I am writing in this in response to a comment (Peter - June 23, 2012 at 14:10) made on ThinkingHominid’s article, “Abortion is murder for the bible told me so”.
I found his/her article to be a well written and well formulated opinion piece with a fantastic and thought provoking conclusion. While I usually ignore the numerous religious pieces published on this site, the subject of abortion and the arguments used by those who are against abortion is something I find hard to ignore. There were few comments made by those “Christian Soldiers” but then “Peter” joined the conversation, preaching the evil of abortion and that this was all just a justification of murder. So “Peter Parker” lets discuss this justification shall we?
The Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act (Act 92 of 1996) was promulgated in 1997. I was only in STD 7 at the time and to be honest I do not remember the official implementation of this law very well at all. However the lead up to this act and the controversy surrounding abortion is something I remember vividly. I attended an all-girl Catholic Primary School and was introduced to the subject of abortion in STD 5 (1995). The main reason for this was because my teacher at the time was a member of Birthright. She wore her “B” pin everyday and Birthright posters were on the walls outside and inside her classroom. Religion was a formal subject for us, which we had at least 3 times a week, an hour at a time. It was during these classes that she informed us about Birthright’s mission and why abortion was not needed in any circumstance. Now discussing abortion (not to mention the death penalty) with a class of 25 11-year-old girls does sound fairly inappropriate but perhaps it seemed acceptable and necessary due to the fact that “Baby in Dustbin” jokes were doing the rounds significantly at that time. There were countless jokes of this kind and were told were great frequency. It wasn’t until I was a bit older that I realised the true origin of these jokes and why they were so prevalent at the time. The disgust resulting from the realisation and the insight into my own naivety is the other reason I remember the Abortion controversy so well and is in fact why I am pro-choice.
So “Peter”, while you preach “Abortion is Murder,” I ask you to consider (remember) the alternative. The results of back-street abortions, almost full-term babies being found in dustbins, some dead, some alive. Babies carried to term, thrown out as rubbish by their “mothers” or put into boxes and placed on the side of the road, again some being found alive. The numerous deaths of desperate women resulting from illegal abortions.
You don’t even need to search your memory too hard to recall these events. Even with the option of abortion available today, this is occurring. Who can forget the story last year of the family who found the body of a baby in the kennel of their Boerboel? After the “mother” had given birth to her baby, she threw it to a dog she believed to be vicious and who would take care of her little problem for her. Instead the dog demonstrated more humanity and maternal instinct than the “human-being”, licked the child clean and tried to keep it warm. Someone throwing her child to a dog is something I cannot fathom and considered her state of mind. Did she carry a baby for 9 months and after delivering her child, somewhere other than in a hospital, and then just decide to throw her baby to the dog? Perhaps the woman decided to have an abortion. But she encountered someone like you, telling her that she is a murderer and condemning her to hell? Telling her she had other options, sending her on her way, while you pat yourself on the back because you had saved a life. The only “assistance” you offered was your judgement.
Now “Peter”, do you feel these incidents are the lesser evil?
You believe that doctors who perform abortions and those who have abortions are murderers, that the “Pro-Choicers” are responsible for the murdering of innocent children. Do you consider that those who support abortion do so because they feel the alternative is worse? How then do we, the “Pro-Choicers” view you, the "Pro-Lifer"? Someone who protects the rights of the innocent and saves lives? Or someone who is responsible for the “life” of the baby found in the kennel or in the dustbin?
Because, for me, this is murder and the alternative to abortion. The alternative that you, “Peter the pro-lifer”, support.
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