Rational Dreaming
I was on my way home from the movies this evening when I caught an anti-abortion ad on the radio. It made the emotional appeal to consider what “might have been” for all the children who would have been born if they had not been aborted—i.e. they could have been doctors, great teachers, or even a future president, and so on.
While I don’t doubt the commercial’s ability to tug at the heartstrings, when you actually analyze what they are saying, it doesn’t really make a terribly good or even honest argument against abortion.
First of all, they claim that 25% of all pregnancies in America end in abortion. That is simply untrue. There are 25 abortions per 100 live births in America, meaning that one in five pregnancies end in abortion, which is only 20%. Now you may argue that 20% is still far too many, but twisting a simple fact like that does not reflect well on the integrity of the anti-abortion activists who put together the ad.
Second, the ad makes the assumption that an abortion rate of 25% means that there will be 25% fewer children growing up in America in the future. That is also a dishonest assertion. The abortion statistics are clear:
- Over 50% of women who have abortions are younger than 25 years old,
- Nearly half of all women having an abortion have not already started a family,
- Almost 80% of women having an abortion earn $10,000/year or less.
Essentially, what this tells us that at least half of all women are having abortions because they are not ready to start a family yet—because they are still in school, or are simply not ready to settle down yet, or are not financially secure enough to start raising a family.
Thus it’s only reasonable to assume that many of these women will indeed go on to start families and have children later, and are likely to end up with the same number of children in total, whether or not they had an abortion first. Indeed, young women who are not struggling to make ends meet while trying to raise a child alone are likely more able to devote more time and effort in attaining a stable long-term relationship, and so it could well be that those who do have abortions end up with slightly more children, on average, than young single mothers.
I can’t find any studies that look into these numbers, but I believe it’s pretty safe to assume that the “net loss” of number of children to America through abortion is far less than the 25% claimed in the ad — perhaps lower than 15% or even 10%. It is certainly true that there are millions of children alive today only because their mothers did have an abortion before they were born.
Finally, while we all like to believe our children will grow up to be the next great American success story, in reality, there’s just as much chance that they will be one of the nation’s great failures. For every child that grows up to be President, there are hundreds more who grow up to be murderers, muggers, and rapists. And given that the majority of women who have abortions are at or below the poverty line, the sad truth is that there is even less chance that had those children been born, they would have grown up to be the cream of the next generation. So, even though abortion may have denied America of some future heroes, it is equally true—and probably even more so—that abortion has saved America from a great number of future criminals and villains.
Of course, none of this is likely to sway the ardent anti-abortionist, who is just as likely to use thoroughly discredited arguments against abortion—like the non-existent link between abortion and breast cancer—but I think it’s always worth pointing out their half-truths and lies wherever you find them. If abortion was such a terrible blight on society then there would be no need to stoop to these dishonest tactics.
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33 Responses to Anti-Abortion Ad Distortions
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Erm, “25 abortions per 100 live births” is 25%! Not that I disagree with what you’re saying.
Hey Charles,
Actually, I believe I am correct. 25 abortions per 100 live births is a ratio, not a percentage. Thus, the total number of pregnancies in this example is 125, 100 or which are brought to term, the other 25 end in abortion. And so the percentage of pregnancies that end in abortion is 25/ 125 which is 20%.
In reality there will be some variation from this number because it doesn’t include miscarriages. It’s likely that some percentage of the pregnancies ending in abortion would have ended in a miscarriage anyway, given that some are carried out for medical reasons. Either way, at most it’s still only 20%.
I am always against abortion because it is a sin to kill an innocent child.;-,
Not to say that the fetus is not a living breathing creature, it is most definitely not a ‘child’ not a child either Brandon. So what I think you should say is you think it is a sin to kill an unborn fetus. An unborn fetus is not the same as a living breathing child.
Question: If it were not a ‘sin’ would you still feel the same way about the elimination of a possible life? Also, is killing in the defense of one’s self or in an effort to protect your children a sin?
Given that so many of the mothers who opt for abortion do so because of their likely inability to properly care for or raise a child and also the statistics surrounding the backgrounds of of Criminals and Villains, to use your term, it seems altogether more likely that the aborted babies would have ended up as just that-Criminals and Villains. Sad but true and no reflection whatsoever on those single mothers who do elect to bear and raise their children.
