Should teenagers have access to abortion?
Lets say that past the period for use of the morning after pill, do you think that abortion alternatives should be made available to teenagers? Do you think that parental consent should be required also?
Yes
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No
Side Score: 35
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Well, since abortion is legal then yes but not without the parents consent. What if the girls mother had died and she was living with her father who had raped her and was the reason for her unfortunate circumstances? Would she still only be able to go through with the procedure if her father consented? That doesn't seem very fair. Having said that, I am against abortion in most cases. Are you against abortion in the case I just described? Side: yes
They should not be able to go into any type of operation without the parents' knowledge. Why not? It could be her father that did this to her in the first place, so asking for his permission to abort the child he planted there by force in the first place just seems messed up to me. Side: yes
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Yes. A teenager should have access. I do agree that in the circumstance of being irresponsible perhaps they should face the consequences. However if you base abortion law on the grounds of rules such as rape, being on contraception and getting caught out, medical reasons, e.t.c teenagers will just lie to gain abortion anyway. It's not that difficult to say 'I used a condom, it split' when they didn't use one. I feel the need to defend teenagers when people outright claim that they must of got pregnant because they were irresponsible. I fell pregnant at 19 with my daughter. I'd been on the contraceptive pill for 3 years and was just unlucky. I didn't abort her (and I'm glad I didn't) however the option should of still been there for me and it was. Side: yes
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That's because you are pro-abortion so of course you defend childrens abortions. Children should not be having sex anyway. But kids are smart today and excuses don't cut it. If they feel they are old enough to handle sex, they are old enough to face the consequences that go with it. And don't say kids don't learn about sex....they learn at school, television, magazines and the internet. They have more information available to them today than ever before. Any question to embarrassing to ask, they can google. Side: No
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That's because you are pro-abortion so of course you defend childrens abortions You think I'm pro-abortion. What you think of my stance isn't fact. Could you please use the words 'think, believe, in my opinion' instead of flying accusations around. Children should not be having sex anyway Teenagers aren't children. Hence the term teenagers. And I certainly wouldn't classify an 18 or 19 year old as a child. If they feel they are old enough to handle sex, they are old enough to face the consequences that go with it I think maybe they should face the consequences of irresponsibility. However everyone deserves a second chance, everyone makes a mistake. If a 14 year old fell pregnant and was forced by law to keep the child I think it's wrong. If you apply rules to abortion 'it's okay in this circumstance' it couldn't uphold. I imagine failed contraception would qualify and like I said before anyone could say 'the condom split'. And don't say kids don't learn about sex... Actually sex education is still lacking in many areas and people just aren't being educated enough. On sex education, only 4% said their experience at school was excellent, 38% described it as poor and 18% said they did not get any. Reproductive biology is the only statutory part of the national curriculum and even this isn't achieving acceptable standards A poll of 495 people by the Family Planning Association found some thought exercise or urinating after intercourse could prevent pregnancy ^ Really?!? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/ Any question to embarrassing to ask, they can google They can but if someone truly believed the pull out method worked (as stupid as that would be) they wouldn't research it on google. Not everyone has internet access, poverty amongst youngsters is actually quite high. Not everyone can access an computer. Don't get me wrong I'm not defending irresponsibility however the blame cannot always be taken by the participant. Side: yes
It should be made available, but parental consent should be required. Maybe a teenager is 17 and pregnant, but hey. Is that under 18? Yes. Is the age of a legal adult 18? Yes. Until then, parents should have full control. If you don't wanna tell your parents that you got knocked up, then invest in a 12 dollar box of high quality condoms. If that fails, then you were mature enough to have sex, so get mature enough to tell your parents you need them to sign off on having an abortion. Side: yes
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If a girl would happen to get raped, would you want the baby to know his/her father was a rapist? Maybe when the child hears it, he/she will decide to copy the actions. How about a 13 that made the wrong choice? Would you want her to die and have a 50% chance the baby would die also? Why take away two people who are dearly loved, instead of certainly have ONE live instead of losing them both? The mother of the pregnant child would be devasted to know that neither made it out alive and the 9 months of probably teasing and being pointed at and laughed at would be all for nothing. Side: Yes
