Should Abortion Be Allowed in Cases of Rape, Incest, or to Save the Life of the Mother?

An annual poll by Marist was just released, revealing that 28% of Americans believe that abortion should be allowed in cases involving rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother.  These are folks who are pro-life (in theory), except for these "extreme" exceptions.  However, I don't believe that abortion should ever be allowed -- not even in these cases.  Why?

The fundamental question in the abortion debate is, "What is it?"  If it is just a clump of cells like a tumor, or an appendage such as an arm or leg, then abortion is no big deal.  But if it is a human being created in the image of God, then that changes everything.  

If the fetus came about because of rape or incest, as horrible as these are, that doesn't change the fact that it is still a human being.  It is no less a human being than anyone else.  Its worth is not diminished because of another person's sin.  If it is too painful for the mother to keep the baby, she may give the child up for adoption.  But rape and incest are not excuses for murder.

As well, women rarely seek an abortion for rape or incest.  According to the Guttmacher Institute (which is abortion-friendly), only one percent of women who get an abortion do so because of rape, and only .5 percent do so because of incest.  In most cases, the "rape or incest" scenario is just an excuse used by pro-choice activists to justify keeping abortion legal for any reason whatsoever.  If you ask someone who is pro-choice if they would be willing to outlaw all other reasons for abortion, they would refuse.  According to Guttmacher, in the vast majority of cases (74%), the real reasons for abortion are  because "having a baby would dramatically change their lives, or because they think they can't afford a baby right now."

What about when the mother's life is in danger?  Cases like these are extremely rare, and when they occur, the goal must not be to abort the baby, but to save the mother's life.  If, in the process of attempting to save the mother, the unborn child dies, then it is not abortion.  To use an illustration from war, the military must never intentionally kill civilians, even if doing so will also kill the enemy.  Instead, the military must attempt to kill the enemy while doing everything in its power to avoid hurting civilians.  On those rare occasions when civilians get caught in the crosshairs and are tragically killed, it is not murder unless the military was reckless or negligent.  It is not an abortion if an unborn child dies in the process of trying to save the mother's life.  It is only an abortion if it is possible to save both the child and the mother, but the child is intentionally killed or left to die.  In this case, abortion is equivalent to murder, and should not be legal.

So, if someone asks you if any exceptions should be made for abortion, the answer should be no.  Abortion should not be legal for any reason, under any circumstance.  The unborn child is a human being with the same worth and rights as you and me.