Likewise in a situation such as this issue where "person hood" is unknown, shouldn't we also CHOOSE to error on the side of safety?
If the question only implicated how we deal with the fetus, I would agree with your analysis. However, your analogy ignores the indisputable fact, a fact with which all intelligent people agree, that there is also another person involved; the woman carrying the fetus.
Childbirth is dangerous. According to
Wiki, there are 10-30 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in the U.S. This is certainly very low, but it is not an insignificant number. Anytime the law requires a woman to carry a child, the law is requiring a woman to risk her life. On top of that, during pregnancy a woman's body undergoes tremendous change, creating numerous inconveniences for her and threats to her health short of death.
It is the height of arrogance for anyone to analyze this issues solely from the perspective of the fetus.
Ridicule is the only weapon which can be used against unintelligible propositions. -- Thomas Jefferson
We see monsters where science shows us windmills. -- Phat
It has always struck me as odd that fundies devote so much time and effort into trying to find a naturalistic explanation for their mythical flood, while looking for magical explanations for things that actually happened. -- Dr. Adequate
...creationists have a great way to detect fraud and it doesn't take 8 or 40 years or even a scientific degree to spot the fraud--'if it disagrees with the bible then it is wrong'.... -- archaeologist