Quote:
Originally Posted by jtee  1) At the very moment of inception, there is nothing left to discuss; moral Big Brother has total authority over the decision. Every abortion == Murder and those who commit murder need to be legally prosecuted. This pure moral argument ignores so many real world problems and leaves no room considering for the circumstances of the pregnancy. |
It's when you take this argument even further when it's ridiculousness becomes even more apparent.
The form of the argument is that
the future existence of a human being is determined by actions taken today, therefore actions taken today which change the course of that future are murderous.
So, starting at the start:
1) When a woman is about 35 weeks pregnant, her child can survive on its own. To 'abort' it now is murder. (We all agree on this one)
2) When a woman is 8 weeks pregnant her foetus can't survive on its own, but it is alive in a real sense and deserves to continue living. (I personally agree with this one).
3) When a woman is 1 week pregnant there is a group of cells in her body which, left alone, will turn into a human. Stopping this process is murder (I disagree, but that's besides the point right now).
4) When a woman is 1 hr pregnant the process has already begun. It is too late to make family planning decisions like the morning after pill (I disagree).
4) After a man has ejaculated, the sperm are on their way. Whether or not they reach and fertilise an egg is up to God, not us. Wearing a condom is taking this decision out of God's hands, and is murder (I think that MOST of us disagree with this one... but for some reason the Catholic Church has only just changed its mind.)
here's where it gets tricky...
5) If a man 'spills his seed on the ground' he's lost an opportunity to fertilise a woman. He shouldn't have pulled out. He's a murderer. (From here on in, only nutjobs agree.)
6) A man wants to have sex with his wife, but she doesn't want to. Because she's ovulating, she's missed a chance to concieve. She's a murderer.
7) A man is walking down the street with time on his hands and strikes up a conversation with a woman who also has an empty schedule. They decide to go have coffee instead of having sex right there and then. They have missed a chance to fertilise her eggs. They are both murderers.
8) A serial rapist believes it is his duty to inseminate woman as per point 7), but the police have discovered him and put him in prison. By making it impossible for him to fertilise women they are baby murderers.
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That's as ridiculous as my imagination allows right now, but you get the idea.
Anyone who believes, without qualiification, the original argument that
the future existence of a human being is determined by actions taken today, therefore actions taken today which change the course of that future are murderous must also believe all the rest.
It's an argument that doesn't bear examination, let alone close examination.