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What if it is a teenager raped by her father? What if the kid doesn't have parents? What if the child's life is in danger from the pregnancy but she has pscycho religious parents who would let her die rather than let her have an abortion? What if she's a teenager but divorced her parents due to abuse and has a restraining order on them? What if her parents are simply abusive and don't care? I find your lack of ability to imagine all of the real scenarios in which those less fortunate might be forced into these situations quite disturbing. Are you sure you have the capacity to be on a debate site? Side: yes
There are a lot of ‘what ifs’ to any scenario. Are you going to provide some form of evidence that would allow your what if scenarios any merit? What percentages of abortions are performed for these what if scenarios as opposed to the girl just using it as a form of birth control because she doesn’t want to be a mom? This is just my perception, but I believe that based on Blayke13’s comment, he/she would be willing to allow an exception for these extreme cases, but doesn’t support the act of abortion through birth control. If this be the case it would appear that you saw past his/her point. His/her choice to not list all of the possible ‘what if’ scenarios is not an indication of a “lack of ability to imagine all of the real scenarios in which those less fortunate might be forced into.” It is just an indication of his/her willingness to be lenient, providing an example, while overall being in disagreement with teenagers having access to abortion. Side: No
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Why dont you just make the blanket statement I am for abortion for any aged woman and for whatever reason...or any gestational age? You are pro-death for the unborn child no matter what.....own it. And for your information........teenagers get abortions all the time. Parental permission is not needed in a lot of states...California is just one of them. http://www.plannedparenthood.org/ The funny thing is..... In the states that allow minors to get abortions......should something happen to that minor during the procedure...the parent is the one responsible. Side: No
Fathered rape: Get out of the house, tell someone. No parents: Go to a friend or a shelter. Danger/idiot parents: If your parents don't care about you you can't help that, just get away from it. Restraining order: Again, go to a friend. Abusive parents: GO TO SOMEONE ELSE. I have and can imagine every bit of these scenarios. But, there's always a way. I find your lack of belief in the teenager's abilities disturbing. Side: No
First of all no one told them to go out and do the wild thing without protecting themselves. Abortion is legal here in NY but you must have parental consent for those under the age of 18. I don't agree with abortion being used as a contraceptive which is what the majority of people do! Side: No
I don't agree with abortion being used as a contraceptive which is what the majority of people do! Only fox would be so blatantly ignorant of facts to spew this nugget of mistruth. Have you been watching fox? But no, most abortions are due to problems with the pregnancy or when other means of contraceptive have failed. Abortions are painfull, messy, and takes weeks to recover from. The idea that people use it as a contraceptive is just dumb. Side: yes
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I have seen many women just get pregnant and go straight to the abortion clinic, and they do this quite a few times. You would hope that people would learn their lesson the first time if it was painful. That is what Sunset was trying to say. "But no, most abortions are due to problems with the pregnancy or when other means of contraceptive have failed" How would you like the report of at least two of the abortion clinics here in NYC? That is not true at all as a matter of fact I can drive by the place and get you video confessions if you want to prove that. It all really depends on the area people live in, thats where stats change. Side: No
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You simply are ignorant of the facts. Your comments are ridiculous. And do you watch CNN? Does that explain your radical left wing views...you watch that network? As I TOLD YOU ONCE AGAIN.....GO TO GUTTMAUCHER INSTITUTE AND READ WHAT FACTS THEY POST. THEY ARE PRO-ABORTION....so don't tell me or give the excuse that it is biased on the side of life. Go read who gets abortions and why they get them. Have you ever had an abortion? Please tell us about your experience. And PP wouldnt like your description of abortion. They say its safe, fast and almost painless. .....the only way to kill. Here I will help you again...since you probably would not know how to maneuver yourself there. • Nearly half of pregnancies among American women are unintended, and four in 10 of these are terminated by abortion. Twenty-two percent of all pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion. • Forty percent of pregnancies among white women, 69% among blacks and 54% among Hispanics are unintended. In 2008, 1.21 million abortions were performed, down from 1.31 million in 2000. However, between 2005 and 2008, the long-term decline in abortions stalled. From 1973 through 2008, nearly 50 million legal abortions occurred. • Each year, two percent of women aged 15-44 have an abortion; half have had at least one previous abortion. At least half of American women will experience an unintended pregnancy by age 45, and, at current rates, nearly one-third will have had an abortion. These stats show that most women do and will have multiple abortions. While this is not like other contraception....it does act as a contraception because abortion prevents the birth of the living human being in question. Abortion is fast.....you can walk in the same day and get one. And you dont need a stretcher to walk out...its outpatient. You can go back to work the same day. Most abortions are not done because of any problem in the pregnancy...that is a load of bull. • The reasons women give for having an abortion underscore their understanding of the responsibilities of parenthood and family life. Three-fourths of women cite concern for or responsibility to other individuals; three-fourths say they cannot afford a child; three-fourths say that having a baby would interfere with work, school or the ability to care for dependents; and half say they do not want to be a single parent or are having problems with their husband or partner. Less than 1% are done because of any medical reason. Side: No
