How Should We Define Pro-Life?

Goober

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Jan 23, 2009
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The over-riding instinct in all life (human or otherwise) is to live and to protect its young. So, nothing is ever all dark or crystal clear. But judgement and balance are human qualifiers.

Spade
So is it revolting or not?
 

tracy

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Nov 10, 2005
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I support Karrie's ideas completely. I don't think anyone wants abortions, no matter how pro-choice they are (I am VEHEMENTLY pro-choice btw). I want them to decrease without subtle coersion. That's how I see the more subtle pro-life camp's goals. They know most Americans don't want to see all abortions criminalized, so they try to decrease access in other ways. Parent notification laws, mandatory waiting periods, mandatory counselling, etc. are all examples. I don't support them.
 

JLM

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Nov 27, 2008
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Newsweek
Posted Thursday, January 29, 2009 4:22 PM

Earlier this week, Sarah Kliff wrote a story about the new political climate and how it changes pro-life strategy. "The election of a pro-choice administration and a Democratic Congress has divided the pro-life movement," Sarah writes, "between those who are preparing for the fight of their lives [against Roe v. Wade] and those who see an opportunity to redefine what it means to be pro-life [by focusing on reduction strategies]."

Of course, abortion stories are controversial. So, along with the 300 comments that populate the forum, National Right to Life has put a hit out on Sarah Kliff, calling her such wonderful things as "uneducated." (She's not.)

In their long essay, they accuse our piece of, essentially, making up a pro-life strategy that they say doesn't exist, squaring the blame on Sarah for saying that groups of people are working together when they actually aren't. Click above to read their essay, which ends with this line: "There will be no end to stories [like Newsweek's].Their objective is to convince us that people and organizations, whose entire reason for existence is to multiply the number of abortions, have suddenly seen the bipartisan/compromise/common ground light."

Because of this, I asked Sarah to go back through her reporting and respond to the criticism. Here's her take:
As I write in my story, even when you arrive at the “common ground” of abortion politics, there are complex fault lines to navigate. The pro-life movement is not giving up their fight to overturn Roe v. Wade - nor does my story suggest that they should. There are, however, some activists and legislators pursuing additional strategies, including the abortion reduction legislation that I explore in this story. One of the complexities to navigate here is language: what defines an 'abortion reduction' strategy? Restricting access to clinics that provide abortion has been one way the pro-life movement has attempted to reduce abortion in the United States.

Now, some pro-life legislators and activists are considering a different definition: reducing the need for abortion through socioeconomic supports. The Support Pregnant Women Act is a good example of this. The legislation aims to reduce abortion through, among other provisions, better Medicaid assistance and more resources for parenting students. It has received support from many legislators with strong pro-life records, including Chris Smith (R-NJ) who spoke at the March for Life I attended. The pro-life leaders I spoke with didn't see these strategies as forcing activists to ‘give up the fight to pass legislation,' but another way to pursue a pro-life agenda.

I would define "pro-life" as being in favour of life as long as the life is viable, which means having potential to develop into a fully mentally and physically capable person AND NOT dependent on life support. They should be able to sustain a livelihood on their own. I don't think spending $millions to try to extend the life of 14 oz. new borns doesn't do anyone any good and only detracts from resources that would make a real difference to someone less compromised.
 

Cliffy

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Nov 19, 2008
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Abort Pro-Lifers!

Life in any form is what it is. To place one above another is just plain elitism. Humans are part of the web of life, not the king pin, just a thread.

Like SirRupert likes to say, " to pro-lifers, life begins at conception and ends at birth." It is beyond hypocritical. It is contemptuous. Pro-life is a one subject wonder whose emotional appeal defies logic because the emotional severs the connection to the logical mind. The whole movement is unbalanced... and you can take that any way you want.
 

Scott Free

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May 9, 2007
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Some perspective: 30,000 kids die of starvation a day mostly from unfair trade imbalances with us the west.
 

Cliffy

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Some perspective: 30,000 kids die of starvation a day mostly from unfair trade imbalances with us the west.

If they were concerned about the living, I might have some sympathy but they don't. If pro-lifers spent half their energy feeding the living they wouldn't have time to dictate what others should do.
 

Scott Free

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Pastor's abortion dream inflames bushfire tragedy

The Catch the Fire Ministries has tried to blame the bushfires disaster on laws decriminalising abortion in Victoria.

The Pentecostal church's leader, Pastor Danny Nalliah, claimed he had a dream about raging fires on October 21 last year and that he woke with "a flash from the Spirit of God: that His conditional protection has been removed from the nation of Australia, in particular Victoria, for approving the slaughter of innocent children in the womb".

Source

Well, that's one argument: abortions bad because god will burn your forests down.
 

