Can one be pro-life yet allow others to choose abortion?

[skip fox]

Can one be pro-choice and yet be disturbed at abortions?

Both are, of course, more than possible. They exist all around. Only the ideologues would have us be in one of two camps. This type of thinking suits the Limbaugh's and O'Reilly's but is a poor fit for the human. As more considered (or honest) thinkers, we would do well to avoid the consequences of such thinking.

(Dialectial thought as toggle switch.)

[ixion]

1. yes, if one can mind one's own business

that is really the problem. If it wasn't abortion, it would be something else.

[virgogal]

2. Yes,it's a "shades of gray" approach and probably applies to most

people.

[tabbycat31]

3. yeah, I call it personally pro-life, politically pro-choice

[valerief]

4. Can one be pro-life and allow others to choose war? nt

[AllieB]

5. Agree with the MYOB post above.

the choice is between the woman and her doctor. If you're disturbed, don't have one. Same thing with eating meat or being a vegetarian. Don't tell me what I can and can't eat.

[Selatius]

6. Then you are neither black or white on the issue. You are a shade of gray.

Most Americans are shades of gray.

[Kerrytravelers]

7. The recent Gallup poll showed that only 23% want Roe overturned. So 77% say MYOB.

Since 77% are MYOB, I think it is very possible to not choose abortion for one's own situation, but to allow others to make the choice that is necessary for them in their own personal situations.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

8. I am pro-life... in my opinion

I would never be a part of an abortion and would advise others against it (without extenuating circumstance) if they cared what I thought or asked. With that said, peoples beliefs, bodies, and choices are their own... and I have no right forcing my will on others. I have no problem with people making their own personal choices.

I have a similar stance on many issues and personally can't understand why people with differing opinions can't mind their own business.

To sum it up (as states above): I'm personally Pro-Life and Politically Pro-Choice.

[LiberalFighter]

15. I would in most cases not even advise someone if asked.

But, I would pose questions to the person for them to think about.

Do they have extenuating circumstances? Rape, incest, abuse, medical, etc.

Are they in a stable marriage?

Are they having the child for the right reasons?

Will they be able to live with having an abortion? Or not having an abortion? These two are probably the most important questions. They need to accept whichever decision they make without regrets.

[azureblue]

9. well, my religion says

Everyone has to drive a Volvo, and if you don't you are going to Hell. And I have a book that says this is true, so I believe it, and that is that.



Snarky..

[Ilsa]

10. Alot of "prolife" people feel it is their duty to

interfere and "defend the unborn", but most don't interfere with other people's business, which is how it should be.

[LeftyMom]

11. "allow"????

Here's a bright idea- women get whatever health care they think they need, and if you're not their gynecologist you mind your own business.

[MisterP]

12. well, many would deem it dishonest: to give a lefty example, like being antiwar but never

protesting or denouncing it to others, or never lying down in front of a munitions train
the real issue, I think, is not whether people have a right to speak up or even to take direct action, but whether the issue itself is in the right: e.g., while blastocysts show no thought, Iraqis can feel pain and horror--so it is imperative upon us not to shower them with missiles, nor to allow others to do the same (even if they give "logical" explanations like "we need oil")
MYOB can be used against both anti-abortion and anti-war activists, because MYOB does not consider the issues themselves and only holds that nobody can "impose" themselves on others

[Proud Liberal Dem]

13. Depends on what you mean by "pro-life"

I suppose if for you, "pro-life" means "abortion is murder", then I wouldn't imagine that it would be possible since you would have to, presumably, oppose the use of the practice by others (except perhaps in cases where it is used to protect the health of the mother). There would be no legitimate "choice" if you flat out believe abortion is akin to murder.

If by "pro-life", you mean that you're personally opposed to it and (probably) wouldn't choose/support it if faced with an unplanned pregnancy but wouldn't support efforts to restrict/ban it for other people, then yes, you could be. Frankly, that is the essence of the "pro-choice" position as the whole "choice" thing only means that, well, you respect the intelligence and well being of other adults in our society to respect what should be their unquestionable ability to CHOOSE how to handle their unplanned pregnancies.

[Richard D]

14. I'd say without doubt . . .

. . . that all pro-choice people are pro-life. It's not a question of pro-life, since the opposite of pro-life is pro-death - why on earth did we allow that branding anyway? It's right to choose vs. no right to choose. So really, pro-choice and anti-choice. Let's stop playing along with that branding, now.

[Larissa238]

16. I would most likely not get an abortion

but that is not going to mean that I won't let anyone else either. I don't like the whole "pro-life" "pro-choice" labels, either. I think abortions are needed for some people and they should have access to them. I personally don't like the idea of getting an abortion, so unless there were extreme circumstances I wouldn't get one... but I'd like to have the option just in case.

A little background on me: I'm 26 and bipolar. I choose not to have children because I know that bipolar is genetic and I don't want to have kids that have it. If I decide later in life I want a child, I will adopt. I am on the depo-provera shot, a strong form of birth control. If I did end up pregnant, I would decide to have the kid even with the chance that they would be bipolar, but I use birth control and safe sex methods to make sure it doesn't happen. But if I was raped (again) and got pregnant, I would not want to keep the baby and would get an abortion.

[undeterred]

17. Look, there are Democrats who are against abortion.

I don't think the Democratic party does a very good job of making them feel welcome, so they don't say much. Many, but not all, have a religious background. Most of them are not anti-choice, but they personally would never have an abortion. Many times this is the only issue on which they are conservative.

There are also many elected officials who are Democrats. Some of them could not have been elected if they were pro-choice because there are so many single issue (anti-abortion) voters in their district. If they are committed to helping pregant women and better sex education- I think this is a good thing.

We're supposed to be the big tent, but sometimes we are pretty intolerant.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

18. When I say I am pro-choice, I am just that. One can choose to have an abortion or not

to. It should be a personal decision, and yes, there are people who would never think of having an abortion for themselves and keep their beliefs out of the wombs of others.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

19. No one is "pro-abortion"

I hate when language gets used in sloppy ways, and, no, you didn't do it, but that's the implication.

For once and for all, we are ALL pro-choice. Some of us think a woman's health care is her business, and some of us think they should have a say as to what goes on in a strange woman's uterus.

I am pro-life, I am pro-choice, and those who think they have a voice in what happens to a woman's health are ANTI-CHOICE.

It's that simple............

[jwirr]

20. I have always said that one of the problems of the rw churches is that

they fail to realize that the 10 commandments are for Christians to judge their own lives against and not the lives of others. In the early 80s the churches stopped using them to measure themselves and started using them to judge their neighbors. In that sense I can and do believe that "I" should not get an abortion. But I have no right to tell others what they can do with their own lives.