Why does rape affect your opinion of abortion?

Question

Why does rape affect your opinion of abortion?

Answer 1

it only affects my opinion if the mother was so traumatised that she cannot recover enuff to provide love for the child..... it does happen... my late best pal was raped and a child concieved from it..... but she did 'all things as she should have', reported the rape, got the guy jailed , went to counseling, got her head together, considered abortion, then reconsidered and kept the child.... I was so proud of her.... she and the child were all each other had for a couple years, then she met and married a nice feller who adopted the child and they did very well together over the years... the child just lost her mother last year, at age thirty three for the child and she never knew that she was a child of rape.... she never will.... there's no reason to tell her, her mother said... "she had nothing at all to do with it"...... the child was loved....

now, if my pal had been unable to see the child as separate from what happened to her, then their lives might have turned out very different..... I suppose not everyone who is raped can do it... don't know if I could....

Answer 2

well.. if i was raped and i became pregnant.. i wouldn't have an abortion because its not the babies fault

i'd never have an abortion myself.

ever.

but, for some women, they may prefer abortion because the baby wasnt planned and it was all forced. If women have an abortion because of rape or sexual assault that is the only circumstance that is "acceptable" for abortion in my view

What really annoys me is when people have abortions because they "forgot" to use condoms.

Answer 3

This is a tough one (of course).

While I couldn't imagine making somebody who was really raped carry a pregnancy through, I think the possibility for abuse will be there - "oh, that's right I was raped by...some guy" or even people getting falsely accused of rape by a girl wanting to justify an abortion.

And as for "incest" - "Oh yea, it was my cousin Vinny - that's it..."

Answer 4

A baby is a wonderful gift, regardless of the source.

My best friend in high school was raped by three classmates and had a beautiful baby boy.  The rape was h**l, and I can't imagine how she survived it, mentally, or where she found the strength to have the baby.  But she loves that baby (now almost two years old) more than life itself.  She is so very happy when she is with him.

I am so happy for her that out of such a terrible experience, she took something of joy.

Answer 5

sometimes it doesn't affect people. if i were it would drastically affect me. why would someone want a baby that was out of anger or hurt or anything  bad instead of love and hope.

thats just me.

Answer 6

It doesn't affect mine. I'm in favor of abortion on demand, 100% taxpayer-funded.

Paul Greenburg, editorial page editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, has argued that even though he considers abortion to be murder, that an exception ought to be made for cases of rape, on the grounds that forcing a woman to bear her rapist's child is an even bigger evil than abortion. I'm not endorsing his point of view, I'm just saying that those who are against abortion but are willing to make an exception in cases of rape are not necessarily being inconsistent.

Actually, there are no rational arguments to be made for or against abortion. The issue of who is or is not a human being is not a matter which can be decided by the democratic process. That's something that you have to have consensus on before people can live together in a society.

It's perfectly obvious to me that the concept of human rights was invented for people occupying separate bodies. So it's perfectly obvious to me that a fetus has no human rights. So I have no problem with abortion per se. But, as I have stated previously on this board, I am a conscientious objector in the abortion wars. I think it is outrageous that a woman who gets pregnant out of wedlock and CHOOSES to carry a pregnancy to term can take the man to court and force him to pay tens of thousands of dollars for a child he did NOT choose to bring into the world. And no, this has never happened to me. I just don't care for the hypocrisy of those who believe that a woman should have the right to terminate a pregnancy for any reason (which in and of itself I agree with) but who also believe that she should have the right to make someone else pay for her CHOICE to carry a pregnancy to term. Until that situation changes, I am not going to lift a finger to defend a woman's "right to choose."

All the best, xylo

Answer 7

In my mind, it doesn't. The reason for a pregnancy bears no moral differentiation within the hypothetical mind of a child who is a result of conception. It doesn't matter to the baby how it came into existence once it has mentally developed the capacity for pain and pleasure.

I believe that nothing should be forced to suffer at the whim of another, regardless of the circumstances in which it has been placed. That also goes for the act of rape itself, but simply because the woman was forced into it doesn't mean that the government should be allowed to decide when a person is or isn't allowed.

Having a valid reason to abort a child does nothing to console the true victim of such an abortion.

With that said, I find it most reasonable to consider the feelings of the child over the parent and consideration should ALWAYS be made first on the basis of suffering. I feel that if the nervous system of a fetus is incapable of registering pain, much less consciousness, it's really not much different than a couple failing to copulate at every possible instance in which the conception of a potential child could be realized.

People who argue on the basis of "destroying potential" fail to take into their argument the fact that potential starts not at conception of a particular fetus so much as the moment its parents first became fertile.

By allowing my s***n to go unused, I'm passively wasting potential, but for some reason that's considered morally "OK." in the eyes of pro-lifers who argue on the basis of wasted potential. Although it's not what this question is based on, that argument is one of the many concessions made on behalf of other failed arguments. If the child can be proven to not be suffering in the first or second trimesters, most pro-lifers will concede to arguing the 'destruction of potential" once their religious appeals fall short of influence.

On the other hand, postpartum abortions and those which can cause suffering to the child seems nothing short of morally despicable, but at every step, I'll fight to keep such a personal decision from being made on a political basis. Those of us with our heads out of the sand may realize that prohibition does little to prohibit anything and fails to accomplish  much beyond establishing a little peace of mind for those who promote it.

My take on abortion stands at considering the experience of the victim. Once a being is capable of experience, only that being should be allowed to end it.

Answer 8

well...would u want a baby from someone who raped u????? are u going to tell ur child they dont have a father and u have no clue who he is because he raped u?

Answer 9

Clearly, rape is a horrid act of aggression done against a womans will.  Besides the trauma of the rape itself,  she should not have to bear the additional horror of bearing a child of an unholy act!  This does not change my view of abortion on the whole, but this is such a personal decision that IMO, NO one has the right to tell a woman what to do.