Rape and Health Exceptions = No Abortion Reductions

LifeSite features an article today on how the abortion rate among youth is rising in Spain, even as their population declines. This is a topic becoming discussed more and more lately (although in hushed tones), about how the West is driving itself to extinction with the declining birth rate.

Far, far more interesting than the main topic of the article (and very pertinent to the abortion discussion going on in South Dakota right now), however, was the last paragraph of the story:

While Spanish laws officially restrict abortion to situations involving rape, malformation of the baby, or threats to the physical or mental health of the mother, nearly 95.7% of all abortions are justified for concern for the mother's health, while 2.5% are for fetal deformity, and just 0.1% for rape.

Pro-abortionists in South Dakota are crying for rape and health exceptions in South Dakota's Referred Law 6 abortion ban. If only, they tell us with crocodile tears, Referred Law 6 had exceptions for rape or the health of the mother, by golly they'd be in full support of this bill, they say.

Well, that's essentially what they have in Spain, yet their abortion rate (8.8 per 1000) is even higher than South Dakota's (7 per 1000) where abortion is currently far less restricted. That seems to indicate that if you have an abortion restriction that has rape and health exceptions, you essentially don't have any abortion restrictions.

If 95.7% of Spain's 8.8 abortion rate can be justified under the nebulous "health" definition, that restriction means pretty much nothing. And if we throw in a rape exception (which incidentally says how children were conceived determines their worth and right to live) without requiring the alleged rape victim to report the rape--what pro-abortionists in South Dakota are advocating--then that "restriction" means nothing either.

The "health" and "rape" exceptions essentially become open-ended loopholes used to justify abortion on demand.

Here's a riddle for you: how do you have an abortion ban, yet have just as many abortions? Pass one with a rape and health exception!