From: john@johniac.austin.ibm.com (John Iacoletti)
Subject: Re: Pro-choice vs. Pro-Life vs. Anti-Abortion (Re: fetus vs. baby)
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 92 17:58:31 GMT
Distribution: tx
Reply-To: johniac@hwperform.austin.ibm.com (John Iacoletti)
Organization: IBM Advanced Workstation Division, Austin, TX

In article <1992Aug13.023326.24351@cactus.org>, rdd@cactus.org (Robert Dorsett) writes:
|> In article <1992Aug12.222816.11141@watson.ibm.com> johniac@hwperform.austin.ibm.com (John Iacoletti) writes:
|> 
|> >The solution to this is to educate people about birth control.  Funny
|> >how many of the same people who oppose abortion also don't want their
|> >kids to learn anything about birth control.
|> 
|> It's not funny; it's tragic.  They don't speak for me, and I don't speak
|> for them.  And don't you dare try to group me with them.

I meant funny(ironic) not funny (ha-ha).

|> >There's nothing particularly special about human life.  This is a
|> >harsh cruel world we live in.  
|> 
|> Yep, it's a nasty wasty wittle world, so I'll blow you away, the next time 
|> you cut in front of me on I-35.  What's to stop me?  The odds of being caught 
|> are close to nil; without the *value* that I place on your life--what you are, 
|> what you will be, what you mean to those who love you--I could be one 
|> downright nasty SOB.

I'm glad you are reluctant to randomly kill people on I-35, don't get
me wrong.  What I reject is the notion that human life is so
inherently valuable that it takes priority over all other concerns.  If
you walked into your house and found me beating up your child, I would
expect you to blow me away, regardless of how much you might value my
human life.

|>                           And this has nothing to do with the "G" word or
|> fear of divine retribution: it's a combination of both the value system
|> I grew up with and the one I rationally arrived at.  

I agree that gods are not necessary to have morals or to respect other
human beings, but when you say "moral fabric of society", you imply
that there is some society-wide moral standard, and this I disagree
with.  If you're just saying that it offends you that people don't
share your distaste for abortion then fine.

|>                                                             Thus, there's a 
|> reasonable argument that a fetus--which, unlike any other thing in a woman's 
|> body, WILL grow to be a fully functional, viable human being, IF permitted the
|> opportunity to grow to term--should have the same rights as a baby only
|> a few months older.

This may be a reasonable argument, but you also have to convince
people that the fetus's rights should be protected even if you have
to biologically enslave his mother.

|> Again, I see no significant difference between killing 
|> the two; from an immediate-productivity and cost perspective, they're both 
|> worthless, ugly masses of flesh.

That's fine.  Nobody's trying to talk you out of this.  We're just
saying that lots of people don't look at it that way.

|> Except, perhaps, that a parent who kills
|> a baby would likely do it "hands-on," which might discourage the practice;
|> whereas an abortion is a nice, sanitary "medical procedure" done by some
|> doctor, and usually the patient doesn't even see the fetus.  Too *disturb-
|> ing*, you see...

When a doctor removes your appendix he doesn't typically show it to
you either.  It's too disturbing.

-- 
John Iacoletti    IBM AWD Austin    Internet: johniac@hwperform.austin.ibm.com
        My opinions do not reflect the views of the IBM Corporation
"Now I laugh and make a fortune off the same ones that I tortured, and the
  world screams, 'Kiss me, son of God'" -- TMBG