Collateral Damage

   Within any reasonable debate, there are two opposing sides attempting to make their case. Unfortunately, the longer these debates rage on, the more hyperbole can be heard within the arguments. Extremists on either side of the issue will become frustrated with the other side's unwillingness to see things their way, and will begin to cloud the root issue with bold claims that aren't necessarily the truth. They will also resort to citing extreme cases as evidence as to why their way of looking at the issue is the only reasonable answer.

   Those of us who would prefer to remain reasonable, seeing the value within both sides of the argument, tend to get so lost in the constant bombardment of alleged "facts" we will eventually walk away from the issue because we've simply grown weary of the entire argument.

   The abortion issue, in my opinion, has become one of those debates.

   Before you assume that you already know where this is going, consider this: The information I'm about to share with you contains actual facts and figures compiled by the Alan Guttmacher Institute, or (AGI), which is Planned Parenthood's special research affiliate. Do you find it interesting that I, being a Christian Conservative, would use information compiled by an affiliate of Planned Parenthood? Wouldn't any case you might assume I'd be making look far more compelling if I used the numbers compiled by a Christian Conservative organization? Of course it would. But I'm not interested in bolstering my argument with facts and figures compiled only by those who already agree with my point of view.

   Nobody, on either side of the argument, will disagree with the fact that an abortion is a very serious, very horrible procedure. Nobody would ever wish that any of their loved ones would have to experience one. Keeping away from the extremes on either side of the argument, it is my belief that before we can come to any form of agreement on whether or not it should be legal, we'd have to first come to some sort of agreement as to what it is, who is doing it, and why it's being done. It is only within that context that we can come to reasonable answers as to how we allow it to occur. It is also the only way we can clearly examine the arguments being proposed as to why it should be legal in all cases, or limited in some form.

   From the most recent studies performed by AGI, here are the numbers pertaining only to the U.S.

   - There were 1.2 million abortions performed in the U.S. in 2008.
   - 22% of ALL pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) in the U.S. end in abortion.
   - Women in their 20's account for 57% of all abortions.
   - 1% of the abortions performed involved cases of rape or incest.

   With regard to when these abortions are performed:

   - Less than 9 weeks - 61.8%
   - 9 - 10 weeks - 17.1%
   - 11-12 weeks - 9.1%
   - 13-15 weeks - 6.6%
   - 16-20 weeks - 3.8%
   - 21 or more weeks - 1.5%

   What are the reasons being given as to why these abortions are being performed? Multiple answers were given by those who were asked. Of those who answered;

   - 75% Cite concern or responsibilities to other individuals
   - 75% Say they cannot afford a child
   - 75% Say having a child would interfere with work, school, or the ability to care for dependents.
   - 50% Say they do not want to be a single parent, or are having problems with their husband or partner.

   In other words, the vast majority of the reasons being given are strictly matters of "convenience."

   For those of you who already have children, please allow me to ask the following questions. When that child was born, did it:

   - Interfere with the responsibilities you had to other individuals?
   - Put a strain on your finances?
   - Interfere with work, school, or your ability to care for other dependents?
   - Cause problems between you and your husband/boyfriend?

   The follow-up question is even more important.

   When you look at that child now, given all of the hardships you faced in raising them, have you ever regretted giving birth to him or her?

   Here's the bottom line, folks: Having a child is hard. There's no way around it. Doing so will put some degree of strain upon every area of your life. But no other species on the planet eliminates their unborn offspring due to the difficulties they will experience in caring for them. No other species on the planet eliminates their unborn offspring because the timing isn't right.

   In the case of rape or incest, those answers are very different and they should be handled very differently. While some women in those situations choose to keep those children, I don't believe that any reasonable person would feel justified in demanding that they do so. But remember, we're only talking about 1% of the abortions being performed in this country falling into that category. Health risks to the mother are another thing that should be accounted for. If a woman's own life would be put in danger due to carrying the child, then she should have the right to decide whether or not she wants to take that risk.

   But if we've really come to a place as a nation where we believe it's morally acceptable to kill well over a million unborn children every year, almost entirely due to our not wanting to experience inconvenience in our lives, then we are far more depraved than I would've ever imagined.