Characterizing the Abortion Discussion

[Vertigo-X]

TheLastStarFighter said:

I hate when abortion is viewed as a "woman's issue". It's a reproductive issue, but reproduction is a human issue, not a woman's issue. Essentially, what I mean is that on one side we push for men to be equally responsible for the birth and raising of a child. They must pay child support if they are not present raising a child. But yet when it comes to deciding if the child will be born or not, only the woman has a say. It's a major legal inconsistency. Either men should have a say in whether a child is aborted/adopted and also have to pay child support, or it should be entirely a woman's decision and financial responsibility. I personally feel it should be the former, but it should definitely be one or the other, and that's the end of the "woman's issue" aspect.

Once you deal with that side, you get the fundamental abortion issue of whether it's murder or not, and whether murder is wrong or not. It's tough. Personally, I lean to the idea that it's human life and should be preserved at all costs. At the same time I understand the trauma of a parent who isn't ready to care for a child, or a rape victim being forced to nurture the spawn of an evil person. It's a very challenging issue that people can only find answers to in their hearts.

The one thing I'm certain on, is that it should never be called a "woman's issue".

+Thumbs_Up

 

That's a good point, I think. It's another consideration that there's an inequality of choice between man and woman (according to society) and yet full equality outside of the pregnancy.

 

However, I would argue that the 'sanctity of life' discussion must come first. This is due to the fact that if we think human life is sacred, it shuts down any further discussion on the matter. If human life is not, then further discussion can be had.