Abortion never medically necessary

Forum in Dublin on maternal health - The Irish Times - Mon, Sep 10, 2012: An international symposium on maternal healthcare in Dublin at the weekend has concluded that abortion is never medically necessary to save the life of a mother.

A panel of speakers formally agreed to a “Dublin declaration” on maternal healthcare. It stated:

“As experienced practitioners and researchers in obstetrics and gynaecology, we affirm that direct abortion is not medically necessary to save the life of a woman.

“We uphold that there is a fundamental difference between abortion and necessary medical treatments that are carried out to save the life of the mother, even if such treatment results in the loss of life of her unborn child.

“We confirm that the prohibition of abortion does not affect, in any way, the availability of optimal care to pregnant women.”

Leading Belgian cancer physician and presenter at the conference Frederic Amant is quoted in The Lancet as saying, “Fear of chemotherapy should not be a reason to terminate pregnancy. There is no evidence termination improves outcomes for the mother.”

Related: 

• Cancer in Pregnancy website
• Treatment of breast cancer during pregnancy: an observational study
• Long-term cognitive and cardiac outcomes after prenatal exposure to chemotherapy in children aged 18 months or older: an observational study

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Getting rid of rape evidence

WORLDmag.com | Getting rid of rape evidence | Marvin Olasky: Gregg Cunningham’s Center for Bio-Ethical Reform ad will make lots of people angry, but there’s truth to it: Rape is atrocious and leaves every non-perverse person disgusted, so many of us naturally try to get rid of the evidence.

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Abortionist admits, ‘most women having abortions are not raped’

LifeSiteNews: Shortly before controversy erupted over Congressman Todd Akin’s remarks on abortion in cases of rape, an abortionist bluntly admitted that “most women having abortions are not raped.” D.C. abortionist Willie Parker was responding to an article on the ‘Advancing new standards in reproductive health’ blog of the University of California, San Fransico. 

Author Tray Weitz had critiqued the approach of advocates for abortion of using hard cases to make the case for legal abortion. She suggested rather an approach that would validate abortion whatever the circumstances – a ‘rights’-based approach. Parker notes that when abortion “advocates have sought stories from me to make the case for abortion, it has always been a request for tragic circumstances, the stories felt to be the most likely ones to move opinion. The reality is that that is not the typical patient I see, as most women having abortions are not raped or are not carrying a lethally flawed fetus.”

"I wish my mother had aborted me"

Lynn Beisner writes in The Guardian: 

It is true that in the past 12 years, I have been able to rise above the circumstances of my birth and build a life that I truly love. But no one should have to make such a Herculean struggle for simple normalcy. Even given the happiness and success I now enjoy, if I could go back in time and make the choice for my mother, it would be abortion.

The world would not be a darker or poorer place without me. Actually, in terms of contributions to the world, I am a net loss. Everything that I have done – including parenting, teaching, researching, and being a loving partner – could have been done as well, if not better by other people. Any positive contributions that I have made are completely offset by what it has cost society to help me overcome the disadvantages and injuries of my childhood to become a functional and contributing member of society.

It is not easy to say, "I wish my mother had aborted me." The right would have us see abortion as women acting out of cowardice, selfishness, or convenience. But for many women, like my mother, abortion would be an inconvenient act of courage and selflessness. I am sad for both of us that she could not find the courage and selflessness. But my attitude is that as long as I am already here, I might as well do all I can to make the world a better place, to ease the suffering of others, and to experience love and life to its fullest.

Editor: There's so much here to comment on . . . where to begin? She actually makes some good points about some pro-life arguments -- they are entirely too subjective. But I don't believe subjectivity can be discounted completely, especially when you consider them from a post-modern perspective (all views are valid). 

Aside from all the things she suffered in the past, Beisner's greatest suffering is caused by blindness to the biblical worldview. It would explain suffering, God's sovereignty, the worth of an individual, and our purpose in life.

Fathers, Don’t Abort Your Daughters

Patheos: So you learned the baby you helped to conceive is a girl and not a boy. Already frightened by the idea of fatherhood, already concerned about all the hardships and sacrifices parenting entails, already disoriented by the potential radical change this requires in the way you envision your future, you feel now — even if only slightly — more inclined to want your partner to abort.

