Monday, July 12, 2010

Abortion pictures on my walk home

A number of people from www.showthetruth.ca held large placards with graphic pictures of aborted fetuses at the corner of University Ave. and Seagram today. Here is a taste of what they were displaying (taken from their pamphlet).


I looked through their pamphlet, and it was effective, but for the wrong reasons. I've always been wary that my emotions only reflect what feels best, not necessarily what is best. Given that I have 3 children, it's not surprising that I felt a tinge of sorrow for the unborn, bloody babies.

But, I don't think that's the best way to think about abortion. Nobody wants to get an abortion. It's not like it makes you feel good. But it doesn't take much imagination to come up with a situation where abortion is the lesser of two evils.

Their pamphlet states, "we need science to tell us when life begins." That's like asking where the end of a circle is. There is no clear-cut instant when a new life is formed. It's all a gradual chemical process with a few milestones along the way. So I'm afraid science isn't going to help there. But this is not really a scientific question, anyway; it's a value judgement.

Not surprisingly, their web page is sprinkled with Christian biblical quotes. Using the bible to support their views is probably the least scientific thing they could possibly do.

What I don't like is that some people feel pompous enough to try to introduce laws that will limit others who don't share their viewpoint. I don't mind them showing the pictures. I'm just glad I live in a country that is rational enough to give women the choice. Last I checked, the world wasn't short of people.

I'm not saying that abortion is a great replacement for birth control, or that a woman should be allowed to abort a fetus whenever she pleases. I also acknowledge that many people want to adopt babies. All I'm saying is that it should be a choice. And perhaps it's better to make a rational choice than an emotionally-charged choice.

3 comments:

  1. There's a lot that's wrong with this world: abortion being just one of them. I'm not saying that abortion is wrong, per se. It's just that there are ways and means NOT to get pregnant in the first place.
    And then there are wars where we actually send our sons and dads and husbands into a killing zone. Like I said, there's a lot wrong with the world.

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  2. Oops, I delete my own comment by mistake.

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  3. Here's the comment that was deleted...

    Yes, lots of ways to get hurt. But I would argue (in my typically cold and materialistic manner) that the value of a human life is best measured by how much human effort has been invested. So, to me, a teenager is worth more than an unborn baby (all else being equal, of course... MY baby has more value to me than someone else's teenager).

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