In January 1976, I was halfway through my junior year at the Air Force Academy and was directed to referee intramural boxing since I had boxed previously. One day I was in the ring during my friend's match. He was much better than his competitor, but on that day he was awful. He was knocked down, and I issued the mandatory "eight count." A few moments later, he went down again and I stopped the fight, giving the other boxer the win. Back in the dorm that evening, I asked my friend what happened. His story shocked me and still haunts me today.
He fell in love with a young woman he met several months earlier. She became pregnant. Cadets cannot marry until after graduation, so my friend and his girlfriend were faced with either resigning from the Academy, having the baby out of wedlock or visiting a recently opened abortion clinic in Denver. They chose the latter; the procedure was performed the day before I lifted my friend from the mat, shaken to his core. Despite their subsequent marriage and three wonderful, successful children, the couple is still haunted by that desperate decision to destroy the child they never knew.
Abortion is often the simplest way out of an unplanned pregnancy. However, the psychological scars and the horrific end of an innocent life are seldom mentioned by liberal advocates who promote abortion on demand, a national disgrace.
Last Tuesday, a New York Times editorial, "The Latest Alarming Abortion Battle," appeared on the left side of these opinion pages. It lamented the fact that our Senate was voting on a bill, supported by President Trump, that limited abortions after 20 weeks, except in cases of rape or incest. The bill failed 51-46 to make it out of debate after Democrats launched a filibuster to keep it from going to the floor for a vote, where a bipartisan majority of Senators expressed support.
Why 20 weeks? The science of fetal development has advanced rapidly in recent years, and a plethora of doctors now agree the fetus senses pain as early as 16 weeks. At 20 weeks, however, research clearly shows the fetus reacts to needling stimuli by recoiling, much as an adult would. Within stimulated tissue, there are signs of beta endorphins, cortisol and noradrenaline, all responses to pain by the nervous system.
At 20 weeks, according to the National Institute of Health, the fetus is about the size of a banana. It has had a heartbeat since day 21. It has a well-formed face and extremities. It can hear, and its tiny mouth makes sucking motions. Could it survive on its own? Probably not. Does it matter? No.
Because, the fate the fetus faces, if aborted, especially after 20 weeks, is more horrible than a civilized society should accept. After studying the issue thoroughly, Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy described the procedure: "The fetus, in many cases, dies just as a human or adult would: it bleeds to death as it is torn limb from limb."
President Trump issued a statement after the disappointing Senate vote: "Scientific studies have demonstrated that babies in the womb feel pain at 20 weeks. The vote by the Senate puts the United States out of touch with the mainstream in the family of nations, in which only seven out of 198 nations, including China and North Korea, allow elective abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy."
Perhaps had my friend known then what we now know, he and his girlfriend would have decided differently. Unfortunately, even though the science has evolved since Roe v. Wade in 1973, politics haven't. Like the ancient god Baal, the pro-abortion stance remains a sacred cow within the Democratic Party. Who will lift us from the mat and help us achieve victory over this terrible blight upon our country?
Roger Smith, a local author, is a frequent contributor to the Times Free Press.