I hate abortion!

Yeah I said it! Now I know that I am supposed to be a good lefty and that we are identified by our pro-choice status. I am pro-choice. I just don't like the choice.

As I watch these Alito hearings I see them dissolving into a pro vs anti-abortion tug of war, and it seems so sad that that is where we choose to build our ideological wall of separation. I have never, once, spoken to a person who espoused the virtue of abortion on demand. I have never discussed the idea of having unprotected sex with a young lady and said "well if cells start dividing we can always abort it". I believe that we on the left accept it as a terrible choice but a choice which should be allowed just the same.

When I was a teenager I drove a young lady who was with child to the local health clinic to terminate her pregnancy. (No it was not mine. Thanks for asking.) I waited in the car and remember her stumbling out racked with sobs. We sat in my car for several hours as she tried to get herself together before I drove her home to her family. I did not pass judgment on her but I certainly felt the impact of her decision. She completely soaked my shoulder with her tears that day. I have never taken the abortion issue lightly since.

Now I am not a religious person. (No, really?) So I don't believe in souls or hell. I think that all of our pain exists right here on this planet. And I love children! Especially babies! When I think about an innocent life suddenly torn from its mother I have an emotional response to that. I don't like it! But it is not my choice. I am just a guy. It is not my body. And I would never imagine telling any woman what she should do with her own body. Never!

But having said that I do wish that there was more real sex education available to kids. I know that people think that we should leave that up to the parents. But parents are very unreliable! They put it off or allow themselves to believe their children would never do that, or just assume that their children will ask them when they want to know. Parents are just kids that suddenly find themselves having to be responsible and trying to do the best they can while dealing with their own ignorance and prejudices. Parents need help.

I would like to see the abortion rate in this country drop to zero. That will not happen by outlawing it. We will just see more women with damaged bodies seeking help after botched abortion attempts by unqualified charlatans. No, we need to educate. We need to override Mom and Dad's fears and prejudices and teach good pro-creational responsibility. The good, the bad, and the unexpected. I want the next generation to be raised by parents that are competent, aware , and who chose to be parents and are not just dealing with an accident.