Many Americans believe abortion is murder.  Bad as I believe their reasoning is, and I believe it’s bad, it’s a fact.  Given that fact, it is difficult to ask them to contribute their tax money for murder – though most of them have no problem asking us to contribute ours for the murderous wars that a majority of them support.  But for the moment that’s another issue.

As I write abortion proponents are using the issue to hold up health reform for everyone.  There is not much reasonable people can do to stop them.  The price of even a small amount of health reform might be to make abortion even more difficult than it is today.  But that might finally force some creative thinking on this issue.  Here’s my contribution.

We who actually respect a woman’s capacity to make these kinds of
choices for herself have a fairly simple solution, but one that I have
never seen discussed.   Create a National Trust to provide abortion and
related funding for women who cannot afford one but need one.  Given
the capabilities of online donations, people could donate not just to a
single fund, but could fine-tune their donations to be in keeping with
their own judgment as to when abortion is acceptable, and at what point
it ceases to be.  I personally would not give to a very late decision
unless the mother’s health was at stake.  Others might.  Some would
only give for procedures very early in pregnancy.  All would be able to help in whatever way they felt was most needed.

For example, there could be a fund that could provide help up to the
end of the first three months, another up to the end of the second, and
so on.  Abortions are not extremely expensive medical procedures, and
something like this would provide considerable assistance to a great
many poor women.

Some national women’s organization would be the logical “philanthropy
entrepreneur.” They already have the national communications network,
computers set up for online donations, and the staff to get it off the
ground.  Perhaps some reader of this blog has connections.