Since the inclusion of the Stupak amendment, there have been several diaries devoted to discussing the issue of abortion, all from the majority viewpoint here on DailyKos. However, I do not subscribe to the belief that it is as simple as you are either for it or against it. I believe that the entire debate is muffled when we categorize ourselves as pro-life or pro-choice. I think that if we truly analyze our positions, most of us would find that we are somewhere in the middle simply leaning one way or the other and if the truth were told, our viewpoints would be a lot closer than we previously thought. So I would like to start by giving my beliefs (which I consider to be mostly pro-life and see how different hey really are from those of you here at Dkos. I expect to be to the right of many of you on this issue but we all may be surprised at how different (or how alike) our viewpoints are.
I am going to break down my beliefs using a scale from zero to nine (indicating the month of pregnancy). Zero will indicate that I never find abortion acceptable in the given scenario and nine will mean that I find it acceptable throughout the ninth month (up until the moment of delivery). I would appreciate if in the comment section, you would give a similar ranking system so that we can compare our beliefs. The categories are not meant to be insulting but I am trying to capture the entire spectrum of scenarios. If my efforts to be inclusive and succinct offend anyone, I apologize in advance.
If a woman chooses to have an abortion because:
A.) Adult who makes the decision for convenience with no approval of anybody.(no medical or mental issues but may include economic or situational issues) = 2.5
I believe that this gives the woman a chance to realize she had unprotected sex or notice something is wrong (missed period, morning sickness, etc...) and make the decision without any notification to the potential father. She is an adult and the fetus is still in a very primitive state. Although I still think it is a life, I think this is a fair compromise.
B.) Adult who makes the decision for convenience with a signed affidavit of approval from the prospective father.(no medical or mental issues but may include economic or situational issues) = 4
I do not think of this as permission but as mutual consent. The father had no say in the first 2.5 months but beyond that, he should have a say. This would have prevented the blackmail I went through when my ex-wife threatened an abortion of our first child.
C.) Under sixteen with no additional factors such as rape, incest, medical or mental issues. This is without parental notification. = 0
At this age, it is important that the parents be involved. If there is a threat of abuse as a result, that issue should be handled separately.
D.) Under sixteen with no additional factors such as rape, incest, medical or mental issues. This is with parental notification. = 4
With parental approval, the decision should be made with counsel by a trained psychologist to ensure that it is the girls desire and it is in her best interest.
E.) Under eighteen with no additional factors such as rape, incest, medical or mental issues., without parental consent. = 1
This would include the day after pill. A parent should still be aware of their children's activities. They could be in danger of sexually transmitted disease or pregnancy and a parent should know if they are having a medical procedure this intrusive.
F.) Under eighteen with no additional factors such as rape, incest, medical or mental issues., with parental consent. = 4
With parental approval, the decision should be made with counsel by a trained psychologist to ensure that it is the girls desire and it is in her best interest.
G.) Adult with mental considerations such as severe depression or other more severe issues but otherwise healthy baby. = 6
The decision should be made with counsel by a trained psychologist. Consideration should be made as to the length of pregnancy as the child is becoming almost viable outside the womb.
H.) Adult with medical considerations such as severe health risk by continuing the pregnancy but the baby is healthy. = 7
At seven months, the baby can survive and every attempt should be made to save the baby. However, a woman should be allowed to decide between her life and the babies.
I.) Adult and the baby has health considerations (not life threatening for the baby such as a deformity or Downs Syndrome). = 5
If the baby is going to be deformed but otherwise healthy, it should not be a determining factor for a late term abortion just like we shouldn't kill kids with a similar deformity.
J.) Adult and the baby does not have a significant chance of surviving outside the womb. = 9
I am sure that there are other variants of these scenarios that I did not include but I think this is a good start to get the conversation started. I would also like to add that I believe that being pro-life means that we should offer help to those people who we believe made the right decision after the child is born. This means financially, medically, educationally and so on. I believe there should also be limits on adoption of children from other countries until there are adequate numbers of parents for all of the children without homes here in the US. I also believe being pro-life includes children in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other war torn countries along with their parents. You cannot be pro-life AND pro-war.
Thank you in advance for being respectful to anyone who offers their beliefs in the comment section. Feel free to say what ever you would like about mine. That's why I put them out here, to get your feed back.