Monday, October 11, 2010

Abortion: Is it worth the risk?

No matter what angle anyone looks at it, the topic of abortion is one of the most arguable and controversial issues of social justice. Society today is split down the middle with some individuals who believe that abortion should be a common practice amongst women and some that have a totally different perspective on the matter. By definition, it is  "the termination of a woman's pregnancy through the process of removing a growing fetus from her uterus". Statistics show that 42,000,000 abortions take place around the world about every year. However, the staggering news is that only about half of them are done correctly without harming the pregnant mother and unborn fetus. With this in mind, some might say that abortion should be illegal since it is a very dangerous practice for everyone and everything involved. That it would be much easier to just have the child and then give it up for adoption so that he or she will have the chance to live a life. Some people consider abortion in a political standpoint, but it’s not about politics. Though there are certain circumstances that cannot be ignored with regards to abortion, the practice itself should be illegal due to probable negative consequences.

In the United States, the practice is very much a legal right for many women as an option of choice. However, it is through the power of the numbers that will tell the whole story from the United States Census Bureau. 75% of Americans who participated in a recent poll do not support the country's current policy of an "immediate abortion". 53% of the 75% say that the practice should only be utilized in certain circumstances (i.e. rape, but its only accounts for 2% of all resulting abortions) while 22% believe that abortion should not even be illegal all together. The most common reason why abortions are utilized according to statistics is because of unplanned pregnancies often times due to failure in birth-control methods such as pills and condoms. That is why the best method to prevent having a child or an abortion is abstinence according to leading experts and physicians.

There are alternatives to abortion though. Statistics reveal that 69% of mothers with unplanned pregnancies often want to be informed of alternatives of abortion before making the final decision. The most popular being adoption. If two individuals are not capable of taking care or raising a kid, it does not mean that the only method of dealing with this conundrum is killing an unborn fetus. A mother can choose to give birth to her child and allow the kid a chance to live a normal life through means of putting them up for adoption if she and the father are incapable of providing for him or her. 74% of parents of unplanned pregnancies said that having a child would interfere with schooling, work, or other responsibilities while 73% say that they cannot afford to have an infant in their lives. This way, adoption will allow the parents the freedom to pursue their personal aspirations and goals without the burden of child-care and financial worries. Having a child is agreeably a huge deal that consists of feeding him or her, helping them sleep, and especially the dreaded doctor visits. They will also allow two parents who want a child through adoption to have theirs. That way, the infant will be under proper care and protection that his or her original parents are not able to provide for them.

Abortions can result in physical and mental health problems for the mother and unborn child. For physical health, there are complications that include (but are not limited to) infertility for future planned pregnancies, breast cancer, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, and liver cancer. The most common health issues are the pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and the infections of the reproductive system of the mother. In some rare cases, abortions can cause future planned children to be born in the fallopian tube of the mom instead of the uterus and even variation in deliveries (meaning the planned child was born either too early or too late of the usual nine month period). Sometimes, death can occur to the mother as a result of an abortion on a very rare occasion. The most probable reason is if the physician is not correctly conducting the abortion with safety. In contrast to physical health, physiological health must be taken into account to. 50% of women who underwent abortions commonly experience moderately severe to very severe negative emotional reactions during months to even years after the procedure. Symptoms can include feelings of guilt, anxiety, depression, fear of disclosure, and even nightmares. Physiological effects on an extreme level of an abortion can result as increased alcohol/drug abuse, eating disorders, and even suicide.

As for me, I fall under the 53% of Americans that believe that abortion should only be utilized under certain circumstances (i.e. if abortion were to save the mother's life or if the unplanned pregnancy was the result of rape). What is your opinion/perspective on the stance? Do you support or refuse the concept of abortion completely? Or are you like me who takes the side of having abortion be utilized only in certain circumstances? What do you think?

8 comments:

  1. I understand that abortion is a very controversial topic and it has been for a long time. I do not refuse the concept of abortion completely. Likewise to 53% of Americans, I believe that abortion should be used for certain circumstances such as rape. Web MD reported that 1.3 million abortions take place a year due to rape. I also think only the pregnant individual knows what is best for them and, in the end, it should be up to them to make their own choice. A pregnancy is costly and some people simply cannot afford it. Some girls become pregnant at young ages and cannot handle raising a child. Pregnanteenhelp.org reported that 750,000 teenagers in the United States become pregnant each year (the highest rate of teen pregnancy being in Nevada). I believe, personally, that the better choice, except under certain circumstances, is to have the child and place the baby up for adoption after birth. There are many couples in the world that simply cannot have a child and their only hope is adoption. In fact, according to adoption.com about 120,000 children are adopted yearly by American citizens, most of them being from China. I think abortion will always be controversial.

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  2. I 100% agree with you. Abortion is a very controversal topic, and people have varying views of the subject of abortion. My view is that abortion should only be used in certain circumstances, like rape or when the mother is in danger. I believe that abortion is killing. Although the baby has not been born yet, it is living inside the mother and has the potential to have life. Adoption is a great alternative to abortion. It allows the baby to live and it gives couple who are not able to conceive a chance to have a child. I think that if you don't want to risk having a child, you should not have sex, or you should be extremely careful with what contraceptives you use. Someone who has an unwanted pregnancy should not take it out on the unborn child. They should have to live with the concequences and either put the child up for adoption if they can't afford to raise a child, or raise the child themselves. Abortion should not be a common practice used in the United States.

