Amanda, Miss Vegemite and others...

You keep insisting on this "right to control our bodies" argument, repeating that same pathetic, discredited slogan. Like too many women it seems, they think the universe evolves around them. I'm sorry to break it to you ladies, but such a right is a limited right, not one that transcends the rights of others to live their lives.

Furthermore, my argument is that a pregnant woman is liable and obligated to the child in her womb - she has effectively FORCED that life into that vulnerable position without it giving consent. Your argument Amanda, about failed contraception doesn't cut it - it's very well-known that contraception can fail.

If you choose to have sexual intercourse, you invite the consequences of that action - which may involve pregnancy. It doesn't MATTER if you wanted to get pregnant or not, the principle is simple - if you take a risk in life, you invite the consequences of that risk, whether you like the outcome or not. You (and the father) are still 100% responsible. The child in the womb is not. It has not aggressed against it's mother in any way - if the mother aborts then she is the one initiating the aggression and is therefore in the wrong. The pregnant woman becomes morally LIABLE to the unborn child, as she has CAUSED it's dependent situation.

There may be a clash between want the woman WANTS and what the child NEEDS, but there is no clash of RIGHTS. The child has the right to live, and the woman's right to control her body is conditional upon her not using it in ways that aggress against others.

A lot of the abortion debate gets back to the the point that we live in an age where compared perhaps to previous eras, we are used to being in control of our own lives. People feel very comfortable feeling that they can have their cake and eat it too - that we can be the master of our own universe. People would desperately LIKE to be able to control their own fertility 100%. Women desperately WANT to be able to enjoy sexual intercourse, and not have to be pregnant if they don't want to be.

But the simple fact is, reality doesn't work that way. Nature and reality have not as yet bestowed a right to control fertility 100% upon humans, no matter how much we may WANT this right. Such a right doesn't objectively exist, because pregnancy still occurs as a CHANCE outcome from sexual intercourse. Claiming a "right to control my body no matter what" is just rigid, wishful thinking. People who support legal abortion-on-demand are in denial of reality, because they are claiming a right that is not derived from reality. Hence they have no credibility and they lose the debate.

Jaxxen, partly agree.

People can argue the ethics of abortion forever, but eventually such arguments will rarely limit the rate of unwanted pregnancies.

Similarly, attempts to side track the issues of abortion by introducing violinists, or by trying to hide facts and information, will rarely reduce unwanted pregnancies also.

In this article, the author mentions not one single fact regards abortion, but it is only through proper research and establishing facts, will solutions be found to reduce the problems of unwanted pregnancies and to reduce the number of abortions. Those solutions can involve such things as education programs, better forms of contraception etc, and of course fathers cannot be disregarded in all this.

Back to basics for the author of this article, if the author “does” have a sincere desire to reduce unwanted pregnancies and rate of abortion (but somehow I doubt it).

Today I heard by 2050 the world pop. will be 9 billion.A 50% increase on to days pop.In 1970,it was 3 billion.We will destroy this planet fighting over food,energy and resources if we don't control our pop. growth.The war over energy has started in Iraq.There will be many more if we don't stop pop.growth.
WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT,THE SURVIVAL OF THE PLANET,OR OUR SHORT TERM PERSONAL GRATIFICATION? DO WE HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO FUTURE GENERATIONS?The morality of foetus killing will be irrelevant when future generations face survival.

If the right to autonomy over one's own body is no fundamental then what, exactly, is? All this debate over abortion may be fascinating for many of you, but try to imagine what you would do if the government decided that blood and organ donations were now compulsory. Imagine the lives that will be saved!!

Each person is free to make a choice about whether abortion is the right choice to make for themselves, and, if the father/ friends/ family have earned enough respect then they can be consulted too.

Outlawing abortion only belittles the gift that motherhood is. It's a great burden, but one that many choose to accept. It's all the more special because she doesn't have to.

And suggesting that perhaps women aren't taking this decision seriously enough right now is just as offensive. Don't patronise every woman in the country by saying that you are against abortion because you know better than the woman whose womb is carrying the fetus.

My body - my decision. If that right isn't valued highly then we need to stop pretending we live in a free nation.

Arjay, Amanda,

Do you have any ideas on how to reduce unwanted pregnancies, without resorting to such things as abortion?