THE FOLLOWING, WHILE DEALING WITH A VERY MATURE SUBJECT, IS AN EDITORIAL.
Dear Free Choice E-zine Readers:
We apologize for the odd timing of this Editorial since Mother's Day was yesterday but we didn't create the situation, just merely reporting upon it.
Now then, a lot has already been said and will be discussed in the days to come if the Supreme Court goes ahead with its “leaked first draft” position and overturns their 1973 landmark decision in the case known as Roe v. Wade, which would potentially make abortions illegal within the United States of America.
First and foremost, let us agree on one indisputable fact regardless of which side of the issue you’re on.
Abortion is a VERY complicated subject.
On one hand, there is the ongoing—and still not completely resolved to everyone’s satisfaction—debate of exactly when does the fetus within a pregnant woman officially become a living being?
Is it from the moment the baby emerges from the womb and draws its first breath?
Is it from whenever a monitoring device can detect a heartbeat within the woman’s womb? And please note that while there is a general pattern as to when that might occur, there is no set time schedule concerning the exact moment that happens, as anyone who has experienced “due dates” versus actual birth can attest to.
Is it from the moment of conception, which is another unsettled question because exactly when does that occur? Is it when sperm enters egg? After all, one meeting the other is not a guarantee of pregnancy for the male’s contribution has a long way to go to reach its destination and might not be able to complete the final leg of the journey, let alone be viable enough to accomplish its biological objective if it does get there.
Is it from the moment man and female get intimate? And for the sake of clarity in a family oriented E-zine, we ARE talking about a lot more than just a hug and a kiss.
Or is it from the perspective some males believe that conception starts when they see a woman and hope to “get lucky”?
Yet regardless of whatever the exact scientific answer is, on the other hand you also have the question of what rights does the woman possess?
After all, she is the one pregnant, not you.
A lot of people, including The Free Choice E-zine, feel that the woman DOES have the right to decide whether or not she wants an abortion in matters of rape, incestuous rape, and medical issues.
Those of the Jewish Faith, among many others, are considering legal action if the Supreme Court does overturn Roe v. Wade because doing so would violate their First Amendment rights.
As for any other possible scenario, it boils down to the following people...
The Potential Mother To Be.
That’s it. Period.
The Potential Mother To Be should be able to consult anyone she feels can contribute vital information, including her doctor(s), the father—if possible, and whoever else she needs to talk to, whether they be religious officials, other family members or someone else.
Realistically everyone else should stay out of it because this is a difficult decision not to be taken lightly and in the end, is one only The Potential Mother To Be and she alone can make.
PLEASE NOTE we are only advocating that the option remain legally available, because "My Body, My Choice" is far more than a slogan.
Just like every woman is an unique individual, every situation is different.
Those that do not want to go that route can always choose to put the baby up for adoption afterwards, but the whole situation is a tangled mess as it is that will not miraculously straighten itself out overnight.
The Supreme Court's original 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling stated that the Constitution of the United States protects a pregnant woman's liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction.
It never said that she had to have an abortion, only that abortion should remain a legal option.
Yet look at everything individual state governments, let alone those in power—mostly of the Republican Party—have done since then to interfere with that ruling.
As previously stated, The Potential Mother To Be has enough on her mind as it is and in the end only she and she alone can and should make the decision.
THE ABOVE, WHILE DEALING WITH A VERY MATURE SUBJECT, WAS AN EDITORIAL.
