From: jamcdani@zia.ucs.indiana.edu
Subject: Re: Who owns who?
Organization: Indiana University
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 26 Aug 1992 18:02:20 GMT

In article <92238.224407ADMN8647@RyeVm.Ryerson.Ca> Linda Birmingham  
<ADMN8647@RyeVm.Ryerson.Ca> writes:
> In article <1992Aug21.121610.2140@brandonu.ca>, mcbeanb@brandonu.ca  
says:
> >
> >In article <23872@oasys.dt.navy.mil> Ron Bense writes:
> >> In talk.abortion, nyikos@math.scarolina.edu (Peter Nyikos) writes:
> >>>In <92225.110850ADMN8647@RyeVm.Ryerson.Ca> Linda Birmingham writes:
> 
> >>>>Every pregnancy will cause some physical damage.
> >>
> >>>So does every vaccination.  The question is, do the benefits
> >>>outweigh the damages?
> 
> Missed this.  It is not for you to decide.  Parents
> have the right not to vaccinate their children.

Well, not if they want to send the kids to a public school in Indiana...
 
> >> What benefits occur to the woman, Nyikos? [remember, we're talking 
> >> about those who don't want a baby]
> >
> >Well I don't mean to sound idealistic or mushy or anything silly like 
> >that, but Lisa (my fiancee if ya didn't know) never ever wanted to have 
> >a baby, but she had one anyway (yknow was an accident then she didn't 
> >abort (but had considered it)), and she gained quite a few benefits.
> >She has found a lot of love and security in Zachary.  Zachary also
> >was the person who brought us together, so without her baby, she 
> >wouldn't have her newly found family (family to be kinda since I'm not 
> >there yet), she wouldn't have found new direction in life, and she 
> >would have lost her identity (it was kinda disappearing, but then she 
> >found it again (it was under the couch, eh?))....  Also she got a much 
> >bigger tax return... Are those good benefits?

I'm very happy for you and Lisa, and I hope you raise the baby well.
I'm glad my parents _chose_ to have me, and I hope I can somehow repay
the sacrifices they made for me. But the idea of my mother being 
forced to give birth to me by someone is absolutely repugnant.

> As did I and the reason your friend and I love our
> children is because we wanted them.  They are not
> viewed as burdens because we made a decision,
> weighed the risks - financial, physical and emotional -
> and decided the risks were worth taking.  For another
> woman these risks are not worth taking and I don't think
> anyone, not you or I or anyone, has the right to judge
> that woman because she makes choices we would not.
> 
> Ask your fiance Mr. McBean how she would have felt
> if she had been forced, against her free will, to
> carry the fetus to term.

Exactly!
 
> The decision whether or not to terminate a pregnancy is
> essentially a moral decision and in a free and democractic
> society the conscience of the individual must be paramount
> to that of the state.  Justic B. Wilson

I agree, but then, I'm not sure that the state _has_ a collective
conscience :)

--------------------------------------------------------------------
    Jenni McDaniel, Indiana University, Department of Psychology
"All we ever look for: a god...a drug...a great big hug." -KaTe Bush
 Big ol' IU taking the opinions of one undergrad?!? Yeah, right....
Xref: sparky talk.abortion:33634 alt.flame:12353