Many people describe the abortion debate in America as bitter and uncompromising, usually represented on both sides by people with an intense devotion to their cause and usually with irreconcilable positions. Many of those who are pro-choice insist that a woman's right to abortion should never be restricted while those who are pro-life maintain that a fetus has an unequivocal right to life that is violated at any stage of its development if abortion is performed. Discussions between both sides are usually argumentative, and sometimes violent, so any attempt at coming

What kind of abortion to have is a personal, and often difficult, decision. Some women find that a chemical abortion is troubling because of the unknown long-term effects the chemicals may have on the body although, to date, no health problems have been associated with RU 486 (Alcorn 88). Some women prefer surgical abortion because it is more convenient for them since less time is required at each visit. Other women would prefer RU 486 because they do not want surgical instruments put inside their uterus. With either procedure, fewer than one percent of women suffer serious complications. An advantage to taking RU 486 is that after taking it, a woman has two days to think about what she is doing. If she has decided that she has been too hasty in making her decision, she can choose not to go in for the prostaglandin that triggers the contractions which aborts the fetus. With surgical abortion, you do not have that chance. The cost of both procedures is about the same, around $250.00. This may be a high cost to pay for poor women or for those who are not able to afford an abortion.

Bender, David. The Abortion Controversy, San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1995.

At least one positive thing has come out of all this turmoil: national polls have revealed a wave of public revulsion at the behavior of the extreme anti-abortion groups. This revulsion must now be turned into a positive community action with all nonviolent and pro-choice citizens ensuring that their own communities, their own clinics, and their own physicians are not targeted for violence and intimidation. The purveyors of violence win only as long as people shake their heads, say "Isn't that terrible?" and keep on walking without a backward glance. Americans cannot accept violence as a solution to a social problem. Laws must be put into place that protect each side of the abortion debate, but how to come to such a compromise seems very far out of reach.

Not every patient who goes to these clinics are going in for an abortion. The main priority for many family planning clinics is to educate people about safe sex. They provide services such as treatment for STD's and AIDS. They test women for cancers of the ovaries or cervix, provide PAP smears, pregnancy tests, safe contraception and a whole bunch of other family planning services at a lower price than what hospitals would charge. They also council people on such issues as unplanned pregnancy, how to be more responsible about their bodies, and how to be a more responsible parent. By harassing every patient that goes to these clinics, the demonstrators are hoping to put them out of business.

Medical science has advanced the ability of the fetus to survive outside the womb from about 28 weeks to about 23 to 24 weeks. Since the progression of medical technology is always changing, suggestions for compromise propose a cutoff date for elective abortions at eight to sixteen weeks, which is well before viability (Flanders 25).

Some common words found in the essay are:
Operation Rescue, Hyde Amendment, France September, America Carlin, Charles Murray, United Flanders, Roe Wade, Dr Gunn's, STD's AIDS, Michael Griffin, ru 486, surgical abortion, ru 486 abortion, 486 abortion, abortions performed, abortion debate, women prefer, time-based restriction, staff patients, abortion available, poor women, survive outside womb, according violate rights, federally funded abortions, fetus survive outside,
Approximate Word count = 3145
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page double spaced)