Friday, March 29, 2024
 
Zika Virus Could End The Long, Difficult Debate on Abortion

WASHINGTON, D.C. Feb 3 (DPI) – The mosquito-borne virus that causes serious congenital birth defects – and which is creating a near-panic in public-health circles – could trigger a complete change in attitudes and laws on abortion, as well as virtually end the long and painful debate surrounding terminating pregnancies.

By extension, a prolonged epidemic of the Zika Virus could contribute to a dramatic leveling off of the global population.

The sudden growth of the Zika Virus, particularly in Brasil, is creating the same public-health reaction that the West African Ebola virus outbreak did two years ago – official expressions of concern, shows of fear across the globe, and calls to action. That Ebola outbreak was ultimately contained quickly, underscoring that today’s ultra-efficient spread of information, and a quick public-health response, can dramatically impact the course of events.

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=zika%20virus

Readers, meanwhile, so far have little to say about the rapid spread of the virus, which is causing pregnant mothers infected with it to deliver babies with microcephaly – in effect, a small head.  Only 130 readers had commented on a NY Times report on the virus – the site’s lead story – this afternoon.

Many readers asserted that any cleric or other official trying to prohibit abortions in an environment with great risks of birth defects should be willing to raise the child themselves.  The top-recommended comments:

The arrogant irony of a judge sentencing a woman who was recovering from an illegal abortion to serve time working in a day care center (to teach her to love children) is stunning. I would sentence him to serve a year as a single parent working for minimum wage, trying to raise a toddler and a new infant. Make that an infant with a serious disability.  Why can’t priests, judges and legislators leave women alone to make their own decisions about when to bear children?

Abortion should be on demand, without apology, and a woman’s choice alone. We don’t need religious leaders to “allow” us to obtain a procedure for any reason. We also need to be careful not to fall into the trap of saying “my abortion is justified because [medical reason]/[rape]/[incest]; abortion is always justified, no matter the reason, and it should be easily accessible for women in Brazil whether Zika virus affects the choice or not. For anyone who would argue that the life of the fetus outweighs a woman’s right to choose, I’d ask whether you support mandatory father-to-son heart transplants when the son really needs it. If not, why not?

When the Roman Catholic priest can get pregnant, then I’ll listen to his opinion on why nobody should be able to have an abortion.

Nothing justifies an abortion,” the Rev. Luciano Brito, a spokesman for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife, told reporters.. “Just because a fetus has microcephaly won’t make us favorable” to changing the law.
————————————————————————————————-
Every woman forced to carry to term a baby with microcephaly should leave the baby with Rev. Brito. Maybe he will change his mind when he’s forced to deal with the results of his medieval thinking.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/04/world/americas/zika-virus-brazil-abortion-laws.html

http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/01/zika-heres-what-we-know-about-the-virus-alarming-health-experts-worldwide/

Advertisements

Click Here!