Made ya look.

It seems like aborted babies come closer and closer to my dorm room as the week progresses. I frown upon having to talk about these things, because there are strong opinions and heated arguments about it, but what obstructed my way to class obstructs my thoughts, I suppose.

What I've heard often when I pass the giant displays are "Is this for abortion? Or against?" "Is this supposed to be a pro-life protest? Or pro-choice?" I don't think it was either. It was there to force attention to an on-going issue, and being on a university campus, the display was open to universal thoughts and point of views. I appreciate both views of pro-life/choice. I think both stances are hard to argue, and I really admire the people who stick to their guns.

My rant is too long for the Free Speech Board, so here goes.

Everyone's heard about the roaring twenties, and whoop-dee-doo, there was partying, drinking, and girls started to cut their hair short. What you don't hear a lot about is the rate of pregnancies during that time. People were able to make a living off of coat hanger abortions in cheap and shady hotel rooms. Girls would get butchered or die from infections because they rather not have to care for a child they didn't mean to conceive. People do it for different reasons, and overall, it takes ignorance is bliss to its extremes. Would you rather see a child aborted, or abandoned? Is it worth bringing a child into an unnurturing home? There are stories of babies found in dumpsters; is that worse? Should a raped woman keep the resulting child and hate it throughout it's life?

And then there's the question about where does life begin. From my bioscience point of view, I believe that life begins at the cellular level. That is the essence of biology, so arguing about when does life begin is a dead conversation with a biologist. Go see a philosopher to try and find your point or read a biology textbook to see mine.

But whenever life begins, I see contradictions in the face of abortion. Just by observing the world and where it's gone, I find it novel that pro-lifers can still find abortion so egregious. If they see it as murder, why not flinch at every Sunday newspaper? Why not cringe at the evening news? I'm sure that stories of rape, homicide and suicides are still disturbing, but you don't see people bringing out their torches and pitchforks to do anything about it. Because they can't. It happens. People decide to end their spouse's life by the blade of a knife. They decide to end their own lives by the point of a gun. And surprise, surprise, we find people deciding to abort their child during pregnancy. But somehow, that's not "just another news report."

The general population still seems undecided. Around the display and Free Speech Board, there numerous "where are all the pro-lifers?" and "get the law off my body" messages. And I doubt that anyone can find a majority in such a diverse campus, let alone the nation. I guess it's unclear which side I'm on or if I even have a stance at all, but when it comes down to it, I appreciate the life and creation of a child. Scientifically, I find the growth and development of life fascinating, and truly believe that life begins even before fertilization. Socially, I think the exact same, but I've lived 2 decades, and seen what the world is. Sparing a life from the worst of it isn't so bad, is it?