Beth Matusoff Merfish "Proud" of Mother's Abortion

Beth Matusoff Merfish, an op-ed contributor for the New York Times, made a shocking declaration on MSNBC's July 9th broadcast of Now with Alex Wagner.

She announced that she is "proud" of her mother's abortion. "Proud."

During a discussion of Wendy Davis and the abortion debate in Texas, Matusoff Merfish made the following startling statement, from NewsBusters:

BETH MATUSOFF MERFISH, NYT: You know more women than we would like to know -- or than we think have had abortions. The Guattmacher Institute estimates that 22% of pregnancies in the United States are terminated – and that of the women that terminate, 61% of those women are already mothers. I think such shame permeates our discussion about abortion. And in fact that is so contradictory to how I feel about my mother's abortion. I am incredibly proud of her. At the age of 20 years old she had the wisdom and the courage to know that her own potential would be cut short by a pregnancy and to terminate that pregnancy and I think many of our mothers have similar stories and it is really important to talk about that.

I can't imagine using the word "proud" to describe the act that killed my unborn sibling.

Matusoff Merfish had an older brother or sister that her mother chose to kill. She's proud of her mother for doing that, "incredibly proud."

Having an abortion doesn't elicit pride in my view, under any circumstances. It's the end of a human life. That's something to mourn, not celebrate.

Matusoff Merfish boasts, "At the age of 20 years old she had the wisdom and the courage to know that her own potential would be cut short by a pregnancy and to terminate that pregnancy."

No, at the age of 20, her mother wasn't wise. She didn't have enough wisdom to prevent her pregnancy. She also didn't have courage. It doesn't take courage to shirk personal responsibility. Her mother was reckless and selfish, more concerned about her own potential than the potential of her unborn child.

The reality is the mother of Matusoff Merfish put herself ahead of that unique human life she was carrying, having her developing baby killed.

Sadly, there are many mothers with similar stories. I don't consider the women owning those stories to be wise or courageous. They are pitiable. Rather than carrying a baby for nine months, they chose to carry the knowledge that they killed their unborn babies for the rest of their lives.

I completely disagree with the perspective of Matusoff Merfish. Killing an innocent human life is not a source of pride.

Can't intelligent people, informed about reality and the science of human development, at least agree on this-- that the intentional killing of an unborn baby is tragic?