I’d expect to hear a lot about this study–if that’s the right word for it–especially as the Kerry campaign tries to appeal to pro-lifers who are liberal on other issues. The conclusions look less than airtight. That is in part a result of the lack of comprehensive data. But the researcher also makes a number of analytical jumps. For example, we’re to believe that joblessness leads to a higher abortion rate. Maybe so; but it would be nice to have some historical data to back up the point. I also think the moral assumptions behind the article are unsound. For one thing, it is not the case that pro-lifers should care only about whether the abortion rate goes up or down. Even if the abortion rate were zero, the fact that the law treats unborn human beings as non-persons would remain an injustice. And it is not the case that every policy that might bring down that rate is a good idea. If, for example, it were demonstrated that a policy of massive public subsidies for illegitimate births would reduce the abortion rate–which I do not believe–that would not by itself establish that it was worth doing.