Plan B For Rape Victims?

[93 Phillies]

I could not support an abortion in any case, including rape, but a lot of people tell me my opinion doesn't count because I'm not a woman.

[VeniteAdoremus]

[quote name='93 Phillies' post='1119465' date='Nov 14 2006, 06:42 AM']
I could not support an abortion in any case, including rape, but a lot of people tell me my opinion doesn't count because I'm not a woman.
[/quote]

You're a human being, so I say that your opinion DOES count.

If all men opposed abortion and supported the women standing before the "choice" (ahem) in choosing LIFE, there wouldn't be any abortions!

[beatty07]

I guess we've got two definitions of "contraception" going here. Willam May's is a highly limited one of the sort that moral theologians like, but simply isn't what 99% of people mean when they use the word. The popular meaning, I suggest, is more like "any technique employed before or after intercourse with the intention of preventing conception."

I don't mean to be nitpicky, it's just that it's so hard to communicate when there's multiple definitions of terms. I don't mean to insist on one or the other, just to point out the discrepancy.

[Thy Geekdom Come]

Okay, I'm confused. Doesn't the morning after pill act as an abortifacient? So if conception hadn't occured yet but still could occur, wouldn't it be wrong to take it?

That's a different situation from a drug that just keeps sperm from meeting with the egg.

[Balthazor]

Not in all cases from what I understand. depending on where you are in your cycle it could just keep you from ovulating.

Also contraceptive in itself does not rely on abortion to prevent conception....it is more like your body thinks it is pregnant so you get a thick mucus wall that sperm can't penetrate(usually).

[thessalonian]

[quote name='Raphael' post='1120069' date='Nov 14 2006, 05:45 PM']
Okay, I'm confused. Doesn't the morning after pill act as an abortifacient? So if conception hadn't occured yet but still could occur, wouldn't it be wrong to take it?

That's a different situation from a drug that just keeps sperm from meeting with the egg.
[/quote]

That is the secondary effect. Not the primary. Plan B is supposed to prevent ovulation as the primary effect. RU486 is the pill with it's primary effect as causing an abortion of the fertilized egg.

Edited November 14, 2006 by thessalonian

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='thessalonian' post='1120076' date='Nov 14 2006, 06:51 PM']
That is the secondary effect. Not the primary. Plan B is supposed to prevent ovulation as the primary effect. RU486 is the pill with it's primary effect as causing an abortion of the fertilized egg.
[/quote]
Nevertheless, it has the abortifacient potential, doesn't it?

So if conception hadn't occured yet but still could occur, wouldn't it be wrong to take it?

[toledo_jesus]

[quote name='Raphael' post='1120297' date='Nov 15 2006, 12:23 AM']
Nevertheless, it has the abortifacient potential, doesn't it?

So if conception hadn't occured yet but still could occur, wouldn't it be wrong to take it?
[/quote]
I think it would be wrong.

Is this an official Church stance, or is it just some theological wrangling?

[kamiller42]

[quote name='Raphael' post='1120297' date='Nov 14 2006, 09:23 PM']
Nevertheless, it has the abortifacient potential, doesn't it?

So if conception hadn't occured yet but still could occur, wouldn't it be wrong to take it?
[/quote]
I think they are saying it wouldn't be wrong because the contraception is not being used to hinder life created in the unitive bond of marriage. It's being used, prior to conception, as a defense mechanism against an aggressor or a piece of him. If conception has taken place, the situation changes.

As I understand, Plan B can act as a abortifacient if conception has occurred. But, it can be used if the female is not pregnant in order to stop the aggressor. It's like giving the female egg a knife to protect itself of what remains of the aggressor. The egg is waving the knife around saying "Back off! You're not my husband, and you don't belong here!"

[toledo_jesus]

[quote name='kamiller42' post='1120421' date='Nov 15 2006, 02:32 AM']
I think they are saying it wouldn't be wrong because the contraception is not being used to hinder life created in the unitive bond of marriage. It's being used, prior to conception, as a defense mechanism against an aggressor or a piece of him. If conception has taken place, the situation changes.

As I understand, Plan B can act as a abortifacient if conception has occurred. But, it can be used if the female is not pregnant in order to stop the aggressor. It's like giving the female egg a knife to protect itself of what remains of the aggressor. The egg is waving the knife around saying "Back off! You're not my husband, and you don't belong here!"
[/quote]
and for the contraceptive to work, how long do they have? And to determine if fertilization has occurred, how long do they have?

It's just not practical.

[kamiller42]

[quote name='toledo_jesus' post='1120431' date='Nov 14 2006, 11:42 PM']
and for the contraceptive to work, how long do they have? And to determine if fertilization has occurred, how long do they have?

It's just not practical.
[/quote]
How long do they have? I think this depends on the female's cycle and possibly other conditions. In other words, it depends on variables. The body is sometimes welcoming and sometimes not so welcoming.

Apparently, there are tests which can determine if fertilization has occurred or not. How long does it take for test results to occur? I don't know. Could the egg have been fertilized between the time the test results come back and when the medicine takes effect? Maybe, but I don't know.

I think [url="http://www.linacre.org/MornAftPillMcC.htm"]whoever wrote that article[/url] (I guess church officials.) is saying you can have a high degree of certainty by testing whether the female has ovulated or not. That is the only Plan B would be permissible.

[quote]In contrast to this, the ovulation-testing method tests for pre-existing pregnancy, and also [b]attempts to ascertain whether the raped woman is at or approaching the time of ovulation in order to work out whether any new conception is likely to result from the recent assault.[/b] [color="#FF0000"]In this method, “emergency contraception” is offered only if [b]the pregnancy test is negative and empirical and personal data indicate that the woman is not at or near the time of ovulation[/b].[/color] The simple testing gives medical staff the information to know whether they can safely intervene to prevent the release of a woman’s ovum, or prevent the sperm from reaching the egg. In this way, any child conceived is exposed to very little risk indeed and a woman treated can be reassured that she was not pregnant.[/quote]

Just FYI for anyone wondering...

Ovulation: noun: the expulsion of an ovum from the ovary.

Ovum is the egg. Ovary produces eggs.

[thessalonian]

[quote name='Raphael' post='1120297' date='Nov 14 2006, 09:23 PM']
Nevertheless, it has the abortifacient potential, doesn't it?

So if conception hadn't occured yet but still could occur, wouldn't it be wrong to take it?
[/quote]


Yes. Even if one could gaurantee that ovulation had not yet occured, what happens if it occurs just after you take the pill and it's not yet preventing ovulation. The sperm can live for up to five days as I understand. A good question is how long does it take for the pill to start preventing ovulation after it is taken? Minutes, hours?

[Balthazor]

Found this website...it is strangely relevant I hope it helps.
[url="http://www.faqfarm.com/Q/How_long_does_it_take_sperm_to_reach_an_egg"]http://www.faqfarm.com/Q/How_long_does_it_...to_reach_an_egg[/url]

Edited November 15, 2006 by Balthazor