Should Abortion be Legal?

I do agree with that to an extent - abortions should be decided on right from the start, but in the case of deformities or possible complications found out later on I agree with abortion completely.

That's why I like the 12th week rule, before the circulatory system is developed. As for adoption, chances are, they won't get adopted. The adoption process is so hefty and difficult.

Oh, bunch of cool threads in serious talk lately. I'm 100% pro-choice. A woman should have total control over what she does with her body. A child is a huge responsibility and quickly takes up a big part of one's life. In my opinion, preventing a woman from aborting when she wishes to is more likely to make two sad lives than "protect" one, particularly in rape cases or with teens whose future would totally be ruined. As for the "life" argument, I personally do not see much in a foetus but a bunch of cells we still do not quite understand. I believe it is education that makes new human beings. Besides, even assuming abortion prevents a possible awesome person from existing in the future, well, I only see a delay. People who do not want babies today (because of rape / still studying / whatever) may want some later on. I would simply rather have it happen at a time when they have a stable situation and are ready to love their children :3

@Sunbae - Unfortunately, 12 weeks is much too early for a large number of abnormalities. One of the most significant genetic testing forms, amniocentesis isn't even performed prior to 14 weeks. Additionally, it is hard and often impossible to determine structural abnormalities on ultrasound prior to the 2nd trimester ultrasound done around 18-20 weeks. You would be forcing many women to carry to term a fetus that would inevitably die within its first year or so of life. @manga_bird - Abortions are extremely difficult decisions for many women. Expecting for them to decide right from the start is often not feasible.

@drmario I believe it is determined through gene therapy. I sat in at a seminar once in UCI that was all about that and I rmemeber one of their subtopics was being able to identify disorders through analyzing genes AND being able to (at least they claim, I still have my doubts) to correct them as it isn't an extra chromosome

It says on this article that by the 8th week, they could accurately determine/correct it http://www.nature.com/gt/journal/v6/n7/full/3300991a.html

It says on this article that by the 8th week, they could accurately determine/correct it http://www.nature.com/gt/journal/v6/n7/full/3300991a.html

I apologize that was the wrong link http://www.livescience.com/45949-prenatal-genetic-testing.html

I'm glad to see that you are referring to reliable sources, but there are a few common misconceptions that you may have. Women are screened in the first trimester with blood test. However, these test only say if there is an increased risk of certain abnormalities and does not diagnose them. Honestly, when I did my Ob/Gyn rotation one of the things I learned is that this isn't even really something you want to rely on. For pregnant women who screen positive for high risk we simply reassure them, and tell them that it is still unlikely that your baby will have problems, but we'll do more testing later. For most women, this screen might even say something like "you have a 1/292 chance of having a baby with down syndrome instead of 1/500." Not very useful. This later testing may be the amniocentesis, or simply the ultrasound at the 2nd trimester appointment. Some women even decline this testing. You'll even notice that in the article you cited it says "Amniocentesis is considered the gold standard for prenatal genetic testing." The words "gold standard" may seem like just an aesthetic description, but it's really important to how we provide healthcare. One of the reasons that amniocentesis is the gold standard is that newer tests don't yet have the foundation to say that they are good enough to use for the general population. There are also other tests like chorionic villus sampling which can be done earlier, but is more dangerous for fetus. And gene therapy isn't really a major thing yet outside of ongoing research, but we're always hoping that it will become something.