IMO late term abortions are wrong unless the baby has something terribly wrong with it and it can't survive outside of the womb. I don't see any other excuse for allowing a man to barely deliver the head (barely delivering because if the baby comes out too far then its considered a live birth and he can't kill it), cut a hole in the baby's back/neck and cut it's spinal cord to kill it. I just don't agree with that at all!! Like Anderson said last night 80% of these done are elective and not necessary at all.

Saying that I will say that it was ridiculous to kill Dr Tiller. That defeats the purpose of saying you are against murder. Plus it won't stop the practice from being done. Another doctor will just take his place.

Cindy..Ga.

I fully support Lynda Waddington.

It was very interesting to follow the discussion yesterday. I would like to add my personal experience. I was not given a choice when my newborn was diagnosed with spinal bifida (we learnt three weeks before he was born). I am now divorced, living and working in America with my two sons. Women should always be given freedom to choose (and believe me, it is one of the hardest decisions in your life that you will not be able to run from) as it is them who would bear the consequences for their lifetimes. Thank you.

I agree with Lynda. Who is the goverment to decide on what is right and wrong . Soon they will be telling us what to wear and when to wear it

This entire issue is a matter of trying to force one persons religion onto the practice of medicine and hence, onto another.

The entire abortion issued has been guaranteed under the Bill of Rights' Right to Privacy. But in fact, this protest and other issue is really about imposition of one person's religion or morality on another. It is about trying to use religion to decide what is and is not an appropriate medical procedure.

(And, I remind all that an even earlier Right guaranteed by said Bill of Rights is the freedom from IMPOSITION of religion by another. The "Founding Fathers" (and Mothers) fled Europe due to such religiosity, the imposition onto another. Interestingly, the one religion they fled more than any other was that papacy! We're still trying to rid ourselves of such imposition.)

Ultimately, it is the choice of each individual. Those choices should then be supported, through the health care system, just as other personal choices are supported.

I do not support Lynda at all. When a child is aborted at 8months- there is no excuse. Babies can be born premature at 5months in utero and live long lives.
Why on earth do you need to abort? Why can't you induce the pregnancy, have a c-section and save both lives?
There Are other, viable options.

It's pretty simple: what goes on inside my next door neighbor's body is none of MY business. These anti-choice people don't understand personal boundaries. They also seem to not understand how their own bodies work. If they did, they wouldn't be acting like lunatics.

Melissa, I second that emotion.

Nobody 'likes' abortion, early or late. Most women who have one do it because they are in a particularly difficult circumstance, not because they don't care. Abortions are expensive, ugly, and traumatic. I think it's time to change the blame mentality. To me, women rights go first. BTW, nobody ever talks about the male.

I do not agree with senseless pregnancy's(They are preventable)
Have you heard Birth Control!
It is absolutely Senseless.

This is just my opinion, but to my mind if there is a strong clinical reason (i.e severe abnormality in the fetus) then and only then would I support the arguement for late abortion.

I agree with Shanna

Like Lynda, I was a patient of Dr. Tiller's for a late-term abortion. I am a lawyer and my husband is a physician. We had a loved a wanted pregnancy-it was our first. I had a tragic complication while pregnant which led to a number of near fatal problems with the fetus, which were not diagnosed until my third trimester. While all of my doctors at a major teaching hospital in Chicago agreed that this baby would be deeply compromised and would have no quality of life, they told me that if I delivered the baby here that they would be forced to deliver me with a neonatal team that would be required to save the life of this severely disabled child, who was not likely to survive. They all agreed that an abortion would be best, but said it was illegal to perform one in Illinois past 22 weeks. (I have since learned that it was not illegal, it was just against every hospital's policy in the area due to safety concerns caused by anti-choice violent criminals). It was recommended that I see Dr. Tiller, who was the closest of only three doctors in the entire country who was brave enough to still perform a necessary late term abortion. I went to Kansas with a broken heart to terminate a wanted and loved pregnancy on medical advice. Dr. Tiller required evidence from several of my doctors at Northwestern substantiating the host of medical problems with the fetus. He also conducted an ultrasound upon my arrival to further substantiate that the fetus was as compromised as my other doctors had stated. He then treated me and my husband with the highest standard of care and compassion, for which I will be forever grateful. His loss is a loss for women everywhere, and I can only hope that one day another brave man or woman will step in to fill his shoes. And for the record, Dr. Tiller and his clinic would only provide late term abortions to women whose pregnancies were severely compromised, and he required extensive proof of having such a condition. This procedure was never used as a form of birth control! The Anti-Choice movement needs to stop trying to scare the public into thinking that late term abortions are performed for women who flake out and decide they don't want to have a baby. They are only performed when medically rational. Get real and start spewing facts for a change!!!

So, why did she decide to have the abortion.....

Do people not read? Late term pregnancies such as these are not because they aren't wanted, they're because the fetus ISN'T VIABLE, and carrying the pregnancy to term very well may kill the mother. These aren't unwanted babies where 8 months into a pregnancy the mother goes "You know, I think I've changed my mind." These are pregnancies where a mother has planned, and waited for, and in a lot of cases NAMED that baby, and then finds out that something has gone horribly wrong and their baby isn't going to survive, and is putting her life at danger, as well.

Posting 'haven't you heard of birth control' is the most ridiculous thing ever. She said IN HER INTERVIEW that it was a baby she planned for and WANTED. But it wasn't viable.

If that isn't murder what is? I made a mistake and got pregnant, so now I'll just kill the baby before it's born. That is shameful and disgusting.

Sarah: That's exactly what HAPPENED in this case. Something went wrong and the baby wasn't going to survive, and was also risking killing the mother. There's no "have a c-section and save both lives" in Lynda's case – the baby WASNT GOING TO LIVE.

Shanna / Sule,

Did you actually BOTHER to read Ms. Waddington's letter?

From you comments, the answer is clearly "No".

As a physician I can tell you without a doubt abortion is murder.No matter what name you give it, its still the taking of a human life.I hear a lot of talk about the rights of the mom but what about the right of that child to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The womb should be the safest place in the world for a child but in america today it is one of the most dangerous places to be.

Shanna is making the rather large assumption that in cases where there are health concerns for either the fetus or mother that major surgery is always a viable option.

Late term abortions are murder unless bringing and end to the life of the fetus will save the mother's life.

No one ever talks about the emotional turmoil most women experience after having an abortion. Depression, drug and alcohol abuse, weight gain and eating disorders are just some of the symptoms that post abortive women have. Regradless of one's stand on the abortion issues, women who had an abortion, had a group of cell's with it's own unique set of DNA sucked out of them. A women's pain bodies never forgets that. Abortion that are on demand have serious health and mental consequences for the women. Those of us who have had abortion needs to speak out.

Sule did you even read the article? This was not a "senseless" pregnancy, it was planned.

Read her comments – she had a medical crisis that precipitated the abortion – women do not have a late term abortion for cavalier reasons as she said – it is usually a life saving procedure or the child has died or will not live outside the womb. The visuals are horrible, but no one takes that path unless there are the worst of circumstances. Also you can't have it both ways – the goal should be to reduce unwanted pregnancies through good, factual education on birth control. Prevent the unwanted pregnancies, have Plan B available when the condom breaks and you will reduce the need for abortions. You can eliminate abortions and also oppose contraception – that equation doesn't work

The government has no place in private decisions that any individual makes in their lives. You don't get to push your religious beliefs off on others. Live your life and let others live theirs.

The great thing about democracy is we get to make our own decisions that affect only our lives without goverment interference. And for republicans, you cant have it both ways..."small goverment, no intrusions until you don't follow my religious beliefs."

Happily Independant and respectful of the way others live their lives!

Shanna (and others)

Did you people even bother read the reasons she had the late term abortion? The child was so severly disabled he wouldn't survive outside the womb. Late term abortions are not routine. But they are often neccesary to protect the health of the mother. It's no one's business besides the woman, her family, and her doctor.

Did anyone read the letter Ms. Waddingto wrote to then-Sen. Obama? I did, and took it one step further and researched "Anencephaly", the condition her child had. The information & pictures I found were horrifying. According to what I found, this is a neural tube defect resulting in the absence of a major part of the brain, skull and scalp. There is no way these babies can survive at all. There are numerous other conditions which result in late-term abortions. Abortion is not something women take lightly, it is a decision made after much agonizing thought. This procedure needs to be and should be available to individuals, not as a method of birth control as many feel, but as medical option. To me, you are not ending the "life" of a baby, as there is no chance for any life at all. Again, this is a decision best left to those intimately involved – the patient, her doctor and perhaps her family, NOT anyone else.

When should the baby be protected? 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 months. How about letting the mother terminate the life 1, 2, 3 months after delivery? When should the baby have protection under the law? Our current answer seems rather arbitrary and capricious.

Obviously some people did not bother to read Lynda's letter to Mr. Obama or understand the severe deformity of the fetus. C-section would not have saved the childs life; the only thing keeping it alive was the connection to the mother. Before you get on your tiny little soap box to preach, read all the facts. I am not pro-abortion but I am pro-choice. Whatever I decide to do with my body is between me, my physician and my Higher Power.

A late term abortion should only take place IF the fetus/baby has died or is so malformed that it will not live outside the womb. Period. Seldom is there a reason that involves the life of the mother. A baby who has been in the womb for 4-8 months will if healthy likely survive outside the womb.

The answer is......... birth control........ use it....... its even FREE!

Sarah,Canterbury UK..you are right on.

Lynda's was a planned and wanted baby but something had gone terribly wrong and it was not a viable child, I think late term aborts are wrong except in the health of the mother life (not just an inconvience), For all other abortions I don't feel that any one has the right to tell someone else what they can or can not do with thier bodies, other wise why not just give most of the men out there the snip, boy would you hear them yelling if someone told them what to do with their bodies.

Susan – you are dead wrong. It is about the lawful protection of a life – just like you and me. No one has the right to come up to you and kill you. So the question is – when does "life" begin. Admittedly, this is a very difficult question to answer and everyone has their own opinion based on a number of things, like religion, personal beliefs, etc. etc. This is not a private decision, as all life – even animals – are protected under the laws of our society. We need to continue to protect life.

The entire premise behind the rule of law is the protection of the innocent. Thats why we have laws. Where abortion is concerned, clearly the most innocent, least at fault individuals involved are the viable babies that sadly, are not protected. As it stands the law fails to protect the innocent. It is an absolute travesty that human beings are allowed to be cut in pieces while alive and sensative, and extracted, is abominable. This is not about choice- clearly in most cases of late term abortion, mothers have other options. Doctors have a choice. The one that doesnt have a choice is the living viable baby. The fact that they make money from the destruction of viable human life is abhorrent and absolutely needs to stop.

I think late abortion is sick and disgusting. It is equal to taking a 1 month old and slitting their throat. I think it should be illegal.

Ethically, I do not agree with abortion, although I am still pro-choice. All of us, deep down inside, must have the freedom to decide for ourselves what choices we make, and just because my choice doesn't coincide with your choice, my choice shouldn't restrict your choice. What bothers me most about many of the pro-lifers is that they are against abortion AND against sex education and birth control. A totally absurd stance given the outcome.

I'm always amazed at those who would prohibit or restrict the availability of abortion on religious grounds.

For one thing, not everyone shares that particular religious belief, and it's patently absurd to attempt to impose one's religious belief on another individual.

For another thing, for all of those folks who believe that God has declared abortion to be "wrong," do you have such little faith in God to think that He won't be able to effectively deal with the situation at Judgment Day? Evidently not, given the vehemence with which they seek to impose their will on others.

The fact of the matter remains that no one who chooses to have an abortion does so easily or without much consideration and soul-searching. And the pain of their decision stays with them throughout their life. And no one is forcing an abortion on anyone who is, for whatever reason, opposed to them.

If the proponents of so-called "Right to Life" really wanted to be helpful in this debate, perhaps they would stop blocking initiatives that limit unwanted pregnancies in the first place, such as sex education and family planning - initiatives that can minimize the number of abortions that actually take place.

If you want to demonize abortion on religious grounds, fine. Just don't expect everyone to share your point of view. Because they don't. And they never will.

The interview was all about the mother, family, etc-what about the baby?

It is not about religion it is about having morals. Choices have consequences. Not talking about severe abnormality because I am not a doctor, but just to have an abortion because you don't want to have a child is selfish. People know what causes them to get pregnant. If you don't want a baby, don't do it! Or have it and give it up for adoption. Simple enough. People try to relate pro-life to religous beliefs. It is not about religion, it is about not being the cause of a heart that stops beating.

Unless you are the woman in the sad and heartbreaking decision making position described above, you do not have any room to make a comment.

Each individual situation is different.

This issue has no place in politics OR religion.

It is a heartbreaking choice to have to make and if you were in our shoes you would not be so quick to judge.

You are killing a human life so Abortion = murder ... – there isn't any other way to put it. ... the Truth is hard to grasp I know.... Also the man that killed the Doctor should not have done that, killing more lives isn't going to solve or prove anything. Jesus loves everyone including Abortion doctors and we should too. "Love the sinner and hate the sin"

We wouldn’t look at someone suffering from cancer and say that you’re too depressed to make your decisions regarding your family and your life. Why do we put that on women?

Actually I was under the impression that euthanasia was still illegal in the united states...

If any of you had seen the show last night, you would have known this was an intended pregnancy but this particular baby's defect was that it lacked a skull and brain.

Abortion is always a tragedy. In this case, however, it was the lesser of two possible tragedies.

Do we have enough trust of a mother to allow her to choose between alternative tragedies? Or do we mistrust mothers choices so much that we need the government to step in and make the call every time?

This is the pro-choice argument that is lost in the debate. That abortion is always a tragedy is the pro-life argument that is also lost in the debate.

Let's start really debating now. Not yelling. And certainly not shooting.

I wonder if Shanna has ever seen a baby born at 5 months gestation. I have. My daughter was three months premature and weighed less than a pound at birth. She was in the hospital for six months before she was stable enough to come home. Her medical care the first year of her life cost over one million dollars. She has permanent disabilities due to her premature birth.

Exactly who will provide the extensive care that children born prematurely and/or with major disabilities require, if the parents are not able to do so? Are the people at Operation Rescue willing to take on 24-hour nursing responsibilities for severely disabled individuals for the rest of their lives? If not, what gives them to right to say that somebody else has to do just that? In many cases, the government would wind up paying for the medical expenses and nursing care of people with very little quality of life.

Are we as a society going to take on that cost, just because some extremists want to enforce their religious beliefs on everybody else?

Is it OK to kill your new born child because you are under difficult circumstances? No, that's murder. It is never OK, to kill your newborn child. Why then is it a matter of privacy and a person's right to abort a baby? Why does it make it OK to kill your child because it is 8 inches up the birth canal? It is not imposing the religious or moral judgment of others any more than we do for killing a newborn.

I ask that anyone who is pro-choice watch a late term abortion. I guarantee you will change you mind about such procedures. We are not talking about scraping cells from the uterine wall when some one is 6 months pregnant.

I'm pro-common sense. If a woman's life is in danger, abortion should be a choice made between the woman, her family and the doctor.

Abortion should also be allowed in cases of rape and incest, however this should happen within the first trimester (or as soon as possible).

Abortion should not be allowed when the baby would be viable outside the womb under any circumstance other then when theres a danger to the woman's health.

It should also not be allowed as a form of contraception because some forgot to the the pill, didn't use a condom etc.

If this is the same woman that was TV recently, I believe the problem with was with her and nothing was wrong with the baby. At 8 months she chose to have this viable baby destroyed because her pregnancy was causing her terrible illnesses. She does not ever say that the baby was sick. It sounds like she is looking for public forgiveness for her actions.

"Thou shalt not kill" It appears that statutes against murder come from the Bible and therefore should be abolished to ensure freedom from religious oppression by the state. Murder is murder and most law is based on morality of the majority.

The right to privacy when exercised to this extreme should allow me to kill my wife in the privacy of my own home. What I do in my home is my business, right?

The question is not about morality, religion, or any other fabricated "issue." The question is when is a fetus a person and when is killing it murder. If it is murder, we already know what the law says.

Sule- have you heard of birth control failure? It does happen, my son is here as a result of that. Birth control is not 100%! It is no one's right to infringe on the rights of others. Those that are Pro-Life aren't stepping up to the plate to take care of all these children they saved from abortion. It never ceases to amaze me!

I support Pro Choice but like Shanna said, aborting a 8 month fetus does not sit well with me. I could see early on like 8-12 weeks but Anything after 4 months in my opinion seems awful and selfish at that point. If the child will be born with abnormailities, there are people that are out there that would love to care for and help you and the child.

shanna – Try reading the attached articles and explanations before you comment. The baby would not have survived after the birth – they discovered that it had a severe problem. The mother had a choice between bringing it to term, giving birth, and watching it die, or having a late-term abortion.

I too had a late term abortion done by Dr. Tiller. My baby was also one that was loved and wanted. The last thing we wanted was to lose her. However, at the point in time that we were learned our baby girl was suffering severe neurological deficiencies of all varities, had a severe seizure disorder, and would likely be born or become blind and deaf, it was way too late to have the procedure done in my state (and most states). We were referred to Dr. Tiller's office by a nationally recognized hospital and by our doctor. We met with MANY doctors to affirm that there was no chance, absolutely none, that our little girl would recover in any way. Every single doctor agreed there was no hope and suggested abortion as a loving choice we could make.

So no Shanna and others, it is not a preventable event in most cases. My baby would not have lived a long life. My baby would not have been just "premature" and recovered. My baby would have lived a life of suffering. And, just so you know, EVERY one of the other mothers I met during my stay at the clinic had an equally horrible story. Every baby was wanted, every baby was loved, every parent made the decision that it was better not to allow their child to suffer. Please educate yourself and others before voting on this issue.

Dear Shanna and Sarah,

If you had taken a few minutes and followed all the clicks to Lynda's full story, you would have learned that her child had no brain. Is that a severe enough abnormality for you to show her some compassion? As the mother of two healthy children, I cannot even imagine hearing such horrible news. My heart goes out to Lynda, who obviously mourns the loss of her child still.

PS – Anderson, this was a bad way to tell this story. See how leaving out the details of this sad stary gave readers the wrong impression about Lynda?

The argument against late term abortion has nothing to do with what mental state the mother is in. Do you or do you not believe the baby is a living breathing being with rights? We shutter when we here news of some weirdo cutting a baby out of a mother's womb, killing the baby and the mother. Is the shock only for the mother or are we capable of morning for the living, breathing, incredibly miraculous baby who had grown and then senselessly died? There are homes for these babies. Do you not think they babies feel pain? Yes, there are circumstances that would make it terribly difficult to go through with the pregnancy but are we really talking about those specific situations or just woman who don't have support emotionally or financially to feel comfortable bringing a baby into this world. Adoption. There's the selfless option. How many lives died under this Dr.'s "care." And are you telling me these woman are all better off because of this decision. I don't buy what you are selling. Your mother chose life.

so let me get this straight.

a christian decides to shoot an abortion doctor but we have a problem with the Taliban.

This is the saddest story. Both of the mothers in this attachment made different decisions but both went through horrific scenarios with the result of a baby that would never survive outside the womb. Either choice made was correct. This baby would not live without a skull or brain. Anyone who says one of these decisions is wrong is just nuts. The difference is that they had a choice. Both took different routes with the same result. Both are devastated. Do the negative commenters realize that a baby with no brain and skull cannot live?

I think we should separate the moral from the legal here. Personally, I would not go through or condone abortion, even early term. However, I do not think it is the government's right to determine how people should deal with a potentially grey moral issue.

What if the mother's life is endangered by the pregnancy? What if the child will come out with deformities and only have a few minutes to live outside the womb? These are probably not the majority of cases, but represent that grey area where morality is not crystal clear.

I think the government should provide its citizens with the right to choose. I personally will choose not to have an abortion 99.99% of the time. But I have enough respect for other peoples' religion and circumstance to not mandate my way of thinking upon them.

I support Lynda and agree with several other postings. Nobody is "pro-abortion". But birth control can fail, fetal abnormalities can happen, and life can change.

I find it outrageous that Dr. Tiller was murdered and that Lynda is fearful for her safety. Abortion is LEGAL and has been for over 30 years.

Organizations like Operation Rescue, people like Bill O' Reilly and Randall Terry who incite them to violence are just as much domestic terrorists as Scott Roeder himself. Freedom of speech does not include hate speech. It's akin to falsely yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theatre.

It was not that long ago that women were property and their only purpose was breeding. For the poor, the children provided needed labor, and for the wealthy inheritence. It did not matter whether the women died in child-birth for the offspring, especially if male, far outweight the value of the mother. Abortion empowered women, told men that they were not property and that their safety and security exceed the value of their breeding services. This is what the anti-choice people are still fighting. Tiller saved the lifes of countless women and for that his life should be honored.

I do not happen to support abortion for any reason. I believe that a baby is a gift from God and who am I to end that life? However, it is not for me to judge another human being either. As the good book says, "he without sin, cast the first stone". I have enough to answer for on my own. One being an abortion I had in my early 20's. As Ana stated, it is ugly and traumatic. A day has hardly gone by in the past 18 years that I haven't thought about the life I ended.

My biggest issue with abortion is the rights of the father. I am the mother of a son. Where is his right to his child? It is not "your" body we are talking about, but a child. If the father want's the baby, why shouldn't he have a say in the matter? I

Waddington makes a good case. However, statiscally, only 2% of late-term abortions are performed because of the health or safety of the woman or fetus. 2%! And no, I don't feel depression is a good enough reason to end a pregnancy after 5 months.
That stat comes from the Alan Guttmacher Institute survey of 1900 women in 1987 who received late-term abortions. In that same survey, 71% of late term abortions were from women who didn't recognize they were pregnant, and 24% indicated they just couldn't decide.
Addmittedy, that survey is over 20 years old and I'd like to see more recent numbers. But the fact remains that late-term abortions are NOT performed just for those women or to those fetuses with health or safety issues.
Also, for Waddingtion to compare a pregnant woman with a cancer patient is outrageous.

Lynda's issue aside, how is a 9-month-old fetus any different than the life of a newborn child on day 1? Both are fully dependent on another human being for care, food, nurturing. Children are not our slaves. We don't own them inside or outside the womb. If a 1-day-old child was mistreated, Family Services would be there in a heartbeat. It's such a fine line; let's think about the bigger picture here, religion aside.

What's forgotten here is – it's LEGAL – the LAW allows it. This man was killed, and these women are demonized, for following the law. Say what you will about Dr. Tiller – but he was acquitted of the ridiculous charges against him.

Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with abortion, the thought or concept that there is some right or sense to killing a person because they perform an LEGAL act that someone else disagrees with is so utterly insane that it completely boggles the mind. That such a position is allegedly supported by, or on, on a religious basis is even more ridiculous. Certainly, no Christian person can rationally make that argument... and the fact that there most of these radical right-to-lifers hide behind a religious facade is just ugly and cowardly. There is no sense or reason to taking a life like this.

Why is the life of the mother more important than the life of her baby? Let’s assume two people are in a life boat, but the boat will sink unless one is thrown overboard. Is the stronger person justified in throwing the weaker out of the boat on the basis that his life was in danger? Would it somehow be a more compelling argument if the weaker person was injured or handicapped in some way?

If it has a heartbeat, then it's living and only God should determine life or death. The abortion Dr. who was killed had a heartbeat too, and man should not have decided his fate.

Thanks to Beth for sharing her story in the comments. It has made me stop and think about my opinions and feeling about late term abortions. It is a complicated and emotional issue that I struggle with.

