From: gjh@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Galen J. Hekhuis)
Subject: Re: Suzanne's "Abortion kills children"
Organization: University of Virginia Health Sciences Center
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1992 02:33:40 GMT

In article <1992Dec18.001750.13308@noao.edu> forgach@noao.edu (Suzanne Forgach) writes:

}People who argue for abortion on demand have no hope in the betterment of
}the human condition.  Despite millenia of history, they have absolutely
}no concept that people can and do rise above circumstances, that every
}adversity which is overcome produces new and wonderful opportunities and
}accomplishments, not to mention, producing better, more caring, human beings.
}Because in their hopeless state they cannot think of any other way, they
}mistakenly fall into the trap of killing others to solve their problems.
}
}The practice and acceptance of abortion betrays nothing but a world view
}based entirely, and falsely, on despair, and frankly, pro-lifers don't buy
}despair.   And perhaps that's why many pro-lifers also happen to be
}religious.  Despair is banished by hope in the future, and a faith in God
}tends to focus that hope.    There is a saying that goes, "Every new baby
}is proof that God thinks the world should go on."
}
}
}Anyway, abortion opposition = a world view based on hope
}        abortion defense    = a world view based on despair
}
}It's that simple.


This pisses me off just a bit.  I have seen and carried bleeding
bodies.  Some of my friends are dead now.  Some were killed by
an "act of nature" and some were killed by the hand of another.
Not just pictures, Suzanne.  I know quite well the difference 
between life and death, I refuse to see nothing.  I have no 
need of Suzanne pointing out something to me.  As a matter of
fact, I doubt there is much that she could point out that I
haven't already seen.

Unlike some others, I have demonstrated that I have the 
courage to stand behind my convictions, and the penalty
was hardly a few weekends or weeks or even years in jail.

Reliance on the law to enforce your particular beliefs or 
to shield you from something you feel is distasteful 
bespeaks a despairing attitude towards mankind that is
quite remarkable.  People ultimately choose to obey laws
or to act according to their own beliefs.  No law can ever
prevail against personal, moral belief.  There will always
be people (always have been, anyway, despite attempts to 
kill them) who will act according to what they determine
to be right or wrong, regardless of what authority tells them.

It is reliance on law, faith in authority, which led to 
excesses in almost every scornful act in history.  Either
the law demanded it, or otherwise good people had faith 
that the government or authority or whatever would act
in concert with they thought was right.  

I would much rather put my trust in mankind rather than in
a set of laws.  I have much more faith that my fellow man
will help me than some statute.

In case it comes as a surprise to some people, it takes 
absolutely no legislation, no law, no statute, no regulation,
no action by any authority to make abortion legal.  It
may be a bit harder in some cases to talk someone into 
the belief that it is wrong to kill than it is to point 
a gun at them and tell them not to do it.  You aren't
guaranteed success either way, but in one case you can 
be pretty sure of the outcome when you are gone, in the
other case you can't at all.

Excuse me for ranting a bit, but I tend to get carried away
when some nipple-headed jerk tries to tell me that
faith in law is somehow more hopeful than faith in mankind.

There is a simple exercise that one can think about when one is 
contemplating faith in law versus faith in mankind.  One of the 
best ways discovered yet is government by the people.  If you 
don't have faith in people, perhaps another kind of government 
is preferable.  From whence comes its authority?  Divine
right?  Suzanne Forgash protests quite a bit that she
does not bring religion into this issue.  That is quite
untrue.  If you do not have faith in mankind, you must
have faith in something else.  Perhaps you call it God.
Perhaps your particular flavor is Roman Catholic.  If that 
isn't enough, and you really think there is no question that
"God knows best," perhaps you should reflect a minute on who
was given the ability (according to some stories) to make
the decision between right and wrong.

And God said "Be fruitful and multiply, and be sure to make 
plenty of laws to try to coerce people into acting according
to your interpretation of what is My Will."

                              SF 3:16


--
       hang gliding mailing list: hang-gliding-request@virginia.edu 
     Galen Hekhuis  UVa Health Sci Ctr (804)982-1646 gjh@virginia.edu
                  Illiterate?  Write for FREE help...
Newsgroups: talk.abortion