STAR/TRIBUNE
By ERIC ROPER, Star Tribune
A new era of abortion politics is gripping Minnesota and many other states, thanks to the sweeping Republican victories in November that brought a wave of conservatives into power.
For the first time since the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision, the Minnesota House and Senate are controlled by legislators who oppose abortion rights. They have already introduced a bill that would bar public funding for abortions, directly challenging a 1995 Minnesota Supreme Court ruling that said the state must provide abortion services for low-income women.
Bills being proposed in other states would ban most abortions at 20 weeks after conception, push women considering abortions to view a live ultrasound of the fetus, or curb insurance coverage.
"This is the best climate for passing pro-life laws in years," said Michael Gonidakis, executive director of Ohio Right to Life.
The change in fortunes was clear on the grounds outside the Minnesota State Capitol on Saturday, the 38th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade. The mood among the 1,000 people who held up signs reading "Protect Life" and "Abortion Kills Children" was celebratory.
"This year, with a pro-life House and a pro-life Senate, it's time to stop the killing," said Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life executive director Scott Fischbach, who was flanked by a group of state legislators and Minnesota's Republican congressional delegation.
Fifteen states now have both a legislature and governor who are abortion opponents, according to NARAL Pro-Choice America. A year ago, the number was 10. In the Midwest, that includes Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin. Overall, 29 governors are foes of abortion, compared with 21 last year.
The U.S. abortion rate peaked at more than 29 abortions per 1,000 women in 1981. By 2008 it had fallen to slightly under 20 abortions per 1,000 women, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
In Minnesota, ending taxpayer subsidies is just one of the goals of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life. The group also hopes to ban the few abortions done after 20 weeks, mirroring a recently passed Nebraska law, and to prevent cuts to programs that encourage pregnant women to give birth.
"I don't believe that the taxpayers should be asked to fund things that a large percentage of the population finds morally repugnant," said Rep. David Thompson, R-Lakeville, who is sponsoring the bill to end state funding of the procedure along with Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch, R-Buffalo, and other Republicans.
If the bill were to become law, it would alter an arrangement in which state and federal funding paid for about 3,700 Minnesota abortions in 2008, at a cost of $1.5 million, according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services. The department didn't break down the cost between state and federal funds.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
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I am glad with the direction abortion is headed to. I think abortion is completely wrong in every way. It is murder of a human being and it needs to be stopped. I think that abortion should be considered illegal. I do not think that we should be taxed to help the mother kill her baby.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Abby that abortion in general is wrong.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is good that there are actions against the state providing for abortion services, because the state should not provide that. I think that everyone should decide for themselves whether or not to have an abortion, because I think that there are some exceptions in which an abortion is the better solution. Everyone should be able to decide that, but I dont think that the state should provide this solution or even help financing it.
I think abortion is the mothers choice. If someone gets raped by there uncle they will more than likely be born with birth defects. What if the mothers health is in danger? They should have the right to choose. If the mother finds out that the child has health issues they should be able to decide that they do not want that child to be born like that and be able to get rid of that child.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that abortions are wrong no matter what!!! Even if you get raped by someone and your child is born with birth defects it is not the child's fault. They are not the one's that raped you. They also couldn't help being made it was clearly how your body re-acted to what happened. I also think that if you get raped or want an abortion, you should stop and think about how many people in this world want children but aren't able to produce them. I also think that if you want to get an abortion you should have to pay for it by yourself, not people who pay taxes.
ReplyDeleteI think abortion is TOTALLY WRONG! How can you kill your own baby? If you don't want to keep it you don't have to.. give it up for adoption if you want. Just don't kill it. I don't think its right for Americans who don't believe in abortion to be taxed to help a mother kill her baby when the are totally against it. The state should not provide funds that help murder babies. I disagree with Sadie because even if the child will be born with health problems its still murder. Its discriminating against the baby. Abortion should deffinatly be ILLEGAL! I just don't understand Pro-Choice people. How can people who think killing someone when they have lived outside of their mother's womb be wrong, but yet belive in killing a child that never even got the chance to live outside of the womb? The baby that got aborted never got a chance to live. People think that when a child is in the womb they aren't living. Yes they are. They have a heartbeat. If someone has a heartbeat and you kill them its murder.
