Hypertension

Thankfully I have a lot of nice people as friends, so most real life discussions I’ve had about abortions (with people on “both sides” so to speak) have been very sane and balanced. This could of course also depend a lot on where I live.

The internet ones, on the other hand, tend to go bad reeeeaaally quick, if you dare move outside of your circle of friends. Then again, it’s always easier to insult a screen than it is to yell at another person. So we can be twice proud of our very civilized and friendly discussion because of that ;)

I may not feel the same as you do about an egg+sperm combo, but that doesn’t mean you’re wrong or that I’m wrong. They’re feelings, they tend to be personal. It’s what we do with those feelings that’s important and you clearly base you actions very well on yours - working to avoid hurting yourself and others. It’s very heartening to know people like you exist :)

Why thank you! And I feel likewise about you. My friends are militantly pro-choice (or rather, pro-abortion, since they never seem to discuss choosing not to have one), and my family are militantly pro-life (for example: there is no situation where abortion is acceptable). So I’m surrounded by the extremes, which is why I don’t talk about it anymore. But, my fiancee, of course, knows how I feel about this and she was glad, I think, that I’m able to combine my personal beliefs with a reasonable and sane approach to the practicalities of life. I’m sure you’re the same.

I do feel that the extreme stances on sex education are failing. Abstinence and a lack of sex education prevents people from taking steps to responsibly avoid an unwanted pregnancy. However, the more liberal stance seems to make people think that they can do whatever they like without a thought for the consequences. I feel that both extremes are causing many people a great deal of pain and, at the very least, complication that they shouldn’t have in their lives.

I have thought about formalising my stance and possibly going into a sort of ‘neutral’ or ‘reasonable’ project to educate people on respect, coupled with common sense, but it’s only been a passing thought.

What do you think? How do you think people would react to a reasonable stance like mine, presented to a broader audience? Of course, I would have to make it clear that my views on conception are personal. But, I feel my approach is one that is less damaging than those inspired by the people populating the far right and left of the political spectrum.

(Source: hypertensions)