U.S. Supreme Courts Upholds Ban on Partial Birth Abortion
photo: John Linwood
On Tuesday, the U.S. supreme court upheld a Federal ban on partial-birth abortion (intact dilation and extraction) passed by Congress in 2003. Here’s why a ban on this little-used procedure is a huge deal:
- It’s the first abortion issue tackled with the two Bush-appointed justices voting. It’s widely accepted that under the old panel this would have been struck down in a 5-4 ruling instead of upheld in a 5-4 ruling.
- In the decision the majority pointed out that Congress was wrong in it’s research on the issue. But that it can still pass legislation based on a moral principle, as opposed to scientific method. (That particular group of people acting on moral principle is something I find laughable.)
- It was one of the only decisions in the courts history where they acknowledge protecting a majority of Americans at the possible expense of a minority.
I’m not pro-abortion or pro-life. I’m pro mind-your-own-business, actually. And an abortion is almost certainly a tragedy in two acts: the possibility of a rich human life is snuffed out, and then a mother and her care-provider have to live with that. The intact dilation and extraction procedure is the stuff of horror movies and is little used. But saying that Congress has the power, based on morality alone, even in the face of contradictory medical evidence, to strike down a doctor’s options when dealing with patients is horrifying, indeed.
Related Stories
POSTED IN: Philosophy, Politics, Science, Sex, Treatment
0 opinions for U.S. Supreme Courts Upholds Ban on Partial Birth Abortion
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: