Abortions

[XxFaithxX]

I think abortions are bad in any case. And here is my reason.

I once had a dream that I was pregnant. And I was still young, like the same age I am now, 16. It was the most terrifying dream I've ever had, but the reason behind that is, I realized I was carrying another LIFE inside me, another PERSON that would grow up to be almost just like you and me. It scared the hell outta me, because I didn't know how I would be able to care for this other life. But it was a life, so I knew I had to do it. That's why I believe abortions are wrong. You're killing a LIFE. You're destroying a PERSON. No matter their past, where or who they came from, they're still a person, they're still a living breathing human being. And when you kill that human being because of whatever reason, that's basically murder. Now, I understand the whole rape thing, but even then, think about the CHILD and not yourself! Just because you were raped and that's a rape baby, doesn't mean you have to be selfish and kill the poor thing! They want a life just like you do, so let them live it! And if you put them up for adoption, and they come looking for you, who cares? Tell them the truth! It might be hard, but life is a challenge, we just have to deal with it! And when it comes to babies that have disorders, let them live too! Because every day doctors are coming up with new medicine to fight these disorders and bring a child back to the reality of life. So let the child live! All they want is to live just like you and I. And besides, if doctors can come up with a way to kill a child, they can come up with a way to SAVE a child. Don't take the easy way out, because later on down the line, that one mistake might come back to bite you in the butt. Do what you think is right, but, in the end, remember this.

If you were that child, wouldn't you have wanted to live?

I disagree - in the case of rape, there is every right for the mother-to-be to have the option to have an abortion as she will be constantly reminded of her ordeal with the rapist. This could have a major psychological effect on both her and the child. Imagine what it would be like as that child, knowing that you were the result of a rape, a lustful father whom you will never know?

What if you are 13 years old and you have been raped. Is it wrong for such a young child herself to have an abortion? She can barely look after herself let alone a baby. This would be very distressing as she would still be at school - a whole life ahead of her, ruined by some rapist, left to care for a baby.

With regards to the subject of a baby with a disorder, I agree that yes, they should not have an abortion just because it may be ill, but then again, it could disrupt the family life and that of the child. The child with the disorder may have to go through so much suffering with that disorder. The quality of life would be very low and I would assume that would it be better to have lived no life rather than a terrible one.
Unfortunately some disorders can not be cured - Downs Syndrome, Turners Syndrome etc etc. Genetics are the reason for this. It's all to do with the X and Y chromosomes, which takes place deep in ever incy wincy tiny cell. This would be extremely difficult and impossible to fix.

I also believe that an abortion should be allowed in the case when a mother may die from childbirth. It does not matter whether the child is healthy or not, the mother's life comes first. Why? Because without the mother, there can be no proper family. Would it not be better if the mother lived and the child did not? The children already in the family would suffer as they would not have a mother, but instead another baby to look after. This would make life very difficult.

So yeah - there's me on my midnight-british-banter. Hope you learnt something from it :]

[mmm]

With regards to the subject of a baby with a disorder, I agree that yes, they should not have an abortion just because it may be ill, but then again, it could disrupt the family life and that of the child. The child with the disorder may have to go through so much suffering with that disorder. The quality of life would be very low and I would assume that would it be better to have lived no life rather than a terrible one.
Unfortunately some disorders can not be cured - Downs Syndrome, Turners Syndrome etc etc. Genetics are the reason for this. It's all to do with the X and Y chromosomes, which takes place deep in ever incy wincy tiny cell. This would be extremely difficult and impossible to fix.

We can't start down that slippery slope of assumption. Assuming that the child would want this or want that can be used as evidence for any position. The same applies to "The quality of life [for a child with Down Syndrome and his/her family] would be very low..." Also, if the quality of life for the parents of a disabled child is too poor for them, they can donate their child to someone who will love the "retarded" child for who he/she is, not who their parents wished for him/her to be. I believe that there is little difference between carrying to term a "normal" child and a child with a genetic disorder, so I see no reason why the parents cannot simply give the child up for adoption.

In fact, aborting a baby because he/she will be mentally handicapped is little different from aborting a baby because she is a girl; both are specific traits present in a baby that the parents find undesirable to the point of killing their offspring.

While the odds currently look bleak for a cure for genetic diseases*, the eventual prevention of embryos from inheriting those diseases are more likely. After all, since these diseases have indicators in the parents' DNA, we are currently able to find the chances of a potential child having these genetic disorders. Additionally, if we get to the point where every couple can determine the risks that their potential child will be born with a genetic disorder, I believe that abortions on account of genetic disorders will be minimal, if not nonexistent. This would be on account of couples knowing what they're getting into; the kind of adults who believe that they need to end the life of their child because it has Down's Syndrome won't risk conceiving a child if there is even a remote chance that he/she will have a genetic disorder.

*Not every cell with Down Syndrome genetic information in the body causes the symptoms of Down Syndrome; skin and kidney tissue do not cause the mental retardation, a specific type of nervous cell does. There may be millions of these cells, but they would share a common function and thus all could be treated similarly, not just cell-by-cell. I'm not saying that a cure for genetic disorders would be easy to find, but I'm saying that you do not need to genetically re-engineer the entire body of an individual with a genetic disorder.

[Wow_Give_Up_On_Life]

Your all simply wrong.

Assuming that the child would want this or want that can be used as evidence for any position.

This is actually exactly what can be done. This topic can be simplified into a
simple ark.

- Is this child's Quality of life going to be good?

- Is this child going to suffer from a disorder?
- If the child suffers from a disorder and is
aware of it, will he still want to continue?
- Does the child have any say in if he wants
to live?
- Is it a good thing to allow a mentally handicapped
boy to live in a world that he will never be able to
participate properly in?

You must realize that it is the parents decision.
Sadly I'd say a vast majority of the worlds population
suffers from Mental handicap of idiocracy.

[meiguorach]

Okaaaay! I've found a topic that I 100%, completely, absolutely disagree with, so of course I have to comment.

Abortion is wrong. I'm just going to state that right off the bat. It is wrong, no matter the circumstances. It is the same as murder, as you are killing a human being. And an innocent human being at that.

Anyway. It's wrong no matter the circumstances.

First of all, if people don't want babies, they have no business acting in ways that could potentially get the woman pregnant. And if people aren't married, they shouldn't be acting in those ways anyway. But that is a different discussion for a different forum.

Second, it's wrong even in the case of rape. I understand that rape is a terrible thing, and it's not a woman's fault if she becomes pregnant. However, killing an innocent problem isn't the answer. You are, in essence, punishing the baby for something the father did. I don't think any of you would agree with somebody being punished for something someone else did. And yet most people condone punishing an innocent babe in that exact way.

Aaaanyway... I gotta go now, so I guess I'll just wait for some responses, lol.

[Hitokiri]

not to mention you punish the baby if it's born too.
Or would you like to be the child of a rape victim?

[meiguorach]

not to mention you punish the baby if it's born too.
Or would you like to be the child of a rape victim?

At least I would have had the chance to live, and my mother wouldn't have been guilty of killing. Giving a child life is never a punishment.

[Dr Frook]

not to mention you punish the baby if it's born too.
Or would you like to be the child of a rape victim?

agreed, a child is meant to be born from an act of love. Rape, by it's very definition, is an act of savagery, of hatred, of violence. A child born from this would have to live with that knowledge (assuming the mother tells it). I wouldnt want to exist if I knew my mother was raped and I was the product of such violence.

[mmm]

not to mention you punish the baby if it's born too.
Or would you like to be the child of a rape victim?

agreed, a child is meant to be born from an act of love. Rape, by it's very definition, is an act of savagery, of hatred, of violence. A child born from this would have to live with that knowledge (assuming the mother tells it). I wouldnt want to exist if I knew my mother was raped and I was the product of such violence.

Please, tell us more about the thought process of a child born from rape. You've obviously been in that situation before and know that none of them want to live, because they all think the same way one adult Australian does. You know, we should also abort all children born from casual sex!

No idea what I've said on this topic, but here's my view on what the laws should be:
1) No abortions past a set date (We need some cold hard science to back up when a fetus can feel pain). I believe we already have a date set, but am unsure of it's accuracy.
2) Abortions are permissible (even after the set date) when the mother's life is in serious danger if she delivers the child. This diagnosis must be left to the doctor at hand.

I believe abortions are often too circumstantial to make laws further than this.

[meiguorach]

You mentioned that it was okay before a certain date. What about the day before said date? Is it alive one day, but not the next? What about the day before that? A person can never say when a person has reached a "certain date" because it is impossible to figure out when that date is.

[mmm]

You mentioned that it was okay before a certain date. What about the day before said date? Is it alive one day, but not the next? What about the day before that? A person can never say when a person has reached a "certain date" because it is impossible to figure out when that date is.

Perhaps we should leave it up to the doctor, then. The theoretical date I'm talking about is the point when the fetus can feel pain, or perhaps some other logical point in time. We need doctors to research this, without all the political bullshit. I haven't been able to find any such studies.