SOME THOUGHTS ON THE ABORTION QUESTION.

I was in high school when Roe v. Wade was heard by The Supreme Court. At that time, I was shocked that they were even considering any legal parameters for killing unborn babies. Most of the people I knew shared my opinion at that time.

We were all aware of the abortion procedure. Occasionally I would see a story about a young girl dying from a botched abortion or a doctor (or non-doctor) being arrested for performing an illegal abortion. I did not know anyone who had undergone the procedure. Abortions were not spoken of. If you had one you did not advertise it.

I did know one girl, Peggy, a close family friend who was one year younger than me. She was beautiful, smart, and friendly. When Peggy started dating a guy I knew, Bill, I felt I had missed my chance, for a while at least. I hoped they would “break up” soon and open a door for me. Instead I heard mumblings that Peggy was pregnant. She chose to keep the baby and, somehow, had the child, finished school and continued her life. Peggy and Bill did eventually break up. Bill remained involved as a father to Peggy’s child and a friend to Peggy.

I got that date with Peggy, unfortunately, our relationship did not develop as I had hoped it would and she went on to share an apartment in a nearby city with her sister and her baby girl. Eventually Peggy married and is still married over 40 years later. Oddly enough, years later I met another beautiful Irish girl who had made the same decision Peggy had made. I dated her, married her and raised a family. I loved all of my children equally.

In both cases I’ve cited, I feel, these brave girls made the very difficult, but correct, choice and created beautiful lives for their little girls.

When I hit my college years and associated with many people who selfishly saw abortion as a way to avoid being held accountable for one’s own actions I backed off from my hardline a bit. I stopped arguing with those who were actively searching for sex during every waking moment and weren’t considering the possibility of a monogamous relationship. I was a minority of 1 in these discussions because I was hoping to find “the right girl” while my friends were looking for a “one night stand.”

I never went as far South as to endorse abortion or encourage anyone to have one. I was still repulsed by the thought of killing a defenseless child in their mother’s womb but, at the time, I was too weak to fight with the majority of males and females I associated with who felt abortion was the ideal answer to failed birth control method.

I was occasionally confronted by the question of abortion. I asked my friends and associates who made the pro-abortion argument (But were calling it pro-choice) if they actually believed a “fetus” was not a living and growing baby. They would quote the strangely updated version of childbirth and pregnancy that was now claiming that a “fetus” was not a child until it was able to survive on its’ own. If my memory serves me correctly, the viability term changed depending on who I was arguing with and how adamant they were about abortion.

I just researched this question and found the following answer: “In general, infants that are born very early are not considered to be viable until after 24 weeks gestation. This means that if you give birth to an infant before they are 24 weeks old, their chance of surviving is usually less than 50 percent.” This quote was found in a -healthcare.utah.edu- article entitled HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR PREEMIES.

After working as a patrol officer for almost 30 years I came up with another question. Why don’t we hear about the adverse mental effects abortion has on the mothers who, for whatever reason, choose to end their pregnancies in that way?

I hear constantly about, “A woman’s right to choose” and the claim that abortion is necessary health care all women are entitled to. These are acceptable arguments that the main-stream media runs with and, in my opinion, beats to death. I disagree with those views, but I defend their right to espouse them. The thing I have a problem with is that they are not telling the whole story, as happens so often in modern America. That story is purported to be the truth, I believe it is a partial truth and, therefore, it is not an honest statement when it’s delivered as bonified news!

What are they leaving out you might ask?

Many things.

SUICIDAL ABORTION CLIENTS: While I was working patrol, I responded to a lot of calls for suicidal subjects. Many of the suicidal females I encountered shared with me that they had not felt mentally healthy since they had an abortion. The range in time since the abortion, with the women I encountered, was about 40 years. When I had a chance to speak with them, I would ask if they had sought counseling or spiritual relief. Some had, some had not, but their pain was so real, so strong and so sad it stayed with me. These ladies wanted to die because of guilt they were carrying since killing their babies. One of the ladies was in her sixties and had been carrying her guilt since she had an abortion while she was still in high school. She was married and divorced, as I recall, had an alcohol abuse problem. She had not been able to hold onto jobs or meaningful relationships. At the time I was helping these women I had no idea if these were the exception or the norm as far as abortion patients. I do know that I did not hear about these consequences of abortion when I was hearing of a women’s right to abortion!

