jack@hp-dcd.UUCP (07/04/83)
#N:hp-dcd:22900002:000:533 hp-dcd!jack Jul 2 21:09:00 1983 re: We Ride the Slippery Slope Again! Abortions aren't "private decisions of women". There's a kid in there too. Is it a "private decision" if I kill my wife at home? -Jack Applin IV (ucbvax!decvax!cca!sri-unix!hplabs!hp-dcd!jack) P.S.: The real question is: "Is the fetus alive?" All this "pro-life" & "pro-choice" & "private decision" arguments are conclusions based on that *basic* assumption. If you argue "abortions are OK because it's the woman's choice" then you aren't addressing our fundamental disagreement.
softech@micomz.UUCP (07/05/83)
"Is it a private decision if I kill my wife at home" I am always surprised that such garbage can actually be posted on this network. I usually don't bother, but jeez! this one goes overboard. The difference (for you twits out there) is that you CHOSE your wife, whereas the request for an abortion is rarely the result of a desired pregnancy. The issue of privacy of decision is only a consequence of the other major issues: A) When does a person's inalienable right to go on living start ? - At conception. ? - At birth ? - Somewhere in between ? B) What are the criteria that allow the protectors of a foetus (parents and society) to terminate its existence ? - The assurance of grave birth defects? - The assurance of a miserable life ? - The impossibility for the parents to love/care for the child ? C) How does the right of a parent to choose his/her own destiny interfere with A) and B) above? Richard Blouin. ...!philabs!micomvax!micomz!softech
ray@utcsrgv.UUCP (Raymond Allen) (07/07/83)
The problem with abortion (by "problem" I mean on why no one ever seems to agree with anyone else's viewpoint on the issue) is that abortion is really a MORAL not LEGAL issue. If, for example, a given person believes that abortion is murder and that murder is immoral, then that person must naturally conclude that abortion is immoral and should thus not be legal either. But our society allows for the taking of human life under various special circumstances (e.g. capital punishment, euthanasia, self-defence). In my home province (Ontario) the health board routinely sterilizes mentally retarded children without their consent. Is this immoral? There is certainly a good argument in favor of this practice. How about the different cases where an abortion may be desired? Consider when a woman's life is threatened by an unborn child she is carrying. How about when a woman who has no money and 14 children gets pregnant because she and her husband do not practice birth control. How about pregnancies resulting from rape? How about parthogenesis (I suppose this is getting silly)? The point that I'm trying to get across is that the issue is far too complex to be dealt with by sweeping generalizations. How anyone can take a firm stand on either side is beyond me. (Personally I believe that abortion is a matter that should be dealt with by the persons involved, but even this statement of my own I find hard to accept as universal when I consider all the possible scenarios for abortion. Anyway, I have gone on far too long. I will wait for the flames to decend and see whether anyone (including myself) understands all the facets of the abortion argument. I remain under asbestos, Ray Allen utcsrgv!ray (416) 978-5036