I fully support Lynda. First of all, if the child is not wanted- why should the mother be forced to have the child? It's not fair to the mother or the child. Besides, why should the child have to suffer when he/she will have some sort of defects. We are all very well aware about how our society views people with defects. I mean, come on- don't tell me you guys don't look twice once you see a crippled person- it's what we do. If something is out of the norm we are forced to talk about it and discuss it and some people hate it. Honestly, if the child won't be happy, the mother won't be happy, the family won't be happy- let them make their own decisions. After all you won't be living the child's life. The child will have to suffer, along with the family.

Plain and simple, it's none of my business why a woman terminates her pregnancy. It's not for me or any judge to decide what is a good medical reason. If the child could be born and be viable outside the womb, then there would be no abortion. This is not the choice to just up and murder a child. This is a medical practice in the interests of both the child and the mother.

I empathize with Lynda, and shame on all you narrow-minded people who say she had other options. If she'd had other options for this planned pregnancy to result in a living child, she would have chosen one of those options. Obviously it was either her or the child, and, for the good of her other born children, she needed to choose herself. I can't imagine how difficult a decision that had to be.

So if a woman is depressed, infanticide is justified? The proabortion position needs to address the obvious fact that at some point, a late term abortion becomes infanticide. Some of the writers with personal experience suggest that their fetus' were not viable. Would their position change if the fetus were viable and healthy?

I hope we can all agree that this gunman was wrong in what he did. But isn't that imposing our religious belief on him?

We just recently came very close to having to make that horrible decision. I am the Grandmother,and the horror of just thinking of it was more than I could handle. I still would have suported my family,knowing that thier is a higher power involved. Lets all remember this is a decision that sometimes has to be made,for the health of everyone.Let that stay with the people involved. The killing of Doctor Tiller was horiffic.

Only in America can we kill a child in the womb and be within our "legal " rights, but if that same child is born and then killed it becomes an outrage! Huh?

I support a woman's right to choose, but I do not support late-term abortion at all. There are tests that can be done early on to determine nearly everything about both the baby and mother. I cannot buy into late-term abortion. sorry.

as a labor and delivery nurse, i can tell you that in every instance i've seen of so-called 'late term abortion', it is for a reason similar to this woman's. babies are NOT just being killed for the heck of it. they have no chance for survival after birth. that's the truth the far right doesn't want you to hear, or worse, doesn't care about.
these are painful, agonizing situations and are best left to the people who love these babies the most-their mothers.

People need to think out of the box. Parents choose late term abortions because they find out, that all of a sudden their baby has abnormalities and they will not sustain life. I too, was a patient of Dr. Tiller at 35 weeks pregnant! Do you people think that all of a sudden, we woke up one day and decided this is not what we wanted? That we were too busy to 'take care of things' earlier on and it just got too late! The week we went, there were several other parents, going through the same heartache, finding out months into their pregnancy that their babies, had only a brain stem and no brain, spina bifida, duodenal artesia with hypoplastic left ventricle and chromosome abnormalities. People should not judge unless you've walked in the shoes of having to make a heartbreakingchoice.com – see the site!

She mentioned a "defect".
What was the nature of the defect, and how serious was it?
Was the defect potentially fatal to the viable fetus, or was it simply a burden for the mother?
We have a number of people, with severe birth defects, who have made important contributions to the human race, including a leading physicist.

When it comes done to specifics, the late term abortion advocates
suddenly, purposefully, get very fuzzy.

My daughter was born very premature. It's clear to me she's just as much a human as anyone else. If she had been in utero for the last 11 weeks of normal gestation, it would have been OK to kill her. Every time I saw her in the incubator I had a voice in the back of my mind telling me that due to the difference between being in utero or ex utero, she could be killed or it would be illegal to kill her. But, she is the same beautiful, wonderful human being in the incubator or in her mother. I cannot see it any other way. She is a human, and her rights need to be upheld, just as her mothers must. The Constitution does play a role in guaranteeing rights, and since my daugter is a human, she has those rights, and the goverment has a role in upholding those, irrespective of religion or morality.

No matter how many times one says that it's a private family decision - no matter how many times! - those children are still dead. Period. End of story.

(As an aside, I do know of at least one particular case where abortion is necessary - ectopic pregnancies - which are very sad, so I certainly don't condone carrying every pregnancy to term when it's clear it will kill the mother)

This is a decision that must be left to the mother.

The government is so screwed up with special interest, I dont want these guys deciding anything for me or my family.

There was a reason the founding fathers wanted a separation of church and state it is because of whack jobs like the guy that killed this doctor.

We should also be allowed to exercise our rights, be it abortion or assisted suicide. If your dog was in agony and dying you can put the animal down yet we cant let our own family members die with dignity on their terms when they are suffering.

If this is the land of the free, we should be free to make these decisions, they are hard enough to deal with and I know of no one that would take a decision like this lightly. When families are struggling with these issues it shouldnt be up for vote by congress or a Judge it should be the individual making that decision.

I wish all of the people so dedicated to fighting abortion would put in half that effort making sure underprivileged, under educated and un-fed child received the basic necessities of life, instead of imposing their will on others. To me that is what we should be doing as Christians!

So let me see if I understand. Under Waddington's logic I could say: "I am depressed because I have kids. I think I'll kill them."

Amazing.

Horrible birth defects? Severe brain damage? Life of the mother? Okay, I can buy that. "I'm depressed I am pregnant." Are you really making that argument??

If the baby was you, what would be your choice?

We let people smoke cigarettes and drink booze. Giving people the means to have cancer or kill others is enabling murder!

I've had two close people in my life have abortions in recent years. After these experiences I realized that you cannot say you are totally for or against abortion until you are in a situation where you have to choose. I say this because one of these people was a pro-life, conservative Catholic but once she was in the situation decided to terminate the pregnancy.

Abortion has to be by choice. Most young mothers would not have planned to have a baby. Because of circumstance and ethical pressure, they deliver the baby only to face this situation as a burden for them self & there baby.
These kids are always going to be treated as a burden in there life and always a reason for there problems.
Rather than providing a pathetic life for the kids or have a kid to resort to the government for support it would be better they take a quick decision on what is right for them.
Kids are too precious, have a kid only if you want to & are prepared for a baby, not because you have to.
Take a minute to think of all the kids in this world who are not provided basic necessity for a living.

So killing off the metally challenged children are ok? Or is the issue simply that you don't want to take care of one of these children...
Who will be next in society.....the elderly....or a certain race?......When the most innocent are not protected in society.....we are all open to being killed...

Simply put...Abortion is the greatest crime of humanity. Ity is the only avenue through which the human race can successfully be set back in all areas on society.

Everyone in this forum think of this for a few seconds: Every human that ever enters this world is born with a unique identity and set of abilities. Some develop this abilities to the extent that they make an impact on the entire human race, for example consider this very small list of great men and women, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Michael Faraday, Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, Enrico Fermi, Edward Teller, Elvis Presley, Tiger Woods, Mohammed Ali, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr....the list goes on. Now imagine if for any reason any one of these men/women were aborted and not given the chance to contribute to humanity? What would happen? Imagine for example Albert Einstein was aborted...there goes E=MC^2. There goes the theory or relativity and quantum physics as well.

Now on a more personal level, think of any sports celebrity, favorite entertainer, politician, military leader, academician, business mogul, religious leader etc and imagine if THEY were aborted. Would life as you now it now, be less interesting? The answer of a normal person is, YES.

Finally, have you ever wondered why there is no cure to cancer, cerebral palsy, AIDS, autism, Alzheimer’s disease, or have you ever wondered why we haven't found life out there yet, or why no one is willing to mass produce cars that can go at least 50 mile per gallon?

Well consider this, were they unfortunately aborted? Were their potential contributions denied the human race? It's a very real scenario. Until we see that abortion is essentially a crime against humanity and depriving the human race of solutions to our problems, we will be left with some of the most impossible situations on earth to resolve. And the ironical thing is that many of the people out there who support abortion are those who themselves or their loved ones will be in a health related situation, that could have benefited from the contribution of a potential child genius who was aborted years ago...

Condiser this. Suppose my child has terminal cancer. I would try everything I could medically to help save him from this even if my child's chances of dying were high and they were likely to die (that is, nonviable). What if my child even needed an organ transplant that put my life in danger? I have two options according to the philosophy of this article. On one hand, I could continue trying to save my wanted and loved child until his death occurred naturally. This way, I have no guilt of taking his life. On the other hand, again following the same philosophy, I could put hime out of his and my misery by opening his skull, suctioning out his brains, and letting him die with his blood on my hands. In the meantime, I will still say that he was wanted and loved, and besides, my life will go on unharmed. What is the difference between this and an 8 month baby that is labeled terminal? Is it so impossible to try to do everything you can outside the womb? Why does our world seem so lost?

How is the procedure done?.......What is done with the body? The parts are being sold for research in this country.......the older the child the more money will be paid for the parts.........don't be fooled ladies.......and don't give your kids over to be killed for profit......

Well, apparently the comments have begun to include ALL the gray areas that seem to encompass abortion instead of being restricted to this particular individuals experience in confronting her own late-term abortion.
First, I would like to think that Judgement should be left up to whatever God or Higher Enitity a person is partial to worshipping (or none).
Second, I would like to pose a question to the women: What if you were raped, and traumatized, had nighmares, and was disgusted by human touch only to discover that you had become pregnant with this person's child. Would you want to have a choice? Or be required by law to carry that child to term amidst your personal fears and trauma? And please think about ALL the repercussions of having said child would ensue (ex. Do you believe you would provide a loving environment for said child after the trauma that had occured? Would you mentally stable? Could you give that child up for adoption? Etc.)
Third, there is an exception to every rule, opinion, moral, and theological idea that exists in this universe. If someone can find a justification, they will.
We could go on and on about our personal opinions and what we think and would do, but eventually everyone should be allowed to weigh their options and make their own choice.

Thank you for reading.

It's become quite clear that in today's society, many feel it's ok to end a human life just as long as there's a cord still attached to it.... Is it ok for a mother to drown her children in a bathtub?... of course not.. we are appauled at such behavior... but it's an ok "Choice" for an expecting mother to kill her child??? simply because it's still inside her body???? Would it be wrong to go ahead and deliver the baby and then mutilate it's little body on the table?... but it's ok to do the same thing in the womb?.... I have an adopted daughter and a new grandbaby... and I thank God every day for their lives... May God have mercy on us.

Abortion is a very complex issue. Abortion at any stage is wrong. All pregnancies will produce a viable human being, if there are no medical complications, and therefore to terminate the pregnancy is to take the life of a human being. I don't see how anyone can argue with that. It is not protoplasm, it is a human being. Destroying that human being cheapens the very value of life.
Babies that have medical issues have the same right to life that the constitution guarantees us all. Even if they are with us for just a little while they can be loved, feel love and have the respect that they deserve. When their lives are taken we all, all of us are diminished.
Third trimester procedures are hideous because they take the life of a completely defenseless human being. Even their mother doesn't intervene to try and save their little lives. They are abandoned. We should all stand to protect the innocent, even though we are shouted down.

Just to add my voice to the chorus that late-term abortion is a horrible decision to have to make but we have to do everything we can to assure that women still have this decision to make. The only people who can make this decision are the parents and doctors involved and government (and well-meaning strangers) should have no say. If you oppose late-term abortions, that is fine. If you oppose all abortions, I think that you have a right to that opinion and the right to voice your opinion. But we have to allow women to make the choice for themselves and maintain access to contraception, Plan B, AND abortion.

In 1992 we burried my stillborn son. We did not know about his catastrophic genetic abnormalites until I was 32 weeks pregnant. When in 1994 we learned that my next pregnancy would also result in a dead child, I knew I couldn't bear holding another dead baby in my arms. I was nearly 5 months pregnant before the existing tests could determine if the baby would live. So I opted to end the pregnancy. No woman makes this decision without heartbreak and tears. And no religious fundamentalist or politician should decide for me. These were the saddest days of my life and I cry for every other woman who has had to make the same terrible decisions.

I have always felt that men should not be involved at all in the abortion debate...........are they going to take complete care of the new disabled baby OR any new baby? What is their right after the woman is pregnant... yes, they implanted the sperm, not very hard to do and they had a nice time doing it.. Now that they have done their work, do they have the right to say what is the next happening for the woman who may or may not wish to continue as "life support" ........... I have three wonderful, grown children who have been such a gift to me. However, I made my own choice to have them.

People always ask, "How's your baby", not "how's YOUR body". It's the baby's life, not the mother's. If it truly is because of the mother's life or the baby's life, then that's one thing, but don't kid yourselves, most of the time it's just a matter of conveniance.

Abortion at any point in the pregnancy destroys a human life. Viability outside the womb has nothing to do with it. Choice has nothing to do with it. A woman has no more right to kill her baby than I have the right to kill my neighbor. You pro-abortionists are living a lie and hiding behind all your euphemisms such as "reproductive health rights", "privacy rights", etc. doesn't change the fact that abortion destroys children. Choice...what a tired cliche. It's murder.

People need to stay out of other's people's business. This is a difficult decision for a woman to make no matter what the circumstances. This should not be a political or religious matter at all, because no one shares the same beliefs, values, or morals as anyone else. This is not an issue of birth control, or the decision that one no longer wants the baby–late term abortions are usually medically necessary.
I don't buy this whole "holier than thou" attitude that anti-abortionists have toward pro-choicers. Everyone has difficult choices to make throughout their lives, and for some women, abortion is their difficulty. Let's not make it harder for these women.

What happed to Dr. Tiller is horrific and is in no way justifiable.

Intolerance is tearing this world apart.
Let it be.

Beth decided she didn't want a disabled child, so she got rid of it ..bottom line sounds like playing God to me. If the fetus wasn't viable outside the womb anyway, no one would have to kill it.

I in no way condone the murder of this doctor. In some cases having a late term abortion seems like a the best option to some women. For people who have major fertily problems and there are those that will take a child even with disabilities. The problem with this doctor is that he used the mental status of the women to prove that the abortion was necessary. Many people are pro-choice but this doctor crossed the line between life and death. I feel very sorry for this woman who had to make the awful choice. I myself was faced with a child with disabilities. Not being able to know what exactly he would face was horrific. I never once thought about abortion and I have a beautiful, happy boy who happens to have disabilities. This is what God gave me, and I accepted him with my arms and my heart open.
In this woman's case, the outcome would have been the same, so why put the baby through the pain? And yes they do feel pain by that point. Depression is not a good enough reason to end the life a baby.

The far Right Wing seems to think it's important to bring unwanted children into the world; yet, they are totally opposed to supporting those children, feeding, nurturing and educating them once they're here. That is a far more terrible cruelty than preventing their births.

People, lets be reasonable. Let me give you all an example. When an appleseed is planted in the ground it has all the potential of becoming a apple tree. Once you plant it in the ground, you don't wait three – six months to dig the seed up because you determine it is not going to be viable. If that was the case nothing would have the chance to grow.

When a sperm penetrates an egg and begins to form it is viable, period. Just because a doctor tells a woman that her child will have a incurable disease does not give that woman the right to take that child's life. What the problem is is this: women (and the men who made them) do not want that child to interfere with their life and life's plans! They feel that the child will be too much of a burden on them to raise and care for. I know that sounds terrible, and it is, but it is the naked truth.

It is that father and mother's responsibility to have the child they laid down and made and to take care of it to the best of their abilities. These aborted children did not ask to be here. This is why women and men need to think twice before bringing childen into the world. It's time out for excuses – whether personal or medical – and take responsibility for your actions!!

In our country today you hear a lot about freedom to choose, freedom to make your own decisions, freedom to do what's right for you and your body. I am anti-abortion, always have been and always will be. Late term abortion is murder just as abortion is in earlier terms. Late term abortion/partial birth abortion is a sick thing to even contemplate. Why do you think that pro-choice groups don't want doctors to show their potential abortion patients videos of the abortion procedure? If people really knew what they were doing then they most likely wouldn't do it! What our problem is, as a nation, is we like to deal with the consequences or our actions by taking the easy way out. Abortion is an easy way out for a woman to continue her life without having to take care of and raise a baby. Her freedom to choose should have been before the pregnancy, to choose not to have sex. Don't come back with those who are raped and involved in incest, that is such a minute percentage of the total abortions in the U.S. it isn't even worth arguing over in the abortion debate (not discounting the hurt and pain they go through). Abortion is just wrong, it is my fundamental belief that the fetus is a living being, and if you watched a video of it you would see that their is a life. This life deserves a chance to live. Sometimes the consequences of our actions are life altering. Don't take the easy way out, sometimes what we think is easiest turns our to be far worse. Most women who have had abortions suffer life-long from depression and worse. I hate that this man was killed. I don't advocate what was done in the slightest and think the person who did it is just as sick as the doctor for having commited the abortions in the first place. Just another example of someone taking the easy way out and not thinking about the consequences of their actions.

Well, if we are going to terminate fetuses at all just because there is either a birth defect or people just don't want them, then what's stopping us from killing your average convict...murderer, rapist, etc? They have something "wrong" with them, right? It drives them to do what they do. We are all living, breathing, humans........no matter how old or how young. Why is it that in some states, you can be tried for double homicide if you kill a woman and her unborn fetus dies. Yet, in that same state, abortion is legal....and it's a willful,"legal," killing. Everything seems acceptable in today's society. We fine tune laws according to our own needs and wants. If we laid it all out and looked at it objectively, we would see that killing a fetus is no different than killing a 2 year old, 22 year old, or 82 year old.

I don't believe that aborting a fetus is murdering a baby. But I support the right of anyone to believe that aborting a fetus is murdering a baby. I support the right of anyone to try to persuade people by peaceful means that aborting a fetus is murdering a baby. What I don't support is trying to make that one opinion the law of the land, imposing it on people who think that it's dead wrong. As a believer that abortion is not murder, I don't try to force anyone to have an abortion. Instead, I'm willing to let every woman consult her own conscience in the matter. I recommend that course of action to people who disagree with me.

Liz-
There are homes for these babies??!! What?? We're talking about severely disabled children who probably won't live.
Wikipedia says: In the United States, more than 150,000 children with special needs are waiting for permanent homes.

Did you adopt one? Would you adopt a baby with half a brain for the few months it may survive, spend all your time at the hospital, quit work and pay millions in medical bills?

Are we making the assumption that having a baby is safe and without complications to the mother or child? Without a doubt if the choice came for me that it was my child or me and neither may survive I would believe I would take dying with a pieceful soul knowing I did not murder a living being. I would hope that would be the decision I made in that situation. I would expect depression and other complications if I did a late term pregnancy. I could never live with that choice to do an abortion. You can blame that on religion, but I will have a peaceful mind with my decision, how about those that choose to have the abortion, it doesn't sound very peaceful. If this was a life saving intervention I would hope it was called something other than abortion. Because right now it's still called ABORTION. The minute I was pregnant that baby was a baby. The miscarriages I had are babies I loved and miss. This is such a "me" society. Having a baby is not just about you- it's about the baby. I would rather have a child born that dies naturally than to allow someone to kill it. I'm not sure what part of someone "killing" your baby is being overlooked. Oh yeah, it's about you, not that baby. I never had any test to detect defects on my babies because we said we'd deal with things if the baby lived one second, one minute or a lifetime. I am not pro choice and never have been. I think that's about morales. I don't believe in the death penalty either. Blaming pro choice on religion is an easy way out to justify your decision. There are so many others that would love a child, even a disabled child. Money should not be the decision to spare a babies life or not. I have no idea what's ahead for my children and what expenses will come. That's the decision of being a parent, in my view.

It's pro-life not anti-choice. Please don't use twisted word of politic to justify something that’s not justifiable. As a free nation we do have a choice: a choice to have sex and accept the consequence. Do I have the choice to murder someone? This society protects a dog from being killed, but then murders its own kind in the name of "choice." It's typical of this liberal society to squander the word responsibility. It's an "anti-choice" when your choice is the intrinsic evil of killing a helpless innocent human being.

At the end of the day, every one has to live with their own decisions.

Susan said, "But in fact, this protest and other issue is really about imposition of one person’s religion or morality on another."

If I were to take a sharp object and scratch the paint along the side of your brand new car you would be outraged, as would others who witnessed the event. Is that because you are religious? Probably not, but it is because earthlings have an innate sense of right and wrong hard-wired in them.

If the conscience of those involved in the process of abortion troubles them, they are experiencing their own conscience testifying against them, that what they have done is wrong.

I would also like to add this: Protesters protest until a baby is born...after that child is born where are they? They don't come to your home and help you with bills, changing diapers, medical care, emotional grief, or funeral arrangements for those babies so sick they die right after birth...Nope, they don't care what happens as long as that baby is born. Maybe if they spent more time caring about the babies that are born alive and healthy and in need instead of standing there holding a stupid medically incorrect sign the world would be a better place.

Human death is human death. When it's caused willingly by another human outside the realm of war, it's called "murder". What's really at question is "when is a human considered a human – and more than just a mass of bone and tissue?" As a Christian, I believe we should always embrace the opportunity to create life – to let God giveth and taketh. Belief in our Savior gives "Moms" the same courage to give birth as it gives soldiers (often men, often Dads) as they go to battle. Someone may die in the process. As a Christian, it saddens me that we need laws to define such a thing, but our society operates with a separation of Church and State mentality (unless war is involved, of course! note the double standard!), so it's not up to Christianity or any other religion to dictate and define this. God gave us the ingenuity to help ourselves AND destroy ourselves, and I suppose each "Mom" must choose within the limits of the law whether to help our destroy. Choose wisely, Mom.

I fully agree that late term abortions should come with conditions and if we are talking about a fully viable child and a mother who is not facing risks to her own health, legislate away. But that is not what pro-lifers seem to want.

Tell you what, lifers, you care for that baby that has a 15% chance of making it past 6 months, while dragging the parents through an emotional and financial roller coaster. You roll the dice on your daughter who has about a 50% chance of making it through her delivery alive.

Someone who terminates a late pregnancy without due cause is somewhere around the people who throw newborns in the river on the monster scale. But there are a LOT of good reasons why people terminate a late pregnancy. 80% are just late deciders? I have a hard time believing that.

Let's say we do legislate that you can't abort late term without any medical justification – the problem is, if you go down the road of which justifications are good enough you are legislating what is and is not sound medicine – and that's not good. Doctors need to make those decisions, not senators.

If my mom had listened to the doctors and aborted me, I would not be here today. The doctors told my mom that I would not be a normal baby and would be too little to survive.
She refused an abortion and I was a healthy normal baby.

Government is not making the decision to impose its will on these women.

People that live down the street from you as well as your neighbors have decided that they want to intrude onto personal life choices and have to their elected officials that certain activities that they don't approve of need to be stopped. Those elected officials then tell government employees what to do.

It would be a terrible decision to make but in most cases it is used as a method of birth control and that is wrong, so maybe when you get old and weak and are a burden to someone will you be happy to hear them say, Well he or she will not again be normal so lets go ahead and terminate.

Those of you who take a anti-abortin stand obviously have not read the letter she sent to Mr. Obama or have never had to face a similiar situation. As a grandparent who watched his daughter anguish over removing her premature new-born son from life-support because he had no kidneys, under-developed lungs, a defective heart, and no chance of living off life-support. I can tell you that an abortion would have been far less traumatic for her and the family. There are valid reasons why a woman can and should elect to to have an abortion. If we use the logic of the anti-abortionists, setting an arbitrary limitation is tantamount to murder of the woman if she is past that arbitrary limit and she dies during childbirth because she wasn't allowed an abortion. Who gets punished for that murder? How many anti-abortionists are willing to step forward and be punished for that murder? Until someone personally faces the trauma of a pregnancy gone bed, they can not realistically know what their reactions will be. Pre-natal defects often extend into adulthood and require substantial effort and resources that most families do not have. Who will pay those costs? The anti-abortionists? No they would rather have every citizen be responsible for providing social services, which are woefully underfunded, to pay for that care. So I say to anti-abortionists...get out of your fantasy world and start looking at reality. Life is not black and white and not every choice, or decision, is simple.