This theory is articulated more fully in the book “Freakonomics” and appears to offer a sensible correlation between the legalisation of Abortion in the US and the fall off in Crime in recent decades.
what i can say is that abortion is a sin and it should be deemed illegal by all means ,;”
“while we all like to believe our children will grow up to be the next great American success story, in reality, there’s just as much chance that they will be one of the nation’s great failures”
That’s a good point. We may be robbing the planet of an important individual through abortion, or we may be robbing the planet of a serial killer. Either way, the circumstances of the abortion should outweigh the loss of a potential superstar.
Interesting take on things Rational Dreamer. Your explanation of the 20% is definitely correct. Based on the given information the total pregnancies are 125, so 25/125 = 20%.
I totally agree with your comments in the 2nd last paragraph – the planet may be deprived of some great success stories, but the flip side is also true – there are also less criminals.
My personal opinion on abortion is that is all depends on the circumstances surrounding the pregnancy, for example when a teenage girl falls pregnant after being raped an abortion is almost unavoidable.
Jason
I am not against abortion but sometimes, it’s just wrong for not letting a child to see the world or experience life. Though, it’s sometimes it’s a good idea for not letting a child live in this cruel world we live in.
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“Second, the ad makes the assumption that an abortion rate of 25% means that there will be 25% fewer children growing up in America in the future. ”
Yes, that statement doesn’t exactly make sense. And besides, if it were true, are we letting society down by denying it of 1/4 of its potential?
For me, whether the stat’s are correct or not, abortion is still wrong. Why kill a child just because of unwanted pregnancies. The irresponsibility of one person should not cause someone’s life.
Bruce Gow of A1 Pest Control
It would be awkward to say to a young woman who was raped, “You need to have that baby because it could be the next American Idol”.
To be honest I completely disagree with the school of thought that says that abortion is a sin, and is therefore wrong and should be made illegal. Usually if you want to have an abortion, it is due to the circumstances that you are in, you are not able to give the child a good life as you may be in school, or just not financially secure enough to take care of a baby. Also the baby could be a product of rape. These are all valid reasons for not having the child, because they will not grow up in the best surroundings possible, their parents/mother may see them as a burden, or a reminder of an intense, horrific ordeal. That my friends, is a ‘sin’. To condemn a child to a life where they may not be loved, rather than sparing them that ordeal is preposterous, and it is more likely that they will act out in later years. Also it is not ‘someone’s life’ it is an unborn fetus, and forcing the irresponsible party to have the eventual unwanted child, is not in the best interests of the child at all. And to be honest from what I have heard those who elect for abortion do not tend to ‘enjoy’ the whole ordeal.
Naturally, this was going to spawn a debate.
@Lorna: well written argument!
@Bruce: when someone is raped, they are not being irresponsible. see Lorna’s post.
It’s one thing to believe that abortion is wrong, but it’s another to fudge the facts in order to argue one’s position.
As an example: If a single mother who was unable/unwilling to properly raise a child did not have the option to abort, then who’s to say the “next Mozart” would even have a loving encouraging environment to become the piano player they are meant to be?
“Almost 80% of women having an abortion earn $10,000/year or less.”
That’s an interesting statistic to me. Someone who is considered poor is more likely to make poor choices?
After reading this article, it comes to my mind that why did some woman destroy their lives? I am eldest child in my family and at the very start I am not favor those woman doing abortion, I am not American but I am married with American and looking forward to have a baby soon.
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I agree with Lorna
There are many reasons why women would choose an abortion, some valid, some not. This is not a black or white issue.
However, for me the overriding factor is the child. Will he grow up in a nurturing environment, is there scope for adoption, what is the risk of child abuse?
I am not convinced that a child is better off being born into bad circumstances rather than being aborted before the child develops.
The flip side is that some women treat abortions as birth control. That is wrong in my opinion and should be stopped.
@Jennifer:
It’s true, some women have put themselves in situations where they’ve become pregnant and are unwilling or unprepared to raise a child. However, they deserve as much of a choice whether or not to deliver a baby as a women who could not have avoided pregnancy.