Abortion Debate at State Level

Even if McDowell is correct that debate of the abortion issue on a state-by-state basis is desirable to achieve grass-roots involvement, I find the entire process as absurd and wasteful as the 13th-Century obsession with how many angels can fit on the head of a pin.

We can never resolve, to everyone’s satisfaction, when a fetus achieves personhood nor under what circumstances a woman has the right to decide to terminate her pregnancy. These are tough moral questions which will be answered in different ways by persons holding different beliefs within our religiously diverse culture. If the Supreme Court had abided by the constitutional restraint separating church views from state authority, it would have upheld the wisdom of Roe vs. Wade.

As the majority of Americans can envision some situation in which abortion should be allowed, the wise legislator will refuse to curtail the right of any woman to make her decision with whatever spiritual advice she may choose.

Let legislators and all of us who are concerned with the right to life direct our energies and our tax dollars toward providing children, whom we all agree are persons, with their right to quality care, educational opportunities, and protection from abuse.

KAREN BLANCHARD, M.D.

Santa Monica