I would use my anecdotal evidence in discussions on the subject and those I was trying to convince would come back with retorts like, “OK, you have 10 or 15 examples, there are over 600,000 (612,719 reported in 2017 and 619,591 reported in 2018- reporting is not mandatory so the numbers are assumed to be much higher) abortions a year, what’s your point?” So I did what anyone would do, I went to the internet.

I located a story reported by CBS News (Ryan Jaslow 09/01/2011) entitled ABORTION TIED TO SHARP DECLINE IN WOMEN’S MENTAL HEALTH. The story starts with, “A provocative new study shows that women who have an abortion face an increased risk for mental health problems including substance abuse, anxiety and depression.” Jaslow quotes a study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry the day of the article (09/01/11) that read, in part, “Results indicate quite consistently that abortion is associated with moderate to highly increased risks of psychological problems subsequent to the procedure.”

Jaslow’s article continues, “for the study the researchers had analyzed 877,000 women, including 164,000 who had an abortion. They found women who had an abortion experienced an 81% increased risk for mental problems.” I checked and rechecked that number! That means almost every one of the women who had an abortion had resulting psychological problems- well over 3/4’s! If the people yelling every election year for women’s rights really wanted to help ladies wouldn’t they, at least, insist that this truth be available- so women contemplating an abortion could make informed decisions?

Highlights from the study included:

1) Women who had an abortion were 34% more likely to develop an anxiety disorder. 2) They were 37% more likely to experience depression. 3) 110% more likely to abuse alcohol. 4) 155% more likely to commit suicide. 5) 220% more likely to use marijuana.

I think these are facts we should all know. How many of you have heard them before?

Knowing this I can not believe that many states allow minors to have abortions without parental consent or knowledge! In an article by Guttmacher Institute I found documentation that 6 states do not require parental notification when minors seek an abortion. That same article did not list the status of 13 states while documenting that the remaining 31 states did require some sort of parental notification. Do you remember when we used to try to protect children? Now we allow them to have abortions without any input from mom or dad! Do you remember the lady (in her 60’s) I dealt with whose life did not seem right since she aborted her baby in high school?

It is easy for me to picture a young person who lets the “heat of the moment” get the best of them and has a wild night. If that person is a girl, a few months later things aren’t the same and she discovers her night of passion has a potential lifelong price tag. The possibility of supporting a child as a single mother. How will her dating life change? Will she have to tell potential dates- I’d love to go out for dinner and a movie, let me see if I can get a baby-sitter. Her friends might tell her the easy alternative is an abortion. At that point in her life, she may not be thinking about the mental baggage that will come along with ending a life that is living within her. It has been proven many times that the abortion providers don’t cover that in a majority of the cases. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of examples I’ll give you one here but be assured that any pro-life portal has many, many more.

In an article written by Chris Potts reference Kathy Sparks (A former abortion clinic worker who left after becoming so depressed she attempted suicide) that appeared in the November 2021 edition of FAITH AND JUSTICE titled, “Life After Death,” I read some of what Kathy explained about her abortion clinic job, “Kathy listened as clinic counselors convinced uncertain young women to go through with killing their babies. ‘We didn’t want one of three things to happen.’ Kathy says – the first being that a woman might get her abortion (and pay her money) somewhere else. ‘Second, we didn’t want her to change her mind.’ Third, ‘we didn’t want her parents finding out and changing her mind for her.'” In the interest of honesty Kathy also explained, in the article, that she was happy with the abortion culture until she was awakened to the harm she was doing.

How about the male half of the fling I created earlier? What if the girl he was with calls him and asks for money for an abortion? Should he pay? Should he argue that he wants to raise the child he created with a stranger? Can he ask that stranger to carry the child for 9 months and trust that he will make good on his promise to lend financial support? What if she doesn’t call him and he finds out later that he had created a life that night- at the same time that he learns she ended it without calling him? Those scenarios would certainly give me a few sleepless nights! How about you?

