Wednesday, March 28, 2012

The Real Problem

The issue of abortion is that of convenience and pleasure over the rights of people who have no ability to speak for themselves. On the news the other day, they showed a woman who had gone in for an abortion. The doctor showed the woman the ultrasound, but the woman said it didn’t make any difference in her decision. I asked myself, “How does that make sense? How can she see the images of that child growing within her and not be moved with compassion?”

I’m sure there are women who see the ultrasound images and make the decision to not go through with the abortion. That is what the people who crafted the law hoped, anyway. But many don’t. The problem for these women isn’t that they don’t know they are carrying a living child. If that were the only issue, perhaps they would be concerned enough to let the baby live. But is never just about the baby.

The women who go in for an abortion are in a situation they don’t want to be in. Perhaps they don’t like the discomfort of pregnancy. Perhaps they don’t want certain family members finding out. Perhaps their boyfriend doesn’t like that they are pregnant. It isn’t so much an issue of choice because they had the option of not having sex in the first place. Some people don’t think that is when the choice should be made, but it is still true that she had a choice then. But the woman wants out of the stressful situation she is in and abortion appears to be the quick way out. It is like the bank teller who needs more money for the house payment, so she takes some money from the drawer. She knows there’s a risk of being caught, but her desire to get out of the bad situation overpowers logic.

I believe that abortion should be illegal, but it is more important that we teach the women so that they will make the right decisions. If they had learned to handle tough situations well, they wouldn’t be looking the ultrasound in the first place.