Late term abortion
Right from fertilization the adventure of a
human life begins…The unborn child is totally entrusted to the protection and
care of the womb. And yet sometimes it is precisely the mother herself who
makes the decision and asks for the child to be eliminated, and who then goes
about having it done. (Opposing Viewpoints, 56)
Late term abortion, a procedure that is currently
legal through all nine months of a pregnancy, has the most detestable
procedure. Once the decision is made to have the abortion, the woman is given
anesthetics to force her cervix to contract and open, basically forcing the
woman into a premature birth. Three days after the medicine is given, the woman
is usually dilated enough for the unborn child to fit through. The act of late
term abortion then proceeds. Monitored through an ultrasound, the doctor can
hear the child’s heartbeat and see its wriggling body. The doctor then takes a
pair of forceps, grabbing each of the little legs. While still inside of the
mother, the baby is then flipped around face down. The doctor then pulls the
baby’s legs out of the birth canal. Once the legs are safely delivered, its
entire body is pulled out, with the head left inside the mother. The doctor
then jams a pair of scissors into the back of the baby’s skull. The doctor
opens and closes the scissors until the hole is large enough, in order for a
suction tube to fit through. Once there is a large enough hole, the scissors
are quickly removed, abruptly replaced by the suction tube. The suction begins,
and the child’s nearly developed brains are then removed. The body and brains
are then brought to a laboratory for further examination. Then it will soon be
disposed, and forgotten about forever. That child was given the miracle of
life, and wasn’t allowed it’s own choice of life or death. An unborn child can
not defend its own life while securely in the womb, and relies on its mother
for total protection through the process of growth in those nine months. The
mother, the child’s only protection, is the individual who makes her own
selfish decision, “but a woman should not have the right to choose the destiny
of an unborn child, for its no woman’s or man’s right to play God.” (www.th-corner.net)
If the argument is that all woman have the right of choice, then that right
should been established during the early stages of making another life. There
was a time in the creation of this child, expected or not, when the man and
woman made their choice to possibly create a new life. For themselves and
another human being. Choice: selecting or separating from two or more things
that which is preferred. No one can answer the question that is on many minds
today: How can people preferring the act of creating a child irresponsibly, but
not following through with the outcome, justify the “woman’s choice” of killing
a child?
In several people’s lives, the act of making
a child is preferred to a higher extent than the child, and abortion is taken
advantage of. There are other ways to prevent an unwanted pregnancy before
abortion should ever be considered. Presently, science and technology has given
women the ability to take two different types of birth control methods that are
very sufficient, approximately 97%-99% effective. These methods are
contraceptive birth control pills, which are taken every day at the same time.
Or a shot, which is given every three months. The ability to be in possession
of these products is very easy, and affordable, there should be no excuse for
an unexpected or unwanted pregnancy. It is easy to tell that people prefer the
act of making a child, but not the child itself. Everyone needs to take
responsibility for his or her choices no matter the situation; no one should be
allowed the excuse to kill an unborn child. Science and technology has given
women the right to stay away from abortion, in the early and late trimesters.
With the ability to stay away from murdering an innocent human being, there
should be no excuse of why anyone should go to the extent of abortion, killing
your own flesh and blood. With the advances in science and technology, there
shouldn’t be any murder involved.
To kill is to deprive of life at any moment.
Several controversial issues about late-term abortion have been discussed. But
how is murder controversial? With the definition of “kill” in plain sight, it
is easy to see that any kind of abortion, early or late term, is an act of
killing. No matter what has blocked people from the reality of what abortion
actually is, it is in fact murder, the death of another human being.
From
the time the ovum is fertilized, a life is begun which is neither that of the
father nor the mother; it is rather the life of a new human being with its own
growth. … Late-term (or partial-birth) abortion refers to those abortions that
are performed after twenty-four weeks of pregnancy. (Opposing Viewpoints, 86)
At this stage in the childs life, it has all
its vital signs, and is just moving its way to perfection. “Partial birth
abortions do not remove non-viable tissue, but kill babies… and therefore
should be banned.” (Opposing Viewpoints, 77)
The people who believe that this act is okay,
try to justify partial birth abortions by saying they only occur rarely, “and
when they do occur, it is frequently because the parents have discovered late
that their prospective child suffers from a serious birth defect or mutation.”
