Countries Undergoing Demographic Transition Should Ban Abortion

Rebuttal #1Yes, if nothing is done. I never suggested anything to the contrary. The source helps my case. If nothing is done this debt will happen. State-run Childcare. http://www.4children.org...Many states already have state-run childcare are doing fine. Sweden for example has a childcare center in every neighborhood. France and Holland are among other such nations that have state-run childcare. Indeed, even as governments are forced to make cuts they maintain their childcare programs. Thus, it would be that much of an economic burden to increase such programs to meet the needs of an expanding population. To the contrary all that really needs to be done is to make sure the population is maintained, that is that it does not shrink, which would cost them for the most part about the same as they are spending now. The only difference is that childcare prices wouldn't go down, since the population wouldn't be shrinking, but that is a good investment for the future. It guarantees that as the older generation grows older there will be a new young generation to enter the workplace and prevent an economic crisis. Scientifically-Verified Fact? Con says that an abortion ban would harm citizens further and says this is a scientifically verified fact, but offers no evidence, scientific or otherwise for this statement. Misinterpretation of My Point On EuthanasiaWhen I said one solution "we" could use I was referring to "we" as in society as a whole. I wouldn't get behind it, but desperate society in the throws of economic crisis might. This is especially likely given that European countries tend to have a more permissive attitude towards euthanasia. Holland even allows for infant euthanasia in some cases. . http://en.wikipedia.org...While the law has strict standards things could easily loosen up over the decades. Coupled with aging populations and a younger population that isn't being replaced as much this could easily push countries over the edge to mandating euthanasia in some cases for the elderly or disabled even against their will. Given that this is a possible development we should want to do everything in our power to correct the demographic transition, including the outlawing of abortion. The Data On Demographic Transition IS Empirical EvidenceCon says "This is blatantly conceding that current opinion is certainly against such actions. .. requires empirical evidence. "This debate proposes to ban abortion to stop demographic transition in order to spare negative effects to the economy for decades to come. Notice the link above concerning Japan relates to the year 2050. When making public policy it is important to consider what is likely to happen down the road. Empirical evidence for any such consideration is limited. While the evidence does not explicitly prove that people's opinions will change to allow the culling of the elderly the evidence does show economic decline if as Con admits "nothing is done". With such severe deficits as 750% of GDP it's not beyond reasonable conjecture that people may resort to desperate extremes. The German public opinion was against rounding up Jews and putting them into camps in 1920, but for it in 2 decades. What drove this? Economic catastrophe. The behavior of a populace experiencing things such as poverty and famine that often attend economic catastrophe can be unpredictable. It's best to avoid it, even if it means sacrificing the right to an abortion. It is a small price to pay. Abortion Bans May Limit AbortionIt depends upon the overall attitude of the public. If a small enough people demand it then it can be significantly difficult for them to find black market sources, leading to abortion prevention. Since most of these countries are democracies the public's opinion will have to change before the law even gets passed. This still won't necessarily be enough. A sea of change in the public opinion that demographic transition is a serious problem and it is important to maintain a stable population is needed. Banning abortion may send a strong message in this regard. The message may also encourage couples to have more babies. Furthermore there is the issue of enforcement. If penalties are harsh enough we may be able to deter abortion. Women may prefer to go through 9 months of pregnancy and put the baby up for adoption rather than risk arrest and imprisonment. This detail may be experimented with once an abortion ban is passed. If the punishment starts small and has no effect then it clearly needs to be expanded. Police investigation of abortion on the black market is also important. By busting the illegal abortions 'doctors' police can make illegal abortion more expensive, leading the price to be prohibitive to many women. The justice system can also come down hard on these abortion dealers, deterring others from entering the market, and making the remaining doctors charge more and more. This could lead to a real decline in the supply of abortion, meaning some women might not be able to find anyone to perform an abortion on them. Some women may try to do the abortion themselves. However, this carries obvious risks and dangers which will scare many women into not even trying this option. If the media can be appealed to to cooperate in emphasizing the harm abortion does to the population and hence the great threat to the economy then the media may take a leading role in highlighting cases where women attempt a self-performed abortion and it ends either in arrest or in injury/death, and may paint the story in such a way as to send the message "don't even try it, if you don't want your baby you can choose adoption. "Some would say this is a good reason for abortion to be legal. However, there is an easy solution for people who don't want to get hurt. Stop breaking the law! If you attempt to do something that is not only illegal but is known to be dangerous it is your own fault. Women who go to often unsafe black market sources for abortions or try to perform their own and wind up injured or dead only have themselves to blame. Education can also be enlisted. If from a young age people are educated about demographic transition and the associated economic risks they may grow up not only to oppose abortion but also to be enthusiastic about reproducing for the next generation. Rebuttal to "A Liberal Democracy"One point Con makes is that the trend is for more people to support legal abortion. However, most people are not well educated on the subject of demographic transition. With more education we can change their minds, and then voters may elect politicians who will ban abortion. Con says "the right to child - and right to not have one - is enshrined in our democracies". Since what the past quarter of a century? That's not very long. For a long period abortion was illegal in most of these democracies, and still is in some, such as for example Poland and Malta, both of which are liberal democracies. The arguments for this so-called 'right' "the right to privacy" are specious at best. Why doesn't this extend to drug dealing or prostitution if that's done in private? Granted different countries have different laws on these matters, but neither of these things are considered fundamental rights of a liberal democracy. Neither should abortion. A liberal democracy must be empowered to look out for the short and long term well-being of all of its citizens. Preventing an economic catastrophe weighs far more than some ill-supported "right to abort". This is a law that countries with shrinking populations need if they wish to take a positive step towards doing something to stop massive debt and economic crisis rather than "doing nothing".