Topic : 07/06 Baby Wars

I do believe that a man has every right in the decision on whether to have a baby or not.  If a woman gets pregnant and does not want the baby, the father should be able have a say in whether she aborts, or puts up for adoption.  For him to have no say in the matter is just WRONG!!  Especially if he wants to raise the baby himself.  

On the other hand, once a baby is born, whether he wanted it or not, he should be responsible to help care for the baby.  I know it sounds like I am contradicting myself, but to say a father has no responsibility after a baby is born is also WRONG.  This would open the door to a hell of alot more dead beat fathers than are already out there. 

 It will always be his word against hers.  We have a no way of knowing if Matt really did make her aware of the fact that he did not want children.  If he was that adament he should have worn a condom.  By the way, I am a woman.  June 

Matt makes me sick. I can't believe he is treating his baby this way. If Matt was not ready to be a father he SHOULD have waited until marriage to have sex. He played he should have to pay.  This poor child is the one that will suffer even if Matt continues to pay child support.  What a loser and low life. Does he know how many men would love to have the chance to have children but can't, he should feel privileged and proud.  

Stop being a loser Matt and face your responsibility. You PLAYED you PAY  

I believe that Matt should have the same choice as the women does. If she had not used birth control and believed she could have become pregnant, she would have the choice not to be a mother either by abortion, adoption or abandoment. (In Georgia, a woman can take a baby to a hospital and hand it over to a healthcare worker and there are no questions asked.)   

They discussed the matter and he was told that    

1. She could not get pregnant and
2. She was on birth control.

If he had not been told these things, then he would have had the option to continue using a condom. The bottom line is that there is a double standard in this country when it comes to the choice to become a parent or not.  

I do not personally believe in abortion. I believe in personal responsibility, but many people do not believe as I do. I believe that if a woman knows that a man had the choice not to be a parent ( emotionally or financially) , there will be a lot less unplanned pregnancies. Too many children are being used as pawns to punish a man for not acting in the manner a woman wants him too. We all know the saying about a woman scorned.  

To watch Matt sit there as some sort of victim in all this is so annoying. The fact is, this is a no brainer. He had options a) to wear a condom, or b) not to have sex. If you are convinced within yourself that fatherhood at this time is not right for you that's fine. I have nothing but respect for a man who can honestly say that. But not to take any precautions to protect yourself is foolish. I think this guy would lose in a court of law simply because he did nothing to prevent this from happening. If he had and his efforts were unsuccessful (of course nothing besides abstinence and surgery is absolute) at least he might've had a leg to stand on. But he relied soley on the word of someone else and any person with a brain knows that people are not always honest and reliable, so the onus is on you yourself to ensure that every effort to protect yourself has been attempted. Since he did not, he is just as responsible to that child.