regard@ttidcc.UUCP (Adrienne Regard) (04/11/85)
>What is the rest of people's opinion on the correlation between child abuse >and abortion in this country? Does anyone besides me believe that it is >possible that abortion has led to a more casual, i.e. lax respect for life? >Is it possible that the ME mentality of the '70s is part of this problem? >Matt I don't think that there is a correlation between child abuse and abortion for many of the same reasons cited (by Mikki?) earlier -- to wit, the definitions of "child abuse" have been changing, the statistics available before 1979 were poor guesswork -- and also because I don't think that people who have children necessarily link their behaviour toward their children to the availability of a medical procedure they did not choose to take. I certainly don't punish or not punish my daughter on the basis of whether or not abortion is available to others. I do think however that there is a rise in child abuse (smaller than that reported). The reasons I think it is rising is mostly because of the economic conditions we have lived through in the past 12-20 years. It is concluded that financial trouble is one of the primary reasons marriages fall apart (of course, definition of financial trouble has a wide latitude), and I would not be surprised if it were concluded that financial trouble was a primary cause of child abuse. The past 12 years have seen rough economic times for many Americans, when families have had to tighten their belts ("But mom, I gotta have new Adidas, everybody has purple ones") and some two parent families have sent both parents into the workplace--not because they WANTED to, but because they HAD to--("But Dad, I can't be seen riding a USED 10-speed!"), and the resulting stress has made for short fuses. I also think that many people have no idea how to raise a child once they've got one. The frustration of trying to "control" what can only really be "guided" (and then with varying levels of success) must be very great on the management-oriented, deterministic parent. I do feel that the 'me' generation has contributed to a more casual view of the value of life -- everybody elses life but the 'me'. But I don't think that abortion does. It seems to me that the recent furor has made thinking people carefully consider their stance, which, if anything, would raise their respect for life. When you have to consider these hard questions, you face the many ambiguities and differing opinions because of the heavy press coverage if nothing else. I think that lots of people who never had to deal with the issue before have taken a look at their definition of "life" "quality of life" "ownership" (of the body), etc. perhaps more seriously than in the past. Abortion is like gun-control, welfare, contribution to charity, starving people in Africa, gassing deaths in India: how often in our everyday, protected worlds do we consider the real impact of these things until they touch us through the newspapers? Until we really begin discussion issues with people whose opinions we respect? Until we really have to face the issue for ourselves through some twist of fate/bad luck/lousy planning/ mistakes/poor timing? It isn't often in America that we are asked to act upon what we believe.