Abortion

I'll probably be excoriated by some, but it seems we need to look at the fact that the country is divided roughly 50/50 between those feeling abortion should be legal and those opposing it. So long as half the country does not feel the fetus is a person it's hard to legislate that it is.

Some things I've seen translate abortion arguments to murder. This is actually a good analogy. If half of the population felt murder should not be a crime I guarantee homicide laws would be full of controversy, etc. We see a little of this (not a good analogy) with inner city demands that the police go away. The Jim Crow South (at least the stereotype) was similar, killings of blacks weren't pursued because it wasn't considered a major crime (as opposed to killing a white person).

Unfortunately, a Supreme Court dictate was the wrong way to handle abortion. The result over the last 40+ years has been for both sides to harden their positions. Anti-abortion activists will not budge from "life begins at conception" while pro-abortion activists object to any restriction on abortion before birth. Because of Roe v Wade states on one side craft laws to effectively ban abortion by making it nearly impossible for a doctor to perform legally. Other states have gone the other way, resulting in a few dangerous clinics (e.g. Gosnell) and kids able to get abortions without parental or other permission at an age when they can't legally get pierced ears without a parent.

I've concluded that imperfect as it is, the original Roe v Wade is a reasonable compromise. Allow early term abortion and make it progressively harder for late term abortion. The trimester distinction, while arbitrary, provides this compromise.