About Me

There seems to be no area of our lives, whether public or private,that is not subject to the scrutiny of the 'Equality People' Yet, no one ever defines Equality. So, how will we know it when we see it? Is it definable? And are the principles of equality, however we define them, attainable?.Is the ever extending range of government regulation over our lives 'progress'Or,are we on the road to totalitarianism. Are we hindered or helped in our quest for rights and justice through membership of the E.U., U.N.,e.t.c. or, would a strengthening of our own Parliamentary Democracy serve us better. This Blog will comment on equality and related issues with the hope of making some small contribution to the debate. Feel free to post your opinions and share your thoughts and experiences. That way we can get a better idea of how we, the little people really feel about things. And,just maybe,we might even influence the debate!

Saturday 10 March 2012

Abortion Rights-as long as they're politically correct ones

There's been a lot of hoo ha recently about women being given abortions on the ground of the sex of  the child. Apparently sex selection is illegal in the U.K. as a ground for abortion. The practice was uncovered by the Daily Telegraph which secretly filmed conversations between women and doctors at a private clinic.The patients made it clear during consultation the ground for abortion was the sex of the child. The doctors agreed to carry out the termination and did some 'artistic' paper work to cover up.
Andrew Lansley, Health Secretary, calling the practice not only illegal but morally wrong, has promised an investigation. The Society for The protection of The unborn child (s.p.u.c.)  said it was "the reality of eugenics in modern British medicine"

Now, I don't like abortion, especially since in the U.K. at least, we have had free contraception for decades. However, there's no going back to pre-1967 days;that horse has well and truly bolted. But the response of the establishment reeks of double standards and shows that no matter what they say about freedom of choice they always get very upset when that choice is the wrong one.


If abortion is to be allowed on social grounds i.e. a disabled child that the parents feel they simply cannot cope with, they are not ready to be parents, they have to finish university, they have too many already and society says it is the woman's right to choose we can hardly get upset if some choose sex as a reason. If the prospect of having a child when young is allowed-which could be called a cultural reason, then why not allow for cultural preferences for males over females. We cannot have it both ways. I suspect though, that no matter the law on this issue the establishment must, unless they are dimwits, know that sex selection exists. They just don't admit it and expect every one else to keep quiet about it.

The most common ground for abortion on legal terms is - continuing with the pregnancy poses a greater risk to the woman's life, physical or mental than if she had a termination.Or, continuing with the pregnancy would pose more of a risk to her existing children than if she had a termination. Those two grounds could in my opinion, cover any reason a woman could possibly come up with. So we have abortion on demand, if not in theory then in practice.The woman only has to convince two doctors of how she feels. As far as I can make out nothing has to be proven, no impartial evidence, there isn't time. An abortion has to be carried out within a time limit of 22 weeks. How many have had abortions because of the sex of the child but have played the mental health card about the pregnancy Per Se.

The statement by S.PU.C. was very apt.We do have eugenics. In 2010/11 there were 189,574 terminations in England and Wales, a rise of 8% on the previous year.If the Telegraph had uncovered some Government practice of eugenics which had got rid of the same amount of people on the ground of their supposed uselessness to society, I'm sure we'd all be screaming Nazi scum at them. But what is the difference. We have merely devolved decision making to the individual, who makes the choice on the usefulness or convenience of the potential child, to her own immediate situation.

Those pro-choice supporters who are upset about gender based abortions really cannot have it both ways. If a woman has the right to choose she has to have the right to her own reasons -otherwise she doesn't really have a right to choose.