. . . So now you’re fantasizing about an abortion again, how one visit to a clinic could give you back the future you wanted, how you could escape from the whole situation and all the pressures it brought with it. You don’t feel ready for this. Your heart does not feel big enough. You’re still so selfish, so lazy, so irresponsible — and those are the things you like about yourself.

Don’t do it. Do not do it. Your daughter is waiting for you. She will expand and soften your heart. She will make you a better man. A daughter too is a blessing beyond measure. Give yourself to this, and she will make you into a protector and provider.

Ultrasound: For Some CPC Clients, It's not Enough

Life Training Institute Blog: Ultrasound: For Some CPC Clients, It's not Enough [SK]: As former CareNet center director Suzanne Genit points out, there are five types of abortion-minded clients:

Type #1: Responds to loving support, chooses life.
Type #2: Responds to information on fetal development—chooses life
Type #3: Responds to descriptions of abortion techniques—chooses life
Type #4: Remains unmoved by love, facts/information, and verbal descriptions of abortion techniques, but responds to graphic abortion videos—chooses life.
Type #5: Hardens her heart to all information—chooses abortion.

Editor: Scott Klusendorf presented this information at last week's Summit. We'll have recordings available soon. 

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Japanese Women’s Choice between Abortion and Adoption

Japanese Women’s Choice between Abortion and Adoption - The Japan Daily Press: We were told years ago that women in Japan don’t suffer after abortion. There is no taboo on abortion here, no “preaching” against it, no opposition to it, no clear belief system that condemns it. The conventional wisdom was that there was no real fallout from this all-too-common practice here. Of course, in America there was suffering because of the culture, so it was thought.

It is an interesting question. Why are so many Japanese women suffering from post-abortion stress? We have heard from women who had abortions decades ago, yet they can’t forget or forgive themselves and all those who pressured them to do it. They were most often pressured by parents, especially moms, who surely thought they were doing what was best for their daughter. But though all around them said abortion was the only way, they often can’t seem to move on.

Editor: This article was written by Cynthia Ruble of Life Hope Network in Nagoya, Japan.

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How to talk about adoption

Study Shows Women Confident in Decision to Abort, Not Necessarily Informed

Study Shows Women Are Confident in Decision to Abort, Not Necessarily Informed: A new study by the Guttmacher Institute shows that women may be confident about their decision to abort their baby – but not necessarily informed. . . . [H]aving confidence does not mean that people have armed themselves with any amount of beneficial, tangible knowledge.

The study, in the June 2012 journal Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, looked at the “attitudes,” not the knowledge, of women who received abortions at one U.S. clinic. Data was taken from the pre-counseling needs assessment and clinical intake forms of over 5,109 women (5,387 abortions) in 2008. Researchers did not speak to any of the women. The results of the data evaluation showed that “[f]or 87% of the abortions sought, women had high confidence in their decision before receiving counseling.” The study results did not indicate a level of education regarding the stages of fetal development or the abortion process itself.

Editor: Obviously, women are not so settled in their minds about their abortion decisions. Otherwise, sidewalk counselors -- who do speak to women -- would have no success.


Analysis: Biased Guttmacher Study Claims Women Confident of Abortion Decision
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She’s WHAT? Unexpectedly Pregnant at 42

She’s WHAT? Unexpectedly Pregnant at 42 | NRL News Today:  Pro-choice” friends insist pro-lifers live in some parallel universe free of struggles and difficulties, but we are just human beings, too. It’s what you do with them.

There are many, many instances where a pregnancy seems terribly ill-timed. We know the fear that a woman experiences, including the apprehension that she couldn’t be a “good mother” at that stage of her life. (Dads can—and do–feel exactly the same sense of inadequacy.) That is a perfectly understandably reaction. The story by “Nancy” does a wonderful job conveying the emotional ups and downs.

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Attitudes toward adoption: It's immoral?

In the Guttmacher Institute's "Reasons U.S. Women Have Abortions: Quantitative and Qualitative Perspectives" (Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2005) I came across this little disturbing nugget:

While fewer than 1% of women in the quantitative survey volunteered that they would not consider or did not favor having a baby and giving it up for adoption, more than one-third of interview respondents said they had considered adoption and concluded that it was a morally unconscionable option because giving one's child away is wrong.

We have our work cut out for us.

What about rape?

Feminists for Life of America - Pro Woman Pro Life: What if it was your daughter who was raped? Out of our desire to save someone from suffering, it is normal to wish we could erase a painful memory such as rape. Unfortunately, the hard truth is that as much as we want to, we can't.