Praxius

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Dec 18, 2007
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In regards to the whole debate on when life begins, I thought this was already determined through law that they are not alive until they are born, therefore have no rights.... which is why the current abortion laws exist. Therefore, the topic ends there on that matter.

As it goes for invading people's privacy when it comes to abortions.... I think of it this way:

How many of us have the right to butt into other families' lives to tell them how they should take care of their children? Nobody does (Except in abusive and neglectful situations, which involve the living/breathing child having rights)

So if I have no right to go over to Karries' house and tell her that she's feeding her kids the wrong way, or that she's putting them to bed at the wrong time, or she's not giving them enough attention as I think she should, or she's not sending them to the school I would send them to (Which she'd probably rip my balls off if I even attempted this) and we leave all of these decisions up to the parents of the child, then wouldn't it also make sense for them to be allowed to determine if they want a family in the first place, or if they want to abort (Based on current laws don't forget) for whatever reasons they feel are right for them and their family?

If Pro-Lifers are given their way, they're allowed to get involved in everybody's personal lives and somehow give fetuses rights.... how far down the rabbit hole do we go?

What happens if the mother plans to have a child or is forced to have the child beyond her wishes, and then suddenly has a miscarriage? It could have been from something silly as drinking or smoking, or not eating properly.... or it could have been a slew of other personal medical conditions beyond her control.... should she be charged with the death of that fetus?

Many also have miscarriages due to various stresses in their lives, some that might not even relate to the pregnancy either (Family issues, relationship issues, job issues, etc.)

How many miscarriages occur each year around the world? Those couples who actually plan for having a child and unexpectedly lose that child are usually quite devistated from this occuring..... yet we then open a big can of worms with applying rights and laws for fetuses, and on top of their own grief, they can then also be charged for "Murder" or neglect..... and perhaps be jailed for somethng that was beyond their own control.

And if things go down that path, who the hell would want to risk having kids in the first place? The pregnancy rates in this country alone have been lower then most other past years..... does anybody think this approach would help anything?
 
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karrie

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Jan 6, 2007
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In regards to the whole debate on when life begins, I thought this was already determined through law that they are not alive until they are born, therefore have no rights.... which is why the current abortion laws exist. Therefore, the topic ends there on that matter.

Law can't declare science away. Dividing cells, a beating heart, and brain activity make a fetus a living thing by scientific definition. Canadian law does NOT, in any way shape or form, legally define a fetus, because what Canada has is a decided lack of abortion law. There is no law, except one that states that writing laws limiting a woman's access, would violate HER rights. Not one word about fetuses from what I've seen.
 

Praxius

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Dec 18, 2007
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Law can't declare science away. Dividing cells, a beating heart, and brain activity make a fetus a living thing by scientific definition.

A sea sponge is living too.... shall they have human rights? Just because a fetus looks like a human and has many parts like a human, doesn't mean they automatically get those rights we all have.

If you look at a fetus of a chimp, it'd have many of the same characteristics as a human fetus.... should they have human rights too?

Canadian law does NOT, in any way shape or form, legally define a fetus, because what Canada has is a decided lack of abortion law. There is no law, except one that states that writing laws limiting a woman's access, would violate HER rights. Not one word about fetuses from what I've seen.

Based on a PDF document I just found that compares Jewish religious views to Canadian law in regards to the rights of a fetus/newborn compared to a drug addicted mother:

http://www.motherisk.org/JFAS_documents/JFAS7001F_e1.pdf

In the Criminal Code of Canada it states, “A
child becomes a human being when it has
completely proceeded, in a living state, from the

body of its mother”.
1


Seems pretty clear and a done deal.... their argument, along with many of the pro-life arguments are based on emotional appeal and attempting to find a method to trump the rights of the already living.​

While I agree there's an issue with drug addicted mothers and the affects on the child they wish to carry through, it does explain the above description of when a person is considered alive.
 

JLM

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A sea sponge is living too.... shall they have human rights? Just because a fetus looks like a human and has many parts like a human, doesn't mean they automatically get those rights we all have.

If you look at a fetus of a chimp, it'd have many of the same characteristics as a human fetus.... should they have human rights too?



Based on a PDF document I just found that compares Jewish religious views to Canadian law in regards to the rights of a fetus/newborn compared to a drug addicted mother:

http://www.motherisk.org/JFAS_documents/JFAS7001F_e1.pdf




Seems pretty clear and a done deal.... their argument, along with many of the pro-life arguments are based on emotional appeal and attempting to find a method to trump the rights of the already living.​

While I agree there's an issue with drug addicted mothers and the affects on the child they wish to carry through, it does explain the above description of when a person is considered alive.

I guess it's kind of a moot point, since a fetus isn't in a position to demand his/her rights, otherwise I'd say it's the wrong people who are making the decisions.