“Look, I got two daughters — 9 years old and 6 years old,” he said. “I am going to teach them first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby. I don’t want them punished with an STD at age 16, so it doesn’t make sense to not give them information.”

I consider myself to be rather moderate when considering the topic of abortion, but I find that comment offensive and very telling. If my parents had been that flippant about the sanctity of life and the option had been available back then, I doubt I would be around today. I doubt a lot of us would be around, including Barack Obama!

Any thoughts about this subject? Any thoughts about abortion being an "oops" remedy to unwanted pregnancy?

I don't know the story behind the quote, but based strictly on the comment posted, I agree.

A sixteen-year-old likely can't be an adequate mother to a child, nor should she try to be. And the poor baby sure doesn't deserve to be born into a world where his mom isn't able to care for him. Why is that flippant? To me, it's simply realistic.

Anyone of any age though who uses abortion as birth control is irresponsible, further proving they shouldn't be a parent. How hard is it to get birth control pills and family planning education? Adults who don't are lazy and children who don't should have parents who are watching out for them.

-nab

Adoption is always an option!

Unlike some hardcore Pro-Life people, I do believe there are circumstances in which abortion may be an appropriate action. However, to use it as a routine method of birth control irks me and it says too much about our society today.

Over and over we have seen horrendous murders play out across the news media and we follow the stories to trial. Frequently, we see a defendant that is so cold and removed from feelings of responsibility that his/her actions are labeled with a sundry of psychological terms such as, sociopath, psychopath, schizophrenic and even bi-polar. Maybe we should take a harder look at the failings of our society instead.

Once we begin to teach our children it is okay to take a human life, if that life is going to be a nuisance. We instill a mental disconnect that will haunt future generations. The sanctity of life is ignored and murder is rationalized to such an extent that it becomes commonplace. The “me” generation begins to see pregnancy as being “punished by a baby” and that feeling can be extrapolated to being punished by a spouse, punished by a neighbor, punished by a boss. Why should any of these so-called sociopaths have any feelings of remorse about taking another’s life, when we as a society teach them otherwise?????

My mother and father married straight out of high school at the ripe old age of 18. Within a couple of years they had a toddler and were struggling to make ends meet. Their primary diet consisted of pinto beans and cornbread. They felt lucky when they had enough of that to go around. So, when mom learned she was pregnant with me, it was not exactly great news. Even if abortions had been available in those days, it was not an option. So, here I sit today and I don’t think for a moment my mother ever thought she was punished by a baby!

This cavalier attitude about the essence of humanity is extremely troubling to me.

Over and over we have seen horrendous murders play out across the news media and we follow the stories to trial.

Exactly. And in some of those cases the root cause of why it happens is because the mother or father never wanted the child or children in the first place. Maybe it was mental illness, maybe it was immaturity, maybe the parent was just mean and selfish and had no regard for the life he or she produced. But they didn't get an abortion. They had the child, they may or may not have tried to do right by them but in the end failed. And then whatever's not "right" within that person finally snaps and they take it out on the innocent life they brought into the world.

Of course "murder is rationalized". It happens with abortion. It happens with the death penalty. It happens with criminals who kill because they think they have a good reason to do so.

I sure don't think that every woman who has an abortion is a sociopath or has no feelings of remorse or regret about what she's done. Unless you're a woman who's faced a pregnancy under daunting, frightening or seemingly insurmountable circumstances you can't possibly know what it's like.

That said, most woman are NOT facing those circumstances but are instead simply taking the easy way out of a situation that they feel is going to upset their life or cause them to rearrange their lives when they're not ready to do so. And that's when abortion becomes immoral.

-nab

It is difficult to decipher which side of this issue you are on. Do you agree with Obama’s stance that if his daughters make a “mistake” on a Saturday night that they should not be “punished by a baby” nine months later?

There are consequences in this life. One of those consequences is pregnancy, when someone chooses to have unprotected sex. Do we teach our children to live with those consequences, or do we just tell them that ending a life is always an option?

I am one of your so called "Hard Core Pro Life" supporters, so you know where I stand on the whole issue, but I think we may be missing the boat if we take sides on our stance regarding abortion. His comment was wrong regardless of which side of the fence you are on. Most Pro Choice supporters I know agree that abortion should be legal but there should be strict guidelines. His comment gave the immpression that abortion should be a birth control option regardless of any other options. I do hope these young girls realize all the implication of their choice, whether it is abortion, unprotected sex, or their future ability to have children. The choices they make now will affect the rest of their lives.

You know, BamaBob, I'm getting the feeling you're either trying to be argumentative with me or I've suddenly lost the ability to write a coherent sentence. I believe what northcountrygirl states is the opinion of most pro-choice supporters she knows, that abortion should be legal but there should be strict guidelines. I believe that abortion should not be used as birth control but should be available to women under certain circumstances. I don't think that abortion is always wrong and I don't think that forcing a pregnant girl or woman into giving birth is always right.

That's about as clear as I can make it.

-nab

Essentially, we are all in agreement that abortion should not be used as a routine method of birth control and we all disagree with Barack Obama’s stance on the matter.

Essentially, we are all in agreement that abortion should not be used as a routine method of birth control and we all disagree with Barack Obama’s stance on the matter.

So you point is...what? That everyone who posts on this message board does not agree with everything that a particular presidential candidate does?

I'm pretty sure no one would argue with that.

But keep it up if it pleases you.

-nab