August 16th, 2008 |  Print This Post |  Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe by Email |  

Here goes, this is the post where people get to throw stones at me; but before you poise to throw, hear me out and do what works for you. Should anyone still decide to stone me, all I ask for is a thirty seconds head start to hit the bunker. Alright, jokes aside, pro-what?!

I am of the opinion that some people (on a grand scale, probably a huge number) have taken this issue out of proportion, especially in conversations that are supposed to be intellectual and encourage positive reflections on the issue. These discussions usually end up being weaved into an issue of women’s rights, regardless of fact that the initial question posed is, “To abort, or not to abort?” . Most times, in this instance described, it has been my experience that people who would never consider having an abortion are usually the ones that make a big deal out of the whole issue, and spin it into an issue of male chauvinism and male domination (forgetting that females are statistically the ones that protest the most in rallies concerned with either the pro-life camp, or pro-choice camp).

So I beg the question, Pro-life or Pro-choice? How about Pro-both? Or Pro-none?

Without a doubt, when focusing on rights, everyone should have a right to choose what’s best for them. We are all born with the intellect to make our decisions. Men have a right to choose; women have a right to choose. Women have a right to the chance of life; men have a right to the chance of life; and as a result, babies should also have the right to the chance of life. The definition of a baby, however, remains a very controversial gray line. Regardless of the controversy, it is safe to say that once a process begins, it continues through its stages of progression and remains valid as long as external forces don’t act upon it. So, it can be argued that the formative cells from intercourse is a baby because the potential exists if not prematurely terminated. In spite of this, back to the issue of choice, it still remains a person’s prerogative to be swayed anyway that pleases him/her. If a person needs to make up his/her mind and cares that they make the right decision, and not the expedient one, then the onous is on such a person to weigh the issue with fairness, and substitute him/herself into roles within the problem case to better understand the perspectives especially from the position of the underdog.

On any issue, when the issue of pro-choice is being questioned, that will always be the right choice to go with. Yet, on the issue of abortion, the concept pro-life vs. pro-choice just doesn’t cut it. It cannot be a versus game. They are both very important and separate issues, and wisdom is needed to properly navigate this - not just a blanket stance. Pregnancy pertains to a woman’s body, and she should have the right to decide.. Nobody else can legitimately claim the right to that. But then again, a borrowed phrase in “Spiderman, The Movie” states that, “With great power comes great responsibility”. Historically when people with any form of power begin to act irresponsibly that’s when outside forces like the government, watchdog/vigilante/focus groups, and other forms of checks try to jump in and establish a balance, and in some cases, overstep their boundaries.

The Great Responsibility

A baby is not formed solely from a female, but from both a male (not always a man in every sense of the word) and a female (you get the point). Unfortunately, there’s a shared responsibility, but when all is said and done it appears that the greater power and responsibility of childbirth (and all the decisions that come with it) rests on the woman. I guess that’s why its expected that the male should be a man, support his mate, and take care of his child even after the child is born. I guess that is why it is expected that the male, female, or both of them, be fully aware and assume responsibility for their actions.

Except for gruesome and extreme circumstances (which is outside the scope of this article), however a person chooses to look at it, or explain it away, it is irresponsible for a female to get pregnant then want an abortion based on convenience. It is also irresponsible for the male to impregnate a female, and compel her to have an abortion. In this case, it can be argued that abortion is bad because it is driven by selfish intentions of individuals who cannot accept responsibility for an action they were consensually involved in (see above exception).

At the end of the day, breaking an issue such as this into two camps only serves to aggravate the issue, and not solve it. Instead of thinking rationally, advocates will generally get caught up in the battle and be more concerned with what side is winning the fight, thereby relegating the real issue to a secondary position. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that society can never advance in any aspect if people want to explain away their actions, inactions and bad decisions every time. As humans, though we can never be perfect, we will definitely be better off realizing errors and fixing them, as opposed to rationalizing them.

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