Comments on: Plight, Flight and Abortion in Ireland http://www.universityobserver.ie/2009/04/28/plight-flight-and-abortion-in-ireland/ Ireland's Award-Winning Student Newspaper Mon, 23 Aug 2010 10:29:49 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: jo http://www.universityobserver.ie/2009/04/28/plight-flight-and-abortion-in-ireland/comment-page-1/#comment-321 jo Thu, 07 May 2009 06:17:53 +0000 http://www.universityobserver.ie/?p=3111#comment-321 Very Very misleading article. Ireland has a very low abortion rate. 5,000 a year for the whole island. That is far lower than in the UK, half the rate in Canada. Once it is legalized it becomes a suggestion and men pressure women into killing their own babies. WHy the push to legalize killing the unborn? They are human beings. From 3 weeks they have a heart beat and at 3 months when most abortions occur, they have arms, legs, brain waves, fingers, toes, they look fully human but just small. Babies have been born in the 5th month and survived. I bet the author of this article thinks all abortions should be legal for any reason, and is just using extreme cases and the most exaggerated data to back up their point of view. In the states the abortion lobby just made up facts for years to suggest that women were dying of illegal abortions by the thousands. The truth was that 39 women a year in the entire USA died of illegal abortion the year before it was legalized. Dozens of women die of legal abortion each year in the USA. WHy? There are millions of abortions instead of thousands now that it is legal. Considering that premature births for post abortive women are 45% more likely, this is not good news. Very Very misleading article. Ireland has a very low abortion rate. 5,000 a year for the whole island. That is far lower than in the UK, half the rate in Canada. Once it is legalized it becomes a suggestion and men pressure women into killing their own babies. WHy the push to legalize killing the unborn? They are human beings. From 3 weeks they have a heart beat and at 3 months when most abortions occur, they have arms, legs, brain waves, fingers, toes, they look fully human but just small. Babies have been born in the 5th month and survived. I bet the author of this article thinks all abortions should be legal for any reason, and is just using extreme cases and the most exaggerated data to back up their point of view. In the states the abortion lobby just made up facts for years to suggest that women were dying of illegal abortions by the thousands. The truth was that 39 women a year in the entire USA died of illegal abortion the year before it was legalized. Dozens of women die of legal abortion each year in the USA. WHy? There are millions of abortions instead of thousands now that it is legal. Considering that premature births for post abortive women are 45% more likely, this is not good news.

]]> By: Fintan Stack http://www.universityobserver.ie/2009/04/28/plight-flight-and-abortion-in-ireland/comment-page-1/#comment-311 Fintan Stack Sun, 03 May 2009 10:48:05 +0000 http://www.universityobserver.ie/?p=3111#comment-311 First of all your article is misleading,the figure of 123,000 is inclusive of both the north and south,over a 25 year period that's an average of 4,900. That's a low abortion rate comared to Britain, which averages 200,000 abortions per annum.Since Britain's population (60million) is 10 times that of the island of Ireland (5.9) we would expect some 20,000 abortions by irish women per annum. So on a per capita basis our abortion rate is less than one quater that of Britain's. In fact considering our more youthful demographics,with some 50% of our population under the age of 30, our abortion rate is further reduced. In real terms, we have no more than 20% of Britain's abortion rate.So,how can you maintain that " the current law has failed to curtail the rates of abortion".The current law is, in no way archaic,having been determined by the people in the 1983 referendum,and once again reinforced in the 2002 referendum. As an Irish citizen,I had the privilage to vote in the latter referendum, and I am proud of our democracy and constitution. We have, as Irish citizens, the great privilage of determing our fundemental laws, laws which protect our future generations, laws that are effective,and justifable,laws that give the greatest representation and protection to those who most need it. First of all your article is misleading,the figure of 123,000 is inclusive of both the north and south,over a 25 year period that’s an average of 4,900. That’s a low abortion rate comared to Britain, which averages 200,000 abortions per annum.Since Britain’s population (60million) is 10 times that of the island of Ireland (5.9) we would expect some 20,000 abortions by irish women per annum. So on a per capita basis our abortion rate is less than one quater that of Britain’s.
In fact considering our more youthful demographics,with some 50% of our population under the age of 30, our abortion rate is further reduced. In real terms, we have no more than 20% of Britain’s abortion rate.So,how can you maintain that ” the current law has failed to curtail the rates of abortion”.The current law is, in no way archaic,having been determined by the people in the 1983 referendum,and once again reinforced in the 2002 referendum.

As an Irish citizen,I had the privilage to vote in the latter referendum, and I am proud of our democracy and constitution.
We have, as Irish citizens, the great privilage of determing our fundemental laws, laws which protect our future generations, laws that are effective,and justifable,laws that give the greatest representation and protection to those who most need it.

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