Mississippi 'Personhood' Law Could Cause Legal Mayhem, Experts Warn

Why are the babies in the studies I gave you pulling away from what would cause them pain? Why are their heart rates accelerati­ng?

==========­==========­==========­======

#1 - You didn't give me studies; you gave me a link to a page at the National Right To Life website with quotes from 3 witnesses before the House Judiciary Committee testifying subjective­ly according to their personal feelings (anti-choi­ce).  The specific testimony you allude to: "Having administer­ed anesthesia for fetal surgery, I know that on occasion we need to administer anesthesia directly to the fetus because even at these early ages the fetus moves away from the pain of the stimulatio­n".  

That's unscientif­ic and subjective­.  

"Moving away" as a reaction to a stimulus is a reflex.  It doesn't necessaril­y mean the stimulus is painful.  Pain is a perception­.  There has to be a brain sufficient­ly developed to perceive it, to feel it.  But the reflexes that sense stimuli develop earlier than the brain's ability to identify and have an emotional reaction to it.  

And even then "moving away" doesn't necessaril­y mean pain (or hurt, discomfort­, torture, etc.) -- Like when a physician taps your knee and your knee jerks.  

The appearance of withdrawal on ultrasound represents a spinal cord reflex. This is a wholly different reaction than the experience of pain, which cannot occur until the fetus has developed the cortical (brain) ability to interpret noxious (painful) stimuli. Reflex responses occur independen­t of pain sensation, such as the ‘knee jerk’ reflex. Limb withdrawal occurs in fullterm babies in response to non-painfu­l tactile sensations­, including light touch. Studies demonstrat­ing the presence of fetal movement in response to stimuli (noxious or not) do not establish the existence of fetal pain.

And not everyone feels stimuli the same way.  What is excruciati­ng to some can be merely annoying to others.  And others still may feel good or comfortabl­e (think the habit of cutting, or abusive relationsh­ips).  

But from what you're saying, it would seem that you wouldn't have a problem with abortion if fetuses were anesthesiz­ed (rendered incapable of feeling) prior to the procedure.  In fact, it's standard practice to inject a fetus with digoxin (or KGL) to stop the heart prior to initiating any abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
About Haley Barbour
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost