From: lindercs@HYDRA.ROSE-HULMAN.EDU (Galadin (Craig Linderoth))
Subject: The Handmaid's Tale
Reply-To: lindercs@HYDRA.ROSE-HULMAN.EDU
Organization: Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Date: Sun, 12 Apr 1992 19:14:04 GMT


	Okay, this is Galadin again.  Boy, I can be a bit prolific if I want
to, anyway, this is in answer to the book The Handmaid's Tale.  First off, I
have read the book and seen the movie a couple of times, (great movie, Harold
Pinter did excellent work on the screenplay) and that is not the image that I
got.  The image in The Handmaid's Tale, to me, showed government intervention
in the original choice, and that is whether or not to have sex, knowing that it
can lead to a child.  It is also the government having woman give up their
bodies totally to become the position of childbearing.  After the child is
born, the woman then lost any contact with the child.  This is far different
than the system that I am advocating.  Also, the book seemed to me to be more
along the lines of what can happen if you allow people to intersect church and
state with their own personal interpretations of the religion.
	I am trying to keep this separate from the religious issue.  That is
dependent upon the person's own beliefs.  I feel that morality is defined also
by the individual and not by the church the individual belongs to, so don't
start getting on how about morality and religion go hand in hand.  I know that
there are some people that totally adopt the morality of the church, and that
scares me all to hell.  I try to find a church that believes basically what I
believe in and that doesn't condemn other religions for their beliefs, (OH and
yes, I am still looking, that last point about condemnation is hard to find).
	Also, someone said something about every case being special and how
there are cases where death is needed.  As I did state in my original post, I
also believe that there are places when war, and the death penalty and such are
needed.  I also believe in euthanasia and such.  Basically, I believe in the
individuals right to life or death.  And in my eyes, the fetus does not get
this choice in today's soceity.  It is true that the fetus does not have any
way to voice his choice, but that does not give us the right to kill it for
any reason that comes at hand.  (I know that there are many cases for abortion,
but I am opposed to the people who use it as a regular practice of birth
control, or maybe even not so regular)
	As for the case of government control, I am trying to get across the
idea of the counselors and such as being a voice for the fetus that he/she does
not have.  As such, it would be that every case was handled individually.  Oh,
and please do not call us busybodies, I believe that in Callahans we were above
stereotyping.



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*Craig Linderoth                * Reality is for People who Lack Imagination.*
*Lindercs@Rosevc.rose-hulman.edu*   The Callahanian Protector of People from *
*ChemEng, Rose-Hulman           *    Outrageous Pun Throwers    SPLAT :)     *
******************************************************************************           
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