Roe v. Wade -- Doggett

It's no secret that "abortion" is a loaded topic.  Simply saying the word engenders a visceral reaction on both sides of the spectrum.  I appreciated Mr. Dogget's seminar because he provided a comprehensive and neutral presentation of the topic.  While I had heard of Roe v. Wade and Griswold v. CT before, I had never heard of Skinner v. Oklahoma.  This Supreme Court case seemed so out there to me and I was surprised that sterilization at one point was seen as a seemingly okay punishment especially if it was unequally applied. While I think today there is a consensus that forced sterilization is inhuman, we have not reached a consensus about the government's role in abortion.  I was also surprised to learn that abortion was not totally frowned upon in colonial times because of the danger associated with having children.  Even today the exceptions people will make in regards to whether a woman should have an abortion or not is the life of the mother. I myself am fervently pro choice.  I believe that it is not my right or the government's to impede a woman's access to a safe birth control.  I believe that it if a woman does choose to have an abortion she should have the support and care needed to obtain one.  It bothers me in our nation's current discourse about abortion that we seem to forget that real women are being affected.  It is easy to speak in moral absolutes but much harder when you are faced with the decision yourself.  I think our current abortion conversation as a nation needs to stop existing in some abstract reality and come down to a more humanistic level.  I thank Mr. Doggett for providing us with some tools to do that.