I phrased it that way on purpose to show how things can be worded differently to give a story a different feeling and meaning. How about:
"More U.S. women having unwanted babies"
Does 'Unplanned' Mean 'Unwanted'
This is asked by Tim from ProLifeBlogs who points to Kathry Jean Lopez and JivenJehoshaphat.
MSNBC did clarify the way the questions were asked.
Right before you became pregnant, did you yourself want to have a baby at any time in the future?
If they said no, the pregnancy was defined as unwanted. Pregnancies that occurred sooner than the woman wanted were instead classified as mistimed, said Anjani Chandra, lead author of the federal study.
My title is more to the point. Pro-Life groups might want to phrase it something like this:
"More U.S. women are having their children instead of aborting them"
Which is more correct? Let's look at the whole picture.
A federal study showed that "U.S. women of childbearing age who were surveyed in 2002 revealed that 14 percent of their recent births were unwanted at the time of conception".
In 1995 only 9% were unwanted at the time of conception. That's an increase of almost 60%!
Pro-Life groups are quick to jump on this statistic and claim it as proof that people are turning more Pro-Life.
I dont think theres any mystery here, said Susan Wills, of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.The new data underscores that more women are turning away from abortions, even when its a pregnancy they dont initially want, said Wills, associate director for education in the Conferences Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities.
It shows a real pro-life shift, she said.
I don't know what world you might be on to interpret this statistic in a positive way. This is so far from reality, I think people who believe this need to click their heels and say "there's no place like home, there's no place like home", because in my opinion they are not understanding the statistics.
In 1995, for every 100 births that ended in abortion or a birth, almost 26 ended in abortion. In 2002, 24 ended in abortion, according to Guttmacher data.
This is a statistic that fills in the big picture. Only a .8 percent decrease in abortions yet a 60% increase in the number of women who say they are having an unwanted child?!?
Obviously women are being taught that having children is a negative thing. Women are not happy that they are having children.
Abortion rate falling The number of U.S. abortion providers fell steadily in the last decade, from 2,400 in 1992 to 1,800 in 2000.
So the number of abortion providers fell by 35% but abortions only went down by .8%?
Let's put all this together...
Statistically, a large percentage of women are having children they don't want, there are less abortion clinics for them to have abortions in and the number of abortions has only gone down a fraction.
This is not positive Pro-Life news at all!
To me it shows that women are being convinced more than ever before that having a baby is a negative thing. How are these women going to behave as mothers?
As we drift away from a morals and values society, women will get less respect. Why should a man marry a woman when he can have sex with her, not marry her and if she gets pregnant, ask her "what are you going to do?", which of course implies that he wants her to get rid of the child. Have you women ever heard of having your cake and eating it too?
About 42 percent of women in 2002 said they never married, up from 38 percent in 1995. About 50 percent of women in 2002 said they had lived with a man in a sexual relationship outside of marriage, up from 41 percent of women in the 1995 survey.
These aren't positive statistics either. More women not getting married and more women shacking up with men is not a good thing.
Men are loving it of course.
We men need to be more responsible and supportive. We need to help our women, not hurt them. Don't have sex if you aren't willing to have children. Don't have sex if you aren't willing to be a husband and father. Don't have sex if you aren't willing to marry. Finally, call me old-fashioned, but don't have sex until you are married. A relationship isn't about sex, it's about love, caring, sharing and commitment.
Treat women with respect. I know there are a lot of "feminists" who want to blend in with men out there, but the majority of women are still women.
Help women "want" their children. It's a sad day when women have children they don't want, out of wedlock and then don't care for them properly. Why should the financial, emotional and time burdens be imposed on them alone when men are the ones putting them in this position?
Women, you are the ones ultimately in control. Don't have sex unless you are married and ready to have a child. If you love a man and marry him, you will figure out how to enjoy sex with him. We don't have to take each other for "trial runs" to make sure we are sexually compatible. If you do wind up with an "unwanted" child, it is your responsibility to care for her/him with everything you have, regardless of the callousness of the man who got you pregnant.
United we stand - Divided they die - Pass it on