I am a mother of a disabled child who was born with many problems(-CP water on the brain, autitistic, no kidney function.), that by any means should have killed him. My life since the day he was born revolved around him. This was my purpose in life for that period of time. I did it with joy,put my career on hold, and loved my two other children that were born perfect. I was told to never have anymore. I had my career. My two girls went into medicine and my son is a grown man who is what he is and brings us all joy. I am proud to say I did what was asked of me. Who am I to say his life was not important to him and others and above all God.

First of all, He was no Christian. Thall shalt not murder, obey that or you are not a Christian. Simple as that. You can call yourself whatever you want, but that does not make it so.

Arguments about cancer versus abortion do not hold up. Cancer involves self, abortion involves more than self. The beauty of "motherhood" is selflessness........ Its plain to see in this society today, it is all about self.

Although there are some serious ethical issues at play, none of them are addressed by the negative commenters on here. These folks are mindless automatons that can't be bothered to read what they’re commenting on nor do they understand empathy. They are a breed of egotistical mimics that should be ignored until they grow up and learn critical thinking skills and reasoning. The women who went through this procedure were well aware of the implications of what they were doing and I have no doubt seriously weighed the ethics of doing so. I firmly believe their tested ethical fortitude is more pure and righteous then those who have never been tried. It is only the untested that see things as black and white (hence all the pro-life men).

I read these comments and conclude that 1) ignorant people who write about birth control, mistakes made and getting pregnant, etc. obviously represent people who are ignorant, uneducated because they don't take the time to read (there is a letter to Obama on why she had a late term abortion) and a scary thought that some of these people maybe working on laws in the government, health administration, influencing other uneducated, ignorant people 2) it is important that the government stay out of our personal lives – many decisions made are financial base and not about people (thus the insurance company not paying for it because it was not deemed necessary by the waiver committee). 3) to all – choose love, forgive, peace within as we are ultimately one.

As per usual, CNN highlights and sympathizes with the liberal view.

Stop and think for a second about allowing a woman and a doctor to terminate a viable child/fetus based on "mental health." If we allow this, why should we not allow a woman to terminate a 1 year old based on "mental health?" Neither a 1 year old child nor a 8 month old fetus/child have self awareness, yet both are viable and capable of surviving if their lives aren't cut short.

The "mental health" standard is effectively no standard at all. Especially in light of the fact that increased hormones and anxiety almost always occur during pregnancy.

Abortion is a touchy subject, murder is imoral as common sense should prevail and the Murder of that doctor was wrong.If an abortion is necessary due to medical reasons to save the mothers life or if the pregnancy was caused through incest or rape then I feel it should be allowed. Abortion should not be used as a means of birth control. There are many mothers who are unable to bear a child or become or get pregnant who would love to adopt a child from an unwanted pregnancy. There needs to be better counceling and suport provided for women who want to abort an unwanted pregnancy. No one has the right to commit murder. Abortion rights are just another manipulation of the Constitution but common sense should allow you see right from wrong.

I couldn't agree more with you, Sarah, that is precisely what I was going to say. But just wait, that may be next; women being given the "choice" to commit infanticide if it suits them. So shameful.

And I would LOVE to see CNN interview Gianna Jessen, who was a survivor of abortion and lived to tell the tale. How about showing that perspective for once?

I alway find it interesting when someone says the fetus inside of a woman is no one else's business. Hmmm... what if you were that person – and for nine months you were.

First of all I'd like to say that Dr. Tiller's killer is quite the opposite of a typical pro-life individual; he is depraved or should be committed for life if he pleads not guilty with a sanity defense. From what I've heard, he is a sick, sick man. He is not pro-life. Someone who is pro-life cannot commit such a heinous act – it is ridiculous.

With the millions of children lost through abortion it is no wonder that our older population continues to increase dramatically in proportion to the younger generations. A lot of that is due to abortion. I regret the fact that we have chosen as a nation to put ourselves in this postion – consider where we are with Social Security and Medicare. Having lost tens of millions of taxpayers is hurting (if you think you're hurting now, just wait a few years) and will require future generations to pay higher portions of their income into Social Security – and abortion is part of this problem.

I for one strongly disagree with these late term abortions. I was 24 weeks pregnant when I gave birth to my first child. He died a couple of hours after birth because he was pre mature. Anyway. I had complications in my pregnancy and the doctor said I could get very sick if I didn't give birth quickly. I stayed in the hospital for almost three weeks with IV's hooked up to me. I wanted to a least give my child a chance, even though I knew it could harm me and my child wouldn't survive. So I gave birth to him and he died......I wasn't going to choose to end his life because of my health. I made it and now have an 8 year old daughter. I'd rather for the baby to die in my arms than to kill it coming half way out. Come on......He was a blessing, still.

It should be a heart breaking decision. A woman should be depressed after having an abortion. She has just committed murder.

For those that make the arguement that a woman has the right to privacy, so she is allowed to kill the baby that is inside her body. Does the baby not have a right to privacy?

For those that say the government shouldn't be allowed to tell me what to do with my body. I'm not asking the government to tell you what to do with your body. I'm asking the government to restrict what you do to the fetus' body.

susan, just wanted to let you know that the bill of rights does not guarantee the right to privacy regarding the right to abortion. that is found under the "penumbra" of the 14th amendment, which is legalese for saying the judges who decided roe v. wade couldnt rationalize their opinion under the prior privacy rights law so they needed to expand the "penumbra" of the 14th amendment to justify their decision. the bill of rights privacy clauses are found in the 4th and 5th amendments, regarding searches and seizures and criminal proceedings.

another thought: why is it always "anti-abortion" rather than "pro-life"?

The people who are saying the writer got pregnant accidentally and aborted out of convenience didn't read the article. The writer got pregnant deliberately, wanted the baby very much, but she was suffering from depression and feeling suicidal. It's not up to strangers to make glib remarks about whether a suicidal woman is in a position to be a mother. This woman knows herself, feared for her life, and knew that to leave her husband to raise a baby by himself was not in the best interests of anyone. She has children now, and was able to have them when she knew she could give them the care they need.

Anti-abortionists think they are taking the moral high road by "defending" fetuses, but where is their compassion for the mothers, fathers and siblings whose lives will be destroyed by the birth of an unwanted baby? Mothers, fathers and siblings are living beings with feelings and lives. No one but the family will miss a child who isn't born. It's no one's business but the families'.

Anti-abortionists should turn their anger toward more productive uses, like defending unwanted, handicapped and abused children. These children (many of whom were born because of pressure from the anti-abortion lobby) will suffer daily for the rest of their lives, and society will suffer for having them among us until a whole lot of people make an effort to help them. So help them. They are living, breathing and suffering among us today. They are not abstractions. They are real. Get angry about their fate and help them.

Anti-abortionists claim adoption is an alternative to abortion. So why are so many children living in abusive families or foster homes (which can sometimes be the same thing)? Show your compassion where it will do some good. Adopt the children you think "someone else should" adopt. YOU should. You caused them to enter this world of misery.

If you are so filled with love for children, adopt an unwanted child and give him a loving home. You think it's easy for a mother who chooses to abort to instead fit the child into her life, so it shouldn't be too inconvenient for an anti-abortionist to adopt an unwanted child, either.

My wife and I went to see Dr.Tiller in 1991.During a routine sonogram It was discovered that my daughters head did not form at all.It ended at the top of the spinal column.No brain,no soul.While seeing Dr.Tiller we were hassled unmercifully.People tried to follow us back to our hotel.Who knows what they were capable of.I armed myself with a metal rod I found in the hotel garbage because we were frightened of these lunatics.This was a baby we wanted,yet it was also a threat to my wife's life.The termination was performed with a needle through my wife's stomach We were counseled by the good doctor,and then we got to hold our daughter in our arms and we cried.She had no head whatsoever. She was NOT VIABLE.We named her Katie and held a service for her.No one can imagine what my wife went through until they've been there themselves.It was a horrible time.I had to literally lose people in traffic trying to follow us,which I did.It was surreal.If these protesters knew the full story of what we were really going through,maybe they would not have done what they did,scaring us to death at such a trying time in our lives.Our hearts go out to Dr.Tiller's family.He was a very good and decent man.We would rather not reveal our names at this time.We hope you will understand.
D.P. Hollywood Fla.

I see everyone talking about a person's "rights". That being said I wonder when a person begins to have "rights"? I would think that a baby that could survive outside the mother's womb should have the "right to life" as much as anyone. So are they saying that only the mother has rights? If that's the case do these folks think they should have the right to end their child's life anytime they wish.... say if they are 10 years old and one day they get tired of putting up with them?

Very curious indeed...

Wow, there's so much vehemence, anger, judgment and insistence here, and so very little compassion or real desire to understand all facets of the issue. So many seem to have made up their minds without all, or in some cases even very many, of the facts. For those of you who've had to make this terribly hard decision, I am so sorry.

As a teen mother, 17 when I had my daughter. Everyone told me to get an aborton or give up my child. I would do neither. Just because I was a younger mother does not make me a bad mother or an in-experienced mother. Whether you are 17 or 45 having your first child, we would all be newbie mothers. I personally would not have an abortion unless my health or my baby's health is in danger. I feel it is the women's choice. I am educated and my only child is a teacher, married with 2 children. I would have missed all that, just to listen to somebody telling me what is right in their own mind and based on their own beliefs. It is none of anybody's business. Pro-Choice all the way. But I do have a problem when women use it as a form of birth control. Now thats another storey. These men that make these laws. We need women in all areas of government all over the world. Then only then will the world live in peace.

First off, the whole abortion issue/debate is not something that should ever be argued from any other point of view other than Philosophy of Ethics; otherwise it would be no different than a psychologist and the Pope arguing over a mathematics equation...that is something the mathematicians should debate.
So any political, psychological, medical, religious, etc. arguments should be thrown out, and stick to the issue based purely on Ethics & Right Reason via Philosophy.

The question comes down to a few things. One, is a fetus or unborn child a person? If you use the proper logic via philosophy, you will find that we are all persons from conception...it's the old "what comes first the chicken or egg?" question, and the answer is simply 'the chicken'...the egg is a potential chicken, whereas the chicken is an actual chicken, and since Actuality preceeds Potentiality, likewise we are actual persons not potential persons after conception...we are only potential persons just prior to the sperm penetrating the egg. Science or medicine can not answer this and to do so based on either would be drawing an arbitrary line in the sand that keeps changing as science and medicine progress. On that note, all unborn persons should have "rights to life" legislation to protect them, against murder.

However, using the "Principle of Double Effect" there are times when it is morally permissible to have an abortion. If it is a situal where having the unborn person could likely kill the mother, then it is morally permissable & not unethical. However, psychological effects are no so clear. If it's because the baby is making the mother suicidal, then that does not hold up, as long as the mother can be treated and monitored. If it's a matter that the child will have defects, retardation, etc., then that does not hold up at all, and abortion would be considered not morally permissible...that is pretty much what Hitler was trying to do..create a utopian society by weeding out...just because someone/even an unborn person (who does not yet under the law, but yet should someday if we evolve, have rights to be alive) has a defect, they are still persons with a right to life. A persons right to life should always superseed another persons right to freewill to do what is most convenient for them.

I have to say that a late term abortion is a seriously sick procedure. I can't understand why and who would even do such a thing. But beyond all that, why do tax payers have to pick up the tab. President Obama voted everytime for paritial birth abortion, and the first thing he did when he got into office was start the federal government into buying abortions for everyone. Planned parenthood backed him only to know full well that he would keep their wallets big and fat. So Tiller lived fat, dumb and happy on government money. And who lately doesn't like that. A generation that would kill it's young, is seriously sick.

I went through the same thing as so many others have done. I'm a Republican, Christian and finally a mother. I wanted my baby more than life itself. My pregnancy was planned and wanted. Dr. Tiller saved my life...when life no longer mattered.

Seriously, people. Lynda's baby had no brain and no skull and would not have lived. This was not a situation where she simply didn't want to deal with a disabled child. No matter what she did, late-term abortion or delivery, the end result would have been a dead baby. Can you imagine the grief associated with this situation? To classify her as someone who made a rash decision is untrue and unfair. Lynda, and many other women like her, had to make a heartbreaking decision and to say she made it rashly is just cruel.

Kitty,
I in no means mean to classify Lynda in a hurtful way. Those situations are tragic, but had she carried the child to term, who is to say that they would not have been able to hold the child during it's few minutes or hours of life. Medical practioners are mindful of the sensitive nature of the appearance of those children and see to it that caps/blankets are provided and the dignity of the child is protected. To fail to celebrate that life that is lost is adding to the grieving process. I have known mothers and fathers who have gone thru similar circumstances and have born the child, named and buried the child resulting in much less trauma and distress to the entire family. To me, there is no reason to take a life, even one we think has no value.

Can someone who is anti abortion provide any evidence that 80 percent of late abortions are related to mothers just not wanting the child or is depressed. Or is this number just coming from that one quote that Anderson used in the show. It seems to me the press has done a terrible job in reporting the service that Dr. Tiller provides to women who are facing excruciatingly tough decisions.

The fact that only two doctors are left that perform this service for women is a travesty. Late term detection of fetal anomalies is something that is probably going to continue being an issue for many more years. The fact that women wont have the option to abort the pregnancy is absurd and puts womens health at risk.

Anyone – What is the standard for 'viablility' outside the womb? A day? Two weeks? Three years? What is the standard for an 'impaired life'? There is none. It's incredibly selfish to say that just because it's happening inside your body that you are allowed to end another's life. BTW – we were told by several doctors that our daughter would be dead in the womb by 20 weeks or born with severe life-limiting disabilities, due to a genetic issue. We were told to abort – that is was the 'humane' thing to do. We'd be saving this child from a miserable life. We have a beautiful 4-year old daughter now, with a minor genetic issue. The doctors (at least half a dozen) were all wrong).

To those who say late term abortions are cruel and should be against the law, my response is that allowing a child to live with horrible disabilities is more cruel. A child in our family circle was born so severely retarded that even at the age of 12, she can not talk or communicate in ANY way. Nobody has any way of knowing if she is hungry, thirsty, in pain, etc. Thousands of dollars have been spent on therapy, with no improvement whatsoever. She is frequently covered in bruises because she beats her head with her fist and thrashes around violently. She will never be potty trained and if not constantly watched, will actually eat her excrement (not unusual in cases like that). It is difficult to take her on outings with the family, because she can seem content one moment, and the next start screaming and thrashing around. Screaming fits like that can last for hours. She is expected to have a normal lifespan and her care will ultimately cost society hundred of thousands of dollars, probably millions. Imagine what the stress of caring for a child like that does to the rest of the family. I would encourage people who demonstrate against late term abortion to spend time with children like her and ask themselves if they would really like to live as she does. I know I would not.

If the fetus is threatening the life of the mother than I believe it is not wrong to go on with the abortion. There are so many cases such as some listed above where the baby literally had no chance of living – without a head .. or with serious complications that they probably wouldn't even survive childbirth. I understand that you are stopping life to the unborn child... but in some cases it's the only choice.

I support Lydia, and I think Dr. Tiller's death is a tragedy. No one should have to suffer by giving birth to a dead child (my grandmother was forced to carry a dead baby to term because late term abortion was not an option in 1959 California). For some pregnancies, a late-term abortion is the best choice, but only a doctor and patient can truly determine that. It's none of my business, in the end, and it's no one else's either. Not the government, not a religious community, nobody.

Wow... do I feel for all these women who have had to make such a choice, as I was faced with such a choice as well. My husband and I absolutely had a wanted and loved pregnancy, but on routine ultrasound we were told our beloved child was a boy, and by the way, had an encephalocoele, and we should "start over."

While we never in our wildest dreams ever thought we would even entertain abortion, being both doctors, we've seen what a neurologically devastated child suffers through and wouldn't wish that upon anyone... So, over the next few weeks we hardly slept, and agonized over the decision. Our family and friends (many physicians as well) were so loving and supportive; all lovingly advised us to terminate.

Our OB helped us find a practitioner that performed later-term abortions... But, in the end, we just couldn't bring ourselves to go through with it, and did the best to mentally prepare ourselves for the handicapped child that would change our lives. How blessed and merciful God was to us; while he does indeed have an encephalocoele, it was repaired at ten months and he is thriving in school and while we may be biased, those more objective than us think he is quite advanced...

I'm not sure what I'm trying to say except that this is not a decision that I imagine any woman takes lightly... what may make it even harder is to realize how little doctor's actually know sometimes. We give our best prediction and recommendation, but how often are doctors surprised at a good or bad outcome? Not a day goes by do I not look upon my son and wonder how I could have come so close to "starting over" and my heart is filled with thankfulness...

Interesting take on the " mental health of the mother." What about the mental health of the father?? Father's rights are completely trampled over in the abortion debate. The mother can terminate the pregnancy with no say from the father even if he wants to raise it. Or she can continue the pregnancy despite the father not wanting a child. The mother can relinquish her parental rights by putting the baby up for adoption, but the father has so similar capacity and must pay for the child until adulthood. The mother being depressed is grounds for late-term abortion regardless of the father's desire to have a child, but a father's depression does not similarly trump the mother's desire to have the child even at the expense of the father's mental health. Or to abort it despite the effect on the father.

to all the men who have posted here, when you can get pregnant, you can join the conversation.

I am pro choice; always have been. I've never believed that abortion should be used as a method of birth control, but I grew up in the 60s watching girls I knew having babies before they were physically or emotionally ready to be parents. As far as late term abortions, personally I think that the only person qualiified to decide are the parents and their physician. It's no one else's business-even mine.

Let me put a face on this for you-

My sister-in-law had to undergo a procedure which could be termed a late term abortion. She was six months pregnant when they were informated that their baby had a birth defect to her heart which could not be repaired and would cause the baby to die within hours of her birth.

This is a decision I hope none of you ever has to make-their choice was to continue carrying the baby knowing it would continue to develop (and perhaps suffer more at her death) or to induce the labor at six months. Either way birth equaled a death sentance for that child.

Our entire family was heartbroken not only about the child; but for the terrible decision they had to make-that I doubt even Soloman would have quailed to make.

Ultimate they decided to induce early. Their daughter arrived and died within hours. They had enough time to hold her, name her and tell her how very much they loved her before she passed.

Please tell me how in any way forcing this familiy to carry to term would have been best for anyone? The child, the mother who would endure another 3 months of prenancy KNOWING her baby would die upon birth, the helplessness everyone would have felt watching the prenancy progress?

I find the murder of Dr. Tiller an outrage-and frankly (as an independent I usually find Keither Oberman over the edge) for once I completely agree with the folks at MSNBC when they say that the people who target abortion clinics and medical personnel who perform or assist with abortions and counsel on reproductive rights terrorist -but frankly I believe they are.

And really quick..

I see a lot of you think that these babies should have rights because they can live outside the womb. How exactly are they going to live outside the womb? Attached to devices and electrical outlets? Fed by feeding tubes (if not forever, in the begining), containing not just an unnatural formula, but drugs galore? These babies couldn't live outside the womb for more than a day with out modern medicine...unfortunately, it's called the circle of life and natural selection. We are keeping babies alive that shouldn't naturally be alive in the first place. I know this is slightly off center here, but the facts are the facts. Thank god I have not had to make those decisions thus far! If mothers are allowed to make the choice to keep their offspring alive with modern medicine, they should be able to make the choice to keep themselves alive with modern medicine as well...therefore not allowing a pregnancy to go full term.

A late term partial birth abortion for a fetus that is badly malformed or not at all viable, or because going on to a live birth would cause the demise of the mother is very understandable. But as Anderson said, 80% are elective which strongly suggests that many are simply an unwanted child. I heard Tiller described as a gentle person. I wonder if that is how a viable, normal fetus would feel as it has it's skull crushed with forceps or it spine penetrated and the spinal column severed. Perhaps Tiller's death could be described as a retroactive abortion. Maby he should have never been born, perhaps he should have been aborted. Who is to say who should live and who should be aborted? Perhaps we need to widen and expand abortion rights and options to include retroactive abortions?

I was firmly pro-choice until May of 2001. My wife was 2.5 months pregnant and we went for our first ultrasound. We saw my son for the first time: he had arms, legs, hands, fingers... everything. He reacted to the nurse's probing. I asked the nurse if it was legal to abort at this stage and she said "yes." Right there, in an instant, I became pro life. There was absolutely no denying that this was a living thing.

Hi... I'm a man. I've never experienced an abortion directly. I've had friends who've had them. I watched them as they made this decision. This wasn't a simple choice for them. They agonized for weeks. I fully supported them and never judged. They made the choice. They're ok with it. They all have children now.

As a man, I will never have to make that decision. But, I unequivocably, without question support a woman's right to make choices about her own body.

If men were the ones having abortions it would be a constitutional right.

In regards to abortion, I get so sick of the sanctimonious comments like @cypressgreen makes: "Did you adopt one? Would you adopt a baby with half a brain for the few months it may survive, spend all your time at the hospital, quit work and pay millions in medical bills?"

What does me adopting a special needs child have to do with the killing of an innocent baby? That makes about as much sense as me asking, "Do you care about poverty? How many homeless people have you taken into your home?"

We don't snuff out a life just because it inconveniences us or it's going to be costly. Or at least, we shouldn't. But with that rationale, why not just start purging our society of all the dregs. I mean, let's get rid of every criminal ... somebody is paying hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to take care of them and watch over them? Why not just end their drain on society and our pocketbooks?

These "pro-choice" arguments are tired and flawed with holes the size of Texas. But, this response probably just makes too much sense to get posted by CNN.

"Nobody ‘likes’ abortion, early or late. Most women who have one do it because they are in a particularly difficult circumstance, not because they don’t care."

If this were true then why are there 105 induced abortions in Eastern Europe for every 100 live births. There are also 33 induced abortions for every 100 live births in the U.S. and Canada. This isn't some kind of right-wing propaganda. These are published facts by the WHO.

Women, having a baby is inherently risk-fraught. Before you marry and have sexual relations, consider the consequences. Once you have sexual intercourse, the die is cast, the choice is made. From that point on, there is no more choice, only duty and responsibility to bare that life within you to the limit of life itself. You would certainly give your life freely and willingly for your eight-year-old; you must be prepared to do the same for your eight-month-old. This is not Eden. This is the world we live in. And it's difficult, hard, tough, and painful. But we do not kill our babies (and we don't play games with words and start calling them fetuses either). The idea that people have rights seems sensible, but it is a flawed idea. When rights conflict, only conflict results. The truth is, none of us in this world have any lawful claim or right to or for anything, but we all have many duties and responsibilities to God and to each other. If we fulfill these responsibilities, the question of someone's "rights" will take care of itself. We need to focus on our duties and responsibilites, no matter the cost, be it life itself.

I'm sorry but I can't see the argument for pro-lifers. In my life time I have known many people who have had abortions. The reasons I knew about varied between being a victim of a sexual assault to their admitted inability to care for a child. It was their choice and I never judged them for it. Simply because it was their life. I can't say what I would do if put in that situation but I'm glad I live in a country where we still retain certain personal freedoms. The idea that we should dictate peoples personal life choices because of certain religious beliefs or personal ideas of what is right and wrong is despicable and shows a severe lack of enlightenment. I remember preachers and their followers on my college campus with pictures of mutilated fetus's spouting their propaganda. Screaming at women that they would burn in hell if they chose to murder an unborn child. Really? Is that really the way you win the masses over if your a pro-lifer? Then we as a nation sit in awe at the news reports of a man shot to death in a church for being an abortion doctor. Trust me when I say intelligence will always triumph over the ignorant masses. Every time an incident like this arises it just hurts the validity of the pro-life movement and makes all you pro-lifers out their that picket abortion clinics look like raging fanatical nut jobs. Keep picketing. Every time you make the news with some half witted sign screaming senselessly more people decide to make the logical decision and not be caught dead on your side.

