reading all the emotionally charged replies on this post ... i won't voice my opinion on the subject ... neither did the Supreme Court...... states decide...that's all
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It could be argued that it doesn't affect me if my neighbor shoots his son. He's not my kid, so I should just let them make decisions for their own family. That's why the abortion argument cannot be argued in sentences and paragraphs. If you believe that an unborn child is indeed a human being, then we're not talking simply about a woman's body and her own life. If you don't, then we're comparing apples to peanuts.
Reason Magazine has published a state-by-state rundown here on the status of things as of Friday June 24, 2022. I won't copy/paste a wall of text, but just for discussion and information purposes I've distilled each state's current status into a single line. Please read the article before taking my brevity as being all-inclusive. Some states have "Trigger Laws," meaning that legislation was already passed to take affect if/when Roe was overturned, so much of this is not states reacting to the ruling...the laws have been in place for years in a contingent status. There are "viability" nuances in both banned and protected legislation, as well as broad definitions of "life & health." Many states reported that abortions beyond 15 weeks represents a very small percentage (<5%) of all historical abortions. Red = abortion is/will be restricted (22 states) Green = abortion is protected (23 states) Blue = moderate restrictions or no immediate changes anticipated (5 states) PRB = a pre-ROE ban still on the books that may have to be re-legislated Alabama PRB. Will be severely restricted (serious health risk to mother exceptions.) Alaska Will remain broadly legal, reproductive rights are constitutionally protected. Arizona PRB. Will be moderately/severely restricted. Banned after 15 weeks w/health exemptions. Arkansas PRB. Will be severely restricted. Exception for life-threatening medical emergencies. California Will remain broadly legal, rulings include "life or health" language. Has "viability" language. Colorado Will remain broadly legal under the 2022 Reproductive Health Equity Act. Connecticut Will remain broadly legal, rulings include "life or health" language. Has "viability" language. Delaware Will remain broadly legal. Florida Could be moderately restricted (15 week max.) The right is protected by a 1989 court ruling. Georgia PRB. Will be severely restricted. Prohibited after fetal cardiac activity can be detected (6 weeks.) Hawaii Will remain broadly legal. Idaho PRB. Will be severely restricted. Six-week abortion ban, with rape or incest exceptions. Illinois Will remain broadly legal. Constitutionally protected. Indiana Likely to be restricted. (R) Gov. Eric Holcomb has said "abortion should always be illegal." Iowa Likely to be severely restricted. A 2018 constitution ruling protecting abortion just got reversed. Kansas Will remain broadly legal. 2019 ruling says it is constitutionally protected. Kentucky Will be severely restricted. This year Kentucky enacted a 15-week ban. Louisiana Will be severely restricted. In 2019, LA enacted a six-week ban. Maine Will remain broadly legal, per a 1993 law. Maryland Will remain broadly legal under state law. Massachusetts Will remain broadly legal. Constitutionally unrestricted up to 24 weeks. Michigan PRB (being challenged.) New restrictions are unlikely in the short term. Minnesota Will remain broadly legal. Constitutionally protected. Mississippi Will be severely restricted. Trigger Law says "only if rape, or to protect mother's life." Missouri Will be severely restricted. Trigger Law bans all "except in cases of medical emergency." Montana Will remain broadly legal. Constitutionally protected. Nebraska New restrictions are likely. Governor wants more restrictions than the (R) legislature does. Nevada Will remain broadly legal. Protected by a 1990 referendum. New Hampshire New restrictions are unlikely. Abortion currently is legal up to 24 weeks. New Jersey Will remain broadly legal. New Mexico Will remain broadly legal. New York Will remain broadly legal, per a 2019 law. North Carolina New restrictions are unlikely in the short term. North Dakota Will be severely restricted. Has a trigger law, "only to prevent death of the mother." Ohio Will be severely restricted. In 2019, Ohio enacted a six-week ban (affects 75% of Ohioan abortions.) Oklahoma Will be severely restricted. "Only to save mother's life." Oregon Will remain broadly legal. No restrictions, insurers must cover costs. Pennsylvania New restrictions are unlikely in the short term. Rhode Island Will remain broadly legal. A 2019 law codifies the right to abortion. South Carolina Will be severely restricted. Last year, enacted a six-week ban (affects 80% of abortions.) South Dakota Will be severely restricted. Trigger law "only to prevent death of mother." Tennessee Will be severely restricted. Trigger law "only to prevent death of mother." Texas Will be severely restricted. Trigger law "only to prevent death of mother." Utah Will be severely restricted. Trigger law "only to prevent death of mother." Vermont Will remain broadly legal, per a 2019 law. Virginia Will remain broadly legal. Washington Will remain broadly legal, per state law. West Virginia PRB. New restrictions are likely. 2018 constitutional amendment excludes abortion. Wisconsin PRB (dates back to 1849.) New restrictions are unlikely in the short term. Wyoming Will be severely restricted. Trigger law says only in cases of rape or incest or risk of death.
I believe in the right to choose, but only to a degree. It all goes back to when the fetus becomes "a baby." It's easier for me to say abortion is OK, but only if it's a glob of cells that is unrecognizable as a tiny human.
Some of the standards I've read have to do with "detectable heartbeat," but that can happen before the woman even knows she is pregnant.
I would say the Heartbeat Bills are a bit extreme for that very reason. Once sensitive pregnancy tests were developed using quantitative means, it was determined that over 50% of implantations are aborted spontaneously before the woman even realizes she was pregnant, thus making the very act of coitus a possible abortion. OTC pregnancy tests have reduced sensitivity, so you don't see that phenomenon.
It appears the same. Your state and mine are among the few that still offer unrestricted abortion. I suspect that may change now, at least in some aspects. I know many here who want the taxpayer-funded abortions ended and those constitute the majority of abortions here. The current governor will introduce a bill with some restrictions next year if he is re-elected in November.
There's lots of political mileage to be had with this. There's a chasm between Virginia's governor and the legislative body on this. I wonder how a poll would look if we broke it down between married women and single women; that is, regardless of how one might feel about the issue, from a pragmatic standpoint would single women be more inclined to want this safety net to remain? I would.