Dear Hassie,

Few issues in recent years have so divided people
as has the morality of abortion. Not surprisingly
opinion polls show public confusion on the issue.

People seem to support abortion in
cases of rape, incest, or a threat to the mother's
health, but support for a mother's right to abortion
on demand fluctuates.

Some people wonder whether
their own position on abortion is right - regardless
of whether they oppose or approve it. In any event, the
high rate must be seen in the context of social changes
in premarital, marital, and family life - especially
the climate of sexual permissiveness and the sense of
individualism that leads people to make decisions
primarily in terms of their personal desires rather
than of traditional norms.

Hey Jim,
I support your right to stand against the industry of abortion.
I support your ethical stand of reminding people that abortion should not be used as a form of contraception.

But I'm sorry, I DO NOT support you approaching women that have made the decision to terminate a pregnancy in the carpark.

I had an acquaintance of mine crying her eyes out 2 months ago in my loungeroom because she had to make a difficult decision to end a pregnancy, because the long term relationship she was in didn't have much future.

Her partner at the time was not that good when it came to building a relationship and being there for her existing kid, and she didn't want another kid to have to go through that, especially when the relationship seemed to have run its course.

I don't envy her difficult choice, and it's not for me to say whether or not she made the right decision, or to influence her decision in any way.

Ultimately it's a choice she had to make, because she has to live with it.

The relationship ended a few weeks later.
She's made some changes in her life, and now seems much happier then she was several months ago.

I'm certain that aborting a child weighs heavily on her heart, though I also know that for some women, abortion is not as big a deal for them as it is for others.

I support your right to stand against abortion for all the right reasons.
I don't support you making a difficult choice harder.

"...made the decision to terminate a pregnancy in the carpark."

- I think I kind of messed that up -

Free speech is not dead but it definitely is not supported/approved of by the academic leftist elite !

If free speech dead?

We're asked this by the author - Jim Dowling.
And of course the answer will depend on our
values, our experiences, the way we view things,
even our religious beliefs, and our political leanings.
In other words - it will be subjective. We are after all
individuals with different outlooks. Our views will
reflect what influences us.

Regarding the right to protest - I believe that there
are certain laws in place where and how this can be
done, and I think that permission is required for
certain areas. I imagine that abortion clinics would
be one of those areas. So if people receive warnings
about their behaviour that goes against the law -
can they really claim that it violates their right of
"free speech?" What about the rights of those having
made a difficult decision who may already be traumatised
their right to privacy?

There are so many issues involved here. Including ones
concerning our laws. You cannot decide which laws you want
to obey and which ones you want to ignore for your cause.
Chaos would ensue.

We have laws against libel, inciting violence, public decency,
slander, and so on.

People who enjoy the rights of free speech have a duty to
respect other people's rights. A person's freedom of speech
is limited by the rights of others. All societies including
democratic ones, put various limitations on what people may
say. They prohibit certain types of speech that they
believe might harm. Of course drawing a line between
dangerous and harmless speech can be extremely difficult.
Hence the controversy and complexity involved.

"When they came for the pro-lifers, I was silent. When they came for…….you? "

That sort of bungles the quote. The partial quote is "Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a trade unionist."

The important point is the reason for not speaking out is that the suppression was against 'others'.

So more accurately ...then they came for the pro-lifers and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a pro-lifer.

I'm (reluctantly) in favour of abortion up to a certain point and opposed after that point. I'm also not really in favour of those who harass abortion clinics.

But that's beside the point. The point is that those who do protest abortion should have the right to do so.

The gold standard is "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

I don't agree with people protesting abortion clinics but they should have the right to do so protected.

The problem is that far too many people who profess to believe in democracy no longer accept that opposing views have to be heard and considered.

Free speech isn't dead. But it is on life support.