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September 11, 2008
California Catholic Bishops Endorse Prop 4
California Catholic Bishops have endorsed Prop 4 (forced parental notification and waiting period for minor's abortion). The news was published today in the California Catholic Daily, the San Diego newspaper owned and operated by Jim Holman. Holman has been a major financial backer of parental notification initiatives each of the three years that they have been on the ballot. This year alone, he has given at least $1.5 million.
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what's wrong with parental notification? i don't get it...
i keep getting the "it's their own lives/personal choice" but then again you need a parents slip when you go on a field trip, miss school, the list goes on and on...
i'm pretty sure getting an abortion is a bigger deal than most of the other issues children need to notify their parents about.
i'm not very conservative but it just doesn't make much se3nse to me...maybe someone can explain?
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I'm pro choice, but I HATE laws that take power away from families - like prop 4. Limited government is the only way to protect our personal freedoms.
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Samkim, Kevie, you're both assuming that all children have a good enough relationships, and good enough communications, with their parents that they could even confide in them.
If a parent hasn't even taught a child how to prevent an unintented pregnancy, or avoid STDs, what makes you think they are going to sign a consent form?
A youthful mistake shouldn't be a life sentence for a parent too young to be a parent or for the unwanted child.
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As a former teenage girl, most girls who got abortions did it specifically because they were afraid of their parents. With parental notification we will just have more Tijuana deaths and babies left in trash cans, because girls are still afraid of their parents.
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...and of course the Catholic Church is for it. Little boys don't get pregnant.
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so rather then having a situation where we talk to our parents, we would rather discourage dialogue between the two? so many of our problems today come from the lack of dialogue between the parents and children, between nations, between our neighbors,
we should encourage the youth to be able to talk about their problems, not hide them... besides, the child can also go to a judge to request a waiver if the parents are the kind of parents that would be abusive, force them to have the child, etc. it just depends on the case. im pretty sure a courthouse isn't too hard to find, and probably more accessible than a planned parenthood in some locations.
it isn't just a "youthful mistake"
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"...so many of our problems today come from the lack of dialogue between the parents and children, between nations, between our neighbors,
we should encourage the youth to be able to talk about their problems..."
So what now samkim? Legislate dialog?
I'm sure many parents who have lost a daughter to a botched abortion when it was illegal wished they had had a dialog with their child. That's just not possible when they're dead.
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samkim, what you're saying makes perfect sense - of course, in an ideal situation any parent would want their daughter to come to them. but not all young women live in families where that kind of communication is possible, and the reality is that forced notification laws could make them take matters into their own hands - back alley abortions, self-aborting, etc.
yes - of COURSE we should encourage family communication. of course! but the government can't force it to happen. besides, it's a lot more important that these young women get the medical care they need, and these laws could force those teens who need it the most to turn to unsafe alternatives.
p.s., have you tried to navigate the court system lately? say, for a parking ticket? now, imagine trying to do that as a pregnant teenager....
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Here's an excerpt froma very good op-ed by Francesca Ratner in today's Times regarding Prop 4.
Prop 4 is not just about parental notification.
From;
"A Dishonest Proposition", by Francesca Ratner
And if you're still not persuaded to read the full legal text of Proposition 4, here is my version of how an honest summary of Proposition 4 should read:
Proposition to Curtail Abortion for Teenage Girls:
* Do not allow minors to obtain abortions behind their parents' backs.
* Create an undue burden on physicians, with miles of red tape and severe repercussions for a misstep in filing notifications, reports, etc.
* Make sure pregnant teens go through humiliation and exposure.
* Create a pretext for taking the matter of abortion to court.
* Add vague clauses regarding "court relief" and "coercion," which could warrant further litigation.
Full op-ed...
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-ratner15-2008sep15,0,2386911.story