(Opposing Viewpoints, 37) Doesn’t that just come with the territory? The risk
everyone takes, the risk of possibly having an imperfect child should some
times be expected. This risk is a decision every woman decides to take when
becoming pregnant. Risks are just that, and women need to learn to follow
through with what they started, and not run away from problems by taking the
easy way out. Nevertheless there are several reasons, serious or tragic, that
can never justify the deliberate killing of an innocent human being. There are
higher risks in having an abortion than actually going through a pregnancy.
Several risks associated with abortion include:
Blood clots in the uterus, which require
performing a repeat procedure; hemorrhage (extremely heavy bleeding); tears in
the cervix or perforations (holes) in the uterus, either of which might require
stitches; incomplete abortion (fetal tissue left inside); a bad reaction to
anesthesia; and infection. (Nancy Day, 35)
Risks come with everyday
life
the decision to proceed with
an abortion
increases them tremendously.
Several people believe that the doctor is an
accomplice to this infamous crime. “Abortion is a particularly heinous crime
because it kills an innocent human being who has yet to be born.” A nurse who
was new in the abortion clinic, but had thirteen years experience as a
registered nurse, became nauseated when she saw late-term abortion preformed
for the first time. She says, “I saw three of these partial-birth abortions up
close…it was the most horrifying experience of my life.” (Opposing Viewpoints,
77) She recalled one of the conversations with the doctor and patient, “they
talked as if women carried their pregnancies for thirty-six weeks and then
decide ‘oops, I change my mind.’ As if doctors should perform such a treatment
‘on demand.’” (Opposing Viewpoints, 1997) Abortionists often think, “killing a
child while still in the womb isn’t considered murder…yet outside it is…at
least that’s a justification abortionists who perform these procedures might
tell you and I” (www.the-corner.net). It
is the only justification for their job that they can use, whether or not they
like to perform these grotesque methods, or just need the money. Their mind set
is, its legal why not get money for it? They also believe that “late term
abortion should not be banned because it is often the only realistic option in
tragic medical circumstances.” (Opposing Viewpoints, 58)
Should late term abortion stay legal? Many
arguments state that late term abortion is only legal, if the mother or child
is in a life or death situation. There were drawings of the procedures that
happen in partial-birth abortion on the Internet. From these pictures, no one
could even imagine this is a legal operation. It looks like something out of a
horror movie. Although, most state laws already restrict late term abortions
except for the life or health of the woman. There has been several times where
a doctor has performed late term abortions just for the mere fact that the
woman did not want the child anymore. The nurse who was quoted earlier saw only
three late term abortions, and two out of the three that were performed were
because the mother did not want the child. Only one was performed because of a
brain defect. “The ‘vast majority’ of partial-birth abortions are performed in
the fifth and sixth months of pregnancy, on healthy babies of healthy
mothers." (www.nrlc.org)
How can that possibly be legal, the law should be much more specific in its statement
by saying that only, partial-birth abortions are performed if and only if it is
a matter of life or death for the mother or child, or their life is on the
line. That is the only way late term abortions should be performed, not
for any other reason.
Every person whether religious or not, everyone
know that “when the egg and sperm join, a combination of genetic
material is created that has never existed and will never exist again. That
single cell is the start of an individual human life.” (Nancy Day, 68) Since
the cell in itself is the start of life, late term abortion is without
question, murder. I heard a story once, fictional, but it really left me with
chills after I heard it. So I’ll leave you with the same story: A man had a
dream one night that he was listening to the radio, and heard the announcer
say, “if you called in to the station, then you could talk to God, and ask him
one question, and one question only.” The man quickly felt like this was his
chance; finally he gets to know the most mind-boggling answer that he has been
wondering about for years. He never understood if there really was a God, then
why would he let so many people die of a terrible disease called AIDS. Once he
gets the answer, then he will know if he can believe that God is real. The man
quickly picked up the phone, and called the radio station. The announcer
answered, and said, “Are you ready to ask God one question, any question you
would like?” The man stammered, “Yes.” The man then asked his question, “God,
if so many people are dying of AIDS, then why haven’t you sent a cure for it
yet?” God waited for a while, to think of the clearest way to say it, then
decided he’ll just say it very bluntly. “Well I already have sent that cure,
but some one has already aborted it.” The man finally knew his answer, and quickly
awoke. When will the world wake up, and finally realize what it has done, and
what it continues to do?