Agnostic, Pro-Choice and Proud to say I've never murdered anyone for a cause.

Everyone has a right to their opinion, but nobody has a right to force their opinion on others. Being pro-choice recognizes that while one may not personally choose to have an abortion, there are many women who may need one or choose to have one for a variety of reasons. Forcing a woman with a fetus who has severe genetic defects to give birth doesn't only negatively affect the mother, but the father and any siblings as well. It takes a toll on the entire family. While a family may decide that they are willing to take on the challenge, that decision should not be forced upon them. Nobody has all the answers, and the most humane and gracious thing to do is give people leeway to make their own decisions while staying true to our own beliefs.

Lame "interview". She didn't say anything. I guess she didn't need to. You guys only need to mention this subject and your readers will say it for you.

If a child is born alive with deformities and is killed after birth its considered murder but if the child is killed inside the womb it’s “just an abortion” Murder is murder no matter where it happens.

Moms, do not kill your babies!!!!

shame on all of you who are making such hurtful comments about what this women had to go through. many of you did not even take the time to read her letter, because if you did, you would not make such ignorant comments. and especially shame on you blaine. as an doctor you should know that a baby with anencephaly is not viable.

It is interesting how some people who obviously hate religion rant about religious interference with woman's right to choose. I did not read them all, but I did not believe that the people opposing late term abortion on this board are citing any religious reason. Belief that a viable fetus is a human being does not require any faith on a supernatural being. You just have to see the Ultrasound, watch him move, react to sounds, etc.

Whoever believes that an unborn baby is human is right to believe that abortion is murder. The right to choose of the mother is countered by the even bigger right to life of the baby.

If the mother's life is at danger you could argue that the abortion, while still manslaughter, is justified, like self defense or war. Very regrettable though.

I acknowledge that if a woman sincerely believes that the baby in uterus is not human, then all their arguments are perfectly reasonable. I do not see how you can believe that without closing your eyes very tight, but that is up to each one's conscience.

In any case, the divide is unsurpassable. Have a good week everyone.

E.

To blaine lavergne, m.d.,

You are obviously not really a doctor (I am calling you out). If you were, you would have a better understanding of medical necessity. You are also obviously not very bright or you would have read and understood the point Lynda was trying to make. The vast majority of late term abortions occur because the mother's life is in danger (usually a very serious medical condition, like CHF, Renal Failure or Eclampsia) or the fetus is deemed to have severe deformity or genetic abnormality that is in conducive to sustained life after delivery (example Trisomy 18).

Understanding this, then you would hopefully understand that late term abortions at times are necessary. I believe the decision as to when that necessity is deemed appropriate is up to the pregnant woman, her family and the doctors treating her.

Sincerely,
Real MD

I do not support the murder of anyone. That includes a 20 week old fetus. What happens is that people do not want to take personal responsibility. And please do not give me any of this "you do not understand what goes on in peoples body" because I have 12 years of post graduate studies on human anatomy and physiology and I am a medical practitioner. BUt still I believe that if the state has given the right to choose we should respect that and try to avoid abortions by reason and not force. What I do not like about this interview and many of the interviews in CNN is that it is all staged without another point of view.

While I believe that choice is a woman's right, I'm certain that most abortions aren't flippant decisions... especially those in later months... most of those procedures are done to fetuses that would likely die wtihin days of birth, even at term.
Frankly, someone calling himself 'right to life' should respect ALL life... Dr. Tiller had a life too... and this 'right to life' advocate took his... something is wrong with the terminology, I think...

This is a touchy subject to everyone. The greater question is who should decide moral issues? Should it be government? That is what noone seems clear upon. If we elect government interference, then we should allow government to interfer with our religous beliefs as well. I say no to both, no government intervention in moral and ethical issues.Tthe time will come when population control will be an issue and if that happens and we allow intervention now it only further supports governmental inclusion in who can deliver a child and who can't. Tese are personal and most often difficult positions that women have to face daily and when we decide to legislate personal decisions then we open up a can of worms that is better not opened.

Chew on this sickness....or selfishness.....

71% Woman didn't recognize she was pregnant or misjudged gestation
48% Woman found it hard to make arrangements for abortion
33% Woman was afraid to tell her partner or parents
24% Woman took time to decide to have an abortion
8% Woman waited for her relationship to change
8% Someone pressured woman not to have abortion
6% Something changed after woman became pregnant
6% Woman didn't know timing is important
5% Woman didn't know she could get an abortion
2% A fetal problem was diagnosed late in pregnancy
11% Other

Government mandates morality in many, many areas. Theft, for instance. Don't we want the gov't to tell Enron execs they can't steal our money? Or that restaurants can't discriminate on the basis of race? Moral laws are essential – especially when one party has no voice of its own, as here.

2 things:

~I keep reading pro-choice posts claiming that the government should keep out of people's decisions. While I totally agree, it's my hunch that these are the same people who cheer the gov't on each time they decide where people can and cannot smoke. (If you argue that smoking effects the and safety of others...than it's fair to say partial birth abortion is neither healthy or safe for a baby)

~Also previously stated: Some women become depressed and suicidal in the third term and therefore require a partial birth abortion. If that's the rational then we should should allow women with severe postpartum depression to terminate their infant or someone severely depressed because they hate their job to murder a coworker or boss.

I don't agree with alot of the pro choice arguments but I do agree with the self defense one. The only time it's acceptable to kill in our society is in self defense. Logically it should also apply to abortion (regardless of pregnancy stage). If the pregancy threatens to kill the mother (not to be confused with the mother killing herself) than it's ok by me to abort.

So its come to us all bickering about who lives and who dies. Frankly this whole Blue team vs. Red team senario plays itself out by both sides never winning and both sides losing. How about leaving the ultimate Judgement up to whom ever your religious higher power may be. True we may lose the one sole that cures cancer or the one little one that could have grown up to find the cure for everything. But Women will do what women want and Dr. Money will do what he does best and everyone has to answer for it in the end. Why waste any more time, energy, hate, guilt, retoric banter on this and leave that to the mothers of the aborted to deal with. We are not Gods we shall not judge those whom make there own descisions. There fate will be there own doing, never by our hands. Wake up weve got to stop fighting amoungst ourselves. Grow up and quit fighting over whos pie it is and how they are to use it. It is enevetable we create our own outcomes in life by the free decisions we make. Stop trying to control eveyone elses lives and enjoy and live your own.

Have a nice day,
Mr. Enevitability

I doubt people who think late term abortions is a bad thing really know the facts. I would say just about all doctors who perform these are not doing them because a woman wants one because she doesn't want the child, but rather, there is an issue with the mother or the child.

Many years ago, women did not have decent pre-natal care and many women died during childbirth or becaues of pregnancy.

Fortunately, we as a society see's that was wrong and try to make available every possible thing that can help a mother and unborn child. However there are things that happen that are beyond our control.

I personally know of someone who died in the mid 70's from carrying a child that had severe issues. She left behind 3 other children and a husband. Eventually all 3 children went to foster homes and did not contact each other for 20 years. Very sad.

But anyhoos, the parents found out that there was an issue with the fetus. It was bad and it could cause the mother's demise. They struggled with a decision. No doctor in the area would peform a late term abortion and the parents were told to travel 8 hours to someone that would.

The parents were told that by aborting the fetus was the only way the mother would survive. Well the parents discussed it. With family and friends. One day a friend of the family came over unannounced with about 30 people begging the mother not to abort her fetus. Armed with graphic pictures.

The mother and her 3 other children got very scared. They did not tell the 3 other children that there was something wrong with the baby. But they were teling the children that the baby was going to live with a family friend who could not have children (yes a lie).

So now all 3 chldren under the age of 7 saw graphic pictures. I did too! There were shouts and etc. So now the mother was very scared.

The parents decided not to go through with the abortion. Several weeks later into the pregnancy the mother became very ill, as what the doctors said would happen. They tried inducing labor but it was too late.

The mother died in the hospital trying to give birth to apparently was a child with 1 limb, a missshabed body and head, no brain and very small.

A few weeks later the father was left on his own to care for 3 children, having seen a baby that barely looked human. He was extremely distraught. Losing his wife and baby. Mad at the world and the people who scared his wife.

He started drinking and doing drugs. CPS got involved and the children were initially placed into 3 seperate foster homes. The father lost his job and got busted for drugs. He went to jail. CPS told him that if he signed a form, when he got out he would get his kids back. And there were issues with that.

So when finally the father got out of jail and went to cps to get his children, 2 of them were adopted and since he signed his rights away apparently and only had like 3 months to appeal and that was long gone, there wasn't much he could do. He was told that the children were placed in seperate homes and to disrupt their lives would be harmfull to them.

Fast forward to 2005, the children are finally reunited. One child was never adopted and ran away constantly and had issues with drugs because of abuse. Another child had a great life, but barely remembered his original parents and suffered from depression, but is fine. The third remembers her siblings, parents and family and contacted them as a teenager, got to know them and had some issues with abondonment and has problems with relationships.

So the moral of the story is, that although this is a disgusting, sad event, there is much more to look at before anyone makes a judgment call. And abortion is a hard thing to deal with, even if it is for a medical reason or because of an accident. Families have to live with the end result and no one else but them can talk about it.

My problem with creating any law banning abortions is simply this – no matter how carefully crafted, there is no possibility that every potential situation can and will be dealt with in the legislation. Since the only recourse is those cases not covered would be the court system and the court system can and does take longer than 9 months in many situations, those cases not dealt with in the legislation would have no hope of getting an exception to the law granted.

It is heartbreaking, but there absolutely are situations where the only merciful solution is an abortion. As just one example – Do you really want to force someone to give birth if the child will be in excruciating agony for every second until it dies – perhaps days, weeks or months after birth?

Are we so bound to the idea of life that no thought of mercy for the child is allowed? There are many horrifying medical scenarios that happen that put women who want their baby very much in situations where they have to make a terrible decision and only the woman (and her partner) can possibly make that decision taking all things into consideration.

I personally would not turn to abortion except in the most extreme circumstances (and by that I mean extreme medical circumstances), but the option needs to be available for those who are facing those extreme situations.

This truly does need to be a personal decision and not one dictated by the state.

"The question is when is a fetus a person and when is killing it murder. If it is murder, we already know what the law says."

No. The question is whether any other person has the right to use another person's body without that person's ongoing consent.

Ultimately it's not just the choice of an individual. I'm sorry to say this to those of you pushing the "freedom" issue, but it's a lot more complicated. What it comes down to is what qualifies as a person. There's really no middle ground there. You can argue that this is a religious issue, but a society and a government have a vested interest in caring for its most vulnerable members and you can't get much more vulnerable than being captive in a womb. Unless the mother's life is in imminent danger, there is no excuse for a late term abortion.

The simple truth of the matter is that abortions, in most cases, are just easier than caring for the child/pregnancy/etc. Sure it's easier to not be depressed. Because you can't see the child, you can rationalize an excuse to kill it for your convenience. Would you do that to a misbehaving child or wayward teen? Of course not. Like I said, it comes down to what you consider a person. People like myself consider an embryo human from the moment of conception. That's something I really can't meet you halfway with. Abortion is murder. Plane and simple.

Lynda's situation is very difficult, but statistics show that less than 4% of all abortions are done due to rape, incest, or the health of the unborn person (U.S Department of Health and Hyman Services, Centers for Disease Control. Abortion Surveillance Report, May 1983). There are 1.3 million abortions/year in the U.S. Nearly one million abortions/year are peformed for other reasons, primarily as a form of birth control.

Unborn human beings, even those who are not healthy, share the same human nature a the rest of humanity. It is from our dignified human nature that we have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These are inalienable rights, or rights that no one else can take possession of.

Legalized abortion contradicts the very purpose of the U.S., that all people are created equal and will be granted their inalienable rights. No one begins their existence at birth. We begin our lives at conception.

This is the worst piece of "reporting" I've ever seen. The article / interview snippet does not make clear the reasons why the interviewee had a late term abortion. She references depression, but the nature of her individual circumstances are not clear. How are we to determine her credibility without the underlying background information?

I know several people that were told their children would be disabled or have no quality of life whatsoever. Those children are now toddlers and children that are perfectly normal and healthy. I wish you wouldn't have trusted doctors so implicitly Beth, maybe you would have had a normal baby after all.

When it comes to the crime of killing Dr. Tiller I don't understand why anyone's views on abortion matter. This simply clouds the more important issue, that someone was murdered in an act of domestic terrorism.

The dictionary definition of terrorism is 'the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political purposes'.

That fits the description of what has happened perfectly. This killing was an act of terror to deliberately designed to frighten doctors and women seeking medical treatment.

People who support this murderer are no better than Al Quaeda or other extremists. Using fear and violence to restrict the rights and freedoms of women is not something to be admired or supported, it is something to be despised.

I have 6 young children. Each one of them have molded and changed my life for the best. I can not imagine not having one of them around. If they were sick and I would give my life for theirs in a second. Abortion is murder no matter how you look at it. Give these unborn children a chance. The technology we have today is amazing. Just look what your $200.00 cell phone can do. Now think of what the millions of dollars of equipment in a hospital can do. If the child dies after birth, at least you tried to save the child. You never gave up on him/her. In 20 years people are going to look at abortion the way people look at what Hitler did. God have mercy on us.

" say if they are 10 years old and one day they get tired of putting up with them? "

they bring them to Omaha Nebraska

The funniest part about this whole thing is that people see the word "abortion" in the title, then move right down to the comments box and spew out their opinions based on their religious beliefs.

Notice there was no mention of actually reading the article past the title.

If righties want to give birth to, spend the money on, and eventually have their hearts broken by a child with no head, more power to you. You have the right to that decision just like others have the right to end that same pregnancy. Why should you have more of a choice than anyone else? Because you're religiously sound? Sorry, it doesn't work that way.

As a doctor I recognize that there are times when (due to the viability ) of a fetus to live outside the womb that a late term abortion is required. Also, late term abortions are not like the photos you see flashed around by the pro-choice peopleand they are only done when the life of the mother is in danger.
Lets start by preventing unwanted pregnacies .

I would accept that the anti-abortionists are pro-life when they
spend as much time and money opposing state sanctioned
murder (executions) and needless wars (Iraq). They don't.
They just shed crocodile tears over fetuses. Abortions are not
a method of birth control, but the life of the would-be mother is
worth saving. And the baby-to-be needs to be viable to be born.
Where is the miracle of life when eggs are fertilized in petri
dishes? Where is the miracle of life when we have the circus
of 'octimon'?

What about people who develop "defects" once they are born. Should we abort all handicap people?

Are we as a society so small hearted and narrow minded, that we cannot take care of our own children because they are "defective"?

Abortion has become more of an 'industry', it seems. Imagine an assembly line. A worker is inspecting products being produced. He finds a "defect" and throws the product in waste basket. The "product" being thrown in the waste here unfortunately is a human being.

And we are to blame for this utter lack of respect for life. We do it to animals – treat them like "things" in meat plants, now the natural next step is to do this to fellow humans.....

From every post I've seen discussing first-hand experience with Dr. Tiller, it is clear that he was a brave, selfless, compassionate and kind man. This is truly a loss for the women of America.

I hope that all of you sick people who would force a woman to carry to term a non-viable or severely retarded child have a child like that of your own, and see how you feel about your life then.

If there is a hell, the monster who shot Dr. Tiller and the people who harassed the desperate parents who came to Dr. Tiller for help are the ones who will spend eternity there, not Dr. Tiller or his patients.

It strikes me that most of the posters here who are unsympathetic to this woman's story seem not to have read it. Whatever one's moral stance may be, there can be no argument that the personal experience of women who have had "late-term abortions" is far more complex and emotional than the term suggests. It seems like people want to classify abortion as "wrong" and be done with it without really seeing the complexity that underlies it... it's much easier to see things as black and white, or clear-cut than to fully engage in trying to decipher some of the real dilemmas involved in making these decisions for the women and families and doctors who look at them more deeply. These aren't simple issues, please, let's try to be respectful of one another's points of view, especially when it is so clear that someone is exposing something very sensitive and tender of their own in order to help us understand better. I think most of us can offer our fellow human beings some kindness when they are hurt, even if we don't agree with their choices.

Late term abortions are done for medical necessity. it is not a whim that these women decide to end a pregnancy. These cases are where the baby is severly abnormal or the life of the mother is at risk. There are very legitimate reasons. These cases are heartbreaking. The childrens are usually planned and wanted. This is the most difficult decision these families have to make. They are doing what is best for their family and child. You may not agree with their decision but it is theirs to make. Not yours.

Please do a little research on the reasons these are performed. It is not because the woman is suicidal or depressed. Extremist use this kind of infamatory reasons. If you read any number of the comments above you will see the sad and heartbreaking stories of pregnacies gone wrong.

The comments on abortion in this article are not logical. First, she does nothing to refute that the fetus is not a life. She only states that it is not that simple. The burden of proof is on the one taking the potential life to prove that they are not taking a life at all. If the cannot do this, then the fetus should be protected under the 14th Amendment of our constitution. Second, Dr. Tiller's murder is horrible. Those advocating the death of an abortion Dr. are not pro-life and are not aligned with the pro-life viewpoint. Those depicting people with a pro-life viewpoint as radicals, who murder abortion doctors, are guilty of a staw man argument. Third, if one really wants to become better educated on the abortion debate, they should read "Defending Life: A Moral and Legal Case Against Abortion" by Francis J. Beckwith.

So, let's prevent unwanted pregnancies and increase sex education and access to birth control!!

Just as a side note, because it was incorrectly mentioned earlier, there is NO explicit right to privacy in the Bill of Rights nor Constitution. That topic has been debated, especially with the Patriot Act, but we are not explicitly granted privacy as a right. Don't make that argument.

I've never heard so much self-righteous, 'I'm better than you' crap in my life. Late term abortions are only performed when there is a serious issue with the baby, people.

If you are pro-choice, fine, pro-life, fine, but it's not your place or the government's place to tell someone else what they can do with their bodies. Mind your own business. I bet your life would be so much better.

Judge not lest ye be judge. Remember that?

The saddest thing about modern medical technology is that it is often good enough to identify problems, but not yet good enough to fix them. That leaves people with excruciating moral choices that should be examined with compassion, not condemnation.

A year ago, my sister and I had to decide whether to take my father off a respirator after a massive stroke had destroyed his brain. We chose to remove the respirator and let him die with some dignity. Does that make me a murderer? I don't think so. Nor do I consider the people that Dr. Tiller helped as wrong or immoral. Given a better choice, any one of them would have leapt at it. They made the best choice they could from what they were given.

As for the guy who shot Dr. Tiller... he's a murderer!

well said, Joe! 100% agree

This idea of, if we let the gov't make this decision the next thing they'll be forcing on us is what to wear is completly apples and oranges. If you're going to argue this, you might as well be arguing to legalize murder. Why should the government say we can't murder each other, who are they to impose that restriction, after all it's a choice,...and one that's basically the same as late term abortion by the way.

As an ICU nurse and a pro-life advocate, I have issue with Ms. Waddington stating "it was tantamount to having a loved one on life support and making that decision whether to end the life support or not."

I have been involved in countless cases of the removal of life support, which may consist of removing a breathing tube, stopping certain medications, etc. People often survive minutes, hours, even days after life support is removed. A more accurate analogy in the case of Ms. Waddington would be a c-section of the baby. It would be the removal of the baby from the womb and cutting the umbilical cord, cutting off the "life support" that the mother gives. The baby may then die immediately, or may live as some do after life support is removed.

Never have I witnessed a situation in the ICU, nor could imagine it being described as "removing life support" if it were ever to occur, where a person was being given a medication to purposely stop their heart, have their limbs ripped off their body, or have their brains sucked out with a vacuum. That is not removing life support, that is a brutal murder. At best it could be described as euthanasia, which also would never be done so inhumanely.

Our personal choices and freedoms should not have greater importance than someone's life. Our laws supposedly exist to protect the weak, but unfortuately in the case of abortion, if fails to do exactly that.

We sure have painted ourselves into a corner, haven't we? We want what we want when we want it, no matter what. (And I am in no way putting myself on a pedestal in this regard - I am no better than any of you.) My sister had a coffee mug that said "Sex is really no big deal. It's just like air and food and other stuff like that." Unfortunately, I don't think most people today understand the humor in this. With sex, evolution has provided us the perfect "carrot and stick" - it hurts when we don't do it and it feels great when we do. And now, with everybody doing it with everybody else in the movies and on TV and on the radio, how can anybody think that sexual urges can acually be resisted? They're like air or food or other stuff like that. The problem with sex is all of those nasty consequences - so let's address the consequences rather than the problem! Let's find cures for the diseases and ways to prevent "unwanted" pregnancies. But what if there is a pregnancy? In January 1973, we found an answer to that, too. (The way people talk, it sometimes sounds like James Madison's notes explicitly mention abortion.)
I don't know the answer to our situation, but it's a sad truth that we are a very selfish people (myself included). I realize I am not addressing the original issue - late-term abortion of severely deformed children. That is absolutely heart-wrenching, and I don't know where we draw the line in that case, or who should draw it. All I know is that there are 1.5 million abortions in the US every year. If we allowed every woman to have an abortion who was the victim of rape or incest, or had a severely deformed fetus, I expect that the abortion rate would drop by about 1.4 million.

As a father of eight, I have seen a few more sonograms than the average dad. I cannot help but believe that the small person that shows up in the image deserves some rights. You can actually see a heart beating at eight weeks. By the end of the first trimester, you can identify all of the body parts, and the child responds to stimuli, such as a probe in a CVS test. This is science, not religion.

Accordingly, there should be some reasonable balancing between the rights of that child, and the rights of the mother. This is the recognized problem behind the rationale of Roe v. Wade - it admittedly fails to decide whether the child is entitled to Constitutional rights, e.g., the right to not be deprived of life without due process of law. The Court passed on the question as to whether a fetus/child is entitled to such Constitutional protections. Surprisingly, 36 years later, the decision has not yet been made. As a result, the Roe Court (as well as the Casey v. Planned Parenthood Court) had to rely on the State's interest in potential new life to allow restrictions on abortion in the last two trimesters.

A potential fix would be to affirmatively decide when a fetus/child is entitled to Constitutional rights. At conception? When the heart beats? When there is brain function? At birth? This could be done by the passage of federal and state laws, or by a Constitutional Amendment. I imagine very few would be completely happy with any kind of law that could be passed, but it still may be worth the exercise to give our legal system some legitimacy in this matter. Even retiring Justice Ginsburg criticizes the rationale of Roe - it simply needs to be fixed.

While my personal belief is that I am a father of eight, only three children made it past the first trimester. One was born normally. Last year we had twins, which we were medically advised to terminate, because one had a distended bladder, and the other had a "strawberry" shaped skull. We had to get that CVS test to see if they would do anything to save our 14 week old (gestational aged) sons. We ultimately did not intervene (besides bedrest), and both were eventially born 5.5 weeks premature. One lived an hour after birth, the other is alive and mostly healthy today, after a short stay in the NICU.

In our case, the easiest decision for us was not to make a "choice," and let nature take its course. I imagine many, if not all, of Dr. Tiller's patients could have decided to wait as well. Nearly any reputable hospital would (and should) perform an abortion if the mother's life is truly in danger, as this would both meet the Hippocratic Oath, and the "due process of law" required by our Constitution. It is a shame that the women that posted here today had to turn to Dr. Tiller if they had a legitimate medical need for an abortion that outweighed their child's due process right to be born. A hospital should have handled their cases.

A greater shame is that some killer deprived Dr. Tiller of his due process right to life. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with late term abortion law, murder is not the answer.

My condolences go to Dr. Tiller's family, and to those who posted their painful stories here today.

This issue is two things, politics and religion. Politicians on the right have taken this issue in order to pacify a solid base. If Pro-Life people truly believed what they say, that a fetus is a person, then there would be more people react like this loser that killed Tiller. Otherwise they'd have to explain how they held gross signs and wrote their thoughts in an internet forum while they lived down the road from a character who is as much a criminal and mass murderer as Hitler or Saddam Hussein. The lack of violent action is proof that the Pro-Life crowd is simply a political tool to carry votes and grotesque signs and know that their argument is unproven. If they wanted authorization from God about what they should do they only have to read the Bible. This killer believed what he said. People carrying signs are accessories to murder when defined by their beliefs as they allow them to happen.

I just wish people could see through this Jesus myth and we start to govern this country as the founders wished, with religion sitting in the back of the bus.

This discussion should not be about a womans right to chose. It should be about when a fetus is considered a viable living human being prtected by the laws of this country. That includes being protected from a doctor and mother who want to kill it, no matter the reason or situation. Why should a woman or doctor have the right to kill a child that would otherwise live? Shouldn't that child be protected by the laws of this country just like you and I or a 1 day old child? Doesn't it seem wrong that a doctor can abort a fetus but if that same fetus dies as result of someones action that person could be charged with a crime. Why should the laws of our country protect the child in one instance but not the other, all in the name of a womans right to chose?

OK. Linda's story helped me understand. In her case, I agree. What else could have been done? It's a fine, fine line though. There is nothing wrong with debate. Debate is important.

The most inappropriate thing is to judge someone else by what you would do when you haven't been in a position to have to make that decision.

Although I am pro-choice, I am leery of late term abortions. Although it may seem clear cut in cases where the baby has no chance of survival outside of the womb or the woman's life is in danger,
the problem arises when the child's disability is not life threatening. Where do you draw the line? Someone mentioned spina bifida as a defect that would justify a late term abortion. However, I personally know a couple of wonderful children with spina bifida. who are living a meaningful life. Do you abort just becuase a child would have a disability

Growing up in a big family 9 children plus 2 adopted, and while the family I grew up with is not perfect. Still we are truly blessed to have parents who did not abort us. Abortion is not only illegal but immoral. No amount of legalizations will make it right. I never condone the killing of Dr. Tiller, the person who took his life should be put to justice and at same time Dr' Tiller got his own justice, I think this doctor has played God for a long time, he absolutely has no right to snuff out the life of innocent human beings because he felt they were not perfect, the same thing with these women who decides to terminate their pregnancies. My sister's friend who is a doctor too got pregnant and being already at the prime age, her doctors checked the baby and they said the baby will be abnormal. Her husband also wants the pregnancy terminated after the results. But she prayed hard and decided to keep the baby and turned out the baby was perfect. Healthy or not, who are we to judge and put a timeline for this baby's fate. It is only us humans who put things in categories. Before God we are all created beautiful in his sight.

I think we should all be honest.
If abortion isn't murder what is it?
What is capital punishment?
What is war?
This country doesn't have a problem murdering, it has a problem being honest- defining its terms and examining the qualitative exceptions to those definitions.
Of course there are reasons to necessitate murder, socially acceptable reasons that allow for a different word to use when the action is still murder. Ironically the ends justified the means in the minds of/ for both "murders" in this case.
This is not a "religious" argument when zoomed out. It is a paradox of the humanities and the pursuit of our meaning in life. Tiller's Killer obviously thought he was a modern John Brown.

If I had to label myself I would say that I'm pro-choice. As several people have mentioned, just about all of us can agree that ideally abortion would not even be necessary with adequate education, birth control, abstinence, etc. No one wants abortions, but I feel there may be times when a woman or a couple may decide that it's the best course of action for them in the first trimester.

The hysteria of late-term abortions is ridiculous. Perfectly healthy third trimester fetuses are not being systematically terminated on a whim. It just doesn't happen...period. The cases were it does happen are due to extreme medical/developmental issues with the mother or the fetus. I know that some of you at least acknowledge that much, but still oppose it generally with the opinion that if the is even a 1% chance that the baby will survive delivery, then it should be given that chance regardless of the consequences for the mother. I don't agree with rolling the dice with a mother's life, and never will.

Lastly...the term "murder" gets thrown around casually by many abortion-rights opponents. I suppose from your viewpoint it is, and I would at least respect that if you respect for life appliied *beyond* the womb.

How many of you are to be found protesting outside of prisons prior to executions? How many of you protest wars? Is it only innocent life you claim to cherish? Some (not all) innocent people are executed all over the world every day. Innocent people (including pregnant women, children, etc.) die in wars every day, and always have.

The Catholic Church, is at least consistent. They cherish life, period. I don't necessarily agree with them on everything, but I respect their consistency.

Me? I'm pro-death penalty, understand that some times war is a unfortunate reality that can't be escaped, and respect our troops. I'm also pro-choice.

Most of you seem to pick and choose who has a right to live. You say life begins at conception, yet you seem comfortable with the notion that the right to life expires the minute you leave the womb. After that all bets are off, eh?

Thank you Lynda for sharing your story with Barack Obama and with CNN and all of us. I realize that Dr. Tiller never in his life had an abortion – early or late term. All this health care provider did was empower women to follow through on the decisions the women themselves made. Not easy decisions, no. Not by any stretch of the imagination. But decisions the women themselves made.

I do believe that is what the pro-lifers actually hate ... empowered women. Pro Life = Anti Women. I am so sorry you and your family lived through this nightmare. I am glad Dr. Tiller was there for you. Thank you somuch for coming forward.

I think I can speak for every women who has had to make this horrific decision to end a late term pregnancy, it haunts you everyday ! I was faced with this decision and I still stick by my decision to terminate. We already had 4 children ~ which were all planned! We found out our last baby had serious issues and would never be able to function on his own! With 4 kids to care for already and with doctors telling us the baby's life would be one of living on a breathing tube we made the best decision for our family. This is an independent choice and really no one elses business! How does what my family has to decide and struggle through effect anyone else! People can judge all they want it really has no affect on me or my family ~ I usually just smile and tell them I hope they never have to make a hard decision regarding a loved one and go on with my day with no regrets! That is not to say I don't miss our baby everyday! I do wonder if he is happy where he is now and I find peace knowing that we will be reunited one day!

What has happened to this loving man is tragic and my thoughts are with his family.

This is a sad circumstance, and unfortunately not many people are reading the article or the responses listed by women who had to make such a heart breaking decision. It's sad when religion blinds compassion for our fellow human beings.

Unfortunately no one will ever agree. I'll not even try.

But the Government should never be able to control a woman's own body, our country is based on freedom, after all. If they take away the rights to our own bodies, I guess they might as well go for communism or a harsh dictatorship and take the rest of our rights away while they're at it. The government does not own me and never will.

In October of 1989 I was pregnant with a much loved, wanted and planned child. I was happily married and this was to be our first baby. "Baby Zem" (either Zachary or Emily) was diagnosed at 23 weeks gestation with massive anomalies. By ultrasound, techs and radiologists at Lutheran General in Illinois worked over 2 hours desperately searching for where the umbilical cord connected to the baby. Our baby had no kidneys or bladder, and her spine was severely deformed. We were told the baby could not survive outside the womb as it would be unable to eliminate it's own waste.

I am ethically against abortion and politically pro choice. While still a virgin in college, I dragged all my sexually active friends to the gynecologist and got them on birth control. I never, ever planned or dreamed of having an abortion, let alone a late term abortion.

We got two other opinions and finally found a hospital in Chicago that would perform the abortion we had now decided to undergo. I was given medications to open the cervix and to cause the placenta to separate from the uterus. I was told the baby would slowly be deprived of oxygen, but expire peacefully. It is the hardest thing I've ever done. If you haven't faced such an event, it is not possible to understand the agony.

For all of you who are "sick to your stomachs", upset/mortified about later term abortions; for one second put your self in others shoes. God forbid but what if you found out your unborn child has a serious illness and can potentially die after birth or your unborn child will have a horrible quality of life or after birth you and your child could die. Now would you not want the choice of helping your self and help avoid the heart ach, pain and suffering of and UNBORN child? As a woman we have been given a gift of creating new life and if we as woman feel the life that might be put on this earth will be compromised we should have the choice to give birth or not to give birth to them. We Americans are so selfish at times and I know 100% if any woman was in this situation they would like to have a choice and personally the woman who don’t understand the other woman in these situations make me sick to my stomach. Most of you are not or do not want to get the point that these woman aren’t doing this later term abortion b/c they just want to or feel like it they have a very legitimate reasons. And if none of this matters then just know it’s none of your business what other woman do with their body, their choice etc…

Recently, a comprehensive global study found that abortion rates are similar in countries where abortion was illegal than when it was legal. We can conclude that outlawing the practice does little to deter women from seeking to end their pregnancies. Consequently, the safety of abortions parallels its legality. Laws that prohibit actions are in place to discourage that action. In many cases, no amount of laws or restrictions will obliterate its practice. Unplanned pregnancies happen globally, and there will always be a market for abortion.

Before anything else, let's define the terms. "Murder" is a legal term. What Dr Teller did may qualify as a killing - the taking of a life - but it is not murder, no matter how much the radical right wants to label it as such.

I generally consider myself pro-life, but in the case of extreme defects and mother's life issues, I could be convinced that this should be an option.

Don't kid yourself though. This is a nasty procedure.

I'm pro choice bbut the late term abortion issue doesn't sit well with me. If the mother's health is truly at risk (physically or mentally) then it should be decided by her and her doctor and family. But I know that those cases are probably not the majority. If someone has stats that aren't biased as to how often the mothers health is the issue and what % of the time its for "other" reasons please post them.

If it's a medical crisis, why wouldn't that precipitate a c-section instead of an abortion? If the baby is destined to die, let it happen naturally and with anesthesia instead of suffering the pain of a late term abortion.

What is it that makes people so hateful, judgmental & self-righteous?
What gives anybody the right to make decisions for the lives of others & impose their morality on the bodies of women they don't even know, who's lives they know nothing about?

What is compassionate or righteous about denying a woman the right to terminate a pregnancy of a deformed fetus that could endanger the life of the mother? "Oh, lady, you have a ticking time bomb in your uterus but all you can do is wait for it to blow...you may or may not survive. Oh well, too bad for you & your family."

Why is it that all these anti-abortionists spend all their time & energy trying to control the lives of others, to force their morality on the bodies of people they don't even know but don't bother to do a single damn thing to help all the unwanted children in our society? Why don't they bother to help the single mothers struggling everyday?

Corrections....

Abortion may be legal but it will always be immoral

Shame on you people. Do you know how many people are told their baby won't be "viable" and go through with it anyway. Glad my mother did. Give the baby a chance at least. Doctors are not perfect, they don't know everything. Let God decide if the baby is viable, not someone who makes a living killing babies.

I wonder how many times this fine "doctor" found a baby to be perfectly viable and said to the mother, "you know this baby could make it, are you sure?" Probably none, only thing he ever said after an ultrasound was "cash or charge". And I sure some of the women replied, "put it on my tab."

AC 360 – Is it possible to follow up this story and actually show some visual aid examples of this condition known in medicine as Anencephaly in order for the viewer to see and understand what kind of decisions await physicians and patients. It would also be very helpful to have a physician on hand to explain the background as to how this condition can come about and what happens upon birth with this condition. Last, it would be also helpful to know of other conditions that would be considered late-term and have visual aids and medical understanding on those possibilities. The more we know the more we can each think to ourselves, what if this happened to me or a loved one. Note to Lynda Waddington; you are a very brave person to come out and discuss what was already a personal and traumatic decision in your life.

Abortion of fetus is taking lives away, but those with critical medical problems are more complicate, there should be organization that will take care of those babies' lives and medical care after they are born, also this organization decides whether or not the mother should have an anbortion. Otherwise arguing is just talk.

"We wouldn’t look at someone suffering from cancer and say that you’re too depressed to make your decisions regarding your family and your life"
Yes, we would.

Suppose that a women is four months pregnant and her husband discovers that she has uterine cancer. The doctor informs them that if the woman doesn't have an abortion and remove the uterus, that the mother will die of cancer. How many of the pro-life male readers who believe that all abortions are murder would let their wives or loved ones die to save the fetus? I suspect that most would opt for the abortion. Sometime people are put in awful situations and have to make excruciating decisions that have life-and-death consequences. Give them the right to decide.

Please leave religion, personal privacy, etc aside, these shape our beliefs but arent the central issue. The argument should solely focus on if unborn fetuses are induividuals or not.
If they are, Dec of Ind. gives them the rights to Life, Liberty, & the Pursuit of Happiness

I am really sad to see shows like 360 constantly looking for the exception (Lynda) rather than the rule... As he said, most late terms are elective, why doesn't he interview someone who elected to abort a healthy fetus just before birth ...that is the majority of these cases.

As a woman, I feel that number one, if you don't have a uterus, you don't have a say. Period. And, for all you right wing nut jobs out there, why don't you adopt some of the children that are born severely handicapped, and devote every waking hour to taking care of them? I don't feel it is my job to judge anyone. And before you talk sanctity of life, why is it that is is wrong to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, even in the earliest stages, but it is cool to euthanize innocent feeling, thinking animals for no reason other than there are no homes for all of them? Or raise animals just to eat, when they experience pain and fear? Please....before you start talking about the sancitity of life, take care of the kids, adults, and animals that are already here and need help. Stop worrying about what others do and take care of your own life-it is none of your business what your neighbors do.

The main argument against this is that, if you allow for late term abortions during extremem situations, you will open the door for the woman with trivial reasons.

There are those who believe in abortion on demand, funded by taxpayers, regardless of age, without parental or spoussal notification, and regardless of how far along.

There are those of us that belive no abortions ever. Not in the case of rape, incest, mother's health issues, or fetus unviability. They take it to also disaprove of post-contraception pills like the day after pill.

Most of us fall in the middle somewhere. Most of us would seriously decry a woman who gets an abortion in the third trimester for anything but the most extreme of scenarios.

The extreme right says that allowing late term abortions will cause the famed "slippery slope" situation. Those extremeists on the left deny this. The truth is in the middle somewhere.

Everyone who believes that the woman of this story is a monster: Google "anencephaly", which is the condition her baby had. Be sure to get a good look at some images and at the fatality rate. Then get back to us.

There are people out there that use abortion as a means of birth control whether its late term or not. For that reason alone it is wrong and should not be used in that manner. It is for health reasons either for the mother or child then I can understand, but to have an abortion in the last months of pregnancy because a mother changed her mind is murder especially if the fetus can live outside the womb. From reports, I understand there were only 3 doctors in the US that performed this procedure. That fact alone speaks volumes on how unethical the procedure is. Those that are using radical methods and violance are wrong. Aside from my opinion and others, I wonder what God thinks of this matter. I mean here is a man who clearly is a believer. He was serving in the house of the Lord, but his occupation was to abort babies in late term. I wonder how God feels on this specific issue. I am not going to say this man is going to hell, because I am human and can only see one side; and at this point I do not care about what other people think because we all have done something worthy of going to hell. I wonder what He thinks about the people standing outside the clinics and the methods they use which completly defeats the purpose of raising awarness or changing a womans mind, because their tactics are horrible and scary!! But I believe God has more compassion and understanding than I or anyone else could have. Only He knows the full story.

The baby didn't have a skull or brain. How is that viable? I believe everyone is entitled to their opinions, but, read all the information available before you spout off at the mouth about this woman killing her "special needs child." Being born with no skull or brain is far cry from special needs or having an incurable disease.

Abortion is guaranteed in the Bill of Rights?!?!? Right to Privacy???
Where exactly in the BIll of Rights does it say anything about Privacy? Much less abortion. Please read the material before you reference it.

Lynda's writes regarding her depression as a reason to abort: "I think that’s a decision that the mother and the doctor and the family should be able to make on their own." Lynda, isn't the baby part of that discussion then as "family?" And yet, the most vulnerable member of society has absolutely no rights or voice. She communicates to those who are alive and mentally/physically challenged that they are worthless--and that is not true, they are precious! You are precious, too, Lynda. I just don't think you are right.

The decision of abortion is something that must be responsible and necessary. Problems with the child or the mother is justifiable for an abortion, but abortion can not be a solution to unwanted pregnancy. Today, with so many resources contraceptives, this is unacceptable.

The woman or the child with problems should have access to abortion, on time. They should be supported!
This is not about religion or law

I'm still amazed how someone against abortion and on behalf of life, kills a person.

Great interview! Congratulations!

We don't have a right to eliminate those who may be inconvenient to us. I know of many women who've had abortions and the reasons they did it had nothing to do with health (not to say health is never a factor). It was for such reasons as: they didn't want the responsibility of the child, they were often pressured by their parents, pressured by the father, career considerations, economic considerations...etc. Nobody should be judged and eliminated because they are "unwanted". What sort of societal standard is that? We all were in the womb at one point and we all deserve to have a chance to lead a life.....no matter what kind of life.

It's just the natural conclusion of Darwinism–survival of the fittest. Tiller wasn't the fittest. And if Darwinism is correct, then you have no moral or ethical ground to stand on anyway...because there isn't one. He's been naturally selected out of the gene pool.

So for those who take offense and religion and pro-lifers, you can't take your own evolutionary medicine. If there is no God, it's all a game of meaningless chance anyway.

Here is a question for the extremists out there. Let's say that a single mother with a 2 year-old infant was pregnant. She was informed by several doctors that her fetus had no-chance of survival and that if she did not end her pregnancy that she would die as well. What should she do? It is not only her life at stake, which would be enough for many of the people commenting here, but also the life of her 2 year-old child that would be affected. Is she selfish if she makes a choice that will guarantee the care of her living child (in addition to her own life)? I think the key in this very difficult debate is coming to common ground onthe more extreme fact scenarios and then an intelligent debate over the other scenarios can ensue. A defense to the crime of murder in most states is self defense. Therefore, even in the case of killing another viable, living & breathing human being, there are exceptions in the law.

I personally know someone whom has had a partial birth abortion. This was her choice and due to severe health reasons of the child. Someone above described the partial birth as cutting the child's spinal cord.... I think there are some major miscommunications how most of these procedures are done. The mother is injected with certain drugs that stop the fetus's heart before the birthing process is complete. These are hard and emotional choices for couples and I don't believe as Americans we have the right to block the choice of individuals. Partial birth abortion as a regular way to handle unwanted children NO... Individual choices due to the health reasons of the fetus or danger to the mother... this is called compassion not murder.

"Who is the goverment to tell us what is right and wrong?" The government tells us every day what is right or wrong. What is taught to our children in schools. Where we can and can't smoke. Must wear a helmet when on a bike. Must wear seatbelts. Can't decide for yourself who to rent your apartment to. When you can turn left with an arrow or not. How hot coffee can be. The list is endless.
If it is considered a double homicide to kill a pregnant woman, how can it not be murder to kill a late term baby...or any baby for that matter.

For those parent & families with an unborn baby that is destined to die before or shortly after birth, there is another alternative to late term abortion or carrying a terminal pregnancy with silent grief that is becoming more available throughout our country. Perinatal hospices support families with a terminal prenatal diagnosis. Even a pregnancy this difficult can be a beautiful, profoundly meaningful, and healing time in their lives. http://www.perinatalhospice.org

Be sure and follow the news links The stories of those families who obtained the support of perinatal hospice are amazing and uplifting. It is so wonderful this choice is becoming more widely available with each passing year.

We adopted my daughter from a woman who had an affair and would have had an abortion but she was too far along. My daughter is beautiful and healthy and 7 years old now. Had it not been for the government invading this woman’s privacy and personal right to abort an unwanted pregnancy my daughter would have been killed over 7 years ago.

Adoption is an alternate option which needs to be made more available. It is easier and cheaper to have an abortion than it is to adopt. It took us 5 years to receive the gift of our first and only child. We began the adoption process again two years ago and we are no where close to receiving another gift. We are not asking for any specific type or age and we are going through two private adoption agency’s as well as DHS. My wife and I are Caucasian and our daughter is African American.

It's really sad that people don't understand the reasons for late-term abortion. The majority of these children were wanted children, but something went terribly wrong. To act like these women are just being selfish and don't want to take care of their kids is disparaging.

I think much of this debate is an issue of semantics. I do NOT support abortion, because I value life from conception. I do recognize that others have a different opinion, which I respect. Like most political matters, I think we should leave it to the vote of the people and respect whatever the majority decides.

The interesting thing is that I had a procedure that some might consider a late-term abortion. At 17 weeks pregnant with my second child, we discovered she had a fatal chromosomal disorder and would most likely not survive the pregnancy and definitely wouldn't live more than a few minutes after delivery. When my health grew complicated (and cancer became a serious risk), I was induced at 20 weeks. I was encouraged to receive an "abortion" – which is just a standard D&C (a procedure typically used to remove miscarried fetuses) modified for further developed babies. However, I personally felt strange about that and requested an induction and traditional delivery. In the end, that saved my life, as I nearly bled to death from the induction medication used for both procedures.

Some people might say I had an abortion. I don't think so. I wanted that baby so bad. We took pictures of her (something you can't do with a technical abortion), and we talk of her often. I miss her terribly, but have learned to respect her unique identity. She was never meant for this earth, but I'm thrilled to have given her just under a minute of life, as she took a few shallow breaths before passing.

If anything, my "abortion" made me value life even more than before, if that's possible. Now, I'm pregnant with a third, healthy baby and ecstatic. I can't even imagine choosing to terminate a pregnancy for personal reasons (aside from grave health risks to mother or baby). Knowing how much I love all my children and have loved them from the moment of conception, and knowing the strong desire infertile couples have to give homes to unwanted pregnancies, I just don't see why abortion is such a common choice when there are other, more positive options and outcomes.

Ending a fatal pregnancy is not abortion. Choosing to end a baby's life because it's not practical or convenient is an abortion, because it brings an abrupt end to something that will eventually be a living, breathing, deserving child. It is a mother's right to choose, but I might suggest that anyone who isn't willing to at least see a pregnancy through and then make child placement options is not a true mother.

To the woman who said "I dont' think the government should tell us what we can do. Then they'll be telling us what to wear". Of course the government does already tell us what to do in many areas of our "personal" life and space. Helmets for motorcycle riders, car seatbelts mandatory, car seats for each child until a certain age; occupancy ordinances for your home, having pets registered and vaccinated, etc. So that point is rather weak. The government makes laws and we follow them or pay the consequence. And abortion is now legal in every state so no one's religion is stopping you from getting one if you need to.
Clearly Lynda's baby was seriously deformed and, in these instances, many times nature makes the choice for us and the child is miscarried. But sometimes nature makes mistakes and the mother and father, if he's in the picture, can follow their conscience and do what is right for them. If Lynda cares, she has the support of many ,many people who would have done the same thing.
Having said that, I do suspect that many pregnancies are aborted for convenience, or because of "ooops" sexual activity,
and a broad spectrum of reasons all supported by the law.
However, laws can't change how people feel about abortion and when given a chance will voice their opinion. And those doctors who choose not to perform abortions certainly should have that right to opt out. And those people opposed to it and choose to protest in front of clinics known to provide abortions have a right to do so under the law.
Whoever killed this fine doctor is deranged and, as pointed out by others, committed the very crime he accused the doctor of.
Legal or not, abortion will always be a hot button issue with passionate debate on both sides. Personally, I don't think we're in any danger of the law being overturned in the forseeable future, if ever. It must remain legal to spare women from the dark ages of back alley procedures which put them at terrible risk. Abortion is not a pleasant reality, but it's a necessity.

