Opinion : Abortion

Submitted as a position paper for my Med. and Society ethics class:

I believe that abortion is an issue for women, and personally, I do not care either way. However, I do like arguing, so for the sake of writing this essay, abortion is wrong. For the sake of argument, I will also try to avoid any Christian morals. Instead, I will site what is my highest personal ethical belief: that individuals need to take responsibility and accept the consequences of their actions. I am not judging people who are careless and casual with sex, I am merely saying that this behavior has biological and social consequences and that abortion is cheating and therefore is wrong.

There are several cases when abortion is clearly justified. These include cases of rape, where the female clearly was not and should not be responsible. In addition, anytime that maternal health is endangered, abortion should be considered a medical procedure and is clearly justified. Slightly more questionable are cases where the pregnancy was planned but early tests show abnormalities (Down's Syndrome for example). I worked with these individuals in the past and question whether these abortions are necessary, yet I would accept the argument that the parents are not responsible (consciously) for bad luck with nature and therefore should be entitled to an abortion. The majority of abortions in this country however do not fall under these circumstances. Most are simply unplanned pregnancies that are unwanted or inconvenient for some reason (1).

First, let's divide the women seeking abortions for unplanned pregnancies into 2 groups. In the first group are girls who fooled around without being in a serious relationship and got pregnant. This group likely covers the majority of abortions, as the average person seeking an abortion is young and unmarried. (1) The second group includes couples who got pregnant but do not want the child for lifestyle or economic reasons. We will assume for the sake of argument that all of the women in these groups had sex consensually and have no medical indications against childbirth. While there are likely unique mitigating circumstances in every case, in general, the abortions for all these women represent a way to evade the consequences for their actions.

Any woman seeking an abortion will be bypassing the pain of labor and childbirth, as well as the life disruption that pregnancy brings. These are the natural biological consequences of their decision to engage in unprotected intercourse. Furthermore, the specific consequences that these women are evading depend on which group they are in. Women in the first group were likely not expected to get pregnant, especially if they are in their teens. If allowed to carry the pregnancy, there will likely be social consequences varying from rejection by family and friends to disruption in their education or job. Yet if their education or family is that important to them, then they should have risked it for one night of fun. There may also be physiological consequences of having to give the baby up for adoption, and financial consequences from the healthcare involved or if the decision is made to keep the child. These are simply the price that must be paid however for the selfish and dangerous choice to have unprotected intercourse, and hopefully these consequences will inspire a better decision in the future.

As for the women in the second group, the specific consequences are less serious but more selfish. Women in stable relationships are likely seeking to avoid having the child because having a baby would affect their lifestyle. The child would disrupt their education or job, and leave them with less disposable income. Again, abortion is a cheap way to evade parental responsibilities. Condoms or the pill cost a lot less than raising a child, so they knowingly took a risk by not using them. That risk has potential consequences; personal greed and convenience are no excuse to evade those consequences.

Many of the problems facing the US today are caused by a general attitude that no one has to be responsible for their actions. It is in this justification that millions of people are have unprotected sex and subsequently abortions. Abortion is a cheap and convenient way to evade responsibility for ones actions, therefore I believe that it is ethically wrong if rape and medical indications are not involved.

1. Trupin, RS. E-medicine: Abortion. Available at : http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic5.htm. 2006.