Abortion: buzzword conceals grim reality

HAVING read Mark Evans’ articles on abortion (Irish Examiner, November 1/2), I feel I have to hand it to abortion advocates who have successfully promulgated the most innocuous language to indicate their support for the millions of women who have abortions every year.

A few decades ago, supporters of legalised abortion were described both by themselves and their opponents as being pro-abortion.

Now the word abortion has been dropped to be replaced by the consumer buzzword ‘choice’ — the choice in question being made purely by the woman and, like female circumcision, totally ignoring any choice on the part of the victim. This is in spite of the fact that photographic evidence shows unborn children subjected to abortion by mechanical means attempting to avoid the instrument of destruction. The innocuous term ‘mechanical means’ has been used to pass the Irish Examiner censorial pen as it is difficult to have the full horrors of the procedure described.

Nobody with any credibility would make the statement ‘I’m not in favour of drunk driving, I’m just in favour of choice’ or ‘I’m not in favour of politicians taking bribes, I just believe in choice’ — yet abortion rights advocates use the word ‘choice’ in that context as if it was a choice between two telephone companies. Abortion claims millions of unborn lives every year and, as with drink driving, any choice in question is not that of the victims. But then, apparently with abortion there are no victims.

Rory O’Donovan

111 Sundays Well Road

Cork