Most abortions are done on minorties and middle class women with Family incomes less than $60,000. Planned parenthood was started by a racist who wanted to control minority populations and guess what it's working. 40% of all abortions are by black women 20% by hispanic. I am pro choice but think abortion is evil ugly and disgusting. Rich white women love to make it into choice and impowerment which is a lot of nonsense. I think we should work together to reduce abortions to a few thousands a year and not 1,3 million. All pro choicers should look at a fetus at 12 weeks and tell me this is not human life. By the way I am not religious this has nothing to do with religion. I feel sorry for abortion doctors, could you imagine spending everyday killing babies. If it was my job to abort dog or cat fetuses I would want to kill myself for destroying life to make money. How sick is that. Dr Tiller looked like the sadest person that I have ever seen and I bet most abortion doctors are depressed or really cold like the doctor Democratic Liberal News (CNN) had on last night. No reasonable person is happy that Dr Tiller was killed but he should not be glorified like some hero. He is no hero, he destroyed life to earn a living. I would rather dumpster dive or beg for food than to kill animal or human life to earn a living. Have you ever noticed that most pro choicers are angry, you have to be to advocate the termination of life. Even if you call yourself and atheist or agnostic every human being knows in his or her heart there is something more that us whether you want to call it GOD or whatever, whatever it is at a subconsious level we know we shouldn't kill.

Here is the sick irony in the church. You cannot use birth control, but when you don't, you may get pregnant, which for some people is a very non-desirable position to be in, and is a position which cannot be changed even in the best interests for both the mother and the baby. In the end the decision made by the mother is one that is of in the best interests of the baby and the mother. If the mother is young and cannot raise a child with any sort of quality of life, then that is her decision, or if the baby has severe health problems, then why go through the emotionally heartbreaking process of giving birth, and then watching the baby die, or have to survive through the worst kind of adversity.

The only system that could ever work is pro-choice, because there only one person who is in a position to make the best choice, and that is th emother... How can we possibly allow politicians or christian rights groups to make these decisions for us. They have an agenda, so how can they make impartial decisions for the individual? Leave these people alone, my guess is that they are going through a hard enough time as it is without having to battle through the placard waving ignorants at the clinic door. It makes me wonder how far we can fall before people become educated to the wonderfully neat idea of a life without organised religion.

Those who claim to be "right to life" really need to change that to "right to birth".
I often wonder if these folks are open to taking in every child who otherwise be aborted.
If these high-minded folks think that no pregnancy need be aborted because "there are always options", then they should adopt every single one of these births.
Oh, and they get no financial support from the government.

Reading this "discussion," it's obvious how deaf some folks (hardcore pro-lifers) are. Folks: this was a seriously mal-formed baby with zero chance of a meaningful existence on this earth; the mother made a very deliberate, difficult, some would say courageous decision; the physician provided a noble service to a woman–and a child–in need; now, he is mocked in death. It's sick.

I am a pediatrician, by the way. Also a Republican, as if that matters. Ultimately, this issue is politicized, not inherently political.

It's difficult for me to get into an abortion debate because the only people willing to reason seem to be those who fall on the pro-choice side. Pro-lifers seem to take the stance that the louder you are the more right you are. 1. If abortion is murder, so what? Guess what, our legal code gives us the right to defend ourselves and sometimes that unborn baby, viable or not, will quite simply destroy anothers life. If you simply don't care about ruining others lives, which it's clear some pro-lifers do not, I have an interesting solution. All pro-lifers have to register as such and when an unwanted baby comes due a lottery is held. Whoever is drawn has to take the kid. Have a feeling there'll be less pro-lifers out there. 2. Why the fuss over babies that would not have survived? Really, what's the point there? Or does that data just not get inputted past our own sterotype that it's all these irresponsible hussies having all these abortions and no one likes them! Get real folks or at least put some effort into your arguement and research it a bit. I don't think it's asking too much to put some genuine compassion for everyone involved as well as reason into your arguements.

I have had two children and I can't imagine anyone aborting a healthy child. As far as a fetus with medical issues, I personally have two friends who were told their child had a great chance of dying in the womb and one was advised to abort. Both chose to take the small chance they had and both children are now toddlers, defying all odds. The difference however in Lynda's story is that the odds weren't just against her child's survival.There were no odds – their tragic fate was sealed. If there is any chance the child can survive, then the child deserves that chance. That being said, if government forces that choice on a family, government should shoulder the financial burden this will cause on a family with a sick infant. The emotional strain is enough. In a situation such as Lynda's, as when the mother's health is threatened, I feel it's the family's choice. Lynda – I would not call myself 'pro-choice', in fact I lean more toward 'pro-life', however your situation was far outside the boundaries of restraint I personally feel should be placed on this type of decision due to the condition of your child. You should never be forced to make any decision other than what you felt was best for you and your family. Anything other than that is just an inhuman as aborting a late-stage fetus who does have a chance of life outside the womb. Please know there are those of us who understand you have suffered greatly and anyone who can't see that are simply insensitive.

Who are we to decide life or death. Stateically all abortions are more so elective than medically indicated. If the If it where the other way around the argument would not be as intense as it is now. If you find out your child has a defect and you decide to terminate it are you not in effect selective breeding. I can see the value in those pregnancy where there is no chance of fetal survival outside of the womb, but these are the smallest portions of abortions. All others are for the benifit of the woman and not the child.

Um, Beth, just so you know, most doctors will perform amnio and tell you that you should abort a Down's baby, children who lead perfectly fine lives, especially according to them! I definitely wonder what kinds of "quality of life" issues your child would have had. If it helps you to sleep at night thinking you "saved" some poor slob from a miserable life, whatever works for you. And I'm not saying it isn't hard to hear of challenges like this. All I'm saying is that if doctors will recommend aborting a Down's baby, God knows they're not pro-life...and they're certainly not living up to their doctoral motto of "Do NO Harm."

Late-term abortion, for any reason, is murder. End of story.

Growing up in a big family 9 children plus 2 adopted, and while the family I grew up with is not perfect. Still we are truly blessed to have parents who did not abort us. Abortion may be legal but will always be immoral. No amount of legalizations will make it right. I never condone the killing of Dr. Tiller, the person who took his life should be put to justice and at same time Dr' Tiller got his own justice, I think this doctor has played God for a long time, he absolutely has no right to snuff out the life of innocent human beings because he felt they were not perfect, the same thing with these women who decides to terminate their pregnancies. My sister's friend who is a doctor too got pregnant and being already at the prime age, her doctors checked the baby and they said the baby will be abnormal. Her husband also wants the pregnancy terminated after the results. But she prayed hard and decided to keep the baby and turned out the baby was perfect. Healthy or not, who are we to judge and put a timeline for this baby's fate. It is only us humans who put things in categories. Before God we are all created beautiful in his sight.

How sad. I cannot imagine what Lynda must have gone through to decide to give up her child; my heart goes out to her.

First, this is not a case of the mother not wanting her child or accidentally getting pregnant. She felt like she had few options and did what she probably believed was best for her living children. Also, I doubt few people have late-term abortions because they are tired of being pregnant or got pregnant on accident. Most of these people probably got an abortion in the first trimester.

Second, making abortion illegal will not stop people from having abortions and will unfairly victimize mothers who have to make a difficult decision. It takes two to make a baby and men are almost always off the hook. In the case of people accidentally getting pregnant, there would be fewer unwanted pregnancies and thus abortions if everyone took responsibility for themselves. In any case, those needing an abortion for whatever reason will find a way to do it – probably by going abroad and receiving substandard care. We may be paying for abortions now but we will be paying for the care of unwanted children, higher crime, and repairing the damage of poorly performed abortions abroad if it is made illegal.

Finally, as a personal note, I feel very uncomfortable thinking that some person (usually a man) in DC or wherever can dictate what I can and cannot do with my body without any understanding of the situation.

I think the real issue here is how woman are viewed. For all the people who say that women are having these late term abortions due to having second thoughts and doubts have issues with women. No one ever questions the man on what he could have done to prevent a pregnancy. It is always on the woman. While you can say it takes two to tango it is usally the woman alone with a child. If a child is not going to be viable if brought to term then why should we add the stress and risk the mother's health to bring a child into a world that is not going to have a good quality of life or a life while here? Why is it that people are making out these women to be these serial baby killers? I want my 14 month daughter to be able to grow up with not only the choices I had but better ones. If it means talking to kids at a young age about sex education in schools and providing condoms to high school students then so be it. But before you condem a procedure that is providing a service to women's health then you better be ready to come up with alternatives that are benefitial to both mother and child.

Pro-life... just took a life.

Their have put themselves on a Pro-Choice "murder" level.

Let people make their own choices- not every pro-choice person will receive an abortion in their lifetime. We just want to stay free.. It's not hard to understand.

Wow, the ignorance and self righteousness on this page is amazing!

PS. Read the story before you comment!

According to my research, the so-called "partial birth" abortion is never carried out on a viable fetus. Anybody who has seen a picture of a child with anencephaly would not wax as sentimental over its life. It really never has one. If an anencephalic child lives at all, it's not for long and there simply is no brain with which to perceive anything. A planaria worm has more awareness. There are conditions where life is not the friend, and death is not the enemy. Read up on this; do not judge in ignorance.

I am very ambivalent about abortion, but women have always had them. At least now they are safe and legal, or have we all forgotten the picture of the bled-out young woman, dead and deserted in an alley after a botched illegal abortion? There are people who abuse it by being irresponsible about birth control, but they are not the norm. Do we actually believe in penalizing all women who are making difficult choices for the mistakes of the few?

Extremism on either side of this discussion does not result in progress. I believe that there is a middle ground which provides the best solution to the moral and philosophical issues. The problem is finding that middle ground. I believe that unless extraordinary circumstances (rape, stillbirth, severe defects, parental health, etc. ) dictate a late term abortion, they should not be performed as they are morally wrong and a detriment to our society. The death of fully functional human (heart beat, breathing, active brain) is against our laws and morals and handing any human a choice to end anothers life only lies with our justice system and the death penalty (which even this is barred in some states). I am still very open to early to mid abortions but I do not stand as sure of myself of what is right and wrong in that area.

Beth, your comments are particularly disturbing. You talk about how much you wanted and loved your "pregnancy", but your use of this euphemism dehumanizes your child, whom you were complicit in killing, or as you wolud say "terminating". My own child, who was born at 30 weeks gestation and has severe disabilities, is a joy to be with, and has just as much right to a life of dignity as my other three able-bodied children. The fact is that YOU didn't want to be saddled with a problem, not that the child would suffer.

We live in a culture where we are seeing an increase every year in family tragedies, where one parent or both have killed their children.
Why is the message of Life so complicated? When murders take place of whole families, people are so quick to condemn the
"twisted parent" or relative......these children lost their chance to live, grow up and be...hey, why don't we go for the death penalty.....?
Its interesting isn't it?
It is impossible to weed through everyones personal stories and come up with a plan. Despite unusual circumstances – the message should clear – not muddy.
Life is our greatest gift and should be held sacred. This should be the measuring line that we hold to. Life is the mandate and foundation of all that we legislate.
This should not be complicated.

Dr. Tiller's clinic performed an abortion for me. It was the most painful
ordeal mentally and physically. It was not late term and I did not think I could have children. Two nights before the abortion I was at the emergency room and I was threatening a miscarriage, I will be honest and say the doctors told me I had a 50/50 chance of carrying the baby full term, but it was going to be a wait and see pregnacy. At the emergency room I heard the heartbeat of my 8 wk old baby a miracle, a precious gift from God. I'll never know what the end would of brought because I made a decision to have an abortion. Where there is a heartbeat there is life, whether 8 wks or 8 mths. I want you to know before you start passing judgement, before you pierce me in the side, before you nail be to the cross, and before you condemn me to hell. It was the best decision for ME!! One I'll never forget, and a decision I ask God to forgive me for. I think i'm not alone when I say we all have had to ask forgiveness. I know God heard me as I pleaded for mercy and forgiveness of the blood guilt that weighed so heavy on my soul and my heart. I'm not seeking redemption through anyone but Jesus, not only for the abortion but for other things that I have done and should not have. Dr. Tiller did not perform the abortion personally, but I seen him and his disposition was very passionate. I cried uncontrollably on the table before the procedure started, I couldn't breath and the doctor realizing I was alone comforted me and so did one of the nurses whom held my hand. I left there knowing I deserved all the pain and hurt I felt but also feeling that the Doctor and nurses had taken very good care of me.

First, let me say I completely disagree with murdering an abortion doctor – - Pro life means no killing except maybe in self defense. I would give that killer life in prison (Pro-life also means no death penalty).

I'm sorry for the loss of your child. However I believe that late term abortions except in the case of risk to the life of the mother is just wrong – - if the mother is depressed and the baby is viable, then deliver the baby and have it placed in foster care until the mother is better or given for adoption. Anytime the baby can be safely taken and survive outside the womb that should be done. It is as simple as that. I would never tell a woman who's live is in jeoparady that they couldn't do whatever was necessary (even an abortion) in order to save their life.

A baby is not an organ like the appendix – - it has a separate heartbeat, DNA etc. We need to think about our reproductive responsibilities above our rights in this matter. We can agree to disagree and agree to work together to minimize the circumstances in which a woman would feel the need to get any abortion.

I don't know what I would do in her shoes. The baby would never have lived. In Lynda's particular case, any decision would have been heart-breaking. I do not support abortion as birth control. They are all babies to me. I pray that I never find myself in her shoes and have to make that choice.

A healthy 8 month old fetus might be viable, but these fetuses developed a complication of some kind that made them unable to live on their own, and likely to die in the womb endangering the mothers life. Why are people unable to grasp the difference? These were not healthy pregnancies that were terminated, that is exactly the point. How does reading the bible make you an expert on ob/gyn medicine? What makes "Cindy" and "Eddie" and all you other posters (who have clearly not read the article) think you are the supreme ob/gyn put by god on this earth to dispense your wisdom through internet blogs?

The difference between having to decide to take a loved one off of life support and late term abortion is that the loved one on life support dies a natural death once life support is disconnected. You do not put a metal rod into their brain to make sure they die.

An earlier poster said: "Anti-abortionists should turn their anger toward more productive uses, like defending unwanted, handicapped and abused children. These children (many of whom were born because of pressure from the anti-abortion lobby) will suffer daily for the rest of their lives, and society will suffer for having them among us until a whole lot of people make an effort to help them." Society will suffer from the presence of unwanted, handicapped, and abused children?!? My son is handicapped - is "society" worse off because he's alive? Is "society" worse off for the presence of children whose parents abuse them? Is "society" worse off for the presence of children whose parents didn't want them? How cold and sick can you get?

Do you remember the Nazis..."life unworthy of life"? Where do we draw the line? And who are we to determine who is unfit for life?

Lynda,

I will admit: although I am a mother and pro-choice, the issues surrounding late-term abortions always made me uncomfortable.

Thank you for your painful candor. May your experience, one of the most challenging and heart-wrenching you may ever face, enlighten those of us (myself included) who have not grappled with any situation such as yours. My thoughts and prayers are with you and may our president be as enlightened.

Abortion is wrong and so is killing someone who performs it. I do not agree with those who say its is forcing religion on another. No matter what the existing law is, that would be someone forcing their religion on another who disagrees with it. I do think we should have a law to protect the unborn. But I don't think we should kill those who break it. People who live for the pleasures of today should go to the following website and read a free book by Choo Thomas. It has little do do with abortion, but with heaven and hell.
http://99.198.110.36/English/Heaven_is_so_Real_Choo_Thomas.zip
Audio here:
http://99.198.110.36/CD/index.htm

Working in the medical profession, I can absolutely assure you that there are no late term abortions being performed out of "convenience." There are abortions being done out of convenience, but those are always much earlier on. (You tend to figure out much faster that you don't want a baby! No one goes through a pregnancy before they decide that.)

Those of you who are using that argument are simply misinformed. These are very very difficult decisions that a family ever has to make. Some fetuses have no heads, some have no brain, some fetuses are not viable, some will affect a mother's life. This is a decision between a doctor and the patient. No one else has a right to it.

And the man who killed Dr. Tiller – now that's a real murderer – no way around arguing that.

The thing people forget is that God gives us all free will and the ability to make our own decisions. Some people's decisions are to hurt others or rob them of their free will. No one can legislate love and the agonizing decision you had to make to terminate your pregnancy.
Without modern technology you would have expectantly carried the baby full term and then been horribly devastated and hurt on the day the baby was born. I commend you for your brave and difficult decision and I think you exercised the free will God gave you with the utmost care and concern.
You didn't take the easy way out, you took the most difficult path imaginable. God understands the choice you made and has already covered whatever mistakes you might have made with His love and mercy.
Believe me, there are a lot of self righteous people out there judging you for the choice you made who would not for one instant want their own secrets exposed.

Abortion is murder. Make no bones about it. But there are justifiable reasons why one has the right to commit murder, such as self defense. And when carrying a non-viable fetus to term could very well put the life of the mother in jeopardy, then it is both medically and ethically sound to end the pregnancy. I can think of no doctor on the planet who would disagree.

But we must be careful of the slippery slope we face with this decision. At what point do we consider a fetus "non-viable"? Unable to survive to term? Able to survive to term, but severely developmentally disabled? Mild birth defects or retardation? Chronic genetic disabilities like ALS, Down Syndrome or Cystic Fibrosis? Autism, even mild forms like Ausberger's? Propensity towards several forms of cancer? Genetic markers that indicate psychotic, antisocial or psychopathic behavior? Red hair and blue eyes?

This is the grey area and the ground where medical professionals tend to disagree. The bottom of this arguement ends up with a eugenics program where any child who does not fit to perfection is aborted. Not really a new policy, since we see examples in history, such as the Spartans who would leave babies born with defects to die of exposure rather than waste resources on imperfection. How would someone like Stephen Hawking have survived in this world? Think of the many great minds who suffer from debilitating chronic genetic disorders who would not be with us because their mothers took a genetic sample and decided they did not want to be burdened with their child's problems?

We argue about choice and rights, but we never give nearly as much thought to life. Yes, we have the right to choose, but please, choose wisely, because life is such a precious thing, and it was the greatest gift our mothers gave to us. Give me a life full of burdens, if there is no other choice, because I would rather have the burdens than to have no life at all.

Let me further clarify that I'm refering to partial birth abortion of a viable fetus. Not the situation in which the fetus is not viable. That is not the circumstance with which people have issue. It is the killing of a vialbe child that is not excusable under any curcumstances.

In the mid 1940s, my Mother had a baby; it died about a month before it was delivered. According to my Grandmother, the baby girl was decomposing. My mother almost died and was hospitalized for 4 weeks, due to toxins being put out by the decaying fetus. That was before sonograms and induced labor. There was nothing the doctor was able to do other than wait for Mother to deliver a dead baby.

A few years later, I was born, and was healthy, but she never tried again for fear of her life because there were no options, just shocks and surprises.

When I was in High School in the early 60s, a lady at church delivered a baby that had only a brain stem–no head. That was before options and sonograms. It was a terrible experience.

A teacher friend's daughter had a late term abortion. The baby died at 7 months, sonograms showed it had no spine.

I am a trained teacher and expect a trained doctor to make decisions about health matters, just like I do on school matters. Would my neighbors tell me what do to in the classroom? Why would they tell a doctor what to do?

Here's the problem I have with abortion in general (and no, I'm not religious). A woman can legally walk into a clinic and end a pregnancy without anyone batting an eyelash. But if that same woman were a victim of a crime in which the baby was killed, the perpetrator could be, and likely would be charged with homocide of that unborn child, even if he was not aware the woman is pregnant. How can we reconcile those two concepts?

I believe abortion has a place in medicine, but it should be regulated and NOT used as a form of birth control.

If you so wanted and loved your "Baby" why would you let someone go inside you and cut your so much 'loved' child up taking it out piece by peice?? Why not opt for having the baby delivered by c-sect since the baby is not viable outside the womb you could still spend that time with your baby in one piece seeing how perfect everything was wondering made again this was a 'wanted' child. Have a proper burial for your "Wanted and Loved Baby" rather than have it wrapped up in some garment and thrown away like yesterdays trash???
I know a mother who was told that her baby was a "water head baby" called hydrocephalus, which is a collection of fluid in the brain. And that she should abort her child because the baby would not be "viable" she decided to still have her baby (she wanted and loved hers too) and you know now that baby is now a 27 year old women!!
You people never seize to amaze me.

It is a terrible tragedy to carry a baby, then find out that the baby is not viable outside the womb. I couldn't even imagine the heartache...

However, as a mother of a baby who was born at 26 weeks gestation, it is absolutely clear to me that mothers should NOT be forced to choose whether they need to end the life of their baby prematurely or let nature takes it course. Granted doctors can give their educated input as to what they think is best for the baby and mother, however, they are not God and they should not put themselves in the position to decide such things.

There is a HUGE difference between your child being born and dying of natural causes and being the one who literally decides to end your baby's life. This is not a "choice", it's actually a huge curse on the mother to have to decide when, where, and how their baby will die while in utero. There is no place for such a decision to be pondered unless the mother's life is in danger.

This is not a simply a "religious" decision. We have laws in this country to protect the rights of the individual, and if we do not stand up for the rights of babies then our country is slipping down a very dangerous slope.

As for my extremely premature daughter, she is now 7 years old and enjoying the gift of life that God gave her. I can't imagine this world without her precious existence. = )

I don't know how many of the posters ACTUALLY read the letter that was written to President Obama from the woman being interviewed, but it is powerful. Very powerful.

I am personally against late term abortions (anything greater than 12 weeks is late term to me because of the advanced in utero development). I do have exceptions: mother and child life threatening issues (like those that are described within this letter).

I find that most people that are for abortion are also for the death penalty, against social services (welfare) and can't understand why poor people are poor. Can't they just pull themselves up by their boot straps? It is ignorant to say that all of these things are not connected.

I do not think that abortion is the answer, but a matter of last resort. An extreme matter of last resort. If we as a nation want to be against abortion (the type of abortions that include the stereotypes used for birth control) than we need to step back and look at the ROOT CAUSE of them and the collective that have them, and I do not include those women who must have them for medical reasons.

New Rules:
1. All the people who insist that severely compromised fetus' be carried to term and forced to live by artificial means must immediately have their taxes raised by 75% to cover the astronomical medical fees of caring for said children.

2. All pro life people must also sacrafice working full time so they can take shifts changing diapers and feeding tubes for these children in vegetative states.

3. All pro-life people who are using God as the basis for their pro-life stance need to produce a signed document from their so-called God that proves that he/she/it decrees that keeping a human being alive by artificial means is "natural" and is not, in itself, just humans "playing God".

4. All pro-life people must agree that we will stop all wars and genocide immediately. Taliban and Al Queda are, after all, human and to kill them is murder. (Doesn't your God agree with me?)

5. All pro-life people must agree that it is ok for us to pass laws that dictate you must spend 40% of your take home pay on social programs because if the government can make decisions about our bodies, then they can also make decisions about everything else in our lives.

It's a good thing your mother didn't believe in abortion. One chance at life is all anyone has.

As a Catholic I'm very, very torn on this issue...I feel compelled to support the right to life however, I struggle in the instance that the mother's life would be compromised. I just had a baby and can't even begin to imagine the pain associated with losing a baby not matter if my life were saved. However, I disagree with aborting babies because "they're going to die anyway". If they are going to die anyway let God do his work and let them go peacefully and not at the hand of humans. It will be excrutiatingly painful regardless but I personally would feel better knowing that God took my baby and not a doctor.

Charles wrote: Human death is human death. When it’s caused willingly by another human outside the realm of war, it’s called “murder”.

