[Xantar]

The problem with the abortion issue is that from a purely logical standpoint, you can't justify it.

Think about it this way. Most would agree that aborting babies when they're just sticking their heads out and haven't taken their first breath yet (as was done in China for families with more than one child) is pretty much murder. The baby is fully developed and more or less able to live outside the womb. And some would also say that a collection of undifferentiated cells unable to sustain themselves is not a human being.

Ok, but then where exactly do you draw the line? 8 months after conception? Still seems like the wrong time since most babies are viable at that point. So 6 months? 4 months? 4 months and 22 days?

The Strangler suggests that we should use the point at which a baby could be saved if born prematurely as the standard. That sounds reasonable, but the problem is that's a pretty blurry line, too. There is a point at which the chances of saving a baby is about 50%. And then there's a point when the chances are about 1%. And there's a point when we know the chances are even smaller. When do we stop? Theoretically, babies born as early as 4 months after conception can be saved, but they are in such poor health that they will most likely suffer brain damage and not live much of a life at all. Is that really considered "saving" a child?

There just isn't a clearly defined line when we can say, "At this point in time, it is not a living being, but after another precise period of time, it is." This is the world of morality and ethics, and here science fails us.

That said, I'm more or less with Strangler on this one. I'm against partial birth abortions because, among other things, I don't see how a woman could have gone to all the trouble of carrying a baby inside for nine months, putting up with all the awkwardness and strange hormones that come with it, and then decide to abort the baby just as it's coming out. On the other hand, I simply can't say no to a rape victim who will only be reminded of her rape every time she looks at the child.

I think it's worth noting that abortion is actually a fairly old practice. It's not like we have only been able to do it recently with the advent of modern medicine. A long time ago, certain cultures brewed teas which could abort a fetus when the mother drank them.

As to where to draw the line, well that's a decision I think is best left to a woman and not a man like me. I guess by definition that makes me "pro-choice."