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Jeremiah Stone
Mr. Brimhall
English 12, Per.3
8 February 2014
The Death of Innocents
In her book How to Be a Woman, Caitlin Moran makes this profound and sobering
statement about abortion:
I cannot understand anti-abortion arguments that center on the sanctity of life. As a
species we've fairly comprehensively demonstrated that we don't believe in the sanctity
of life. The shrugging acceptance of war, famine, epidemic, pain and life-long poverty
shows us that, whatever we tell ourselves, we've made only the [feeblest] of efforts to
really treat human life as sacred. (25)
For this reason, that human beings claim to value life yet act contrarily against it, abortion, which
is legal in the United States of America, should be made illegal. There are several valid reasons
why this abhorrent practice should not be an option: it is dangerous for the mother; it is the
murder of an innocent child; it is a painful death for the babies; and, if the abortion is
unsuccessful, it can cause the child to suffer horrible life-long health defects.
Advocates in favor of abortion claim that it is a safe and relatively painless procedure for
the woman undergoing the surgery. On the contrary, abortion is dangerous for the mother not
only because it is a horrible procedure but for many other reasons, too. For instance, abortion can
increase the risk of getting different types of cancer. The article “Abortion Is Wrong” claims
that once a woman has had an abortion, she is at a 50% higher risk of getting breast cancer or
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cervical cancer. Brind claims that“[t]hese increases in cancer could be caused by sudden
changes in pregnancy hormones caused by abortion.” Although not every single abortion
participant will have these horrible after-effects, there is a high percentage of women who will
suffer harmful physical side-effects from having an abortion. Nonetheless, half of all women
who have had abortions report experiencing psychological problems, as well, which include:
depression; anger; nightmares; termination of relationships; eating disorders; anxiety; suicidal
thoughts; anniversary syndrome; and many more (“Abortion Risks”). Basically, those who have
had an abortion face nearly double the risk of mental health difficulties (“Abortion Increases”).
These consequences are much too horrible to undergo just to terminate a pregnancy in an attempt
to avoid being a parent to the child with whom you are pregnant. A woman who is suffering with
psychological problems for months or even years because of killing her child is a consequence
much worse than giving her child to another family who is ready, capable, and willing to take on
the responsibility of raising her child. Adoption is the better solution because every baby has the
right to have a full life that is not terminated before he can even speak his mind and say what he
wants for his life.
Another argument in support of abortion is that a fetus is not a person; in other words, at
the time a fetus is aborted it is not a living being. However, abortion should be made illegal
because it is, in fact, murder. The baby is alive in the mother’s womb, which makes it a human
being. The article “Abortion Is Wrong” says that six weeks after being conceived, the babies
heart begins to beat. In society today, if someone’s heart is beating he is considered to be alive,
so people should consider the baby alive even when the child is still in the mother’s womb. As
the article “Abortion Is Wrong” observes, after twenty weeks the baby knows its mother’s
voice. No dead person or animal can hear, and neither can the deceased nor the carrion recognize
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someone’s voice. Legally, if a pregnant mother is murdered it is considered a double homicide,
yet if the same woman enters an abortion clinic to murder her child, it is sanctioned by society.
Also, if a mother does drugs while pregnant it is considered child abuse, but if the baby is not
“alive” then it should not be considered child abuse by the courts of this country. This
inconsistency in the law proves that the government values the “life” of its young, unborn
citizens when it is convenient or suits its purposes.
Although abortion is touted as a positive solution, proponents of abortion casually
overlook the fact that besides killing many babies, unsuccessful abortions have dramatic negative
effects upon the surviving child. People all across America wait years to be able to adopt a child,
but instead, America allows the poor child to be sucked out of the mother’s womb by a vacuum
in a horrific procedure called the MVA as early as three weeks or in an equally violent procedure
called the D & C, which consists of using a scalpel to scrape the child from the uterine wall of
the mother (Paul). Another procedure used to kill babies requires saline solution. After the
“doctor” injects saline solution into the baby’s body, the salt eats the baby from the inside out,
which some physicians believe might actually be painful to the baby (“Abortion by Salt”).
