The Morality of Abortion!

[SnickerKitten]

THERE ARE ONLY TWO REASONS THE QUESTION OF TERMINATION OF A FETUS WOULD ARISE IN THE FINAL TRIMESTER OF PREGNANCY: SEVERE RISKS TO THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OR THE MOTHER/BABY/BOTH SHOULD GESTATION CONTINUE, OR SEVERE BIRTH DEFECT INDICATING THE CHILD'S LIFE WOULD BE UNSUSTAINABLE OUTSIDE THE WOMB.

That this has even become an issue for debate is ludicrous.

I drove a friend of mine to a clinic because she had gotten warts and was having them removed. While in the waiting room I met a woman that was 7 1/2 months pregnant and was having a late term abortion because her boyfriend had broken up with her. There was absolutely no known risk to her continuing to carry the baby and the baby was viable outside the womb. She merely didn't want to raise the baby herself and for whatever reason refused to consider adoption.

To relate this back to the topic of the thread- was her choice immoral? Yes, absolutely. She killed needlessly.

Are there times when abortion is definately immoral? Yes, absolutely. When the infant is at a point that it could survive outside the womb it does not endanger the mother any more to have an induced birth than to have a late term abortion- in fact, the only real difference between the two is that in am induced labor they preserve the life of the infant and in a preterm abortion they suck the brain out before the head is fully delivered. Four more inches and it would just be an induced newborn.

Is it immoral to use abortion as a chosen form of birth control? "Oh, *if* I get pregnant I'll just have an abortion." "I don't need to worry about birth control, there's always abortion." IMO, yes!

Is it immoral to get an abortion if you get pregnant as a result of rape? I wouldn't care if it was or not, but I *personally* would certainly abort that child.

Is it immoral to get an abortion if you find out there is something "wrong" with the child you are carrying? I've had a very set opinion on this question many times. Having a child that was diagnosed with autism has given me a very powerful insight into what it is to raise a special needs child. If I knew then what I know now..... Let me tell you, that's one of those things that drives home the old reference to walking in someone else's shoes before judging them.

For the record-because individuals views on abortion were pointed out earlier in this thread to be predictable based on their social and political views: my political stance is decidedly conservative although I am not a Republican. My fiscal stance is also decidedly conservative and I am completely against any type of "redistribution of wealth", as far as social welfare programs go, I'm not at all supportive of giving "handouts" for longer than a VERY brief term and to instead provide job training and job opportunities (providing daycare for other "welfare" families, etc). My religious stance is- I'm not a practicing member of any religion. My view on capital punishment is- much as my darling husband opposes it and has tried to change my opinion, I support it.

So my bottom line opinion on whether abortion is moral or immoral is that it is more immoral than moral but is excusable in some situations.

-kitten