Abortion

[tamborine]

Is Mother's welfare more important than the fetus?

https://youtu.be/j2NRXWLoA_4

[ummmm]

Yes.

[andy-hughes]

Absolutely.

I doubt there is a mother on the planet who has ever undertaken an abortion without a deal of soul-searching, and the thought of what may have been lingering in their subconscious for the rest of their lives.

And to anyone who rushes to post that some women use it as a form of birth control, I would say - who are we to judge what a woman does with her body?

It is any woman's right to decide whether or not to carry a pregnancy to term, and the blanket generalisation that all pregnancies should be completed - made by people who have never had to agonise over that decision, is moral high-handedness of an utterly unacceptable level.

[naomi24]

Yes.

[Ellipsis]

I agree with the exact wording of the law as it applies to GB, i.e. where necessary to save the life of the woman, evidence of extreme foetal abnormality, or grave risk of physical or mental injury to the woman.

Sadly, the letter of the law is not applied and abortion is far too common - about 3,500 abortions per week are carried out on the NHS.

[sandyRoe]

Deny an abortion when it's needed and this can be the result.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/nov/14/ireland-woman-dies-after-abortion-refusal

[naomi24]

Ellipsis, why do you think the decision should lie with anyone other than the woman concerned?

[Islay]

Abortion should be the woman's decision with the opinion of the doctor.

I know in Ireland and Northern Ireland it is basically never allowed - and you have poor girls travelling to England for them - so wrong!

[hc4361]

To force a woman to carry on with the pregnancy would be a dreadful thing. The woman would not be motivated to take care of herself or the baby and could even self harm or attempt suicide.

[Ellipsis]

Hi Naomi

It's simply that I believe that life exists before birth, therefore that many of the considerations that apply after birth also apply before birth. It's not that I'm totally anti-abortion, as stated above, but 200,000 per year shows something has gone wrong somewhere.

[naomi24]

Ellipsis, Serious consideration of life after birth is one of the reasons some women make the sad decision.

[EDDIE51]

I know a woman , a friend of my daughter, who had a late abortion just because she could not face having to stop smoking 'skunk weed' ( high strength cannabis)

[chiaroscuro]

I'm not against procured abortions (miscarriages are abortions) but they expose the claim that 'life is sacred' as utter cant.

[tamborine]

What about grounds of gender selection

[chiaroscuro]

Once society has decided that it's OK for a woman to kill her unborn child for her convenience why cavil that it's done for gender selection?

[Ellipsis]

Gender selection is a difficult one for those who are of an "anti-religion, pro-choice" position - it gives an opportunity to test each component of that position separately.

[atalanta]

If a woman wants an abortion, it's not my business. It's not the Pope's business. It's not the business of any man whatsoever, including the father of the foetus. It's her business, and hers alone.
Deep down, and unacknowledged, the reason many men are against abortion is the well-buried thought - "one of these days, it might be mine"

[atalanta]

P.S. That also means that a women should not have to accept pressure from her husband into getting rid of a female foetus. She might actually want a daughter, whereas he sees sons as proof of his manhood.

[Old_Geezer]

This is not as simple an issue as many wish to make out. It is a moral issue and so is the concern of all as to what is and is not acceptable in society. It is not an reasonable stance to claim it is nothing to do with you because you are not involved, thus washing your hands or the issue.

As such it is very clearly not a private matter. Individual cases may not be broadcast for interest, but the ground rules need to be agreed within society.

The comparison of welfare versus life is not a fair one as welfare can encompass many situations. Some may weigh more heavily in favour of a mother's welfare, others more favourably in favour of not killing the developing human inside. The concept of there being a list of situations when an abortion takes priority.

Different individuals will feel differently to that which inconveniences them, so it should not be an 'on demand of the pregnant individual' situation.

IMO it should not be a substitute for contraception. And there is legitimate debate as to how far into the pregnancy it should be allowed without extreme reason to terminate.

[gness]

Yes..x