Dying for freedom

Freedom, we've heard that word a lot lately. But, what does it really mean to be free, to have the freedom to choose, to have the freedom to live how you want to live? We've been told time and time again that we live in democratic societies, societies that give us freedom, but there is a group of individuals in society that have paid the ultimate price for this freedom, they paid for it with their lives. They have not only paid the price for our freedom to choose, but they are also one of the most oppressed groups in our society, because they have no freedom. No freedom, and no voice. I can't give them freedom, although I desperately wish I could, but at least I can give them a voice.

At three months old an unborn child is two and a half to three inches long and is fully formed. It has begun swallowing and kicking and the organs and muscles are beginning to function [1]. Abortions killed 185,375 unborn children in England and Wales in 2000 [2]. Approximately 46 Million abortions are carried out every year [3]. That's a lot more people than were killed in the holocaust, that are being killed in Palestine or anywhere else in the world. Making it legal, however, doesn't make it right.

I believe that abortions are morally and ethically wrong. In my opinion, they violate the human rights of the unborn child. The "termination" of a pregnancy has a horrific consequence...it kills a child.

Women's liberation has told us that it is a woman's right to choose what happens to her body, a woman's right to choose if she should terminate her pregnancy. But, it's not her right. Who gave her the right to kill an innocent child? Her right to "choose" robs fathers of the right to their unborn children, and a child the right to live.

One could say though that "it's her body. The child's father doesn't have to carry the baby for nine months, she should be able to choose what happens to her body," and to an extent I agree with this logic. Thank God that we can choose, to some extent, most of the things that happen to us. If a woman wants to prevent herself from getting pregnant there are things she can do to reduce the chances. "But, they're not foolproof," I hear people say, and they're right. But there are few things in life that can be guaranteed. Even then, there is a foolproof way of guaranteeing that one doesn't get pregnant. Unless we are to witness another virgin birth, a woman can safely say that if she doesn't have sex she wont get pregnant.

I know what people think, not the most appealing option. And killing your child is? Choices, choices...what makes one choose a little fun over the rights of their unborn child?

Then there is the argument that some women get pregnant as a result of rape. In reality, this tragic situation results in a mere 1% of abortions. Pro-abortionists have used this argument for their own aims, but it simply adds further confusion to an already complex and highly emotive topic. Statistically, the overwhelming majority of abortions are not carried out to end a pregnancy which was the result of rape.

If women had transparent wombs would they be so quick to condemn the growing child to death? The development of the child in the womb is nothing short of a miracle. Women do not in fact allow their unborn child to live in the womb, so long as the mother is healthy, the child will develop normally without any assistance from the mother. In contrast, the ending of that child's life requires deliberate action from the mother.

Why have we kept silent for so long about this daily atrocity? When we are presented with the facts, it is clear that abortion is nothing short of an irresponsible form of birth control. We may not be able to stop this inhumane practice, but at least we can stand up for the rights of those that cannot speak. And at the very least, hate it in our hearts.

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[1] http://www.babycenter.com/fetaldevelopment?CP_bid=
[2] http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=68&More=N
[3] http://www.abortiontv.com/AbortionStatistics.htm#Abortions%20Worldwide