Opinion Essay: Adoption, Not Abortion

Today Matt, Taylor, and I had an interesting lunch discussion on the topic of abortion. It made me think about the seriousness of it and the many perspectives that people have on this sacred topic. In a debate, it is nearly impossible to come to an agreement on this subject, but this is my take on the issue.

I will first state that I believe that an abortion, at any stage of development, is taking the precious life of a human being. Those cells are a human life, they are the cells of an individual, it is the beginning of life…the beginning of a human being.

Abortion takes away the future being’s innate right to make his or her own choices on how he or she will live and who they will become. What was once an opportunity for the individual to learn, grow, love, invent, share, and explore is taken away for the selfish purposes of their irresponsible parents. Never will the aborted life be able to pass through hard times nor feel the joy as they achieve their goals, all because 2 people didn’t think it would be convenient to take responsibility for their choices. This innocent life will never be able to exercise free will on anything, all options are shut down as the parents express their greed.

While living in Paraguay, I had the opportunity to meet with many women who had had abortions. I wish each person who considers abortion could have heard what I heard. To feel the sorrow of each woman, to share in their pain was something I will never forget. One woman told me that she had a child aborted 14 years ago, and literally, ever since that moment she had been haunted by her mistake, never had I seen anyone in such sorrow as she was. She said she had thought about it every single day, that she had been kept awake innumerable nights dwelling on her choice. She expressed to me the sadness she felt when another woman would consider abortion and how she would beg each potential mother to not repeat her mistake. I had 10 or so similar occasions, and each woman was weighed down heavily for their decision to prematurely end the child’s life.

Some will say, “but Drew, sometimes it just isn’t logical to bring a life into this world. So the lady got pregnant, she can’t deal with that financially and she has her career, an abortion just makes sense.” I would hope that these people would read my blog on act utilitarianism vs. rule utilitarianism and understand that deciding to take a life based on what is economically smart is morally wrong and strips the individual of all integrity. That class of decision making unveils a shallow and corrupted set of priorities and values. What is more tragic than trading a life for money?

Adoption, not abortion is the answer. Many people who become pregnant are not fit nor prepared to support a life. If arrangements are unable to be made so that the child can grow in a healthy, loving environment, adoption is the only moral fix to the problem. It is believed that the process of adoption is a difficult and long road, this is false. Many organizations have been set-up to ease the burden. One organization is LDS Family services, this organization is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but is open and eager to help women of all faiths. There exist people who value life and the opportunity we all have to make choices. There are men and women who will make all sacrifice possible so that the mother and child end up in the right place. Abortion denies these facts and fuels the idea that life is meaningless. Life does matter, choices are important. Give the child a chance, let him or her make their own decisions as to who they will become.

I recognize that in some scenarios an abortion is needed to save the life of the mother, I cannot dispute that sincere consideration must be given to abortion. Under any other circumstances I consider abortion to be a selfish reaction to an irresponsible moment. If a couple decides to have sexual relations outside the bonds of marriage, birth control should be used to keep an innocent child out of harm’s way. If an unplanned pregnancy occurs, adoption is a loving and unselfish solution and a pathway to a bright future for both mother and child.

Pornography: The Filthy Culprit

Pornography is one of the filthy culprits that has led to the execution of the traditional family. It is a repulsive and disturbing addiction that is breaking the hearts of the wives and children of confused men who indulge in its cheapness. This, the most vile form of entertainment, paints women as objects used only for selfish motives. Sex is made out to be nothing but a search for pleasure, an unbridled giving-in to pure lust and a complete disregard of the divine emotions of love. Porn is a root for the downfall of human civilization and will continue to ruin lives and families until the negative effects are embraced and this poison is done away with.

FACTS TO CONSIDER ABOUT PORN:

Mary Anne Layden, co-director of the Sexual Trauma and Psychopathology Program at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Cognitive Therapy, called porn the “most concerning thing to psychological health that I know of existing today.” Pornography addicts have a more difficult time recovering from their addiction than cocaine addicts, since coke users can get the drug out of their system, but pornographic images stay in the brain forever, Layden said.

