Prolifers Value the Mother

I support ending a pregnancy to save the mother's life. It's the ONLY time I'm at all comfortable with intentionally ending a pregnancy that would result in an innocent death, and only then if there's no way to save them both. It's hardly worth mentioning because such cases are so rare, but leave it to the prochoicers to pull out fringe cases and present them as if they're the only cases.

When two lives are in danger and only one can be saved, we must try to save that life.

I can't tell you how many times I've heard the argument that "prolifers want the mother to die!" or "prolifers will force her to carry to term even if the fetus is already dead!" or "pregnancy is dangerous so abortion should be kept legal!" and so on. I don't know of an eloquent way to say this, but... no.

The truth is that with me, and most other prolifers, we don't want the mother to die and we won't force her to carry to term if her health is in jeopardy because of the pregnancy. We're pro-life, remember? People who murder prochoicers or want to force the mother to risk her life are not prolife, they're just anti-abortion. Whether or not you believe it, most prolifers actually approve of ending a pregnancy if the mother is in danger. This is because we believe people have the right to protect their lives if they choose to do so. It's what's known as self-defense. Is it murder to kill someone if they're going to kill you? No. You're defending yourself. Granted, the baby doesn't intend to hurt its mother, but that doesn't change what's happening during a life-threatening pregnancy. And even more so, if the mother dies during her pregnancy, in almost every case her baby will die, too. What's the point in losing two lives? An abortion that is done to protect the mother is not done to destroy a life, but to save one. It's a terrible situation, but you must ask yourself this: is it right to force someone to sacrifice their life for someone else, especially if that someone else will most lilely die anyway?

It's time prochoicers quit using this baseless strawman argument against prolifers. Most of us approve of ending pregnancies to save women’s lives. End of story.

All that said, if there is a way to give the baby a chance in a dangerous pregnancy, I believe we should try. For example, if the mother can hold out until the 20th week, she should try to. That way the baby has a chance to survive outside the womb. Unfortunately that can't always be done, though. When it can, we should always try. Less death is always something to aim for, right? I have the utmost respect for women who choose to carry to term in dangerous pregnancies.






PULLING THE "EMOTIONAL DISTRESS" CARD

People often bring up emotional distress that an unwanted pregnancy can cause, and say that that's reason enough to end the pregnancy. Again, unless her life is in danger, that's not good enough for me.

If she is so distressed that it's taking a physical toll on her, or if she is at risk of mental illness, then each situation like that should be considered individually to see if there would be any significant long term negative effects (such as self harm, suicide, or PTSD) of carrying to viability. Such things are EXTREMELY rare, but they have happened, so they need to be considered. There needs to be much more involved than just walking into a clinic that wants her money and telling them that her pregnancy makes her sad or scared. There needs to be a team of objective psychologists and medical doctors to interview her and determine if there really is a risk of mental illness and/or physical harm from her claimed distress. The problem with allowing ending preterm pregnancies for all cases of "emotional distress" is that any woman can tell you a sob story about how she's feeling sad and then execute her offspring for no reason other than convenience.

On top of that, if a woman is unable to deal with pregnancy emotionally, why in the world did she have sex in the first place? This is just common sense, people. Risking something that you can't deal with is what's commonly known as stupid. If you're not insured in case you have a car accident, don't drive! If you don't have health insurance for injuries, don't play dangerous sports! If you don't want a tenant, don't hang a "for rent" sign outside your house! Should we give the death sentence to an innocent third party because some woman made a foolish decision? Of course not!

Women should make their choices BEFORE conception, not after. She can use multiple birth controls, she can get herself sterilized (or her partner, as sterilization is reversible in men), or just not have sex. You CAN live without sex, ESPECIALLY if she's not ready for pregnancy.