Personhood Initiatives

This goes beyond the scope of banning abortion. These religious zealots want to impose their beliefs on everyone else no matter who has to pay the price. What about the woman's right to life? What about her personhood? These initiatives would put women's health at risk and make infertility treatments virtually impossible. Who do these people think they are to tell me what I can and can't do with my own body? And what about rape and incest victims? Should they be required to relive that horror by carrying the baby to term? This is what you get when you have religious nuts trying to influence public policy.

Why does supporting the rights of unborn children make us "religious nuts"? Sometimes it's just about what is right or wrong. You don't have to be religious to have morals. I personally feel we have a moral responsibility to protect those that can't protect themselves. And as far as rape victims, that is such a tired excuse for pro-abortionists. That assumes that every rape victim wants and deserves an abortion when major studies have shown that 75% to 85% of rape victims don't have an abortion. Why does no one ask these children how they feel about the subject? We certainly can't ask the other 15% to 25% of children that were "terminated". And how does another act of violence help the victim cope with the first act of violence? Research shows that the emotional pain of having an abortion stay with victimized women long after the memories of the assault have faded. I think it's callous and irresponsible to use this group of women to advance your cause when the research doesn't support it. Especially when less than 1% of all abortions are related to rape or incest. Do your research before using media sound bites as your main argument.

Being a man, I guess I have no right to talk about rape victims and wouldn't attempt to understand their pain but I agree with SanFranRN that this is just another attempt by the Religious Right to impose their beliefs on everyone else. To answer the questions put forth, I think it's a clear sign that people don't want to change the status quo. We had this debate decades ago and the Supreme Court ruled that women have the right to choose what to do with their bodies. The only reason we continue to have this debate is because of the religious fanatics. If the measure can't pass in Mississippi, then I don't see it passing anywhere. It's time to move on, Christians. You lost!

Here we go again. All the world's problems are because of Christians. Why do you have so much animosity towards Christians? I don't care what you do to your own body as long as it doesn't affect other people. SnowFields is correct. It's either right or it's wrong. At what point of the pregnancy is it okay to have an abortion? One day, one week, one month, in the delivery room? Let's say it's some arbitrary timeframe like anytime up to 15 weeks. So, in that scenario you are saying that the fetus is not a baby at 14 weeks and 6 days but the very next day it becomes a baby and should have the right to live. I'm not talking about when the mother's health is at risk, either. I think almost everyone agrees that there should be a concerted effort to save the child in an emergency but the mother's safety is priority one. Abortion supporters try to clutter the discussion with all of these statistically insignificant scenarios that are already addressed today and would be addressed if abortion was illegal.

The real debate is not about rape or incest victims or medical emergencies, it's about the girl who wants an abortion so she'll look good in her prom dress or the woman pressured into having an abortion because she got pregnant by a married man or the woman who is just too busy right now to have to deal with raising a child. Unfortunately, those types of scenarios are way more prevalent than abortions due to rape or medical emergencies. Why do those children not have the right to live?

To me, the question is simple. When does human life begin? I think most people don't have to guts to actually think about that for themselves. Science already tells us that it begins at fertilization. But for some reason, a majority of people choose to think of it as some grey area where we really don't know when life begins because then they can lay their head down at night knowing that we haven't legally killed over 50 million children since 1973. In their minds, they were just some extra biological materials that needed to be removed.

Finally, yes, as a Christian, I believe life is a gift from God. That's why I also don't believe in the death penalty. But are Christians the only people that value human life? I would hope not.