Scully's Corner

Thursday 25 August 2011

Abortion

I was born into a family with quite a strong link with the pro-life movement. Relatives of mine would have joined anti-abortion protests down throughout the years, with the intention to make sure the Irish government didn't cave into international pressure outside the Republic of Ireland trying to interfere with our  sovereign Irish constitutions protection of the unborn, thanks to article 40.3.3  passed by a referendum on the issue in 1983,  or equally give into a minority of Irish public who wanted it made legal. Since then we've had numerous other referenda, splitting families and becoming one of the most divisive issues of our time. To be honest i wish the issue would go away. I'm sick of it at this stage and as time has passed i've been more and more unwilling to even discuss the issue. (In fact the last time it was brought up in conversation among friends i ended the conversation immediately) Unfortunately the issue will never dissipate it will never fade. An election in this country is never over before the thorny issue manages to rear its head. It has already happened in the Presidential election, with Gay Mitchell, and his infamous letter defending a man who killed two individuals outside an abortion clinic. Though we must remember his reasoning behind it seems clear, he objects as I do with the death penalty, not with the act of a so-called crazed 'pro-lifer'. Though i've been increasingly unwilling to discuss the issue, my objection to abortion will never waver. I'm not a member of any pro-life organization and don't plan to be ( apart from a pro-life society in my University.) The fact is in a democracy the Irish people, and the Irish people alone should determine our laws, that includes on the issue of abortion, not foreign agents. Thankfully polls have consistently shown that between 60%-70% of the Irish public oppose abortion being made legal in Ireland. When asked in the most recent poll commissioned admittedly by the Pro-life Campaign in Ireland "Are you in favour of, or opposed to, constitutional protection for the unborn that prohibits abortion but allows the continuation of the existing practice of intervention to save a mother’s life in accordance with Irish medical ethics?" 68% of respondents said yes, while 26% opposed it. The Pro-life Campaign is among the numerous pro-life groups in Ireland ensuring that abortion remains illegal in this country. 


My objection to abortion is NOT based on religion. (Not that there is anything wrong with that) While it's welcome news that the Catholic Church and other major religions such as Muslims and Jews oppose it, honestly i don't care. My basic reason for opposing it, is based on both science and reasoning. I believe and the reality of abortion shows that it intentionally destroys a defenseless human being. It's folly for people to advocate for other 'rights' such as a right to an education and healthcare unless you realize that in order to be granted any other right whatsoever you must be afforded the most important right of all, the right to life. The right to come out of your mothers womb alive, which abortion gruesomely prevents from happening. Without the right to life, other rights are meaningless. We must start from the beginning and admit that the right to life IS first and foremost the most important right of all. I've noticed numerous pro-choice individuals try to muddy the water on this issue by claiming pro-choice is pro-life. Quite astounding to be honest and probably one of the most blatant oxymorons i've heard, when did supporting a 'choice' of terminating a separate life, with it's own unique DNA, limbs and a heartbeat which begins after three weeks, by destroying that life become 'pro-life' ? Some pro-choicer's also seem to have a habit of labeling pro-lifers as 'anti women'. Laughable, what about the high proportion of pro-life women, i suppose their anti-women, by being women? And try telling that to my mother or sister for that matter, i hate women? No i love women, i stand up and defend females in the womb before they become women in the first place, i'm defending their lives along with the lives of males before they are born. I'm glad my mother made the decision to keep me. She didn't regard my life in the womb as her's to take, she respected my right to life and brought me into this world, lavishing me with love and affection ever since. I was a gift. I was a child, and not a choice. 