More disturbing is the fact that abortion is not only dangerous but is also sometimes
unsuccessful. When an abortion fails, it can cause serious medical issues for the child. In her
article entitled “Abortion Survivors,” Gianna Jessen states: “I have Cerebral Palsy because I
was unsuccessfully aborted,” which proves it can be dangerous. Moreover, children that are
unsuccessfully aborted can have a variety of health issues when they get older, such as: cerebral
palsy; paralysis; strokes and brain damage; physical, emotional and cognitive delays; lung
damage; chronic lung disease and seizure disorders (Erfelt). It is horrible that an innocent baby,
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like Gianna Jessen, has to deal with medical issues for the rest of her adult life because her
mother tried to abort her and was unsuccessful.
Interestingly, people who are Pro-Choice argue that abortion should be available to
women who are victims of rape (“Abortion Is a Moral”). However, there are other choices: a
woman does not have to kill the baby. Also, if the mother would put herself in the position of
seeing the situation from the baby’s perspective, she would most certainly concur that abortion is
murder; the baby is innocent and has done absolutely nothing wrong. Still, Pro-abortionists look
at abortion as a” preemptive” medical procedure designed to negate the effects of a traumatic
event experienced by the mother, such as rape. No matter the reason for it, abortion—regardless
of how it is camouflaged and justified in the name of the health or the rights of the mother—is
still murder. Lowen claims that “48% of women have more than one abortion.” If abortion is
preempted by a negative event, and it is not legal to murder a man who raped a woman after the
rape has taken place, then why is it acceptable to murder an innocent baby after it has been
conceived from rape?
The article “California Abortion Facts” claims that at current rates, one third of all
American women will have had an abortion in their life. The different abortion procedures all
have horrible risks, and even if the procedure goes perfectly, there are still high reports of
psychological and mental issues for the mother. Additionally, if the abortion is unsuccessful it
can leave the innocent child with debilitating health issues for the rest of his/her life. Shamefully,
each year, the number of babies aborted is roughly equal to the number of U.S military deaths
that have occurred in all the wars that the United States of America has ever been involved in
(Michaels). Ultimately, abortion is just a different kind of warfare conducted on a helpless
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population of this country’s citizens who cannot defend themselves. This is why abortion is
wrong and should be made illegal. It is murder, plain and simple.
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Works Cited
"Abortion by Salt-poisoning." Society of the Protection of Unborn Children. SPUC, 2013.
Web. 27 Feb. 2013. <http://www.spuc.org.uk/education/abortion/abortion-images/saltpoisoning>.
"Abortion Increases Risk of Mental Health Problems, New Research Finds." The
Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited, 1 Sept. 2011. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/8734378/Abortion-increases-risk-of-mental-healthproblems-new-research-finds.html>.
"Abortion Is a Moral Good." Feministe.US. Feministe.US, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2007/02/23/abortion-is-a-moral-g>.
"Abortion Is Wrong." ChristiaNet. ChristiaNet, 2012. Web. 10 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.christianet.com/abortionfacts/abortioniswrong.htm>.
"Abortion Risks." Ramah International. Ramah International, Oct. 2012. Web. 18 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.ramahinternational.org/abortion_risks.htm>.
Brind, Joel. "Physical Affects of Abortion." Abortion is the Unchoice. Elliot Institute, 2006.
Web. 13 Feb. 2013. <http://www.unfairchoice.info/physical.htm>.
Erfelt, Steven. “Practitioner Must Pay Survivor of Failed Abortion $36 Million.” LifeNews.com.
July 2011. Web. 18 Feb 2013. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/07/25/practitioner-mustpay-survivor-of-failed-abortion-36-million/
"California Abortion Facts." Abort73.com. Loxafamosity Ministries, 8 Aug. 2011. Web. 18
Feb. 2013. <http://www.abort73.com/abortion_facts/states/california/>.