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If you look in the grand scheme of things and contraception failure rates http://www.gpnotebook.co.uk/ I agree with your abortion comment 100% though. Abortion should always be a last resort. Although you are very wrong about a majority of people using is at contraception it is a very slight number. Side: yes
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Responsibility consists in considering possibilities and managing them to your best benefit. A responsible person does the best they can to ensure they understand the possibilities, so that they can manage them properly. Considering possibilities, involves spending 5 minutes online to make sure your informed(sadly better so than most countries health classes teach). Most abortions are not done for any medical reason, but for convenience or the mothers personal goals and fears. In such situations abortion can be thought of inaccurately as a contraception, since they have the same purpose. Side: No
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Excuses excuses........If a man can't figure out how to put a condom on he should not be having sex in the first place. Lets blame the pill, lets blame anti-biotics....blah blah The fact is if you are educated even slightly you know any contraception can FAIL. You will not find one contraception on the market with a 100% guarentee. If you have sex you take that risk and should know what responsiblities come with it should it happen. Did you not know that the pill could fail? This is what I don't get....you say abortion is wrong in a way other wise you wouldn't say it should be done at the last resort. Yet you are pro-abortion and do nothing to stop innocent human beings in the womb from being slaughtered....you want this option left open. Why should it be a last resort.......you want it to be legal? Statistics show that most women who have had an abortion have had multiple abortions. What does that tell you? Did they learn anything from the experience? What they know is that abortion is one birth control method they can use should the others fail. It works almost 100% of the time....abortion kills. Side: No
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Even if they have been raped they shouldn't kill the child they could have it set up for adoption to a family that can't have children. I know that the girls first option is to have abortion because she is scared of her parents to know but they should talk to them before they kill the baby because there are more ways to handling it instead of killing innocent blood. Side: No
No, they should have access to preventative pregnancy methods. If they choose not to take preventative pregnancy measures and risk becoming pregnant, and they didn’t want to be a mother in the first place, than they should be held responsible for their ability to make adult decisions but failing to do so. If they are "old/mature enough" to decide whether or not to have an abortion, then they're old enough to take preventative measures in risky situations that would prevent a pregnancy from happening in the first place. What this equates to is: old/mature enough to be sexually active, old enough to become pregnant, old enough to take preventative measures, old enough to accept responsibility if they OPT OUT of taking preventative measures. See, the problem is that they're NOT old/mature enough to make that decision. Their way of thinking is infantile. Pregnancy doesn’t just happen like mommy and daddy tells us when we're little kiddies. It's a reaction to a direct action (or inaction in the case of not taking preventative measures). Abortion should only be used in the most extreme cases (i.e. rape, possible labor complications, failed contraceptive), NOT as a form of birth control as it is commonly used. EDIT: Changed "preventative birth control" to "preventative pregnancy methods" after realizing that abortion is in fact a form of 'prevantative birth control.' Just not one that I would support. Side: No
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I believe abortion is right in many scenarios, but to be honest, teenagers shouldn't be given the right to have abortions (unless they're 18 or 19 year old adult teens). Very simply, this is because teenagers shouldn't need abortions. If a teenager needs an abortion, then their parents have failed at being parents, and their children should now bear the responsibility of suffering for their mistakes and the mistakes of their parents. If the teenager does not have the financial ability to take care of their child, then for the sake of the child, the child should be legally signed away as an adopted child of the grandparents, since the grandparents failed even more so then their teenager. I would only be okay with teenage abortion under very specific medical circumstance, such as where death, drugs, and rape are involved. (I consider mental health also an adequate prerequisite, which is why I include rape.) And even when the abortion should be allowed in those cases, the parents should be heavily punished, alongside paying for the abortion. Side: No
No, teenagers should not have access, nor should anyone. Every human deserves to have a life and its selfish to say the mother should have a choice. So what if the mother will have a "horrible life" for the child..shes the one who had sex in the first place. and theres always adoption if the child has a chance of having a bad life. Side: No
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