I know Prolifers think the same way that I do as a prochoicer. I know prolife and I think the same thing of each other: "They're just ignorant to the REAL facts! If only they'd see the truth, they would change their mind."
We can't both be right, though. We can't both have the truth backing us up. So how can we tell who's right and who's wrong?
One good way is to look at sources. Where do the statistics and facts come from? Over and over again, pro-life uses pro-life websites. Pro-choice does use some pro-choice websites, but we also use a lot of medical websites, science websites and pregnancy websites. We use the websites of universities, websites about US law, and other websites completely unrelated to abortion.
Who is more likely to be lying? A pro-life website pushing a pro-life agenda, or a pregnancy website for happily pregnant women? Why would a cancer website, which wants to reduce/end cancer, lie about abortion increasing breast cancer risks? The simple answer is: they wouldn't.
Another good way to compare pro-life to pro-choice is to look at their use of language. Pro-life is constantly complaining about the use of the word "fetus." Why? What exactly is wrong with the word fetus? Fetus is a legitimate term which is defined as "the unborn young from the end of the eighth week after conception to the moment of birth, as distinguished from the earlier embryo." It's just a name. So why does pro-life fight so hard to destroy the word fetus and call it a baby instead? There's no medical or legal reason. The only reason they have is emotional appeal. When people think baby, they think cute, cuddly little bundle of joy. By making people think that when they think about a fetus, they abuse people's emotions.
Another example of this is the word murder. Abortion is clearly not murder, and it never has been murder. Yet pro-life use the phrase "abortion is murder" continuously. Why is this? Because they're trying to pull at people's emotions. Murder has a connotation, and by using that word pro-life can manipulate people's emotions and ideas.
This needs to stop- if pro-life is really the right side, they should be able to convince people with truth instead of emotional manipulation. If pro-life is right, they should be able to provide non-biased, neutral websites and sources which support their stance. Their failure to do both of these things proves that pro-choice is in the right, and pro-life is in the wrong.
Reflecting on Privilege
10 years ago
Agreed, it's much like a communist regime that only likes positive sources (like it's own state newspaper) to report on it and penalizes journalists that are not affiliated with it's own newspaper that are within it's borders.
ReplyDeleteThe prolife mentality of the media and what is put out by the media is similar to that of North Korea. Unless it agrees to their point of view or furthers their agenda, it *must* be wrong.