Yes you'll get pro-life nuts, but you get nuts everywhere. You'll have pro-life people who are split over the contraception issue between those of us who have no problem with contraception (myself, i don't oppose preventing a pregnancy by any means, i just oppose ending one through abortion)  for example and those who aren't, but we're all united in something more important, defending life. And being pro-life isn't all about affording protection for our next generation in the womb. It should also be about opposing the death penalty, helping the poor and disabled within our society, opposing wars, genocide, crimes against children, against humanity. Being pro-life is or should be about defending ALL life, from it's earliest stages (conception) all the way through to when we are reliant on others, due to our old age, and expect compassion an care to be given to us. Abortion is not compassionate, far from it. It is wrong, it often effects women in a negative way, many having to undergo counseling to overcome it, some women even ending their own lives because of it. The abortion industry is not interested in caring for women, it's interested in making money. Organizations like Mary Stopes and Planned Parenthood would come to an end if there were no abortion, they need women to continue to come into their 'clinics', period. I cannot think of a more harrowing way for a so-called doctor to make money by ending the life of an unborn child. I thought doctors were required to save life not end it, (unless of course the women's life is at risk). It's also interesting that many self described pro-choice people, oppose conscientious objection to preforming abortions, they  don't want choice in that instance they want a doctor to be forced to do something which contradicts his/her moral philosophy. Or indeed forcing taxpayers who are pro-life from funding pro-abortion organizations, or in fact not giving the man any say in the matter even though it obviously takes a male to impregnate a women, and therefore 50% of that life developing in the womb in undeniably his, and 50%  hers. Remember it takes both a man and a women to make a child. Some pro-choice people obviously have a clear double standard. Lastly once a women becomes pregnant, we are no longer dealing with one life, but two lives. Both deserve to be respected, and both the women and her precious unborn child have a right to life. 

9 comments:

  1. Great post, Luke. It's amazing how universal a movement, such as the Pro-Life movement, can be. What you experience in Ireland and throughout Europe is exactly what we experience here in the US. My reasons for being Pro-Life have nothing to do with religion or the fact that I'm Catholic. It has everything to do with what I feel is right. And Like you, I have no problem with use of contraceptives, but when a woman becomes pregnant, the unborn child needs to be respected. And I will never waver on that. That unborn child has every right to enter this world. There's not a day that goes by that I don't count my blessings for having a biological mother that placed me for adoption instead of ending my life. As far as I'm concerned, that's true love.

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  2. While I do appreciate the fevered enthusiasm some Prolifers embody, I think it's grossly misplaced. If you claim to love and support women, then you comprehend that abortion at times is medically and therapeutically necessary for women to continue their lives in a fashion that they deem appropriate. Considering that abortion directly impacts their bodies, their livelihoods, their educations, their occupations, their well-being (emotionally, psychologically and physically) and their LIVES, I don't see how this is an issue where the Government or general population should be authorized to make a decision.

    If you honestly wish to end the majority of abortions, work towards creating a world where the need is limited. I'm sorry, just because I was born with a uterus does not mean I wish to utilize it at any given moment :)

    Cheers,
    Beth

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  3. Hi Beth,


    And i welcome the response. I will say that at times abortion is necessary. The terminology 'medically' and 'therapeutically' however to my mind is too broad and too general, without giving actual specifics. However when i say necessary, i mean necessary when the life of the mother is at risk.

    I don't see why when a majority of a population approves of limiting abortion (or anything else for that matter) that the government should just ignore public opinion however. I may add an additional comment at a later stage. :)

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  4. Good post Luke. You make very valid points. I think it's really important also to say that an abortion is never necessary to save a woman's life. Pregnant women in Ireland receive all of the necessary medical care that they need. If the treatment that a pregnant woman needs for some illness will result in the unwanted death of her unborn child - then that's what it is, a tragic, undesired and unintentional side effect. The intention is to cure the mother of some illness and the perfect outcome would be that she recovers and her baby is unharmed. With an abortion, of course, the sole intention is the death of the unborn baby so it's very different. It's worth repeating in blog posts because it (rightly) causes concern for women when they the difference between the two is not fully explained.

    Cheers,
    Cora

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  5. Hi Cora,

    Thanks for clarification Cora, and your comments :)

    Regards

    Luke

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  6. I agree with Beth. I was adopted as a child so I guess in today's world it would have been easy to just go somewhere and get "me" taken care of. I don't want to get into the argument about legality because it's just so difficult to argue and everyone is entrenched in their belief anyways.

    A better argument should be with all of the birth control methods available today why can't we all unite to do the best that we can to minimize them to as close to zero as possible.

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  7. That sounds great only thing is i don't believe opposing side is all too interesting in limiting the amount of abortions, their main goal is to ensure women avail of an abortion, that is their first priority. Therefore there is a conflict of interest.

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  8. Great post Luke and well argued.

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  9. err Gay Mitchell has been quiet unclear in his reasoning. He seems to only specialize in defending rapists/child killers that share his views. If that is so then state your case Gay but stop pretending that there are all these letters that were written on behalf of other inmates.

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