Abortion has been part of human history for a long time. The earliest references come from the ancient Egyptians more than 5,000 years ago. Women with unwanted pregnancies threw themselves from high places trying to dislodge the fetus; took long horseback rides; and, of course, tried other drastic steps.

Abortion wasn’t invented because the Supreme Court said a woman has the right to choose.

If people really want to end abortions, then we should do the following: We should have comprehensive sex education in all of our schools. Contraception should be made available to all females of child-bearing age, including emergency contraception. Of course, abstinence should be taught as well. No one should engage in sexual activity until they are emotional mature enough to handle sex and until they are able to deal with the consequences.

But not everyone is going to listen to what is taught; contraception sometimes fails and there will still be unwanted pregnancies. As a compassionate society, we do not want women inducing abortions on their own. Women die that way.

Making abortion illegal will not end abortions. And what would be the punishment for women who survived self-induced abortion? Twenty years in jail for manslaughter? Should we execute them for murder? For every crime, there must be a punishment.

If a person doesn’t believe in abortion, don’t have one.

Contraception and abortion need to be kept legal and safe to protect the lives of women in this country.

Judson R. Duncan, Monmouth