Half A Million Frozen Embryos Await Abortion
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| A 3-day-old, 8-cell embryo created through in vitro fertilization. |
There’s a fierce debate in America over the right of mothers to abort their unborn children.
Facts and figures and philosophical speculations are bandied about, but the brassiest argument knocking legal abortion is that it’s all too often used as a convenient form of birth control.
Statistics show that the women who most use abortion as a convenience are poor single uneducated minority women:
Unintended pregnancy rates are substantially higher among women aged 18–24, unmarried (particularly cohabiting) women, low-income women, women who did not complete high school and minority women than among other groups.
Anti-abortion pundits sometimes use a sordid expression when alluding to this demographic: “welfare crack whores.” More about that later…
Life Begins at Conception
Another anti-abortion argument is that life begins at the moment of conception.
As far as science is concerned, life does indeed begin at conception, because at that moment, the conceived becomes an entity with all 46 chromosomes and a complete set of human DNA.
Danger, Will Robinson! Keep in mind…even blood samples, fingernail clippings, and skin cultures are genetically complete, but I dare say, do not constitute “personhood” or harbor human souls.
Crack Whores vs Soccer Moms
While some anti-abortion pundits are quick to point out the splinter in the eyes of welfare crack whores, they don’t talk much about the log in the eyes of another demographic.
On page 200 of Feminist Theory and the Body: A Reader, Jana Sawicki defines this demographic:
At present, in vitro fertilization is available primarily to married, white, upper middle-class women who perceive biological motherhood as very desirable.
As a level-playing-field wannabe-pundit, I’ll give this demographic its own sordid name: “barren soccer moms.”
Welfare crack whores may accidentally create unwanted embryos, but barren soccer moms use in vitro fertilization (IVF) to create unwanted embryos on purpose! Which is worse?
These in vitro fertilizations by barren soccer moms have left behind over 500,000 conceived human lives frozen in fertility clinics. Most of these human embryos will be abandoned, eventually thawed, and in the end — just like the aborted embryos of crack whores — they’ll end up in a medical incinerator or a landfill.
While barren soccer moms point their fingers at welfare crack whores using abortion for convenience, let us all keep in mind the upper middle-class white women who use in vitro fertilization for their own convenience, abusing a medical luxury which often, to save time and money, fertilizes many more eggs than needed — often leaving as many as two dozen unwanted embryos.
These barren soccer moms don’t implant all the conceived human lives they produce, and they use the same excuse as crack whores to justify their action: “What am I going to do with twenty kids? I can’t afford that!” Well, la-te-da! To cop a phrase from many anti-abortion rants, shouldn’t these barren soccer moms “stop and think before they spread their legs” at a fertility clinic?
In acts arguably more irresponsible than those of crack whores, barren soccer moms often leave it up to the staff at fertility clinics to decide how to trash the unwanted human lives they’ve created.
The Cheapness of Human Life
If crack whores should be forced to carry their embryos to term, then upper middle-class soccer moms who “irresponsibly” produce gluts of embryos should be forced to carry each of those human lives to term, too. And, if Americans make abortion a federal crime, then both demographics should face stiff prison sentences for first degree murder of each and every abandoned embryo.
But before our nation punishes mothers as criminals for conveniently killing human embryos in order to advance their own life agenda, I believe we as a nation would have to punish warmongers for conveniently killing innocent human adults out of convenience to advance our collective agenda, and collateral damage should no longer go unpunished. At the least, our laws should not value innocent embryonic life above innocent adult life.
Read More: abortion, pro choice, pro life, frozen embryos, crack whores, soccer moms
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April 13th, 2008 at 7:41 am
War and abortion are such dirty words and people protest against both in the taking of life.
But change that to in vitro fertalization and fighting for freedom and suddenly the loss of innocent lives seems to be sanitized and no one cares.
April 13th, 2008 at 11:55 am
You said it, Pelmo. And it drives me crazy that a lot of the people who focus so much attention on preventing abortion and who don’t want to support the kids of welfare moms have so few qualms about spending hundreds of billions of dollars toward creating war orphans that we’re going to have to pay even more money to support. That tells me that, in their hearts, a lot of the right-wing anti-abortion crowd are really not concerned about saving embryos or individual lives…they’re more about pointing the finger at somebody else for the state of their world, and less about cleaning up their own backyard first. Abortion is a pinhole in the hull of the American ship, and I’m against spending a lot of time and energy fixing the pinhole until we first repair the gaping hole where the boiler exploded and blew out the bottom.
April 13th, 2008 at 10:18 pm
Damn, Joe. You seem egg-avated. You sure your not some eleet-ist person like that Obama fellow? After all, you and him talk truth that isn’t supposed to happen in politics. I know your problem. You one of those teerorests aren’t ya? Don’t believe in the patriotic George W. Bush as your president.
Keep on fighting the good fight Joe. I just wish that I was a good writer like you are.
April 14th, 2008 at 6:32 am
Egg-avated? YES! I’m vewy vewy egg-avated! Heh heh heh. Thanks for the compliment; and I wish I was as prolific as you are. It was your post and the comments at An Angry Dakota Democrat that put a splinter under my skin and started me wondering about this topic. Yes, keep on fighting the good fight!
