Kathleen Parker:
Imagine someone you may not know or like taking your daughter without your knowledge to another state to have her appendix removed. Or to have a hysterectomy. Or even to have her wisdom teeth removed.
You'd be outraged, right? How dare anyone determine that your child should have surgery without your counsel, permission or knowledge? In my tribe, a jury would forgive nearly any response short of ultimate justice.
Yet, in some states, parents are supposed to sit quietly, shucking their peas while their daughters cross state lines to get an abortion - without even a vote on which noble soul provides transportation, much less an invitation to provide the emotional support most human beings, especially children, require after ending an "unwanted pregnancy."
A bill passed Wednesday in the U.S. House (270-157) seeks to change the likelihood of that happening by making it a federal crime for any adult to transport someone younger than 18 across state lines for an abortion without parental consent. The name of the legislation alone is enough to send shivers: the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act.
...
Granted there are plenty of bad parents out there - many of them sitting in corporate board rooms and legislative bodies - but most parents have their children's best interests at heart. They also know that abortion, more than a surgical procedure, is an emotional, often life-altering process that doesn't end when you cross a state line.
Mothers and fathers may be disagreeable at times, but a pregnant girl needs her parents more than she needs a special-interest group or a politician or a lousy boyfriend - none of whom love her as much.
Comments
Post a Comment