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  3. I completely agree with you on your stand point of abortion. I think that the only appropriate time for an abortion is if giving birth to the child will cause serious injury or death to the mother. Another time I feel it is appropriate for an abortion is if the mother was raped. Abortion and parenthood can be very expensive and instead of the child suffering later on in life, adoption is a great avenue. I feel that adoption is a great opportunity for parents of an unwanted child to give up their baby without ending the child's life. I feel that in unplanned teen pregnancies when girls get pregnant, I feel it was their own mistake and that the innocent child shouldn't have to suffer and be killed. I feel that adoption will give the child an opportunity to live a happy and healthy life that he/she may not have received in the household of its biological parents. Later in life when the child is older and if they decide to meet their biological parents, they will be able to explain that what they did was best for the child at the time. It is the best thing a mother can do if she doesn't want to have her baby. I feel that abortion should be the last option and in some cases not an option at all.

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  4. I completely agree with you. An abortion should only be done when there was a rape or they mother is in critical condition. I STRONGLY feel that just having an abortion because you do not want the baby or that the protectiong failed is wrong and should not be done. If you did not want the pregnancy why take the risk and have sex. That unborn baby should not be punished and aborted because the protection failed and the baby is not wanted. Just because you don't want the baby doesn't mean it shouldn't be able to have a life. That baby could grow up and really make a difference in the world and if not even so it still deserves a chance at life. I feel that if you don't want the baby you should still give them a life and give it up for adoption because some people would kill for a baby not kill an unborn baby. This is just my opinion but I strongly feel that abortion should be the last resort and only done when there was a rape or the mother is in a bad condition.

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  5. Abortion is a horrible thing to endure as a mother and as the unborn fetus. Not only do we have to take into consideration the mothers feelings and emotions, but the fact that they are killing a living creature. The fetus is alive and knows what is going on, have you ever heard of the “silent scream?” This is when the abortion is sucking the life out of the fetus like a vacuum and all its limbs are being ripped about and all you can hear is a silent but still much alive scream, from the fetus. Yes, the mother is important but the fetus has not seen one once of life and if the mother waits to long to get the abortion, that fetus is a person and is being murdered. So I think to a certain extent abortion should be illegal. Abortion should only be tried as illegal if the mother waits a few weeks where the fetus is growing and actually has like fingernails and what looks like limbs; this is considered a living breathing person. But on other terms I feel like if the mother doesn’t want the baby because of rape or just didn’t want to get pregnant and they found out quickly and got the abortion, I feel like that is okay. Abortion is an execution no matter which way you look at it, it’s just certain ways you can prevent from getting an abortion or from killing a life.

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  6. I feel that abortion should not be an option unless the mother or the child is put at a health risk from the pregnancy. For example, if the mother passed on HIV to the child, or if the mother's life is put at risk it might be an appropriate option. Any fetus within the mother's womb has a heartbeat, therefore it is a living baby. There's no way to justify why killing a baby is right, even if it is inconvenient to the parents. They are living humans, just like us. Adoption would give the child a good, happy life with people who are ready for the responsibility. There are other options besides abortion. People shouldn't be careless about using protection because abortion is available. It's the parent's responsibility to deal with such a thing, and if you can't handle a child, be careful and don't consider abortion your only option, most likely it will affect you for a long time in the future. It's a big decision to make, think wisely.

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  7. I disagree with a lot of these comments. I think it is right that abortion is an option for mothers no matter what the circumstance is. As Sarah said, abortion is okay when a rape is invloved, but many people also say abortion is wrong because you are killing a fetus. The fact that the mother was raped or not, does not change the fact that a fetus is being killed. So, if it is okay to kill a fetus because of a rape issue, it should also be okay if a mother is not ready to be pregnant. Abortion is popular among teenage girls. Yes, adoption is an option, but being pregnant can still cause a teenager to miss out on their schooling which is very important to a teenager. Being pregnant can also cause a teenager to de depressed, so if having an abortion would make this teenager more comfortable, they should be allowed to do it. Everyone is in control of their own bodies,so if someone is okay with having an abortion that is their decision and I do not think others should criticize them for doing so. Likewise, if someone is against having an abortion that is their own opinion and others should not criicize them for it. Being a US citizen, we have a lot of freedom and I do not think this freedom should be taken away when it comes to abortion.

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  8. Abortion needs to be illegal unless it is certain the mother will die if the baby is born. That is the only exception that should be allowed to the ban on abortion. Biologically speaking, once the sperm and egg meet, a new human life is created. the fetus is human because it is comprised of human DNA. The DNA of the fetus is not identical to the mother or the father. Its DNA is unique and therefore, the fetus is not "just part of the mother' body" so the mother cannot use the excuse "it is my body, I should be able to do with it what I want." Others use the argument "I wouldn't have an abortion but I'm not the one to tell someone they cant have an abortion." What would have happened if Lincoln said "I don't agree with slavery, but I'm not the one to tell someone they can't have slaves"? The wicked act of slavery would still be in existence. People are either for or against the murder of unborn babies, they cannot categorize themselves in a third party that doesn't want to get involved. Also there is the argument of before a certain date is okay, but not after a certain period. In other words, it is okay to kill a baby at one age but not after another. Abortion is murder and needs to be illegal.

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