Neither side is prepared to listen to the other, let alone learn from the other. Each person has to figure that out for themselves. Three factors complicate the abortion question and hinder us from reaching a national consensus . There is the moral, medical, legal, sociological, philosophical, demographic, psychological and spiritual problems all intermeshing. Our society with it's high value on individualism has a difficult time viewing processes from the collective perspective.
Abortion is both an individual and a social question.
We live in a pluralistic society that has departed from the Judeo-Christian traditions as a basis for making value judgments. We are left in a moral no man's land unable to determine what's sacred. For example pro-life people may argue that abortion terminates life, interferes with the rights of the unborn, interferes with the divine plan and fosters sexual promiscuity. The pro-choice people may argue that abortion denies the woman authority over her own body, forces unwanted children on society, discriminates against females and low income groups and encourages unsafe medical practices. Any one of these eight arguments has the capacity of starting a verbal civil war.