Can you have a moderate position on abortion?

Question

I am personally against abortion due to my religious convictions, but the fact I believe that abortions would still be dangerous if it was banned due to what I believe is the dangers of Back alley abortions and the coathanger. I hold what I would say is the Mario Cuomo position on Abortion that is I personally would never ever support anyone if they wanted to get an abortion, but I would leave it up to them.

For Example: I would agree with many people Abortion should not be a form of birth control, but then why is it that we shouldn't be teaching both abstinence and contraception in schools rather then favoring one over the other? I'm trying to figure this out and I know it's volatile, but I want you to understand I'm not somebody who's too far right or too far left on this issue. What do you think?

Answer 1

Personally I'm Pro Choice, and I think one of the few if not the only thing that both those who favor abortion rights and those who oppose them can agree on is that it's a very emotionally charged and divisive issue that doesn't really leave much room for middle ground. I don't think that there are many people out there using abortion as a form of birth control, by the way. If anyone DID, however, perhaps there would be a connection there with the lack of adequate sex ed in schools. As for teaching abstinence, it's naive, moralistic, and patronizing. Telling kids to ignore their hormones and wait until marriage to have sex doesn't work. I'm not saying that nobody practices abstinence. What I'm saying is that like it or not, that's the exception and not the rule. Not taking that into account is essentially condemning kids who don't abide by your take on morality by denying them the information that can help to prevent unwanted pregnancies and STD's.
But back to abortion- the "Pro Life" camp doesn't acknowledge that there are more unwanted kids who need loving homes than there are people willing and able to provide one.

Answer 2

You can be moderate on abortion. Many think late-term abortions are fine even if the woman's life isn't in danger. I, however, don't think late term abortions should be allowed only because the woman at 6 months change her mind. But I am Pro-choice for the first trimester especially in cases of rape. I know that abortion is a risky topic but I think early abortion is okay while some liberals might think all abortions no matter in what stage is fine. According to some studies, 80-90% of people support abortion in cases of rape and incest while more than 60% support first abortion trimesters if the woman wants it. These are moderate positions and most people have moderate positions, only 10% of people support late term abortion. Pro-choice also means supporting birth control and helping people make informed choices.

Answer 3

What I think most people (especially pro-life women) don't realize is that once the right to an abortion is taken away, other women's right will begin to be taken away. It will have a domino effect. So, yes I am pro-choice, not just for that reason. However, if for no other reason, that one is good enough. Women have a hard enough fight, without stripping away the rights we already have. Just recently contraception wasn't covered by insurance. Nursing mothers have been asked to leave public places, when they legally have a right to be there. We need not to take steps backward. Check out these website to see the battles women have yet to fight.
http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/issues/
http://www.promom.org/bf_info/wababf.html
Anyway. Just my two cents.

Answer 4

I can see that you are trying to take a moderate stand here but the fact remains, unless you have a uterus, you have no say in the matter.

A woman who doesn't want to have a child will not have it. The only concern then is whether she will have a medically safe abortion or will have to use a back alley butcher. One way or the other, she will abort.

Abortion is a decision that ONLY the pregnant woman can make. It is HER body. No one can force her to give birth.....

Answer 5

Yes, that is pro-choice NOT pro-abortion. You believe that a woman who chooses abortion should have access to medical care and that the government should not prevent these women from having medical care even though you disagree with abortion and would not choose it for yourself. That's exactly how I feel. Those who call it "pro-abortion" are just propagandizing. There is no such thing that I've ever heard.

Answer 6

As a man I once tried to be neutral about it. But I found myself thinking that this is more then the woman using the "it's my body" argument. But to answer your question, to be in a moderate position about abortion is difficult.

Answer 7

I believe you can take any position you like on abortion. It's YOUR choice.

Answer 8

This is essentially Giuliani's position. It is farcical to believe that the government making it illegal is going to stop it.

For instance, it's illegal for people under 21 to drink. If you don't think it's going on anyway, you're an idiot.

Answer 9

Hi, Jack. This question was answered well by Mark Crutcher of Life Dynamics (see http://www.deathroe.com/Pro-life_Answers/Answers.cfm?ID=45). Here's what he said:

"The only basis for being opposed to abortion is the recognition that it is the killing of a child. Therefore, when someone takes this “personally opposed” position, what they are saying is, “I understand that abortion is the intentional slaughter of defenseless children, but I’m not going to do anything to stop it.”

That raises the question: which other innocent human beings do they think it should be legal to kill? Also, are they equally tolerant on other issues? Presumably, they are also “personally opposed” to rape, armed robbery, racial discrimination, and wife-beating. Do they have a problem inflicting their personal beliefs regarding these issues as well?

Of course, when it comes to this “forcing beliefs” issue, the most important point is that 45 to 50 million dead babies have had the pro-choice mob’s beliefs forced on them."

He also has a good answer to the question about "back-alley" abortions (see http://www.deathroe.com/Pro-life_Answers/Answers.cfm?ID=40):

"Virtually every study on this subject has concluded that deaths and injuries due to illegal abortion have been wildly exaggerated and that the vast majority of illegal abortions were done by licensed doctors who were simply breaking the law.

Not only are abortion apologists lying when they say that thousands of women used to die every year from back-alley, coat-hanger abortions, but their own research proves it.

Figures released in 1986 by the Alan Guttmacher Institute (the research arm of Planned Parenthood) show that in the 15 years prior to the legalization of abortion, the average number of women dying from illegal abortion in the entire United States was 136 per year and dropping...

...Also, if the motivation for legalized abortion really is to save the lives of women, why don’t we legalize rape? After all, it is not uncommon for a woman to be killed by a rapist to keep her from identifying him to the authorities. Legalizing rape would save those women by taking away that motivation. We could also set up rape clinics where rapists could take their victims. These centers could offer clean rooms, condom machines, emergency contraception, and perhaps even doctors on staff in case the rapist injures his victim. We could even issue licenses to rapists requiring them to undergo routine testing for AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Remember, the pro-choice argument is that women are going to have abortions regardless of what the law says, and that keeping abortion legal will make sure they occur in a clean and safe environment. Those dynamics also apply to rape. Keeping rape illegal has not prevented women from being raped, so why not at least try to prevent back-alley rapes? As ridiculous as this suggestion is, if the goal is saving women’s lives, it makes as much sense as legalized abortion."

These answers have been abbreviated somewhat. To read the full commentaries, click on the links above. For more information on abortion, including photos and video of what "safe and legal" early trimester abortions actually do to unborn children, visit http://Abort73.com

Answer 10

I think you think like most people. There is not enough focus on the prevention. If there were, there would logically be fewer abortions.