THE MORAL ASPECT: I realize that some of you may not be religious, or share my beliefs, but some of you might. I believe, and have been taught, that the taking of any human life is a serious sin. I believe that with all my heart and have acted on it in my own small way concerning the “Right to life” debate. The woman I married was a single mother when I met her. I was proud of her for having succeeded as a single mother for four years at the time I met her. I am happy to say that when my sister set up the blind date, she only mentioned that Eileen had a 4-year-old girl in passing. She knew that if I liked Eileen, I would accept whatever a potential life with her would entail. I was proud of Eileen for doing the right thing. I did not hesitate to accept her child, I considered her a bonus. She is the only one of my children that I had a chance to choose after meeting her. My heart bursts when I think of all the joy she has given me by accepting me as her father!

EUGENICS In the town I patrolled as a police officer we had one abortion clinic and a neighboring town also had one provider. Before I heard any of the statistics showing how lopsided the numbers are as far as completed abortions and percentage of population, I noticed that both clinics were within walking distance of large clusters of low-income, minority occupied, apartments. I now realize that my thinking was not out of line.

Did you know that there are a growing number of Blacks who consider abortion a form of genocide against their race? Who thinks that? Is a logical question after such a divisive statement. My answer is: Kanye West (A Black male, American rap artist who has gained additional notoriety for running an independent campaign for president in 2020 and marrying Kim Kardashian) and Candace Owens (a female Black, conservative, author, talk show host, political commentator and activist) are probably among the most notable, or at least they have the largest platforms.

An article- CANDACE OWENS SAYS KANYE WEST IS RIGHT: ABORTION IS GENOCIDE AGAINST BLACKS – on LIFESITE (11/10/2021) Opens with, “The black conservative commentator agreed that the number of black babies lost to abortion amounts to ‘genocide,’ and said West ‘is right to continue to beat the drum and to draw attention to this issue.'” The article goes on to document, “Appearing on the podcast “Drink Champs on November 4th, pop culture icon and third-party 2020 presidential contender Kanye West told rappers Noreaga and DJ “EFN” that abortion contributes to racial ‘genocide,’ arguing that Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger, a public supporter of eugenics, intended abortion to be a form of “black population control.'”

The article also reveals that “Pro-life advocacy group Live Action stated that ‘Abortion disproportionately affects Black and minority women,’ noting that in 2016 ‘Black abortions (236,919 estimated) outnumbered the top nine leading causes of death (235,139) for Black Americans combined’ that year.”

Additional information in the article included, “A Live Action analysis of CDC data from 2016 found that approximately 649 black babies were killed through abortion every day that year.” and the “Estimated Black abortion numbers were 24 times greater than homicides committed on Black Americans (236,919 v. 9,860) that same year.”

The article goes on to advise that, “The CDC’s most recently released data indicates that some 117,626 black babies were the victim of surgical abortion in 2018, accounting for 33,6% of all abortions that year in spite of the fact that black women comprise only about 13% of the U.S. female population.” Building on that, “The CDC reported that black women hold the highest abortion rate in the nation (21.2 abortions per 1,000 women) and ratio (335 abortions per 1,000 live births). According to the data, the number of black babies killed through abortion is equal to a third of the number of born black Americans (341,408) who died in 2018. Since federal abortion statistics are hindered by voluntary reporting and variable standards among the states, the actual numbers are likely much higher.”

According to the article Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger was a member of the American Eugenics Society who wrote that the “Campaign for birth control is […] practically identical in ideal with the final aim of eugenics.”

The article went on to document that, “In her biography, Sanger admitted that in 1926 she spoke to the ‘women’s branch of the Ku Klux Klan,’ through which she said she ‘accomplished my purpose’ by inspiring a ‘dozen invitations to speak to similar groups.'” Imagine that the party that claims to be a friend of the minorities has been supporting Planned Parenthood with billions of dollars for years even though the founder supported eugenics and teamed with the Ku Klux Klan!

The Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE) stated in their 2015 policy report that the leading consumer of abortionists’ services is the African-American female according to the LIFESITE article. CURE’s report argued that “[t]he prevalence of abortion facilities within minority communities serves as a major contributor to the rate in which black women obtain abortions.” CURE cited a study released by Protecting Black Life, an outreach of Life Issues Institute, which concluded that ‘79% of Planned Parenthood’s surgical abortion facilities are strategically located within walking distance of African and/or Hispanic communities.'”

The LIFESITE article reported that, “Last summer, Planned Parenthood of Greater New York’s board chairwoman Karen Seltzer announced Margaret Sanger’s name would be scrubbed from Planned Parenthood’s Manhattan health center as ‘a necessary and overdue step to reckon with our legacy and acknowledge Planned Parenthood’s contributions to historical reproductive harm within communities of color.’ the National Catholic Register reported.” Citing Sanger’s ‘racist legacy’ Seltzer said the abortion pioneer’s ‘deep belief in eugenic ideology… runs completely counter to our values at PPGNY.'”

Pro-life advocates have pointed out that, “Planned Parenthood continues to perform the work desired by 20th century eugenicists.” No buildings have been moved out of those communities and the abortions continue despite what Seltzer said.

The LIFESITE article ended by quoting an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal that noted,”[in] New York City, thousands more black babies are aborted each year than born alive.” (MY NOTE: It sounds like the eugenicists are winning with the help of their willing accomplice the main stream media!)

HEALTHCARE PROVIDER’S RIGHT TO REFUSE TO PERFORM ABORTIONS: The articles I found explained that 46 states do not force medical professionals to perform abortions if they are morally opposed. Only 26 of those states do so without conditions. This leaves 4 states that do force doctors and staff to perform abortions and related health treatment even if they are morally opposed to the practice. An average abortion is not an emergency procedure- if it is an emergency the conditions would be changed and, possibly, doctors who are opposed to the procedure would consent- such as a condition where the mother’s life is endangered.

I disagree that a woman’s decision to have an elective procedure (an abortion) should be allowed to trump (no pun intended) a doctor’s decision not to perform that elective procedure, I particularly object if there is another doctor willing to do it in the area, which in many cases there is.

My preference is that doctors, or anyone who provides a service, should not be forced to provide that service when it can be procured in a reasonable manner elsewhere. The Masterpiece Cakeshop case in Lakewood Colorado comes to mind. That man has gone through countless court appearances to defend his business practices which are based on a strong moral belief (He refused to design a cake for a homosexual wedding). There were other cake decorators who were willing and able to provide the service, but the Masterpiece owner was still forced to miss work and defend himself all the way up to the Supreme Court.

In my opinion the non-discrimination laws are useful and necessary to assure that people who need, or just want, goods or services that are available to others will have an equal chance to obtain those goods or services. In the Masterpiece case it was proven that the store owner would not provide the requested services to anyone because he was morally opposed to doing so. He testified that he was not targeting the customers, he was refusing to perform a certain service. Additionally, it came out in the trial that Masterpiece had a working relationship with the litigants who were satisfied with the service they had received previously.

The argument has been made, I think effectively, that proprietors should not be forced to perform a service they find abhorrent. An example I heard was asking a Jewish cake decorator to put swastikas on a cake. How would this be different?

STATE FUNDED ABORTIONS? As of 2021 16 states provide taxpayer funded abortions. I find this reprehensible. I live in one of the states that is guilty of this. I will move out as soon as I am able to. I find it intolerable that money I am forced to pay in taxes is being used to fund an action I consider murder.

There is a lot more to cover on this topic. I will revisit it. I just wanted to get something out since the coverage of the Supreme Court case is in the news and main stream media is reporting how “A women’s right to abortion” is being threatened.

I hope this article has made clear that abortion, rather than being a “right” is murder and that it has psychologically hurt women in many ways.

As usual, please comment if you liked it, or not. Please tell a friend and share. I appreciate it, thank you!