ReplyDeleteI think people need to realize that no matter how you want to look at abortion it is completely in every single way possible wrong!!! Why should women be able to decide if a child is born or not? Who gets to decide for the baby if they live or die, and if others were to make mistakes in other ways that were also life changing, they wouldn't be able to take it back. Also a baby isn't a mistake, it should be taken as a miracle because some people can't even have babies and they should think of their fertility as a gift! Even if a woman is raped they should be able to look past the fact of it and realize that the baby is also half of them and they were the ones carrying it for nine monthes. Also if a woman were to be going to get an abortion and got killed on the way the other person would be charged for two deaths and not just one. So who is going to stand up for the babies that would love to be born even if they have birth defects. Think of it this way...would you want people to stand up for your life if you mother was about to have an abortion to kill you?? It may also be the woman's body but the baby should be able to have a body to or even at least a chance. People also believe killing or manslaughter is wrong so why should just killing babies that are still in development be killed or counted as legal? Just because the mother made a mistake or was raped does not make it right under any circumstances to kill people!! I am also very glad that Minnesota is heading in the right direction, but I believe that it should be unconstitutional and would love to see it brought to supreme court to reveal that it is what it is. I also would love every mother that is thinking about abortion to see a video of what happens and how they have to take the body out after aborting an put the dead parts that are there together, and also to think about that baby that they gave up!!
ReplyDeleteI think abortion is murdering a child. You are killing an innocent person. I can understand how it'd be hard to have a child when you've been raped but it is not the childs fault. Once the baby is born, you can give it up for adoption or some other options. For other situations such as you just don't want the child or you don't think you can "afford it" then you should not have been having sex in the first place. Its that simple, if you're not prepared for a child, don't have sex. A baby is a blessing and you should not kill it because you don't want it. It is murder, no matter how much you twist it to say its not, there is no way around it because it is. Think of all the people who can't have children that want to and then some people that can are
ReplyDeletehaving abortions? You should feel blessed to have a child. I just think it is very wrong, its murdering an innocent baby.
Abortion needs to come to an end. Every situation leading up to a pregnancy is different, but in every situation that baby is innocent. It says in our Constitution that everyone has the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; what about that baby? Babies are just as human as the rest of us. So why aren't they given their rights, starting with the most basic; the right to life. In a rape situation, it was not the babies fault, nor was it the mothers. But I think that the baby was the one good thing that came out of such a terrible thing. If the mother feels resentment towards that baby, they have the have the option of adoption. If the issue is they can't afford the baby, single mothers get a lot of help from the government. There are also many single mother agencies. Yea, their life might be tough for a while but other single mothers have made it, so I really feel that shouldn't be an excuse to have an abortion. If a mother learns that her baby will have health issues, that baby still deserves to have a chance at life. There have been many miracles where a mother has been told a baby will die soon after birth, but that baby has been able to pull through and survive. That is because those mothers gave their baby a chance. To me, nothing good comes out of abortion, and it is wonderful the state of Minnesota is taking a step to at least limit abortion.
ReplyDeleteI believe that abortion should com to an end completely!! it is sooo wrong!! How can you murder a human-being? And a baby for that matter?! Minnesota is in the right direction. Hopefully they will say it is illegal in ALL situations one day. PEOPLE alwayss say that "it's the mother's choice, it's her body, she got raped" blah blah blah! WHAT about the baby??? Just think, what if that was you and your mom didn't want you and decided to kill YOU just so she didn't have to deal with you! how would you feel? or what if she didn't really want you but decided to let you live because she knows it's right? Babies are human beings and EVERYONE in the U.S. is supposed to have all the rights that the Constitution gives us, so why doesn't everyone?? Babies are everyone too. A baby is not a choice, it's a miracle that's totally amazing! Some people can't even have kids so they'd be totally willing to adopt him/her.
