A Minnesota couple has ignited a firestorm of controversy by creating a website that will determine the fate of their unborn child.
Voting is such an integral part of the American identity. We vote on everything from the best singer on American Idol to who the next leader of the free world will be.
‘Wouldn’t it be nice to voice your opinion and have it actually make a difference in the real world? Why not vote on whether to continue or abort an actual pregnancy?’
Such goes the logic behind the bloggers who created http://www.birthornot.com
The Minneapolis couple behind the site, Pete and Alisha Arnold, both age 30, erected the website which comes complete with a poll asking whether they should give birth or have an abortion. They say that the public’s voice “will be heard” and will keep the poll open until December 7th, two days before their last chance to have a legal abortion in Minnesota.
Alisha has suffered two previous miscarriages and has had some complications with this pregnancy (a sub-chorionic hematoma which has caused extreme bleeding) but all tests so far indicate that their 17-week-old fetus, who they’ve nicknamed “Wiggles,” is healthy.
The website is regularly updated with ultrasounds and pregnancy progress reports. Here are some excerpts:
Word of the Day: Intense
Filed under He Said, Media By Pete
November 18, 2010
There has been a lot of attention about this today, and I would like to spend a moment to address some of what I’m reading.
First of all, your comments are appreciated. Though there are indeed many hateful. For every ten comments that are negative or spiteful there is one that is positive enough to blow them out of the water. We have even had multiple people (accounting for approximately 6% of those who have sent us a message) who have offered to adopt if the vote result is Abort.
We have had multiple interviews today. The entire experience has been rather dizzying, and we are both surprised and impressed at how many have taken interest. Most of the interviewers have been very nice and professional, which is something I had not expected. Two radio talking heads we talked to were pretty clear in their attempts to steer the conversation, which we expected. I have been honestly surprised by how all of the local, national, and international media we have talked to so far has been shockingly “professional”. One thing is cretin; I am very much looking forward to my return home from my trip to hold Alisha and have a nice long talk about what we have experienced thus far.
14 Week Ultrasound Images
Filed under She Said, by Alisha
November 1, 2010
Well I made it to the 2nd trimester. During my pregnancy that ended in miscarriage back in January of this year, they determined that based on the measurements that the baby’s heartbeat stopped around 13.5 weeks even though I hadn’t miscarried yet at my 16 week appointment. So this pregnancy has officially made it further than the longest lasting one.
I rented a fetal heart doppler from storkradio.com, so I can listen to the baby’s heartbeat on a daily basis. That way I won’t be surprised if I get to my weekly ultrasound appointment and they can’t find a heartbeat. At the 14 week appointment Baby “Wiggles’” heartbeat was 166 bpm and I’m able to count just around 160 bpm myself at home on a daily basis.
These 3D images always look kind of weird to me. Although in the non-3D images above the baby still looks weird because you’re seeing the top of the head as Baby “Wiggles’” chin is tucked down to the neck, so you’re seeing the two halves of the brain instead of a profile from the side. Everything is looking good baby-wise although my hematoma hasn’t decreased in size at all. I am still working from home and watching the birds come to the window feeder.
Yeah these folks are kind of ho-hum about what they’re doing considering there is a human life involved. And for those that think that this is just for publicity. They continue to post reassurances that “your voice will be heard”
We Meant What We Said: Your Vote Will Not Go Unheard
Filed Under: He Said by Pete — November 1, 2010
What we’ve said our About This Site page still rings true: We would like to keep you informed on our pregnancy as if it was your own; posting our thoughts and feelings as we struggle to make this decision. We would like you to see what we see and feel what we feel. We invite you take this journey with us as we contemplate our own options and encourage you to utilize this site to vote and voice your opinion in a way that will have a real consequence… in a way that truly matters. Here, your vote will not go unheard.
We will not take down this vote because some do not take it seriously. We all know this to be true with our current election system as it sits, and accept it. I will however, not allow duplicate votes. Poll Daddy, thankfully weeds a good portion of duplicates out and includes reports I can run to help me decipher any duplicate votes that made it through based on IP address, cookies, and timestamps.
For the first time in history, your vote on the topic of abortion will not go unheard. We meant that
WTF???
What the hell are they going to tell their kid if they go through with this pregnancy? We let the world decide whether to kill you or not???
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