Abortion is arguably the most complicated legal issue we face today as a nation.  All individuals have the unalienable right to life.  Encompassed in the right to life is the right to exist and care for your own body.  Babies have the right to live and pregnant mothers have the right to care for their own bodies.  Because this deals directly with the unalienable right to life, this issue is absolutely in the realm of government. 

 The problem today is that although abortion is in the realm of government, there are many political special interest groups that have put forward a number of utterly false arguments.  Before further discussion, let us identify some of these false arguments.

 The first is that an unborn baby is not alive.  There are those who argue that a baby is not really alive until the actual birth.  An unborn baby has a heartbeat, brain function, and motor skills.  If a mugger beats up a pregnant woman and her baby suffers a crushed skull and dies, that mugger is charged with murder.  Those who put forth the life begins at birth argument are attempting to evade the difficult discussion of the right to life of the baby vs. the mother.  A baby, whether inside the mother or out is still a human being.  The argument that life begins at birth is a political argument and one not based in reality.  An unborn baby is still a baby.

 The second false argument is that doctors have no choice in the matter of abortion.  There are those that argue that women not only have the right of choice in the issue of abortion, but that doctors should be mandated by government to perform abortions on demand. Those who put forth this argument are after the government money that would need to be allocated in order to regulate this type of law.  Doctors are humans and they each have a right to their own decisions as well.  Some doctors may feel comfortable with abortions and others not.  Government has no authority to force doctors to perform abortions or any procedures that they do not feel comfortable performing.

 The third false argument is all birth control is an assault on life.  There are those who argue that not only is abortion morally wrong, but all methods of birth control are a form of murder that prevents potential life.  This argument is put forth by different groups attempting to enforce their own morality on others.  Under this argument, every month a woman did not become pregnant and had her period; she would be considered a criminal by wasting a potential life.  If a man got into a fight and kneed another man in the groin, he could also be charged with murder because he destroyed potential life.  Sperm and eggs do not have heart beats or brain function.  The choice to use birth control is a personal choice that is completely outside the realm of government.

 There are other false arguments, but those are the three I hear most often.  The issue of abortion is complicated enough without confounding it with false arguments.  This is now a question of which level of government will handle this issue.  Abortion is not discussed in The Constitution and therefore, according to The Bill of Rights, it is an issue which should be decided by each State.  The federal government has no authority in the issue of abortion.  

 I believe that abortion is wrong, but I am against government intervention, whatever the level, in abortion.  I genuinely believe that when given the choice, the vast majority of young couples and women considering an abortion will choose life.

 Let us take an example of a young woman whose partner has abandoned her once he found out she was pregnant.  She is considering an abortion.  I as an individual have two courses which I can pursue in convincing her to choose life.  First, I could use government force and threaten her with jail time if she pursued an abortion.  Or second, I could talk with her about her choices, introduce her to an adoption agency or a couple that very much wants a baby of their own, and provide support and friendship at this difficult time in her life.  I believe the second method yields greater results than the first, which is why I am prochoice when it comes to government intervention in the abortion issue.  There would be those that still choose to have an abortion and that cannot be helped, but the more society concentrates on supporting couples and women, the greater the pro-life results will be.  The second and third order effects of a pro-life law by government are far reaching.  In a pro-life government enforced society, individuals will be scared to come forward with unintended pregnancies and impulsively seek out black market abortions.  The criminal and health concerns that this creates in society are far reaching.  I believe abortion is wrong, but I believe society, not government, is best equipped to deal with this issue.