“Pornographic or erotic stories and pictures are worse than filthy or polluted food. The body has defenses to rid itself of unwholesome food. With a few fatal exceptions, bad food will only make you sick but do no permanent harm. In contrast, a person who feasts upon filthy stories or pornographic or erotic pictures and literature records them in this marvelous retrieval system we call a brain. The brain won’t vomit back filth. Once recorded, it will always remain subject to recall, flashing its perverted images across your mind and drawing you away from the wholesome things in life.” -Dallin H. Oaks

Pornography also inflicts mortal wounds on our most precious personal relationships. It impairs one’s ability to enjoy a normal emotional, romantic, and spiritual relationship with a person of the opposite sex. It erodes the moral barriers that stand against inappropriate, abnormal, or illegal behavior. As conscience is desensitized, patrons of pornography are led to act out what they have witnessed, regardless of its effects on their life and the lives of others.” -Dallin H. Oaks

According to Charles Keating of Citizens for Decency Through Law, research reveals that 77 percent of child molesters of boys and 87 percent of child molesters of girls admitted imitating the sexual behavior they had seen modeled in pornography.

Michigan state police detective Darrell Pope found that of the 38,000 sexual assault cases in Michigan (1956-1979), in 41 percent of the cases pornographic material was viewed just prior to or during the crime. This agrees with research done by psychotherapist David Scott who found that “half the rapists studied used pornography to arouse themselves immediately prior to seeking out a victim.”

This is truly a sad topic. It makes me cringe as I read about what goes on to those who are addicted to porn. All you need to do is google “addicted to porn” and read the truly tragic stories of how this sleazy media ruins lives and destroys futures. Those who make a profit off XXX material are murderers who display zero love for human kind and are unrivaled in their selfishness.

For those who have become addicted and wish to re-gain control of their lives, help is available. This is beatable and as it is overcome, lives will be re-built and health restored. This filth must be dismantled and virtue must reign for mankind to progress. The battle against porn will almost certainly never end, but in my opinion, it is a cause worth fighting for.

Prop. 8

The California State Constitution, Article 1 Section 7.5 reads, “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” This amendment to the state constitution was made after the Nov. 4th election in which 52% of California voters made the powerful statement that family does matter and traditional marriage will be protected.

In the weeks since California defined marriage as being between a man and a woman, the pro-gay marriage movement has become a scary and almost militant group of individuals. They have held demonstrations in nearly every big city in America and have sought to strike fear in those who oppose them. From racial slurs directed at the Black Californians who supported traditional marriage by 70% to hate filled memos to members of religious organizations, the gay community is quickly transforming their anger to an out-of-control rage.

Gary Bauer, of American Values had this to say about the recent demonstrations, “Thousands of homosexuals continued to march in major cities this weekend from coast-to-coast against America’s laws and common sense values regarding marriage. These individuals are insisting on more than tolerance, which they already have. They are demanding that the whole country throw thousands of years of Western Civilization in the trash can and redefine marriage. Even the New York Times acknowledged what is at stake by describing same-sex “marriage” as “an issue that many gay men and lesbians consider a critical step to full equality.” Indeed, that is exactly the issue because marriage is the foundation of our society and the first institution ordained by God. Marriage is society’s “stamp of approval.”

He continued, “These protests are shedding light on the authoritarian, anti-democratic impulse of the militant homosexual rights movement. While most of the press coverage of the weekend protests was glowing, one San Francisco station, KTVU, filmed a mob of angry gay radicals threatening a small group of Christians who had gathered to pray on a street corner Friday night. Police in riot gear had to be called in to escort the Christians safely out of the area.”

One of the great traditions we hold in our great country is that of peaceful transfers of power. A republican may replace a democrat in the White House and there is no war in the streets, that is what makes these radical demonstrations so absurd. We live in a land of democracy and as such we understand that when the majority make their opinion known, it is accepted by all. Our democracy is being mocked and it is a true embarrassment.

Amid the contention in the streets we will rejoice that the family has been protected. We appreciate all who worked to pass Prop. 8 in California and those who fought to preserve our religious freedoms. We surly have not seen the last of this fight and we will continue to press on.

2008 Election

As the 2008 election has played out it has been somewhat different than I expected. I thought we would hear a lot about the war–the war in Iraq that is. Instead I have witnessed first hand the tremendous need to protect, promote and strengthen the family. The war that has come to the forefront has been a cultural war–a war on our culture and our families–a war on which the outcome of our civilization rests. I have thought often of Joseph Daniel Unwin, a well known anthropologist of the early 1900’s, who set out to prove like many today that marriage was irrelevant. His research chronicled the decline of 86 different cultures and he was forced to conclude that only marriage with complete fidelity could produce cultural prosperity.

I have wondered many times if our civilization would learn from the past. Will our society choose to fall or fly? Will we recognize that families are essential to personal and national liberty and must be given the highest possible protection under the law or will we allow the tyranny of tolerance towards the politically correct to redefine and redesign our social structure completely out of existence?