Abortion was thrust to the forefront of American discourse by the divisive ruling in the U.S. Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade, and the focus hasn’t faded since. It’s been 37 years since abortion was legalized in the United States, and “pro-lifers” and “pro-choicers” are still battling it out Hatfield and McCoy-style.

The truth is, almost everyone has an opinion on abortion — moral, legal or otherwise. We know these opinions are unlikely to change. Even among our editorial board, we can’t reach a consensus on whether abortion should be legal.

But there’s a greater issue at hand.

We can say with some certainty that, with the rare sicko exception, no one is pro-abortion. In the abortion debate, the opposite of pro-life is not pro-baby killing. Even the editorial board members who advocate abortion rights want to minimize the occurrence of abortions as much as possible.

It’s time to stop getting sucked into a debate that will, quite likely, never be resolved. We all need to stop wasting time fighting about Roe v. Wade and start working toward a solution to the real problem.

What is the real problem? Unwanted pregnancies.

We all know abstinence is the best way to prevent an unplanned pregnancy. We’re not going to take you back to that scary place known as high school sex education class.

If abstinence is your approach to avoiding pregnancy, we applaud you. Abstinence doesn’t have to mean hands-to-shoulders, no less than one foot apart from your partner, like a middle school dance.

There are plenty of ways to be intimate without engaging in full-blown — no pun intended — intercourse, and they can be lots of fun But we also know that not everyone will choose to abstain from sex — and that’s fine too. But please, please don’t be stupid about it. We know you’ve heard it a million times before, but there’s no better way to say it. If you have sex, do it safely. That means you and your partner need to talk before you get too hot and heavy — because once you’re in the moment, the only thing in your head will be Olivia Newton-John singing “Let’s Get Physical.” OK, hopefully that song won’t be going through your head in the heat of the moment. But, seriously, talk about it.

Talk about the risks involved, make sure your feelings for each other are clear, and talk about what you’ll do if things go wrong. Be prepared for the worst-case scenario, and then take every step you can to prevent that scenario from becoming a reality.

Use some form of birth control. We’ll admit some of them are a little scary looking, but there are so many out there now that you should have no problem finding something that works for you.

We’d even go so far — is that home base? — as to say you might consider doubling up. That means two different kinds of contraceptives, mind you. Despite what Asher Roth tells you, using two condoms at once is a bad idea. But contraceptives do have failure rates. Follow the directions and use them properly.

Even once you’re in a long-term, committed relationship, that doesn’t mean you can forget about all this stuff. Unfortunately, love isn’t a sufficient sperm blocker.

Fellas, don’t be a, um … jerk about using condoms. If you can’t shield the rocket, leave it in your pocket. And ladies, if you’re on the Pill, take it regularly.

You know the drill — again, no pun intended.