How easily you make war an acceptable zone for killing of fully viable adults. It boggles the mind.

My sister-in-law was told late in her pregnancy that her child's heart was badly malformed, wasn't working well at all, and that the baby if not stillborn would die shortly after birth. No question about it.
Every doctor she saw recommended an abortion.
She went with her instincts, though, and had her baby anyway.
That baby is now a beautiful woman in her late 20s and she's always had a perfectly normal heart. Apparently all the tests, the Ultrasounds, the consensus of the doctors was wrong.
Thank heavens the mom didn't kill this precious baby.

It truly shocks and saddens me on every level.

The Murder of this doctor is totally wrong.
Murder on any level is wrong. This man will reap what he has sown
So i am a firm believer on this. Yes I am Pro Life.

Today Life in America is Cheap.
Life is only protected when it crosses the birth canal.
However the same Life if it is still in the birth canal or in the womb. Cannot be named and is a piece of flesh. A Fetus is not a baby.

The Millions of Babies that have been aborted cries out to me just as much as the 6 Million Jews, and Millions of others who have been mudered and slaughtered for the name of convenience, ideals, religion.

Why would any mother of a baby have a late term abortion anyway.

Why? If the mother's life was in danger have a C Section and give the baby away do not break it's skull and suck it's brains through a tube or break it's neck in the womb.

Why? would she kill life anyway. It is amazing how we take care of dogs, cats, and criminals in the justice system better than the unborn citizens in the Womb. We are truly depraved

My heart breaks on how sick we have become as a people.
The writer says nothing is new under the sun– it has all happened before. All the great cultures, empires, kingdoms, who have gone before us. When they reached their Zenith they turned aside from Absolutes and created Situational Ethics which turned into the destroying of their society. Absolute Truth and Morality is no more.
In practice in our society when the frailest of our species are treated no more than a unnamed cancer that has to be removed from the womb. Just because People feel it is okay to do it does not mean it is right.

I am quite sure that Jeffery Dahmer, Ted Bundy, Stalin, and Hitler all felt as if their policies of killing and murdering the innocence were the best thing for their society.

Final Thoughts
I pray that all of us will have a wake up call and realize You cannot avoid Consequence. If you sin, slip up, do what you want to do, not work, don't study, steal, lie, and murder there is a consequence.

God Forgive Us for what we have done and become.
May we return to the Absolutes

My mother-in-law was pregnant in her mid 40s. Concerned with complications they did an X-Ray (they didn't do ultrasounds then) and found a baby with 1 torso, 1 hearbeat, but 4 arms, 4 legs and 2 heads. My mother-in-law was told the baby was terribly deformed, would be an incredible burden (if it lived) and urged her to have an abortion. After much prayer she and her husband decided that they, with God's help, would care for whatever came. On her due date, they were shocked to find not one, but two perfectly healthy babies whose hearts beat in perfect rhythm. One of those babies is now my wife.

Abortion should not be allowable even if the doctor thinks something is terribly wrong with the baby. Maybe this same thing wouldn't happen now with new technology, but whose to say that if there is an illness, there may be a cure that comes out soon after birth? Its not up to us to decide who lives and who dies ... ever. If we ever make a special case, then that just opens the room for more and more special cases, which is what we've got now.

I know it's a heart-wrenching issue. I feel great compassion for those who have had abortions and are now torn apart by their decision, just as I feel great compassion for those who have decided to not to abort a deformed or permanently ill child and their entire life is turned upside down. But what if the child develops leukemia at 1 day old and you know she's going to suffer and die. Do you abort the child then? Of course not! Why should it be different before the child is born. Life is never a gray area.

No one should have someone else's religion or morals forced apon them. This is a basic free to choose issue. If a mother finds out at eight or eight-and-a-half months that a baby is going to be born with a defect, then she has a right to choose if she wants to go forward with the birth. In the same vein. if at some point a woman decides that her husband has a defect, then she should be able to have a hole punched in the back of his head and end the marriage. A husband should have the same right to have this done to his wife if he believes she is defective. What's the difference? That's what's being done to the innocent baby that they created. If this is a right, why not give it to everyone?

The gov't should not oppose someone else's religion on me - I am going to keep on smoking pot, eating peyote, having multiple wives, sacrificing animals, and killing virgins just like my god wants me to do.

Clearly ths woman did the right thing

Speaking as someone with extensive interaction with religious people, (formerly in the ministry), I can attest that most of these folk suffer from a mania that makes independent thought almost impossible. They simply parrot the religious views that they have been taught. It is (sadly) impossible for them to understand the thoughtful, scientific/medical, rational reasons that might be put forward for late term abortions. Certainly, rational people realize that late term abortion is a heart wrenching decision for a woman at such a late stage of her pregnancy and always involves very serious viability issues for the fetus and health concerns for the mother – people caught up in a religious mania are by definition unable to be rational! Forgive them; they know not what they do...

Lynda Waddington never had a "late term abortion". According to her own article Obama's late term abortion comments ignore stark realities. Ms. Waddington states that her baby died in utero before any procedure was done. She also misleads people into thinking that the ban on partial birth abortion makes MD's cut up babies to deliver them.

Partial birth abortion is a procedure where a viable baby's head is delivered. The child is alive and the brains and eyes are sucked out of its head, then the rest of the body is delivered. This procedure is outlawed in the United States and rightly so.

The left does a great disservice to all women by perpertating lies concerning this issue.

Oh and just because we are pro-choice does not make us anti-life!!!

I work in a group home for severely developmentally challenged adults. They are people with feelings, unique personalities, and emotions who respond to loving kindness just like anyone else. Just because they don't have a high IQ and/or are physically compromised does not mean their life is worth less than mine. Folks, this is a slippery slope to have people making decisions as to the value of a life. Let's face it. These late term abortion decisions are made because this child will be an expense and an inconvenience to their families and society. To consider also is how many times the medical community has been wrong in its diagnosis. A young woman I know was told twice that she was carrying a blighted ovum and was being encouraged to have a D&C to end the pregnancies. She decided to let nature take it's course and now has two beautiful, normal little boys.

Although I disagree with Dr. Tiller's practice I am nevertheless outraged and saddened that anyone would take it upon themselves to take his life. It is clearly murder. I am also perplexed that people are not equally outraged at the killing of babies at any stage in their development but especially late term. Let them be born and if they should die let the natural grieving process begin with the peace and knowledge that everything possible was done to respect that life. For those that survive let us as a society rally around and offer whatever care and provision is needed thus giving prupose to the caregivers as well as those in care. As a society our ultimate strength rests only in how we treat our weakest and most vulnerable members.

How can the Lutheran Church condone and allow Tiller to serve in any capacity in the church? I have always thought the church of my father, Lutheran, beleived in the Ten Commandments; the first being,"Thou shalt not kill".

Blaine Lavergne, for a physician you're not very smart. You say abortion is murder, but mention nothing about situations where a mother and or the child will die. Is it murder to save one of their lives, the mother's? Should we just let both of them die during labor?

Kansas law stated that in order to do late-term abortions 1) the mother or child's life must be in danger. Dr. George Tiller was recently acquitted of 19 claims of wrong-doing. That means he only did late-term abortions in circumstances where one of the patient's lives were in danger.

I'd hate to be your pregnant wife in a situation like that. You'd rather have both your wife & baby die when one of the lives could be saved. I'm glad your extremist views aren't law.

you people are all crazy. .....you all say "did you even read the article, did you read her letter??? The baby was going to die after birth anyway so she had a late term abortion."...grow up...next you will be killing off your grandparents because they may be developing Alzheimer. Get real. This country is full of spoiled brats who need there pampered lifestyles to stay in check. Murder is murder is murder.

If the guy who shot the doctor would have shot this lady also the day before she had her abortion he'd be charged with 3 murders, now hows that work?

To add on to my original comment...I understand that not all of the babies will "go peacefully". However, I still feel that aborting a baby because "it's going to die anyway" is wrong. I feel that it is wrong but struggle with the governement making this decision for families.
Also, I think Joe makes a good point in a few comments above this one.
My heart goes out to all mothers out there who have made this extremely hard decision. While I don't agree I would never shun you for doing what you felt was best. Like I said, I just had a baby and can't even begin to imagine life without him now and can't even begin to imagine what you went through. May the peace of God be with you.

Getting an abortion is a difficult decision no matter what the reasons are. Look at logic...The state has no right to be a part of the decision. We live in a country that has a separation of religion and state. Abortion is a decision made by a woman who has to figure it out for herself with her religion (or no religion if she doesn't have one). She has to make the decision (with or without a husband, boyfriend or family involved) considering her own religious beliefs. The state should not be involved in the decision on any level. The state has no religion to guide it, the state is made up of people with different religions so it – the state – doesn't get to force or put any one religious belief on anyone.
The state does not participate in any other religious beliefs such as baptisms, prayer or other sacramental rituals. The state cannot force us to be in a religion or not have a religion. That is why it is separate. It is not pro-life or pro-choice, it is simply a pregnant woman with her own conscious and beliefs, with guidance from those she seeks out doing what she believes is right. Keep the state out of our private lives.

Dave G. I don't understand your comment, "It’s a good thing your mother didn’t believe in abortion." Many prochoice women don't ever have abortions and many who do go on to have loving happy families. What's your point?

Wow. Not a single "pro-lifer" bothered to read Lynda's story.
Not a single "pro-lifer" bothered to read the comments posted by other former patients.
Not a single "pro-lifer" bothered to look up the medical facts behind what Dr. Tiller was doing.
And almost every "pro-lifer" said "I don't agree with the shooting BUT...."

You people are not "pro-life". You are liars and you are now murderers eight times over. At least half of you totally dismissed all medical facts and repeated the lies you've been fed. No regard at all for the "lives" you claim to hold sacred.

God help us all.

Abortion is not a religious issue; it's a moral issue. No more than 5% of abortions performed in this country each year are for reasons due to rape, incest, or the health of the mother. The remaining abortions are elected purely out of convenience and selfishness. Ours is a culture of "I want whats best for me." If it's inconvenient or stands to get in the way of what we want, we take the path of least resistance. Let's face up to it folks; the morality of our society is messed up! We like to call evil good and good evil. The majority of abortions perfomed in this country each year are due to the fact that someone wanted sex, had sex, got pregnant, and now wants to dispose of the resulting child. For that small majority that choose abortion due to rape, incest, or dangers to health, I would grieve with you, but to the rest, shame on us for so easily discarding a generation of sons and daughters.

I submit the comments made by Chad are a perfect representation of the religious mania functioning in the human psyche. The same sort of arguments are used to keep people on life support when their brains are obviously too injured to maintain life. The ridiculous comparisons to Hitler or to serial killers enable the dehumanization of the rational person by the irrational.

Chad, I know you don't understand this – indeed – at this point probably can't even think about it, but the sorts of arguments you make are what enable people to think it is OK to kill those their religion tells them are 'evil doers.' It makes me weep because there is little hope of even reaching you within the mania... Religion has a beauty – but the ugliness is so easily slipped into...

The comment that 80% of late abortions are "elective" simply means they aren't medically *necessary* (that is, they aren't immediately life-threatening). In the same way, lots of other surgeries are "elective." Back surgeries, for example. Tonsillectomies, usually. If you're willing to continue living with pain or illness as the alternative, the surgery is medically "elective." WHO gets to make that decision?... and WHY?

Nearly 2/3 of women who have abortions already have at least one child who depends on them. As a mom, I can't imagine risking the future of the child I already have to continue an unplanned or dangerous pregnancy. I think THAT would be irresponsible.

Everyone jumped on the "Octomom" for being irresponsible - having more children than she could support. But if she chose to have an abortion instead, she'd be accused of selfishness. This is pure hypocrisy. You can't have it both ways.

Late abortions are almost always the result of serious illness or complications. Most of these began as wanted pregnancies. They break the hearts of women and families who have to make incredibly difficult, selfLESS decisions. Shame on anyone who stands in ignorant judgment of their motives and experiences. And thank God for brave souls like Dr. Tiller (and a few precious others) who are willing to help.

Just asking questions:

Is the baby only the mothers or a mixture of the father/mother.

Does a man have any rights to the life of a baby.

If a woman wants an abortion, she can do it against the wishes of the father. If she has the child, the man is responsible for the cost of raising that child.

A woman is allowed to have an abortion to terminate the babies life, but if the baby dies in an auto accident, The other driver can be charged with murder.

BG, are you really comparing war to abortion? Congratulations moron, you just posted the most idiotic post on here. Yes, if i child is in the womb with an RPG rocket launcher threatening to blow both itself and the mother apart, then yes she may abort it... Its a good thing you arent in control of this country... wait if you were we wouldnt have a country... remember when we fought the british for freedom to become a country. Tyrrany and threats to our ways of living are a little different than an innocent little child with a future and a purpose. Quit letting your blind-led fear of God stand in the way of your good judgement...

So Beth,

In other words, rather than risk the chance that your child might have survived and been an inconvenience to you and your husband you sought out the services of Dr. Tiller to ensure that the child's chances of survival were guaranteed to be zero.

The many "excuses" on here about a child growing up without a quality of life are asinine. Are we permitted to terminate the life of a fully developed child or an adult after they have been mentally and/or physically disabled as a result of an accident, violence, war, or etc? Then why should the result be any different for the unborn human being?

I will never forget being at Disneyland with my kids about a year ago and watching a wheelchair being pushed toward me through the crowd by a group of people that I can only assume were the family of the woman in the chair. I will never forget the sight of the woman in the chair - she appeared clearly, mentally and physically disabled. As her wheelchair was pushed by me I saw tears streaming down the happy face of a woman who I would guess was in her late-30's and she was tightly clutching to her chest with both arms a plush Disney character as though she were the same age as my then-3-year-old.

I remember thinking at that moment how great God is and how the value of human life may not always be neatly revealed to us.

I'm quite sure that Dr. Tiller and countless numbers of parents summarily forclosed the same opportunity for others that this woman's parents afforded her. Certainly, to her (and I'm sure to her family, and to me) her life was not worthless or lacking in quality.

Way to say it Kitty.

I had to decided weither to save my life or kill myself and my unborn child. I have 2 kids that needed a mom. I was pregnant with our third and had to terminate. I did not have a late term abortion, I was only 8 weeks pregnant and had to mis-carry. They had to give me a shot to mis-carry. I had a corneal eptopic pregnancy. For those idiots who do not know what that is, the egg attached so high in the uterus that if it continued to grow, my uterus would have ruptured killing me and the fetus immediately. My fetus had a heartbeat and shape. I heard it and saw it on the screen beating, my little bean, the nubs of the arms and feet, the head. That was over a year ago and I am still depressed about what I had to do. I had no other option like so many people on this bored said about giving birth or die trying. I had 2 other kids at home who needed their mom. I was not going to kill myself and leave my other 2 children motherless. I made a choice and I have to live with it, I know it was right because everytime I look at my kids I realize, that I made the right choice.

Women like me who have to have a miscarriage/abortion or whatever you want to call it, struggle our whole lives with this. I am still not over it, nor will I never be.

Lynda's baby had no head and skull. It didn't have a brain to know anything, see, hear, listen, it was a dead fetus. No soul, no life, no matter what god or religon you preach too, there was nothing there. All it was doing was draining the life out of her.

My heart goes out to M.P. and all other mothers who have to struggle day in and day out with their decisions. When it is medically necessary to have one to save the mothers life, then who are you to judge them. NO ONE!!!

The government should allow sex education in school, offer free condoms in the counslers office and off the Plan B pill.

Does the baby have a right to be born? Did this spirit decide to have this particular body? What right does anyone have to decide wether someone lives or dies? Are people playing god when they decide who lives or dies? I think only God can decide these matters. When we take these decisions as our own, we will face the judgements for our choices when we face God after this life.
The only choice we really have is wether to create life or not to create life. After it is created, it's a little late to be thinking about destroying it.

This is not a religious issue. I am an atheist who generally wants government out of our lives both economically and socially, but there is no sound rationale for the law to distinguish between a pre-birth baby and a post-birth baby.

To be consistent with other laws relating to a right to life, a fetus should be protected once it has a functioning heard and brain. The only reasonable exception is when the mother is likely to be killed by the fetus, since abortion is then an act of self-defense.

Lynda's logic is distorted by emotion: by her reasoning, a parent could kill a child of any age if that child's existence were deemed by mother and doctor to potentially result in suicidal depression.

Legalized abortion of healthy fetuses in otherwise civil societies is, arguably, the single most tragic and barbaric practice in the history of mankind. In terms of numbers, it trumps scores of other human atrocities combined. Hard not to be a "one issue" voter on this one...

This isn't about respecting another's way of life or imposing one's 'religious' view(s) on another. It's not about a governments right to meddle in our personal lives or even (and this may make some angry) empowering women. Whether you're a liberal or independent, an Agnostic, Muslim, or Scientologist, the focal question that needs to be answered is... "Is this murder?" If a consensus can be found on the answer to this question, there will be peace. Neither side should demean the proposition at hand by claiming it a 'religious' or 'political' agenda. Lessons from history demand our solemn consideration that as precedence is set in law, our answer to this question will determine our answers and actions for questions to come. So, pro-lifer's and pro-choice, I want to know what you think. Is this murder?

Lynda's experience is one of those situations where abortion may be medically necessary. Anencephaly is a tragic malformation of the baby and there is no hope of survival. So I don't understand why she felt she had to write to President Obama about it, because it falls under the classification of medically necessary. There was no hope for that infant.

But If she walks up to people and tells them, "I had a late term abortion" and then walks away without explaining it... Well, what is the motivation for that behavior anyway? Is she deliberately looking for negative attention? That seems a little bizarre if you ask me.

I do understand that it's difficult – if not impossible – to get the fanatics to understand the fine points. I'm pro-life, but the case with Terri Schaivo was maddening because the girl was brain-dead. In fact, she was without a brain. And the autopsy confirmed it, but the fanatics wouldn't believe a word of it. They jumped to all kinds of conclusions and didn't even bother to read all the background of that case. The Schaivo case happened in our local area, so we knew all the fine points of the problem because our local news media was very thorough.

But the national news published the highlights, and it seemed to me they deliberately stirred the pot of controversy. So people from all over, who knew very little about it, came HERE to demonstrate and carry on. I will never support a few "Christian" ministries again because of how they went off half-cocked and didn't bother to investigate the facts of the case.

Maybe this is why Lynda is defensive: because there are some people who don't want to understand and never will understand that Lynda's pregnancy was one of those borderline cases. She didn't do anything morally wrong, but she'll never convince the fanatics of that.

This is my third and final comment – after reading several other comments and thinking about how much I love my precious baby boy it occured to me that I would die a million deaths if it meant that my child would be spared in any situation and would grow up happy and healthy. Could I have made this decision while my baby was in utero and my life was in danger? I don't know...but I feel that it is morally wrong to purposfully end one life to spare another. I agree with the comment above in that if a person murdered a pregnant woman they would be tried for double homicide so what gives any human the right to take a life in any situation?

All of these arguments from both sides are moot. I've read them all.
Look at history. Abortion has been around (in one form or another) for thousands of years. Sometimes it was legal, sometimes it wasn't. But it was (and is) always a sticky subject. The same arguments have been fought throughout history. Humanity never changes.
So, what we have to do here is take a look at America's history at a time before abortion was legal. What happened? Well, abortions didn't stop, thats for sure, they just went underground. And what happened to those women and babies? Often, they both died.
What this debate is actually about is this: no matter how much people might want it to stop, abortion will not go away. What you are choosing between is having the baby die in a medical procedure, or having both of them die in a chop shop.
I understand both sides of the debate. I really do. But, in the end, you have to think of the consequences of what you are abdicating for. By all means, keep fighting for what you believe in, both sides. We are nothing without beliefs, myself included. Just realize the consequences of what you are doing.

Many of the posts here – on both sides of the debate – paint the issue as black and white. It's a little more complex than that. But here are some thoughts for consideration.
- Some posts state that pro-life proponents try to "force their religion" on women. This isn't simply a religious issue. Our Declaration of Independence states that all Americans "are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness". Shouldn't the most vulnerable in our society, a viable, 22 month old fetus be granted these same rights?
- This is one of the hot button issues in our country, yet the media refuses to report the details of abortion procedures for late-term abortions. Here is a description of 2 forms of abortion used in late-term pregnancies (source: MCCL.org):
• Dilation and Evacuation (D&E): Sharp-edged instruments are used to grasp, twist and tear the baby’s body into pieces, which are then removed from the womb.
• Saline instillation: Salt water is injected into the womb through the mother’s abdomen. The unborn baby swallows this fluid, is poisoned and dies in a process that sometimes takes 24 hours. The toxic saline solution causes severe burns over the unborn child’s entire body.
Certainly there are situations in which the mother's life is at risk, and must be protected. We need a culture that values life, and cooperatively works toward and end to "pro-choice vs. anti-choice" rhetoric.

it is wrong and un-ethical. not to far from the definition of murder. should be banned and deemed illegal in this country

For those that end a pregnancy with no complications, it's murder.
For those that end a pregnancy with complications, it's still murder.
To end a human life by the hands of another is murder.

Don't believe everything a doctor tells you, there have always been miracles they could not explain. Their jobs are to save lives, not to murder people. Just because they say there is a chance the mother or baby is in danger, does not mean that the life of the baby or mother should be killed.

If your baby will truly not survive outside of the womb, don't stop showing your love to that baby, and carry him/her peacefully until they depart this world. You will understand after that. God will bless you.

Even though he murdered, it is very sad that Dr. Tiller was murdered.

In reading these various comments, it is interesting to note that people read what they wanted to read in Ms. Waddington's article. For those who are pro-choice, they sympathized with the agonizing decision she and her family made; those who are pro-life felt she killed her fetus because the pregnancy was a nuissance.

And that is my main issue with the pro-life movement - they are quick to judge and condemn without knowledge of the facts and very non-committal with the support (financially and emotionally) once the fetus is born.

Wow...joe pretty much summed it up better than anybody else on here. What a well thought out answer. He didn't use hate speech, but pure fact and rationale. Way to go joe!!! Dr. Tiller did not deserve to die.

Lynda's story is moving and made me cry. I'm amazed by the growing number of stupid comments from religious freaks against abortion. In this country stupidity is growing exponentially now. It looks scary.

First of all(leaving emotional aspect aside) strictly speaking from pure logical,rational & scientifc perspective, any system(including science & religion and all others in between the two) should take into account the general & special cases(all possible scenarios). This requires lot of intellect and i don't expect some conservative nut cases, who argue blindly and take in a literal sense "ignorance is bliss", to possess any of these intellectual powers.

Just based on this one statement, a woman has the right to terminate or carry to term her pregnancy. I don't think any sensible woman(with atleast some brain cells left) considers abortion as a comic to fiddle with.

All religious nut cases, here is a question for you: Since you don't have logical/scientific(&also spiritual) thinking, am giving you information: 30% of all conceptions end in spontaneous abortions.Meaning even the woman may not notice/realize. Half of which is due to severe chromosomal abnormalities. If life begins at conception, who kills the foetus at this very very very early developmental stages of the embryo? The fetus itself or God? Think twice before you open your mouth.

"Americans for justice" don't quote Einstein & his theory without knowing Physics. Your idea of "great men" needs to be defined first!
Einstein sought peace all his life. Edward Teller was directly/indirectly responsible for many deaths. His actions were running contrary to his ideas of a "disinterested scientist". So don't put Einstein on the same pedestal as Teller or Mohammad Ali or Winston Churchill. It looks ridiculous & shows ignorance.

