Questions we must ask about abortion

Prior to the 1900s, complications of pregnancy and childbirth were a large part of the reason that average female life expectancy was only 28 years. A lot of women died from pregnancy and childbirth.

In the 1900s, procedures for abortions to save women's lives were an important part of lengthening female life expectancy. Prior to the mid-1970s, pro-life abortions of medical necessity, as well as D&C procedures for women who had been raped, were legally performed in hospitals by trained doctors. Only elective abortions were illegal and were performed by criminal practitioners without medical training in dirty secret rooms with crude, often homemade, instruments such as coat hangers.

Criminal practitioners caused many women to suffer permanent injury or death. The decision to legalize elective abortions was not entirely about women's right to choose. An important reason was to remove elective abortions from organized crime and put them in the hands of trained doctors in proper clinics, which happened very quickly.

In that sense, it was an anti-crime and pro-life decision. The huge increase in demand for elective abortions that followed was not anticipated.

Before banning abortion, two questions should be considered. Some pregnancies are nonviable and will kill the woman and baby. Is it right to ban lifesaving abortions that have always been legal?

Elective abortion is an ugly thing, but changes in law will not eliminate the demand for it nor prevent it from happening. Do we wish to hand elective abortions back to criminals who will resurrect a very deadly illegal industry?

The only good answer is education with personal responsibility and self-control to eliminate unwanted pregnancies.

Unfortunately, Nature fights against that and many do not want or may be incapable of the hard path.

Rich Lorimer

Streamwood