April 14th, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Well said — I too, am “egg-avated” at the amount of time energy and research spent to help the barren soccer moms and thank you for making that excellent conclusion about the role skin tone and economic class plays in this discussion.
I guess it’s easier for some people to fight for those who haven’t actually been born yet than to care about real live kids in their own town or in Africa or Iraq, etc.
Also, from a legal perspective Roe v. Wade was argued and won based on the Supreme Court ruling in Griswold v. Connecticut — which made the pill and other contraceptives legal based on the right to privacy. If Roe were overturned Griswold would be next on the chopping block and the Religious Right has already started attacking birth control. You can learn a little more here:
http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2006/03/20/anti_contraception/
In my opinion, the antichoice movement isn’t interested in the “sacredness of human life” as much as they are interested in controlling women via their uteruses (uteri?) — and yes there are a whole lot of class and race issues at work as well.
Wonderful post. You write so well.
April 14th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
You make an excellent comparison of the soccer moms banking their unused embryos, and the crack whores who use abortions as birth control. To be quite honest, the destruction of embryos no matter how they are destroyed, make me sad. As much as I can’t stand soccer moms, I do relate with their story more, as you are very well aware that I have wanted a child for such a long time. If I had been a little more desperate for a mini me, and less desperate for a child, I do not think that it would be beyond me to try invitro. Yet, as you know we chose adoption above having a mini-me, and I have had absolutely no regrets. I think that is why I get so disturbed when someone has been GIVEN what I feel is a GIFT, and then they discard it. Could they not have bestowed that gift upon someone else and considered adoption? Could the Soccer mom not have more compassion, and adopted the Crack Whores child? I know that it is not an ideal world, but wouldn’t it be nice if we did not have to have this debate? My only thought is to wish blessings upon both the Soccer Moms and the Crack Whores, because I believe they are both in emotional pain. Should we do away with Abortion? Not entirely. I do think it has it’s place for those that have been raped or who may be in danger of dying. I do wish we would make it harder to get an abortion though.
April 14th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
La Sirena: After reading that truly chilling article link you shared, the only response that comes to mind is the same one John McEnroe had for the umpire at center court Wimbledon, 1981: “You can-NOT…be…SERIOUS!” Jeez, America, I liked you better when you took in huddled masses yearning to be free…and now, let me just bend over and get it over with. Who ARE these people? I actually don’t want to be in the same country with them, and I don’t think I could ever be on their side. Outlawing birth control…yeah, that’s just a swell idea, all right. It’s right up there with invading Iraq. Does anybody think about consequences anymore? We need to get children playing chess again, so maybe the next generation that comes to power will think at least two steps ahead of their actions…something that’s sorely missing in today’s adult population.
Jodi: I think you reached the same conclusion that I did…killing an embryo is painful to many soccer moms, and to many crack whores. The desires of the rich are no more important than the desires of the poor. If the anti-abortion movement really cared about taking responsibility for the children, they’d lead the way and work not only toward making sure more of them made it into the world, but would also work toward taking in and raising more of these unwanted children.
April 14th, 2008 at 11:05 pm
This is one of the best posts on the topic of abortion and embryo’s I have ever read Joe. Your points are spot on the mark.
I am sick of people bitching about poor women having abortions when the same bastids do everything in their power to keep birth control out of these women’s hands. Its entirely fuckwitted, if I can use that word here, and there is no logic in their arguments based on their elitist actions. Just wanted to toss in the newest buzzword making the rounds. I am sick of the Theocratic assholes controlling who has access to birth control which would of course lower the damn abortion rate in most cases if birth control was free and accessible! Christ, its a no brainer for the love of Gawd.
And frankly, it never occurred to my dumb ass regarding the actions of the rich ruling class when it comes to destroying their fertilized eggs. Nevah I tell you! The MotherJones writeup was chilling btw.
Love to drop by here and learn something..thanks kind sir. ;)
April 15th, 2008 at 5:34 am
Thanks for dropping by, Dusty. Always a pleasure to hear your take, and to get thumbs up or thumbs down feedback from somebody whose opinion I respect and admire a lot. To be honest, I was scared to death to hit the “post” button on this article…such a touchy subject, and my flame suit hasn’t been upgraded lately, and after-all, I do believe women and men are equals, but I’m not a woman and–ask my wife–have trouble sometimes processing what will offend or not offend, and I really didn’t mean to offend women at all here, but to uplift the rock and a hard place our society puts them in. And sometimes I run on too long and forget what my point is…oh, yeah, Thanks for dropping by! ;-)
April 16th, 2008 at 7:08 am
Excellent post, Joe.
Had never given any thought to the invitro idea. Makes complete sense. In any case, until a better idea comes along, I like leaving the decisions up to a man and woman and their doctor or priest. Whomever, they choose to consult with.
REALLY like your “Chess for Kids” idea. Might help to counter so much “reaction”, and childish, immature behavior by our leaders who say they can lead us into a better tomorrow.
We all need good examples in our livesd, but we are getting Bushies and their cheerleaders (Fox Nuts).