Choice
A woman in my office hollered across the hallway yesterday, “I guess I’m not moving to South Dakota anytime soon.”I am grateful that we live in a country where we have such freedom of opposing viewpoints and yet I am always startled when someone says something with such a presumption that you must certainly agree with them.
Fact is, I don’t. Not on this one.
I believe that as human beings, we have every say so over our own bodies and should not have dictates handed to us from our government over what we can and cannot do with them. If you want to have surgery for bigger boobs, penile implants, to change from a woman to a man, you go right ahead. I do not see in any way, however, how abortion has to do with a choice over a woman’s body. If she wants a choice over being pregnant or not, her choice fell in advance of the sexual act that created the pregnancy, not after. I recognize that in cases of rape, a woman did NOT have a choice over the sexual act. I still believe that child has a choice and there are options for the woman that do not include killing the child.
If a woman wants me to extend to her the right to decide for herself whether or not she should be pregnant than I ask her to extend the right to the child she is carrying. If we all have rights over our own bodies, then let that little child speak as to whether or not it would like to live…it has a right to it’s own life, certainly…
Oh, but it CAN’T speak.
So we allow a pregnant woman to speak FOR it.
I could argue this in a hundred directions with many examples only to be countered with someone saying “it’s a fetus, not a child”. I wonder if that person has ever been pregnant. I wonder if they have ever seen a fetus the size of a grain of rice on an ultrasound monitor, or heard a heartbeat twice as fast as their own, or even before that, just had a gut feeling that something was being created within them. I have a picture of a grain of rice sized fetus from the only ultrasound we ever had. His name is Jacob. I wonder how many women would go through with an abortion if they saw that fetus on an ultrasound first. There is no question that it is alive. There is no question that it is part of you. There is no question that it is your child.
I know women who have gone to great lengths to have a child. I know women who have had babies without issue. I know women who have become pregnant without planning to. I know women who have been pregnant at the wrong time, in the wrong place in life, or with the wrong person and have given the baby up for adoption. I know women who have adopted. Not one of these women that I know would go back in time and choose abortion. Not. One.
I recognize that women do not agree on this issue. I recognize that many women feel it is their unalienable right to choose whether or not to be pregnant. I couldn’t agree more. I simply disagree as to when that choice can be made. Actions have consequences. I do not believe in any situation that murder is excusable for a mistake in judgment.
If you want the right to choose, then allow the baby the right to the same choice. After all, she might be a woman, too.
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I welcome all comments to this post, on either side of this issue. I simply ask that you demonstrate respect for the opposing view, that is what makes us Americans.
Comments
I am glad we live where we do so that we can all freely express our opinion without fear.
Once in college (I went to a Catholic University) a professor did a class on this and used slavery as an analogy. 100 years ago people used the same arguments to support slavery, ei. a black man isn't really a man, so it's alright. And people argued against slavery saying that of course a black man is still a man, still a life...etc.
People thought that the decision should be up to them, that the government shouldn't make a "moral" decision for them.
His point was basically that there was a time when people thought that slavery wasn't wrong because they were'nt dealing with 'human beings', and that in 100 years, people will look back at abortion the same way we now look at slavery and think we were crazy for saying that a fetus wasn't a life.
It was an interesting way to look at it, and it really made me think.
That being said, for me, I believe that abortion is wrong, that a fetus is really a life. I belive it because of my faith, because science can't say that for sure. But I can't help but remember that not all people believe what I believe and so I can't expect them to live under my dictum. So I am torn on the issue really.
Recenlty my husband and I went to our ob/gyn for our routine 19/20 week ultra sound. We were told the tech spotted something abnormal and we were sent to a level 2 ultra sound the following week. The day of our level 2 we were sent immediately to a genetic counselor and for another ultra sound. had a fetal MRI a few days later and met with numerous doctors. Long story short we ended up terminating our wanted and already loved baby. We chose termination because of the lack of quality of life for our unborn child. My husband and I both have living wills and wouldn't wan't to be kept alive via machines so why should our unborn child have to live a life like that?
It was the hardest decision we have ever had to make. But again, we thank God we live in a state where it is allowed and that we were able to go to the hospital to have it done. I will be forever greatful to all the doctors we met with that were honest with us and helped us make the decisions we did.
So my question to you is, do you feel this way about aborting unwanted pregnancies only? Or do you feel that terminating a wanted pregnancy for medical reasons is the same thing?
I feel this way about any pregnancy, at any point, under any condition. I believe it is a life. And I do not believe that we have the right to judge who gets to live and who doesn't. If you had had a healthy child, and at 3, she had been diagnosed with a horrible, physical and mental disability, killing her then would be murder. I believe it is the same when we know the status while pregnant.
It was your choice, and you are content with your decision. It does not mean that I agree with the fact or that given the opportunity I wouldn't revoke that right.
We do not allow people to kill children. No matter what. I do not believe we should kill unborn babies, either.
I think we underestimate the power of God. Perhaps we say that a baby, still in the womb cannot survive the cancer treatments, too. Or, perhaps we think that the mother cannot survive waiting for treatment until the child is born. Who are we to know? Both of their lives are in God's hands.
My mother was diagnosed with a brain tumor when she was 34 years old. It was deemed inoperable. She eventually participated in an experimental cancer research study near Chicago. She was given 5 years to live. She lived 13. Eventually a different doctor said he would operate.
Who are we to think we know when something is terminable and when it isn't? We don't know. Only God knows. We need to trust Him to make the decision for us.
At least that's my take on it.
I think there is a reason why some children are born with a handicap. We are not to play the role of God and deem their life not one fit to live!
(stepping off my soap box, now!)
I don't intend to try to sway your thoughts on this issue. I do believe that no matter what, it is a personal choice. I think it is one made between the mother, father and whoever their Higher Power is.
My husband and I faced a very difficult decision. We personally felt that bringing a child into this world with severe disabilities and no quality of life was wrong and very selfish. We both believe in God and we believe that God helped us make this decision, it is our faith that helped us to choose the right path.
It is my belief that people who believe in Life only feel that people who believe in Choice do not believe in God. For that I feel sorry.