Steve Shaw says: I don't think anyone supports abortion. It's not whether you support it, it's whether you acknowledge the right of all women to make unfettered decisions about their own bodies. Unfettered being the operative word. I should like to see abortion reduced to almost nil, by education, free contraception (along with non-moralising advice about it) and a striving for equality. In the meantime, whether a woman wants to keep her foetus is entirely a matter for her.

Up to this point, I agree with Steve completely. It is almost exactly what I'd say on the matter.

But then Steve goes on and gets a bit extreme: The biggest champions of abortion are the big religions who preach that ignorance and sexual abstinence are desirable, and who counsel against contraception. They know exactly how to keep abortion rates high, don't they?

Yes, the Catholic Church and some other Christian churches have anti-abortion extremists who may approach this description, but they are the extremists. Most churches carry on a more reasoned and balanced discussion of the questions related to sexuality. And for the most part, the discussion is presented as an opinion, and not a mandate. There are some on both sides who misinterpret the church positions as mandates, but that's usually not the case. Church leaders are not as stupid or as lacking in compassion as some would make them out to be.

Oh, and I notice there's a nitwit or two up there who still are trying to convince people that I equate gay marriage with neo-Nazism. Their opinions, like the most extreme of those who promote and oppose abortion or gay marriage or any number of things, are best ignored. They can't be reasonable - they see everything in absolutes, with no room for discussion or questioning or reasoning. Too bad.

-Joe Offer-