Jessen, Gianna. "Abortion Surviviors." Teen Breaks.com. Rosetta Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Feb.
2013. <http://www.teenbreaks.com/abortion/abortionsurvivors.cfm>.
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Lowen, Linda. "Top 10 Abortion Facts and Abortion Statistics." About.com. About.com, n.d.
Web. 19 Feb. 2013. <http://womensissues.about.com/od/reproductiverights/tp/TenAbortion-Facts.htm>.
Michaels, Samuel. "19 Facts about Abortion in America That Should Make You Very Sick."
The American Dream. American Dream, 10 Feb. 2012. Web. 19 Feb. 2013.
<http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/19-facts-about-abortion-in-america-thatshould-make-you-very-sick>.
Moran, Caitlin. How to Be a Woman. New York City, NY: Harper Perennial, 2011, Print.
Paul, Marcus. A Clinician’s Guide to Medical and Surgical Abortion. New York: Churchill
Livingstone, 1999.
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Quote Integration Worksheet
P #1 THESIS STATEMENT (last sentence of P#1) =
For this reason, that human beings claim to value life yet act contrarily against it, abortion, which is legal in the United
States of America, should be made illegal.
P #2. Address the counterargument
Advocates in favor of abortion claim that it is a safe and relatively painless procedure for the woman undergoing the
surgery.
Your Opinion
P #2
Rebuttal #1
On the contrary, abortion is
dangerous for the mother
not only because it is a
horrible procedure but for
many other reasons, too.
For instance, abortion can
increase the risk of getting
different types of cancer.
+ Quote / Paraphrase
P #2
First Quote:
The article “Abortion Is
Wrong” claims that once a
woman has had an abortion,
she is at a 50% higher risk of
getting breast cancer or
cervical cancer.
Second Quote:
Brind claims that“[t]hese
increases in cancer could be
caused by sudden changes in
pregnancy hormones caused by
abortion.”
Third Quote:
Rebuttal #2
Nonetheless, half of all
women who have had
abortions report
experiencing psychological
problems.
Nonetheless, half of all women
who have had abortions report
experiencing psychological
problems, as well, which
include: depression; anger;
nightmares; termination of
relationships; eating disorders;
anxiety; suicidal thoughts;
anniversary syndrome; and
many more (“Abortion Risks”).
Fourth Quote:
Basically, those who have had
an abortion face nearly double
the risk of mental health
difficulties (“Abortion
Increases”).
+
ANALYSIS
P #2
On the contrary, abortion is dangerous for
the mother not only because it is a horrible
procedure but for many other reasons, too.
For
instance, abortion can increase the risk of getting
different types of cancer. The article “Abortion Is
Wrong” claims that once a woman has had an
abortion, she is at a 50% higher risk of getting
breast cancer or cervical cancer. Brind claims
that“[t]hese increases in cancer could be caused by
sudden changes in pregnancy hormones caused by
abortion.” Although not every single abortion
participant will have these horrible after-effects,
there is a high percentage of women who will
suffer harmful physical side-effects from having an
abortion. Nonetheless, half of all women who have
had abortions report experiencing psychological
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problems, as well, which
include: depression;
anger; nightmares; termination of relationships;
eating
disorders;
anxiety;
suicidal
thoughts;
anniversary syndrome; and many more (“Abortion
Risks”). Basically, those who have had an abortion
face nearly double the risk of mental health
difficulties
(“Abortion
Increases”).
These
consequences are much too horrible to undergo just
to terminate a pregnancy in an attempt to avoid
being a parent to the child with whom you are
pregnant. A woman who is suffering with
psychological problems for months or even years
because of killing her child is a consequence much
worse than giving her child to another family who
is ready, capable, and willing to take on the
responsibility of raising her child. Adoption is the
better solution because every baby has the right to
have a full life that is not terminated before he can
even speak his mind and say what he wants for his
life.