News Do you agree with South Dakota?

Do you agree with South Dakota?

PIERRE, S.D. — South Dakota moved closer to imposing some of the strictest limits on abortion in the nation as the state Senate approved legislation that would ban the procedure except when the woman's life is in danger.

The bill, designed to spark a courtroom showdown over the legality of abortion, passed 23-12 Wednesday. On Thursday, it was headed back to the House, where lawmakers already approved similar legislation.

Republican Gov. Mike Rounds, a longtime abortion opponent, has said he would "look favorably" on an abortion ban if it would "save life."

Under the measure, doctors in South Dakota would face up to five years in prison for performing an abortion. The only exception would be for women who need abortions to save their lives.

"In my opinion, it is the time for the South Dakota Legislature to deal with this issue and protect the lives and rights of unborn children," said Sen. Julie Bartling, a Democrat and the bill's main sponsor.

The legislation targets Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.

Opponents say it is too extreme and unconstitutional. Planned Parenthood, which operates the only clinic that provides abortions in South Dakota, pledged to challenge the measure if it become law.

"South Dakota's ban is the most sweeping abortion ban passed by any state in more than a decade," Planned Parenthood Federation of America lawyer Eve Gartner said in a written statement. She said the organization would do everything it could to ensure that women and their doctors, not politicians, made their health care decisions.

Supporters say an anonymous donor has pledged to provide South Dakota with $1 million to help defend the law in court.

The recent appointment of Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito make the U.S. Supreme Court more likely to consider overturning Roe v. Wade now, Bartling and other supporters said.

"It is a calculated risk to be sure, but I believe it is a fight worth fighting," said Sen. Brock Greenfield, a Republican who also is director of South Dakota Right to Life.

Some senators, including Republicans, were concerned that the legislation did not include exceptions for abortions in cases of rape or incest.

Republican Sen. Stan Adelstein said it would be "a continued savagery unworthy of South Dakota" to make a woman bear a child if she becomes pregnant as the result of rape.

The Legislature passed a similar bill two years ago, but Rounds issued a technical veto because it would have wiped existing restrictions off the books while the bill was involved in a court challenge.

Including Thursday, the Legislature has five days left before the official end of its session.

Thats not gonna stop it. Maybe some of the women but they'll just go out of state to get it done. its not hard to fake and address and name let alone get a fake ID or SSN card. They're just making it more inconvenient.

As for me, they should leave it up to the woman to decide if she wants an abortion or not. So the only way to have one is if ur life is in danger? what about if the girl was raped? so now the girl has to go on for 9 months of her life cause of some law? Not only that but thats like reminding her she got raped for 9 months str8!

complete bullshit in my opinion. If they're willing to ban abortions then they should be willing to get into schools and teach them about safe sex. and i'm not talking about during senior year in health class. You gotta get in there early..hand out condoms at schools, etc. Everyone says that it encourages sex..well hello?! kids as young as 13-14 are having sex now a days!!! you might as well teach them how to do it safely!!! If not you'll have a 14 yr old walking around pregnant.

I agree with the legislation and hope it passes.

Better that than being haunted for the rest of her life for having had an abortion.

ok. so let the girl live her whole life knowing that her child's father raped her. Let the girl go on knowing she will have to break the childs heart and tell her she doesn't know the father (if they really don't know each other). Instead of ruining one life, you are ruining two. how embarassing would it be for the mother and daughter if they ever get asked "So who's the father?". What are they supposed to say? explain everything that happened and that the mother was raped and ****?

Sorry homie...I dont' agree with putting a kid through all that. I'm sure if it was ur daughter, mother, or sister, you would think differently. I'm sure you would have the perfect answer when that kid grows up asking where their dad is. what are you gonna do? lie to them?

Will I agree with you its bs..

No, I would not think differently. Having an abortion doesn't "rewind" a rape.

http://www.abortionrecoverycounseling.com/Page.html

I'd rather think of an answer for the kid than to kill it before it was born.

And that does not happen to every woman. When a woman has an abortion, then she knows that she may regret it down the line but thats her CHOICE! An aboration can pretty much hurt a womans body to the point where she can't have kids. But thats HER CHOICE if she decides to do it. Alcohol kills people everyday BUT people still CHOOSE to drink knowing it can harm them. its all about choice. As long as the woman is well educated on what can and may happen, then she should be able to choose about what ahppens to her body and her future. Especially if she was raped by someone she did not know.

So what type of answer would YOU think of? there's no way of putting it without telling the kid "sorry, ur dad doesn't exist". Or better yet, as they get older they'll think "well I wasn't planned, I wasn't an oops baby at least with people who had a relationship, but i was conceived because someone violated my mothers rights because they were being selfish."

My ex was an Oops baby and when she found out, it was like her life was over. and she was an adult already. imagine that an adult freaking out. How well do you think a kid is gonna take it?

Oh and Abortion may not rewind a rape, BUT seeing a child play in front of you and giggle in ur face will REMIND you of what happened. Which can Depress a mother AND put her thru everything that is listed on that site. So regardless of what happens, the mother is still gonna suffer somehow. so why include a child in it.

i think the potentiality of this becoming law is effing scary. women are more than capable of making decisions about their own body, thankyouverymuch.

i guess women should go back to taking Home Ec in high school, and thinking of England while our sole provider and god has his way with us.

The primary difference between you and I (well, almost everyone and I) is that I believe an unborn child is just that..a child..abortion violates the child's right to live.

Them, yes..but is it not illegal to harm others while under the influence?

Does she still wish she was dead, then?

in the early stages, it's nothing more than a cluster of cells. do we not cut off cancerous cells? they're clusters, too...and they're just as unwanted as "oops foetuses" can be.

i honestly do NOT see how this sort of legislation, if passed, will be good for the rest of the country. it's guaranteed to set us back a generation.

with that i agree wholeheartedly. if a girl gets abortions all the time...either surgically or medically...she should be cut off. that's one of the wonderful things about HIPAA - it allows hospitals to share health information about patients. require that she be watched for pattern abortions.


but for chrissakes, don't punish the rest of us because of those who have a few too many.

Im not for abortion but i think people should have their choice.

How can you make a comparison to a group of cancerous cells? Death vs new life? Nothing good comes from cancer cells..

I really dislike getting into abortion discussions, because neither one of us will change the other's mind..

I should probably avoid the debate forum, then.

here's another viewpoint for you.

let's say the US bans abortions 100%. no state, no doctor is permitted to administer the abortion pill, nor are they permitted to perform surgical abortions.

what will that lead women to do? head back to the alleys and have a craptacular, dangerous, deadly abortion. plain and simple, THEY WILL CONTINUE TO HAPPEN. it's like the gun bans: ban them, and the only people who will own them are criminals. well, ban abortions and they'll still happen...but now, it's more deadly. yay! women's death rates will skyrocket!

ooh! i've got one! make us all wear skirts to our ankles, and long-sleeved shirts buttoned up to our chins! while were at it, let's ban women from ever leaving the house!!

I want to remain friends with y'all, so I should probably step out.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/03/06/sd.abortionban.ap/index.html

its not even legal if its rape or incest...thats wrong.