I have for you a perhaps unexpected question, but one with which I've recently been presented. Perhaps its providential that its been brought to mind now since I'll have my first experience outside an abortion clinic tomorrow. Anyway I want to know what you'd say if someone asked you this (and the questioning goes like this):
Do you think abortion should be legal or illegal?
-Illegal
So if abortion became illegal, what should happen to women who get illegal abortions?
(most people on the video just said "i don't know")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6t_tdOkwo
I honestly don't know either, but I see it as a valid question. We've got to think through the consequences of our actions, right?
I've got a few thoughts on it, one of which is that we still have laws against suicide even though they are unenforceable and carry no penalty under the law. Another is that perhaps it should be the abortionist who is punished instead of the woman, but that doesn't seem entirely fair considering so much in our society contributes to women feeling like they have a need to kill their children and to try to put all the blame on one person doesn't quite seem accurate (though it is definitely the most concrete example of culpability, the doctor being the immediate agent cause of the abortion).
Another thought- it seems that the primary objective of the prolife movement is not the criminalization of abortion, but the widescale eradication of abortion as the deliberate killing of an unborn human. I think that frames the question a little differently. It's not as if the goal will be met if abortion is made illegal and nothing else in society changes.
Thoughts?
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If they illegalize abortion, they will surely have to define why: and the 'why', were it ever to happen, would most likely be because it is murder. So, in that case, the woman would most likely end up being charged for murder; most likely in a smaller degree and with a specific 'abortion' tag. I would say that, however difficult it is to realize it for some women, they are consenting to a murder. If we really adhere to our law of love, we have to be consistent with it... circumstances cannot be ignored though.
If it means anything, I think women who seek an abortion are broadly either 1) disallowed care and love enough to provide for the life option or 2) ignorant to the presence of that potential support and thus killed the child. If you provide simple truths about the immorality and harm abortion reaps, and also genuine love and support, the problem will be almost fully solved.
No good woman ever wants to kill her child.. but some are driven by lack of support or unawareness to do so. We just need to fill in those gaps. Which doesn't ever necessarily mean creating laws illegalizing abortion.
I feel the priority is emphasizing life and cultivating love over enforcing laws. A woman must love her child; but we know love can't be forced.
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