Columnist wrongly portrayed abortion

Dear Editor:

I am writing in furious response to Alex Berezow's article Abortion: whose rights are at stake? in Thursday's Daily Egyptian. He makes claims that unborn babies do not have rights, but the fact of the matter is that a fetus!=s rights, as it is unborn and lives inside its mother until it can breath on its own, cannot be held as important as the mother herself.

He also states that abortion is justified because it is "convenient." I find this disgusting because there is nothing convenient about the procedure or finding yourself in that position at all. Why would he assume that this is any woman's first choice and that this would be an easy decision for her to make? And as for "taking responsibility for our actions," where are the fathers here? Why do they get to walk away scot-free from the pregnancy if they so choose or get to neglect paying child support, and if she does have the child, what is HIS responsibility?

This is the day and age where parenting skills have gone down the toilet. Children are worse off now than they ever were. There are far more divorces, single-parent homes and neglected children. Maybe it is a nobler thing for the woman to realize she cannot bring the child into this world where she is alone rather than have that child live to start this ridiculous pattern all over again. Why should a woman be forced to raise a child she may mistreat mentally, physically or emotionally? That is not fair to the child either, but by then it is really too late.

Courtney Lanute graduate student, French and MBA

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