The people in Mississippi recently voted down a ban on all abortions and many forms of contraception. However, if anti-abortion groups and the GOP get their way, there will be a host of similar measures appearing on ballots this year. At least six states are adopting similar “personhood” laws, according to NARAL Pro-Choice America. The language in the bills vary from state to state (as well as at the federal level), but all the measures seek to redefine human life as beginning at conception. As one example, The Nevada Pro-life Coalition wants to outlaw “the intentional taking of a prenatal person’s life” via an amendment to the state constitution. The measure would guarantee the “unalienable right to life” of “every human being at all stages of biological development before birth.”
The extreme language in these bills, some of which calls for the arrest and imprisonment for the crime of ending the pregnancy, or merely attempting to do so, begs the question: Will God, or Mother Nature, also be held accountable for performing an abortion; Considering that God/Nature “aborts” half of all fertilized eggs?
Anyone with a basic understanding of biology and the reproductive system knows that very few eggs ever approach “personhood.” Spontaneous abortion occurs 15-20% of the time, usually in the first trimester. However, research suggests that the actual rate of spontaneous abortion is much higher and that most of the time it occurs before a woman realizes she is pregnant. Some estimate that 50% of pregnancies abort spontaneously. That also means that the abortion has already taken place long before Pro-life proponents and elected government officials (read: GOP/Tea Party) even know about it. It also negates the entire “personhood” issue.
Given the facts of nature, clearly there is absolutely no need for the government to decide if/when a woman is allowed to have an abortion. A woman’s body can spontaneously decide to abort or not, so therefore, a woman’s (along with her doctor, family, God/dess – if she so desires to consult with others) heart and mind should be able to make that decision on her own — without needing approval from the government or society. We already have hundreds of laws in place that state that the government does/will not provide any type of federal funding for abortions. We do not need 1000 more laws that state the same thing, or, of more import, dictate what a woman can/cannot do about her pregnancy.
Some will argue that a natural or spontaneous abortion is (insert Deity of your choice here) Will. That being the case, then God/Nature decided that the woman would become pregnant, then turned right around and decided to abort the pregnancy. “Oops. My bad!” If God did not want women to make health decisions on their own, S/he would not have given her Free Will in order to be able to choose a course of action from among various alternatives — alternatives that include reliable and safe birth control. We all make choices and we live with consequences of said choices.
See also: Incorporate My Uterus
Related article from TexasObserver.org: The Texas’ Forced Trans-Vaginal Ultrasound Decision
