Shan posted that Obama video (see below) to her Facebook account as well as our blog. An old high-school friend said that the same view (recap: BO was a prime case for abortion; abandoned by his father, raised by a frazzled single mother; he wasn't and look what he has become) could be used in the case of Charles Manson. He came from similiar circumstances and look how he turned out.
A couple problems with this line of thinking. One, the Catholic ad was not meant to be syllogistic, using dry reasoning to close the case on the issue of abortion. What is
was trying to do was make people stop and think; how has abortion changed the landscape of our nation? Since one-third of my generation hasn't made it out of the womb, I think it's safe to say that the effect on America has been great, no matter which way you lean on the issue.
Two, he seems to imply that abortion can be a positive thing since it has probably weeded out some other Charles Mansons. Maybe, though the Freakonomics theory of "abortion lowers the crime rate" has been
refuted. Nonetheless, surely this can't be used as a pro-choice argument? "Susie, I think you should abort your baby; gosh, he may grow up to be a serial killer!" I think it's safe to say that Charles Manson was not pre-destined from above to turn into a nut-job . . . I'd say some familial dysfunction had a role to play in that. Besides, isn't that a pretty good case for adoption? There's plenty of infertile couples who would probably have given their left arms to raise little "Charlie." Heck, he may have grown up in a stable home and became a doctor, lawyer, father, friend.
As a follow-up, the friend in question sent along this
link, which contained a question to "stump anti-abortionists":
"If abortion was illegal, what should be done with the women who have illegal abortions?"
Well, let's look at this one from a rational point of view. I'm no logician (is that a word?), but here's a couple syllogisms to get the party started:
Major premise: Murder is the intentional killing of a human person.
Minor premise: Abortion is the intentional killing of a human person.
Conclusion: Abortion is murder.
Obviously, pro-choice folk will disagree with the minor premise, but for our purposes, let's assume it's true.
Major premise: Murder should be punished in our legal system.
Minor premise: Abortion is murder.
Conclusion: Abortion should be punished in our legal system.
Yes, for pro-lifers to be consistent, they must agree that if abortion were illegal, that a woman who procures an abortion should be punished as a murderer. Though that sounds harsh, look at it this way: If a woman gave birth to her child and then took a knife and stabbed it to death, shouldn't she be charged with murder? So what's the difference if it had taken place minutes before, when the baby was still in the birth canal? Location, nothing more.
And so, if abortion was illegal, and a black-market doctor jammed scissors in the child's skull before it was completely out, wouldn't that be a punishable offense? Wouldn't the woman be an accomplice, at the very least?
Our legal system takes into account variables when deciding murder cases: premeditation, psychological state, etc. They could take these things into account for abortion cases as well. So in many cases, I wouldn't think a woman would get "murder in the first degree", but I think manslaughter would apply, no question.
I know this all sounds very cold, but this whole "rights of the mother" argument has been taken too far, resulting in 50 million abortions in the past 35 years. Instead of encouraging young, scared mothers that abortion is the only route to solve their problems, why can't we support these women and offer them help? Why don't Planned Parenthood counselors make a compelling case for adoption? Why can't we save these women from the many possible effects of abortion (regret, grief, depression, suicidal tendencies, sterillity, breast cancer, etc.)? Why aren't they given any hope?
As many of our readers are friends and family, we hold you all dear to our hearts. We truly hope that one or both of us have affected your life positively in some way, either great or small. In all truth, both Shannon and I and very lucky to be alive today. Both of us were born to young, unwed mothers, both struggling to find their way in life. Both were scared, undoubtedly, feeling lost and probably hopeless. I was born in 1979, a year with a very high number of abortions, Shannon in 1980, a year with the most abortions since Roe v. Wade. We were perfect candidates for an early-term abortion.
I saw my birth mother over Christmas break, and she confirmed that she had called an abortion clinic when she first found out . . . lucky for me, she decided to go through with the pregnancy. Lucky for the both of us, both mothers had support at home; no one whispering in their ear that all their troubles could be over for a quick trip to the "women's health" clinic. I was given up for adoption, Shannon was not. Both of us turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself.
In short, we are very blessed to even be here. And we strive to be a blessing for others; it's inconceivable to think that a different choice by either of our mothers and we wouldn't be married. We wouldn't have our wonderful children. And, we like to think, the world would be worse off.
