Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
First of all let me say that I don't advocate or promote abortion. I had an unplanned pregnancy myself and chose to keep my baby and I love her. This Donahue-Levitt hypothesis does however, makes a lot of sense to me. It shows that 18 years after roe v wade legalized abortion in the US the crime rate began dropping sharply and nothing else seemed to account for it. The theory goes that children that grow up unwanted and unloved are more likely to become criminals so that after abortion was legalized those children were simply not born which lead to a sharp drop in crime. They also compare the US to Romania where a law was passed making abortion illegal from 1966-1989 it shows that in that country the children grew up to perform in life more poorly than expected.
I don't think abortion should be used as birth control, but if children are born they should be loved and well cared for. Every child deserves that. How can we as a society help make that happen so they are more likely to grow up to function well in society as adults?
I believe in a womans right to choose. No one should make that most difficult decision for her.
This study makes sense. If a kid is unwanted to begin with what chance does the child have to grow up in a loving household that will instill values and promote a healthy societal attitude.
Unwanted kids take to the streets and esentially raise themselves which never turns out well. The sad thing is most of these kids start off in a bad economical situation so it is a uphill fight to get anywhere.
I believe in a woman's right to choose too but I think it is something that should only happen after a lot of soul searching and be taken very seriously. I don't want it to be a form of birth control and I think it may be used that way today. It is also important in cases of rape, incest, damage to the child, or risking the life of the mother. I just find it a very sad very heartbreaking choice. I am so glad I chose to keep my baby.
What I don't agree with are those who pressure a woman to have the child out of a hatred for abortion but then do nothing to help her take care of the child or help find a suitable loving adoption. I wish there was a way to discourage the unplanned pregnancies in the first place. Better birth control options, more emphasis on waiting to have sex, more help for single mothers who are the largest group living in poverty today. Not to mention making it easier to collect child support.
Research Eugenics then tell me why some people push so hard to keep Abortion legal.....
I read about it thanks for the input . It sounds like a slippery slope . I mean who decides what is a desirable trait in a human and what is not? I wonder though if many woman looking for a man to marry subconsciously factor in what type of child the man will produce ? How many times have we heard a comment by a married pregnant woman that she hopes her baby will look like her husband or be as smart as him or something like that?
Are you saying that some women turn to abortion because they don't want their baby to be like the man they had sex with ?
I believe in a womans right to choose. No one should make that most difficult decision for her.
This study makes sense. If a kid is unwanted to begin with what chance does the child have to grow up in a loving household that will instill values and promote a healthy societal attitude.
Unwanted kids take to the streets and esentially raise themselves which never turns out well. The sad thing is most of these kids start off in a bad economical situation so it is a uphill fight to get anywhere.
I'll begin with a side note. I was not a planned conception. I was an accident, as were my brother and sister (over a fifteen year period).
Every microbiologist in the world will tell you that conception represents the creation of a new and unique individual life. It is impossible for me to fathom that we should not operate with the principle that life, itself, is the our most sacred principle, which is exactly how we did operate in America until the ruling in Roe v. Wade.
If as a society we don't hold that life, itself, is sacred and necessarily our highest principle, I have to believe that we can and will treat everything else as but a value that is fungible.
As leaves change direction with the winds, values will fluctuate in importance. However, principles do not change. They are like roots on a tree that are meant to keep us from toppling over in the most fierce storms. If the protection of life itself is not our highest principle, I can't imagine what is.
Unfortunately, I have come to hold that America has come to the point where we have no firm principles whatsoever.. In other words, we now stand for anything, which also means that we stand for nothing.
I'll begin with a side note. I was not a planned conception. I was an accident, as were my brother and sister (over a fifteen year period).
Every microbiologist in the world will tell you that conception represents the creation of a new and unique individual life. It is impossible for me to fathom that we should not operate with the principle that life, itself, is the our most sacred principle, which is exactly how we did operate in America until the ruling in Roe v. Wade.
If as a society we don't hold that life, itself, is sacred and necessarily our highest principle, I have to believe that we can and will treat everything else as but a value that is fungible.
