Roe v. Wade

A little news from the pregnancy front. Sabrina had another check-up today, all is well. She gained another few lbs. which takes her total up to 10 lbs of pregnancy weight gained. We received the results from the genetic testing and all is normal. The baby's heart rate is normal, which is great after the "monstrous elbow" scare of a couple of weeks ago.

On to my other topic, abortion. A little background info first. I am currently working on a B.A. in Legal Studies and an taking a course on Civil Rights'. So the discussion of Roe v. Wade came up in a class on the topic of "right to privacy". I guess I never put two and two together to realize that Roe is a case based upon the privacy issue of a woman and her practitioner and the "viability" of the fetus during the 3 trimesters of pregnancy.

The ruling on Roe dictated that the federal government could set some regulations about whether a woman can have an abortion. Note that there are certain laws and even amendments that are strictly state's rights issues; ex. 2nd amendment-right to bear arms and pre-Roe. Here is the interesting part of this case. During trimester 1 and 3 the Supreme Court dictated rules, but for the 2nd trimester the rules on abortion were deemed to be up to the state's.

So in Roe, if a woman who is in her 1st trimester wants to abort her pregnancy she has the right to do so without prejudice, no need to consult her practitioner because according to the Supreme Court the pregnancy is not viable. In her 3rd trimester, she can not abort her pregnancy without the consultation of a practitioner stating that the pregnancy would kill the mother if not aborted. If the mother's health is not in jeopardy and she still wants to abort the baby, she can not because the ruling in Roe state's the pregnancy would be considered viable. So the real question fell into the 2nd trimester. When does the child move from the stage of not viable to viable. Well the Supreme Court did not come out and dictate a specific ruling, but passed the decision off to the state's legislatures to determine themselves.

In the end, with the changes in the Supreme Court if Roe is re-examined and overturned, the ramification would then turn completely onto the state's to deem if abortion is legal, legal at certain stages or not legal at all.

The whole time I was sitting in class pondering the thought of what my expectations in life would be without the upcoming birth of my first child. I just want this examined in the simplest of forms, not taking into account any financial, economical or sociological aspect. Why in the world would I ever not want this child to come into my life. I have the ability to bring new life to this beautiful plant. And then I was saddened by all the turmoil in the world and hope that the life we are choosing to have will not be terrible. All the emotions first felt when we found out that were pregnant, came at me full tilt in a matter of a 30 minute discussion. I am still thinking about the topic.

Now my question: When will the viability factor of a pregnancy cease to exist in our world of ever expanding scientific knowledge. Do doctor's have the ability to create life in a Petri dish, then carry the pregnancy as far as they can until it is time to transfer to a mammal, say a hormone and medicated induced cow with a placenta, to continue the pregnancy until the child was around 12 oz. a reality? Doctor's have been able to save children that were born at the weight of 12 oz. Cows have been able to give birth to sheep which were implanted in them. Are humans really needed in order to create "human" life a possiblity in the future?