If Einstein had not come up with E=mc**2, two other guys(namely Hendrik Lorentz, & Henri Poincare) were close and definitely one would have arrived at it. The greatness of Einstein lies not in Special Theory of Relativity(E=mc**2 is a part of this theory) but in General Theory of Relativity. Quantum physics and relativity run in opposite directions. They don't meet. It's like abortion & anti-abortion groups. Just joking! Actually people who do research in Relativity and those in Quantum are freinds at personal level. They only argue at research level. They don't shoot each others out as was done in Dr Teller's case. Hope his soul rest in peace with the thout that there are many women backing him and what services he offered.

Einstein(thought more about Quantum than his own thoery) and Bohr(Guru of Quantum Interpretation) tried to convince the other without any success untill their death.

In the medical field there is no cure for "most" of the diseases. Because they don't look at the cause. If you look only at the effect(symptoms), you can only treat the disease. In order to find a cure, the mind/research needs to be focused on the "why/cause".

A woman & her family, doctor should take the decisions for the betterment of the mother,family and the baby. Because at the end of the day, its the woman who has to manage her baby(dead/newborn) and face whatever the consequences may be.

Lynda chose the right one(in my view). Let God decide/judge our actions. When people start juding others, they act as if they are Gods and they contradict their own religious/spiritual beliefs. Live happily & let others live happily. Science & religion are inter-related but the drawback is no religious/spiritual person can prove the existence of God(feeling God is different from seeing God, i see Him in all forms but haven't seen Him yet); similarly no scientific person can disprove the existence of God.

Religious people who do blind worship without thinking: You know why it is called "self-realization?" Think over it.

Finally think it this way. A glass that is half full/half empty scenario. Those who want to see it half empty are entitled to do so;same way those who want to see it half full are also entitled to their perception. As long as one is happy with one's perception, it shouldn't matter to the rest. A true religious/spiritual person should never force his beliefs on anyone else. One can give advice/opinions/views but its upto the other person to take it or leave it. One should be prepared to accept that.

Einstein: Science without religion is lame; Religion without Science is blind.

I think it is funny how all people opposed to this story didn't read or understand the story, think their story is the same...but they did the right thing, believes god is going to produce a brain for this child once it was born because.....I assume that because you all assume if she carried the baby all the way it would have lived. Read the damn story and understand it she didn't abort because she didn't want a disabled child it didn't have a whole brain to live on its own with. Oh and you miracle story bs of how you carried your baby to term against your doctors orders doesn't move anyone at all!
You are not understanding the situations these people are going through. You are not willing to adopt every unwanted baby. You never talk about babies that are born unwanted and then beat to death or thrown from cars cause that is way more humane than an abortion. You know what is the one thing that gets me about people who argue against abortion is they have to use made up facts and mislabeled pictures to make a point. I have seen what you think a first trimester baby looks like and when you see you pictures and models against the real thing you understand that the only way you people make any point is with scare tactics!

Are late-term abortions ever performed on healthy fetuses or only on severely deformed ones? In the cases where the mother's life is in danger, wouldn't a C-section be performed where both mother and baby would have a chance at life?

Growing up in a big family 9 children plus 2 adopted, and while the family I grew up with is not perfect. Still we are truly blessed to have parents who did not abort us. Abortion may be legal but will always be immoral. No amount of legalizations will make it right. I never condone the killing of Dr. Tiller, the person who took his life should be put to justice and at same time Dr' Tiller got his own justice, I think this doctor has played God for a long time, he absolutely has no right to snuff out the life of innocent human beings because he felt they were not perfect, the same thing with these women who decides to terminate their pregnancies. My sister's friend who is a doctor too got pregnant and being already at the prime age, her doctors checked the baby and they said the baby will be abnormal. Her husband also wants the pregnancy terminated after the results. But she prayed hard and decided to keep the baby and turned out the baby was perfect. Healthy or not, who are we to judge and put a timeline for this baby's fate. It is only us humans who put things in categories. Before God we are all created beautiful in his sight.

What is wrong with you people who screen these comments!!! What is wrong with my article????? you do not publish it here???? Are you afraid of truth??????? Just a thought, if you did publish it then sorry.. If not.... why?????

Hi Anderson, for the benefit of those who don’t know all the facts surrounding Ms. Waddington’s abortion, would it be possible for you (and maybe Dr. Gupta or another doctor) to discuss anencephaly (what it is, how soon it can be diagnosed or seen in the ultrasound, etc.)? Maybe even show pictures of what it looks like (of course, warn them that they may be graphic). It seems to me that a lot of people are making judgments without knowing all the facts. I would then be interested in asking viewers: If you were in Ms. Waddington’s shoes, what would you do?

Lilibeth
Edmonds, Washington

Many women in this horrible position have to ask themselves- what is more humane for a child that has no chance of life? Is it to stop the heart while the fetus is safe and warm inside a loving mother, or force it to suffer for minutes, seconds, or hours, with needles shoved into its arms, hooked up to a respirator, and trapped in a plastic box alone and suffering, with no chance of long-term life.

NO ONE who faces that choice should be judged by anyone, and anyone who thinks they have the right to do so should be ashamed for trying to punish these poor women and their families more than they have already suffered. Lydia, and many many women like her, choose to limit the suffering of a living thing. Are you doing the same? Whether you think that living thing is a person or a fetus, these women show incredible strength and compassion through their own private pain.

Shame on those of you trying to add to their suffering. Leave them alone and thank your lucky stars every day that you haven't had to walk in their shoes. Heaven knows you might find that black and white start looking pretty gray.

It is not about murder and is about religion...One person's "baby" is another person's mass of cells that doesn't mean anything more to them than a skin tag. Might sound rough but until a person is born (which requires a woman to carry the person in her womb and birth the person) into the world, the "baby" or mass of cells doesn't have any rights. Religions differ on when a person is a person, many religions don't believe a person becomes a person until the person has lived outside the womb for a year. Many "babies" or masses of cells die in petrie dishes waiting to be inserted into women's wombs, do we call doctors that practice in-vitro fertilization murderers? Many women conceive but the embryo does not attach to the lining of the womb so it passes out of the woman – does the woman get charged with murder for this occurrence?

To say that abortion has always been around, as a justification for its legality is absurd. In that case, legalize the murder of adults and allow women to kill living children, outside the womb, when the women are depressed. Maybe up to 18 years? There are over 1 million abortions per year in the US. Lynda's tragic case will now be held up as an example for the pro-choice crowd, when it is not anywhere near the norm. Were there anywhere near 1 million abortions when it was not legal to kill the child inside the womb? I seriously doubt it. We need to create a culture of life that values ALL life. The unborn and the born. Those with disabilities and those in orphanages. Even the lives of those in our prison system. Until American life is valued for all, as our Founders declared, there will continue to be those voiceless minorities whose lives will be held at the whim of the powerful ones.

Oh-oh...I meant to say, "war is ok?" as a question, not a statement. I stand corrected; not that anyone paid that much attention.

Mary,

"However, I disagree with aborting babies because “they’re going to die anyway”. If they are going to die anyway let God do his work and let them go peacefully and not at the hand of humans."

You lack both compassion and decency. You would insist that a distraught and grieving mother carry a dying baby inside for months, so it can suffer and die naturally. It is amazing how religion can corrupt the mind. It is better to allow a baby to die instantly using abortion than to let it suffer for hours, days or weeks before dying. Why inflict unnecessary pain and suffering on both the baby and its grieving parents?

Why does a nearly term baby with any deformatiy have to die before labor begins? If a baby is so forgone that sticking scissors in its brain is the only choice, then why can't the child be born and nature takes its course? Aborting a baby because it isn't perfect isn't hard. That's easy. What is hard is having and raising a special needs child.

Geta,

"Why does a nearly term baby with any deformatiy have to die before labor begins? If a baby is so forgone that sticking scissors in its brain is the only choice, then why can’t the child be born and nature takes its course? Aborting a baby because it isn’t perfect isn’t hard. That’s easy. What is hard is having and raising a special needs child."

We aren't talking about special needs babies here. We are talking about babies who are headless or babies that don't have spinal cords or babies who are missing most of their brains. These babies are going to die at birth or soon after. It is morally wrong to force their grieving mothers to carry them to term.

I have never been pregnant, and I don't plan on even losing my virginity anytime soon. Especially because I am about to start college in the fall. But don't ignore what I am going to say because I'm too young or haven't had the experience of being pregnant or having to deal with a family member that had an abortion.

Before I started reading the article, the letter, or any of the comments, I had more of a pro-life type of view. I wasn't really decided on what side to take yet, but I was already starting to lean towards pro-life. After reading all of this, I just have to let you know: I am now pro-choice as long as the abortion isn't used instead of birth control.

Reading. It's a very important thing to do. You can't just read an article that says that a woman wanted to have a planned baby really badly, did get pregnant with one, but sadly had to abort because the baby was pretty much dead already and then turn around and say that she's an idiot and should have used birth control or that she killed a baby that was going to survive! That is just wrong! I have read comments about the ethicality of the issue. By responding with false accusations or comments, you yourself are being unethical!

Also, I have kept as much of an open mind to these comments as possible. Yes, I do believe that the "fetuses should have rights" argument stands. I do not at all disagree you. But can a fetus have rights when it is already dead? Lynda Waddington's child was dead, a person cannot live without a brain.

People have been saying that she should have let it be born and die on it's own. There was even at least one comment on here that said that the baby was grown enough to feel pain. I didn't know what "Anencephaly" was, so I decided to find out, like Chris, Ohio and Marita did. I saw a picture of a child that had it. It was horrifying. I couldn't keep looking at it, so I covered up the picture with my hand so that I could finish reading enough to understand what it was. Turns out, this is a case where you can't say that they feel pain because anencephalic children do not feel pain. They also die, almost immediately if not, according to the amount I read before I was forced to leave the page.

People say that a terminally ill person, or fetus, should be allowed to live for as long as they can. Yet, euthanasia of a pet is morally acceptable. I grew up with two dogs. Both were euthanized due to terminal illnesses. I feel sad and I still miss them years later, but I feel that my parents did the right thing. I was young both times (9 and 11ish), and I loved my dogs. They were like my furry big sisters! But I understood that they were in a lot of pain, and that would be the dominant part of what remained of their lives. I also knew that the pain would only get worse, so to me, euthanasia was the best thing for them. There was no way around it. Try as I may when I was only nine to "invent" a cure for Tupper's skin cancer, she would have died a slow, painfully unnecessary, death. When Houkie was dying, I knew that there was no way to help her but through euthanasia. All I wanted then was to be there with her, because I couldn't remember a time without her. But I couldn't because the pain returned despite the medication that my parents had to take her to the vet then and there to be euthanized. And I was at school.

You might say, "There's a difference. They were only dogs, and they had a life already. These are unborn babies." To you I say just this: There is no difference. When someone (or some pet) that you love is suffering and dying from something that can't be treated no way no how, you just want to get rid of their pain. Sometimes, the only way is euthanasia/abortion. Sometimes abortion IS better than letting the baby keep suffering or forcing the mother to give birth to an already dead or dying baby and possibly dying herself.

Think it over! One day, you might be in this situation yourself! What will your decision be then?

Let me see if I understand this. We can't have socialized medicine because it would be wrong to allow the government to interfere with the decisions made between a doctor and a patient, unless it's something like a comment above where the baby had spinal bifida and there should be a law against it? What interesting logic...
(By the way, how many guys are against this, really? Isn't the first question about an unwanted/unmarried pregnancy "What are you going to do about it?" a lot of the time?)

To Joel (June 2nd, 2009 5:10 pm ET),

Your analogy of Dr. Tiller's untimely death to Darwin's theory of evolution is incorrect. Dr. Tiller has already reproduced offspring, passing his genes on. Therefore, he has not been "selected out of the gene pool". Go back to science class.

People are using this blog to share their views regarding abortion. I am pro-life, killing that doctor was wrong. There are radicals in every phase of life. I can see where someone would abort a baby that had no brain. Abortion is wrong, and should be outlawed. If someone has to have a late term abortion because of an extreme medical reason (not because the baby is going to be handicapped), there should be guidelines drawn up, and it should not be called abortion, and it should be done humanely. Not the way that they do late-term abortions now. Sometimes God gives us something that we don’t want, but it turns out to be a great, lovely blessing. That is my opinion. We are all entitled to one. Sometimes that is the problem. I think that our legal system is behind the downfall of our country. We should also take better care of our youngest and our oldest. But then we would be close to perfect! I am sorry for you that do not know Christ. I love you, and so does our Lord.

I would also like to say that abortion is not the answer to our problems. (This does not include the people who went through the nightmare of a non-viable child.) A lot talk about how bad kids have it these days, abortion is not the answer. Women are raped and incest is committed, abortion is not the answer. You know that. It is so much bigger than that. All of these things are an atrocity, including abortion. Don’t commit murder to solve the problems of the world. Just like this man should not have killed this doctor. Murder does not solve anything. I further confirm that late-term abortions that are medically necessary (not because of handicaps) should not be called abortions, and they should not be done partial-birth. I wonder why there are so many families out there who want to adopt, but don’t have the money. It seems to take forever to adopt a baby. A lot of people go out of the country to adopt, because it is somehow easier? The system needs to be changed. Murder does not need to be committed. Let’s save and care for our littlest ones and our elderly. We as human beings do need to be regulated, not just let’s do whatever we feel like. It’s my body, and I have a right to murder the life inside of it. That makes no sense. I am also not responsible for adopting your baby, just because it was unplanned or has a handicap and you don’t want it. I am sorry for the people who were harrassed at the abortion clinic and had a non-viable child. Maybe there is something positive that you can eventually do for this cause to open people’s eyes? God Bless.

I believe that going through with a pregnancy knowing that my baby may not or will not survive brings more dignity than having it ripped from my womb. What about stillborn babies? They died in utero and were birthed-with dignity-by their loving mothers. If the unborn baby will not live, then let nature take it's course.

the true story the women shared was both sad and beautiful, allowing the child to be born and put in God's hands,

I have a beautiful 14 month old daughter that I would gladly lay down my life for if hers were in danger, but I have also had an abortion. Death is a part of life. I respect life, I don't even like killing insects. I support the Children's Christian Fund and the Humane Society. Child abuse, torture and neglect make me sick to my stomach. Yes, abortion kills a potential child. But at the stage at which most abortions are performed, truly it is not a big deal (and I say this coming from someone who values and respects the life that lives on this planet). Women have abortions for many reasons, but the main one is that they are pro-life. No one wakes up one day, and says "Gee, what should I do today. How about having an abortion? That sounds like fun!" Women are inherently pro-life, protecting and nurturing children is something that comes naturally to a lot of women (not all). To me, having an abortion doesn't contradict that statement. Abortion is akin to euthanasia (defined as "the action of killing an individual for reasons considered to be merciful"). I think people need to grasp the bigger picture of life on this planet, and realize that the termination of a fetus, while not favorable is a natural part of the cycle of life.

"June 2nd, 2009 4:42 pm ET

I have 6 young children. Each one of them have molded and changed my life for the best. I can not imagine not having one of them around. If they were sick and I would give my life for theirs in a second. Abortion is murder no matter how you look at it. Give these unborn children a chance. The technology we have today is amazing. Just look what your $200.00 cell phone can do. Now think of what the millions of dollars of equipment in a hospital can do. If the child dies after birth, at least you tried to save the child. You never gave up on him/her. In 20 years people are going to look at abortion the way people look at what Hitler did. God have mercy on us."

Ok...one of my many points. JUST because technology is there to keep something alive, SHOULD it be kept alive?? Natural selection people, natural selection. 20 years ago, my grandpa was kept alive with someone else's heart and over 40 medications. In the process of this, he went into a depression and eventually quit his meds because although alive, he was unable to actually live and do the things that made him happy. There are people all over the place that are alive in some form...but are simply surviving. Take a look at one of those 6 kids you have, and watch them run and play....and then imagine them unable to do the things they do that make them them. Or rather don't, because I bet that thought would be too painful. Just because scientists create a nuclear bomb doesn't mean we should ever use it....I think it goes the same for a lot of other "new technologies" and modern medicine. And a woman gave birth to those 6 kids, not you...it was her choice to have them, and it should be her choice not to. It's very easy to say "I would give my life for them", but until you are in that situation, you have no idea how you would react.

The Pro-Life movement has made it sound like late term abortions are performed at every hospital on an hourly schedule….They have done this because they have lost the battle on abortion. I love those pictures they use in there protests…what’s sad is people get pulled into there fold due to false advertising. The facts are “In 1997, the Guttmacher Institute estimated the number of abortions in the U.S. past 24 weeks to be 0.08%,…In 2006 the data showed that only 1.4% of abortions were at or after 21 weeks. Most of these “late term abortions” do have some type of health related reason.

These are facts….When you lose the big battle, you attack where you can get a win, and try to expand your influence from there. While I respect everyobodies right to an opinion, I don’t respect people using false info to try to turn people to there views.

Hoorah for Anderson Cooper. He was right to have Diane Elder on the show to tell of the choice she made to have her baby die a natural death. This is clearly the right thing to do, even if it was not a convenient or easy choice. My two sons were both born after I was 38, with no tests. I do not feel sorry for Dr. Tiller's death, nor do I think he was a good person, doing a good job. His life's work was as horrible as the work of his killer, and it's a shame that pro-life crazies are crazy. Not everyone who is pro-life is crazy, living a fringe life, and the poised Diane Elder showed that tonight.

If they can show "waterboarding " on TV, why can't they show a late term abortion? I bet if people saw what happens to the " half born" baby, they would be horrified.

Didn't Hitler start killing the disabled people first. So disabled people are worthless?

I do not condone the killing of abortionist. My father-in-law used to
be one, until his conscience got the best of him.

sorry, it's late at night and I can't find spell check. Thank you for listening.

You had a young woman on the program tonight who chose not to have an abortion. This is the kind of personal story you should spend more time on. Creation of a life is a miracle. God, our creator, is responsible for this. Men are the ones who chose to do wrong. It was not right for the abortion doctor to be killed. THe man who killed him did wrong. But, it is not right for doctors to kill babies that are a miracle of God's creation.

I was told that my little girl, Sarah, had anencephaly when i was 19 weeks pregnant. My physician told me he would not follow me through my pregnancy and I was advised to terminate my "nonviable pregnancy", they wouldn't even call her a fetus. I terminated the pregnancy and that was the worst decision I could have made. I do not feel it should have been my choice to end Sarah's life and that it should be a natural birth and death. I was very depressed for a long time. It was a terrible decision for me. I wish doctors had been more compassionate. She was perfectly formed, except for her birth defect. 10 fingers and toes, 2 eyes,ears a nose and mouth, perfect and a beautiful life.

This is not a controversial issue. Everybody agrees that a premeditated murder was committed. Who was killed is irrelevant under the law. Anyone who thinks the murder is somehow justified is really missing the whole point of our laws.

several persons have made the comment "why not have a c-section'. That is what I wanted- I would be unconscious and my baby would suffer the least amount. I also thought that perhaps I could donate organs, I so desperately wanted something good to come out of the situation. Unfortunately with the Trisomy 13 organ donation would not be possible. What I found out is that earlier in pregnancy the uterus is much thicker and so a traditional c-section is impossible. The cut would have to be vertical- much riskier at the time and any later pregnancies would be extremely risky. I don't know at what point the uterus thins enough to make a c-section an option for any type of delivery but for me it was not an option.

I regret that I lost my first pregnacy at 10 weeks, but I do not regret that my life was saved by ending the ectopic pregnancy.

For Lynda's anencephaly case, where the baby did not have a brain or skull, she makes clear at the end of the letter, meeting the woman who did bear her child to term, that both options are painful. Let the woman choose the option that will make her as whole as anyone who has lost their baby can ever be.

Anderson, tonight you said you try to show all parts of an issue. We heard from a woman who chose a late term abortion and from another woman who chose not to terminate her pregnancy. Both women made the correct choice for themselves. This brings us to the real issue. ....CHOICE.....The true issue is that in this democracy these women had the freedom to make an informed choice. Isn't freedom what America is suppose to be all about. In my opinion the murder of this doctor is a hate crime against all women

Before commenting, it might be good to click the follow-up links and actually read about why this woman made the decision to abort...her baby would have been unviable (as in dead) outside the womb and its death may well have been more drawn-out, painful, and expensive if she had carried to term. As for special-needs children, it's not only a matter of the parents raising the child, it's a matter of quality-of-life. Living with a disability is more difficult than raising a child with one – and not all people are equipped to care for one with adequate attention and resources. Special needs children often need far more financial support than other children, and if a family cannot afford the proper care, the quality of life further decreases.

So basically, my point is this: do your homework before opening your mouth!

Julia above wrote, "Might sound rough but until a person is born (which requires a woman to carry the person in her womb and birth the person) into the world, the “baby” or mass of cells doesn’t have any rights...many religions don’t believe a person becomes a person until the person has lived outside the womb for a year."

Wow, is this ignorance or sheer denial? I'm neither pro-abortion nor anti. But the above statement is egregiously warped and seriously concerning. Where did you get this idea? Who told you this nonsense?

If you actually follow your idea, all babies born via c-sections can be declared non-persons and therefore ok to kill them. Now if you say once the "person" is out, whatever the method, he has a right to life, then a 5month old fetus is also a person.

Is this because our nation has such a poor education filled with cultural garbage that we have people like this in this nation? Please get some basic philosophy books and learn to reason logically and critically on your own.

This is sad. If abortions are performed with Julia's idea, I strongly oppose any and all forms of abortions because it's based on such a stupidest idea.

Geta, if you think that it's so noble to raise special needs kids, why aren't you adopting a few?

It's easy to be self-righteous, judgmental & condescending towards others without knowing them or knowing anything about the difficulties in their lives.

It's really hard to put your money where your big mouth is & do something to help orphaned children, special needs kids or single parents struggling to raise their kids.

My Child, My Gift by Madeline P. Nugent

addresses the issue head on

http://www.mychildmygift.com/termination_pregnancy_prenatal_diagnosis.htm

Julia,

who wrote, "It is not about murder and is about religion…One person’s “baby” is another person’s mass of cells that doesn’t mean anything more to them than a skin tag"

Have you ever spoken to an embryologist?

You seem to carry the argument that science and religion are diametrically opposed. This could not be further from the truth in regards to the Catholic Church. She has always sought, and will continue to pursue the truth in all matters.

The "mass of cells" you describe has a heartbeat at a mere six weeks. By the 13th week, the baby has its own set of fingerprints and begins to urinate. Could an intelligent individual continue to assert that this would be akin to a "skin tag"?

http://www.babycenter.com/fetal-development-images-13-weeks

Matt,

who rote, "In 2006 the data showed that only 1.4% of abortions were at or after 21 weeks. Most of these “late term abortions” do have some type of health related reason."

If there are 1,000,000 abortions a year, then by this figure 14,000 were after 21 weeks. If most of these were for "health related reasons" and I'll give you 95 percent, than that means 700 were for "other" reasons. Now, one innocent life lost is enough for me, but what say you about seven hundred Matt, is this an accurate representation or more false advertising?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Enencephaly.jpg

Please all of you people persecuting Lynda Waddington take a look at this picture. You like to have all of your partial bith pics to show the horrors. This is what her and my child looked like. Anencephaly, is not curable...there is no therapy for it. Bottom line will die as soon as it is no longer connected to the Mother. Personally, the option of a C-Section was given to me, the hospital staff stated that we could then take pictures with our dead malformed baby and hold her. I'm sorry that is simply sick to me. In my head I don't want to have that in my head as my baby.....the one I had so many hopes and dreams for.

Through my volunteer work I know of 2 women with this same problem pregnancy. Each decided to carry this 'wanted' child as long as possible, knowing it would not live beyond birth. They named them, kissed them good bye (putting closure to it) and celebrate their precious life every year on their birthday. No regrets. No pain for anyone. Just a lot of love.