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November 05, 2003
matters of life and death
Ampersand has some good posts today on abortion and the Terri Schiavo case. He is linking to Amy Phillips here, to her thoughts on why abortion should be legal. The comments on the Terri Schiavo case are interesting, but still in the early stages. I am sure this thread will explode with controversial comments when people get around to reading Amp's posts. The abortion one is off and running already.
These issues are so personal, and evoke such emotional response in even the most civilized debates. The line between when someone is alive, a viable person, and when one isn't will be argued till the stars go cold. I can support my pro-choice stance up to a point, and then there is that neutral zone where nothing is definitive, we are going on personal belief alone. The same with the other end of life. None of us wants to be responsible for the decision to let someone die, or to assist their suicide. We question the motives of anyone who is willing to cut short someone else's life at this time, in these circumstances, regardless of the fact that we know nothing of the situation and this person knows the wishes of his/her mate or relative. Then we question the motives of people who won't let their relative die. I am not just speaking of the Schiavo case. That has so many twists and turns in it, I am not surprised we are all confused. I support living wills and DNR requests. I think an intelligent human could make a determination of when one might want to break such a request. There is no easy answer.
I realize I have just come to no definite conclusion whatsoever in this post. I don't know that I will. I leave that up to each of you, and to myself, to determine what is right for ourselves. I trust us to make the right decisions on these things for ourselves, which is one reason I am pro-choice. Choice means choosing the path and not having it dictated. Choosing to have a baby is still choosing. Choosing to live on life support by not signing a DNR is still choosing. If the other half of that choice isn't an option, there is no choice.
Okay, enough rambling for now. :->
03:50 PM | Permalink
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Comments
I know very few people who actually think human life is sacred.
Life is either sacred or it isn't. If it is sacred, it is not just inviolate on alternate Tuesdays, or during full moons, or when the state says it is or isn't okay to kill someone. It is just sacred. Or it isn't. The state's opinion on who should be shot, or bombed or executed or assassinated doesn't change a condition of sanctity.
So anyone who feels that it is a permissible to take human life by any means because his government/religion/tribe says it is okay does not believe that life is sacred, and that person needs to base his argument about abortion or the death penalty on something other than the sanctity of human life.
Posted by: caleb at Nov 5, 2003 5:13:21 PM
One of the differences here is that for abortion, it isn't the child choosing not to be born, but for DNRs and living wills, it is the person himself who has said he doesn't want to be kept alive unnaturally. I really didn't think that through till Caleb just posted this. And he is right, a person either finds life sacred or not. There are also people who see the cycle of life as sacred, not just half of it, and they might choose to die over being supported mechanically. I don't know. I am quick to say I don't want to have to choose that for them, and I don't want them choosing it for me.
Posted by: Alicia at Nov 5, 2003 5:28:06 PM
I couldn't agree with you more. I really think issues surriounding the rights and wrongs of abortion are unimportant. The fundamental issue here is that personal choices such as these should not be dictated by the government. Its got to be up to the individual and her (or his) moral character and belief system to determine the path of her (or his!) life. Not the government.
Posted by: Chris at Nov 6, 2003 6:20:18 AM
