Frankly, I was waiting for plaw to expand on his comments made prior . We have broached this subject before and as a fellow adoptee, I am surprised at his response and wonder if he made it in jest.

I was born to a 16 and 17 year old unmarried couple in San Francisco in 1965. Every day I thank my lucky stars that they "chose" adoption over the alternative. I think it could have been very easy to terminate the pregnancy then either by legal or illegal means.

Honestly, it is not a moral or political issue for me but an emotional one. Knowing I could have been an aborted "fetus" and never had the chance to exist - well, the thought makes me shudder. I also know the first time I heard my unborn baby's heartbeat or felt her kick for the first time, I could never intentionally bring harm to a baby - ANY baby.

But I also know that when a woman is young and pregnant and has nowhere to turn, they will use any means necessary to terminate the pregnancy. Time if of the essence and if not allowed legal means to abort, they will seek out more harmful,illegal and often times life threatening ways to rid themselves of the baby. I simply don't have the answer.

I know if I could perform magic, the first thing I would do is ensure that no girl in the world menstruated before the age of 21 (at least!). There is absolutely NO reason girls need to be fertile and able to bear children before then. Girls starting at 11 and we are telling them to abstain for YEARS, it is an uphill battle. There are enough things to worry about with sex without the thought of bringing unwanted or unplanned babies into this world.

Of course there are alot of OTHER things I would tackle if I could perform magic. I would be one tired gal!