Abortion doesn't erase a memory. Abortion is a second act of violence against a woman who is raped. Abortion is worse than rape. Both victims—the woman and her child—deserve our unconditional support.

Related: Rape survivor speaks to men

Immigrants using sex-selective abortion?

Toronto Sun: A new study of Ontario births shows women born in India are more likely to have a boy as their third child, lending credibility to the theory that sex-selection abortion is common among immigrant communities. The Canadian Medical Association study found that the third-child births of Indian-born women were at a ratio of 136 boys to 100 girls, compared to 105 boys to 100 girls for Canadian-born women, which is close to the worldwide average.

The theory is that in cultures in which boys are preferred, parents who already have girls will abort subsequent female babies until they can conceive a son. The authors point to previous research that shows a sharp increase in the male-to-female ratio among second children in India when the first is a girl, but no similar spike for girls when the first born is a boy.

The study comes on the heels of a controversial Canadian Medical Association Journal editorial calling on doctors to hide a fetus' sex from parents for the first 30 weeks of pregnancy, after which abortion becomes very difficult to access in Canada. "Canada has a unique opportunity to address this problem. It's a major form of discrimination against women. If Canada cannot do something to address this problem, what hope do India and China have?" said Dr. Rajendra Kale.

The suggestion sparked a vocal backlash from abortion rights activists and gynaecologists. "People have the right to knowledge and they should be treated like responsible adults, and can decide for themselves what to do with information like that," Joyce Arthur, executive director of the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada said at the time. "We're pro-choice not because we love abortion, but because women have the right to decide what's best for their own lives for their own reasons, and we don't have to agree with those reasons." She acknowledged that "nobody likes sex-selective abortion," but said that's not a good enough reason to ban it, instead suggesting education and outreach.

Wantedness and coercion

"Key Factors in Understanding Women’s Mental Health After Abortion," by Martha Shuping, M.D., Association for Interdisciplinary Research in Values and Social Change Research Bulletin, Vol. 23, No. 2, Fall 2011

Post-abortion suffering

A psychiatrist looks at the effects of abortion - downloadable brochure from FRC

The "Yes!" that changed everything

LifeSiteNews: It was 1980. The pregnancy test read positive. Andrea now faced the sobering reality of being unmarried and with child. Uncertain of her future and devoid of support, she made the abortion appointment. 

After spilling out her circumstances, she was assured by the counselor that “you are making the best choice.” The soothing words in Andrea’s ears wrestled against the unpleasant knot growing in her stomach.

In a hallway near the waiting room. Andrea covered her face with her hands; the tears trickled down her cheeks. As she wept, an elderly African-American janitor walked toward her, dragging a mop and pail. She came close, lifted Andrea’s chin, and looked straight into her eyes. “Do you want to have this baby?” she calmly asked. At peace in the presence of this kind stranger, Andrea released a “YES.” “Then God will give you the strength,” the woman said. “Put on your clothes and leave.”

. . . That was thirty years ago. My mother’s brave “YES” saved my life. I had an appointment to die, but God canceled it. I received the priceless gift of life instead – a gift I am forever grateful for.

Reasons U.S. women have abortions

Guttmacher: This is the 2005 study citing the reasons women give for having abortions.

The day I killed

LifeSiteNews: Abortion was my only option. My decision was solely based on selfishness. I didn’t want this baby. I couldn’t wait to get rid of the heaviness I felt just from carrying the awareness that a baby was growing inside of me.

A quick trip to Dallas ensued. I ducked like a coward when my boyfriend and I passed the picketers across from Planned Parenthood’s abortion center. I met conviction. Outside the clinic felt dark. Oppressive. Tormenting. It was excruciating. With cold sweats and heart racing, I could not wait to get inside. And relieved I was when we entered the welcoming area.

Oh, the deception! There was peace. Many were smiling. . . . It was there I killed. Was it a boy? Was it a girl? I don’t know. But this I do know – today, I love that child.

Only do what your heart tells you?

EPM, page 5: Princess Diana once promoted this creed, but what kind of trouble can a client get into following her heart?

Hard cases: New facts, new answers

Unchoice: Women victimized by sexual assault have some important perspectives on the abortion issue. Studies show that most don't want abortion. Those who had abortions in such situations reported that it only increased their trauma. Those who didn't abort said they had no regrets about giving birth to their child. Download free booklet