Some Sobering Statistics
Not to be a downer, but I feel like abortion is becoming more and more of a pressing issue in our society. Regardless if you are apathetic to the argument, abortion is increasingly becoming more prevalent in our lives as it becomes more of a political affair. Take the upcoming 2008 presidential election, for example; most candidates have a stance on abortion as part of their political platforms. And 14% of all abortions are publicly funded (a.k.a. your tax dollars).
Certainly not meant to fan the flames of the moral controversies sparked by the abortion process, I wrote this post to illustrate the important statistics of the highly sensitive and private issues of abortion and adoption.
The most common reason women have abortions performed is because they are unplanned pregnancies, unwanted or inconvenient. According to the Planned Parenthood Foundation, 1,293,000 abortions are performed each year in the United States, or 4,000 per day.
A poll conducted by CBS News cited that 55% of Americans have taken a pro-life stance and believe abortion to be ethically wrong. A majority 70% believe there should be greater restrictions placed on abortions.
On the contrary, adoption has always been encouraged as an alternative for birth mothers. Nearly 1/3, or 60% of all Americans have some ties to adoption (family member, extended family, etc.). While comprehensive federal adoption statistics have not been gathered since 1992 (states are not required to report private infant adoptions), it is estimated that there are almost twice as many couples and individuals looking to adopt a domestic infant than there are actual infants placed for adoption.