ReplyDeleteI think it should definitely be the mother's choice when it comes to abortion. You will never totally understand the person's situation and reasoning for wanting an abortion so why force something on them that they don't want? Its not always their fault that they get pregnant. There are a lot of kids who are placed in places to be adopted and never adopted. A kid shouldn't have to go through that. People definitely need a back up plan if they get pregnant, so abortion should for sure be mother's choice, and kept legal.
ReplyDeletethe mothers should have the distion to choose to have an abortion it has many different reasons to have an abortion if they get raped they shouldn't have to have the baby they should be their choise many people are against abortion but if they know they can't take care of the baby it would be better then having the baby go through foster homes. but if women who could take care of them shouldn't have abortions they should only have restrictions for certain situations
ReplyDeleteI think that abortion is extemlly wrong and it needs to come to an end. To me it doesn't matter if the mother doesn't want the baby, she should not get rid of it just because it is an inconvince to her. Its not the child's fault that they happened to be concived, they didn't get the choice. I believe that it would be hard for the mother to keep the baby if she was raped, especially if she was raped by a family member or whatnot. I think that the mother should think about adoption because there is plenty of women in the US alone that have trouble getting pregnant. If she thinks about it from their point of view, I think she would see that abortion is the wrong choice.
ReplyDeleteI think the parents have a right to choose. It's not always that the parents do want the child, they want what is best for the child which is why it is such a hard choice. Their isn't a single parent out there who doesn't want to keep their child. This leads to what is best for their child when the parents know they are unable to raise them or afford them. Children, who have escaped abortion, have went through poverty, abuse, and a horrible lifestyle that no one wanted the child to have. I do believe in everyone having a right to a good lifestyle but I think the parents should be responsible to know the consequences before they have a child. There's free clinics to prevent birth control they should use them. I also do not believe the state should pick up the bill on abortions though either that is wrong! I feel abortion clinics are best, otherwise people will take the abortion into their own hands. The people who believe abortion is wrong have not had the chance to witness how tough it is to see the horrible things these children have gone through, it's very sad.
ReplyDeleteI am very pro-choice on the matter of abortion. Although I believe that in most cases used today the use of abortion has been used poorly and patheticly, abortion should be legal for very exttreme and serious cases. If going through with the birth would kill the child, and or the mother, I believe it should be aborted. If it were to kill the mother, the baby would live without a mom, possibly without a father, going from foster home to foster home being miserable and depressed, and is serious cases, commit suicide. If the baby were going to die, the mother should do her best to try and fix it if at all possible, and if not able, they should have the choice to get an abortion. If they were both to die, and abortion were illegal, the people who made abortion illegal just killed 2 innocent people that had no say in the matter, rather than just one unborn child. Yet they try to promote abortion as illegal. I believe that abortion, is most cases used today is very pathetic, but if the women and families in serious cases weren't allowed to choose their own life, as well as their child's and they have to die, they should have a choice whether or to abort!
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion abortion should be the mother's choice. Every woman should have the right about deciding whether she wants to give birth to her child or not.
ReplyDeleteI still don't think that it's right that a many women get pregnant without knowing the consequences, without knowing that they kill the baby. But what should a woman do if she get raped? I think in this case it is really unfair to expect a woman not to abort, but if you are against abortion you expect all the women to bear a child from a person that they don't even know. Just imagine how awful the life of the mother would be.
In addition I don't think that the state should provide abortion and helping financing it either.
Huckabee was wrong to say things like that publicly about Natalie. No, getting pregnant before you're married isn't a good thing but lets be honest, many people are in that situation and if people are being honest, how many of US could have at SOME point been in that situation? I think its safe to say that most people don't PLAN a thing like that. I have to agree with how Krista said "I don't think 'glorifying' her pregnancy will make anybody want to become a single mother." Natalie is making the BEST out of her situation and loving that child the way she should and I don't think that will make people say "oh, hey, I want to be a single mom", I think it should be and example of how when we make mistakes, sometimes we get stuck in really tough situations but we need to make the best out of it. I think we need to look at ourselves and then we'd realize that its not okay to point fingers because we're all guilty of something or another.
ReplyDelete