As leaves change direction with the winds, values will fluctuate in importance. However, principles do not change. They are like roots on a tree that are meant to keep us from toppling over in the most fierce storms. If the protection of life itself is not our highest principle, I can't imagine what is.
Unfortunately, I have come to hold that America has come to the point where we have no firm principles whatsoever.. In other words, we now stand for anything, which also means that we stand for nothing.
I see your point, but what about ensuring the quality of that like after it is created? How can we turn our backs on the suffering of unwanted children?
What is your opinion on bad seed type people like Hitler or serial killers like Ted Bundy. Do you think they should have been aborted ?
Last edited by vanguardisle; 05-04-2014 at 11:24 AM..
I see your point, but what about ensuring the quality of that like after it is created? How can we turn our backs on the suffering of unwanted children?
Life is not perfect and never will be. Moreover, horror stories can easily be found throughout the financial spectrum that ranges from the richest of households to the poorest.
I'm an old man now, at least by age and most certainly by mileage. My sister, brother and I did not grow up in a financially advantaged household. We were all born accidents (over a fifteen year period). Much of what my Dad made working two jobs went to cover medical bills, some of which were extreme -- compliments of yours truly. And my Mother did not have an easy time figuring out how to feed us and dress us, but she and we managed.
What my parents did provide in abundance was love and guidance on morals so to best prepare us to live a good and decent life. Moreover, we were schooled in and well understood the principle of working to make a living -- I ran a trap line at the age of eight, mowed lawns, shoveled snow, etc. -- and the value of studying as the best mechanism to achieve a good education.
We all graduated with degrees from college, at a minimum. We've all had success in one way or another, and we all have suffered the ups and downs that every living person experiences in one way or another.
Given the choice of being born or not being born, we all would have opted to be born. We feel fortunate that we were given that chance.
If you are not given a chance to live, you have no chance whatsoever.
Life is not perfect and never will be. Moreover, horror stories can easily be found throughout the financial spectrum that ranges from the richest of households to the poorest.
I'm an old man now, at least by age and most certainly by mileage. My sister, brother and I did not grow up in a financially advantaged household. We were all born accidents (over a fifteen year period). Much of what my Dad made working two jobs went to cover medical bills, some of which were extreme -- compliments of yours truly. And my Mother did not have an easy time figuring out how to feed us and dress us, but she and we managed.
What my parents did provide in abundance was love and guidance on morals so to best prepare us to live a good and decent life. Moreover, we were schooled in and well understood the principle of working to make a living -- I ran a trap line at the age of eight, mowed lawns, shoveled snow, etc. -- and the value of studying as the best mechanism to achieve a good education.
We all graduated with degrees from college, at a minimum. We've all had success in one way or another, and we all have suffered the ups and downs that every living person experiences in one way or another.
Given the choice of being born or not being born, we all would have opted to be born. We feel fortunate that we were given that chance.
If you are not given a chance to live, you have no chance whatsoever.
I don't think that being poor automatically means not being raised well. Love is always more important than money . It sounds like you had great parents.
First of all let me say that I don't advocate or promote abortion. I had an unplanned pregnancy myself and chose to keep my baby and I love her. This Donahue-Levitt hypothesis does however, makes a lot of sense to me. It shows that 18 years after roe v wade legalized abortion in the US the crime rate began dropping sharply and nothing else seemed to account for it. The theory goes that children that grow up unwanted and unloved are more likely to become criminals so that after abortion was legalized those children were simply not born which lead to a sharp drop in crime. They also compare the US to Romania where a law was passed making abortion illegal from 1966-1989 it shows that in that country the children grew up to perform in life more poorly than expected.
I don't think abortion should be used as birth control, but if children are born they should be loved and well cared for. Every child deserves that. How can we as a society help make that happen so they are more likely to grow up to function well in society as adults?
I've been saying that for years.
People claim that we're aborting the next Einstein or Mozart, but I beg to differ. Children who aren't wanted, aren't nurtured and encouraged.
I worked in psychiatry for many years, and it was a common theme for the insane and the criminally insane. 'My mother never wanted me.'
'Every mother a willing mother. Every child a wanted child.'
-Dr. Henry Morgentaler
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
