Wading into uncharted waters...

Two things we have avoided on Vox Vorax:

1. We have not entered into the abortion debate, and
   
2. We have refrained from including images.

We will break both self-imposed taboos here for two reasons:

1. We have come across a graphic that says more than words ever could on the issue, and
2. We have strong feelings on the issue itself.

As we have learned in the past with the abolition of alcohol and are learning today with the so-called "war on drugs", outlawing something doesn't make it go away. If it's a product or service that significant elements of society really want, making it illegal just drives it underground, transfers societal control over it to those who profit from it, and encourages other forms of illegal behavior in order to promote and protect it.

There are better ways of limiting abortions than by making the practice illegal, as is evidenced in Belgium and the Netherlands and has been indicated through a number of studies. We strongly feel that the total abolition of abortion will lead to unintended consequences that will be far worse than the situation we have now. As Professor Julia K. Stronks of Whitworth College writes, "Other countries have handled this issue better than we do, and it is time that we learn from them." (See the reference list below.)

And now for the graphic:







References:

• "Focus abortion debate on better outcomes" by Julia K. Stronks J.D. Ph.D., Whitworth College
• "Family Planning Programs Reduce Abortions" from the Population Resource Center
• "Teenagers' Sexual and Reproductive Health: Developed Countries" from the Guttmacher Institute
• "The Incidence of Abortion Worldwide" by Stanley K. Henshaw, Susheela Singh and Taylor Haas (1999)
• "Abortion in Context: United States and Worldwide" from the Guttmacher Institute
• "Regional and Global Incidence of, and Mortality Due to, Unsafe Abortion" from the World Health Organization
• "Illegal Abortions Rampant in Latin America" from Women's eNews
• "Global Illegal Abortion" from Planned Parenthood

LP