, with a high of 388 in 1948. Thats all together thousands of deaths due to underground, back alley abortions. The most making abortion illegal would do is reduce abortions by 48%. That’s not even half. Most women need abortions for reasons other than convenience.

Laws should not be based on religion

~ The majority of pro-life (anti-choice) men and women come from the religious category in society (mostly men). Stating that abortion is defying the word of God.

If you are opposed to abortion, don’t have one.

~It really is this simple. If you don’t want an abortion then don’t have one! We (Pro-choice) are not forcing pro-life to have abortions, so stop trying to force us to give birth. Standing outside of a building screaming at women who most likely aren’t even going there for an abortion is kind of pointless. (Here we are referring to the rallies outside of Planned Parenthood)

The fetus is not yet a human being because it cannot survive outside the uterus on its own. Abortion should not be considered murder if the fetus is not self-sustaining and requires the mother’s body and physical resources to survive.

Being born is a gift, not a right. People don’t ask to be born, and some even wish they weren’t.

Myth busting

A fetus can think and feel pain

~As said before in our essay a fetus does not have the ability to think cognitively. Neither can a fetus feel pain. According to ‘Learning Rx,’ kids’ pre-development stage runs through the ages two through seven. The pre-development stage is when the child learns about the world, develops a personality, and developes feelings. A fetus cannot feel pain until about 27 weeks in. That means that the majority of abortions happen before the fetus can feel pain, in the first two trimesters. Many states have banned third trimester abortions due to this. However both late and early trimester abortions are performed with an anesthetic to both the mother and fetus.

Abortions are unsafe

~ “When performed by trained professionals, abortions are one of the safest procedures in medicine, with a death rate of less than .01 percent. The risk of dying while giving birth is roughly 13 times higher. Abortions performed by people without the requisite skills and training, however, are extremely unsafe. An estimated 68,000 women die every year from back alley abortions, which are generally most common when abortion is illegal and/or inaccessible.” –www.bustle.com. Abortions are extremely safe as far as operations go. People are more likely to die because of anesthesia then the actual operation. Women still can die due to the procedure but chances are in the favor of survival.

Planned Parenthood only does abortions.

~Planned Parenthood does so much more than give abortions. They provide decently priced once a year check ups. They teach *** classes. The provide free condoms. Though Planned Parenthood does provide abortions their goal is to educate women about all of these options in hopes of a safe and happy life for a child while giving a expectant mother truth and happiness as well.