Quantcast

When Does Life Begin?

DeepDiveAdmin's picture

There is no issue more divisive and heated in American society than abortion. While the battle plays out in our living rooms, streets and courts, if we ever hope to resolve the struggle over abortion we must first answer one central question: When does life begin?

Comments

zhaodan123's picture

UGG Boots Xmas Sale

This element will also reduce the arranged on and tear for the center for the method and may extend the lifestyle cycle for the laptop computer computer, UGG Boots Xmas Sale and effect the pace by which pictures show up in your laptop computer pc screen.UGG Boots Retail Stores One for the competencies found out even although laptop computer pc purchasing UGG Sundance II Boots On Sale will create how very much memory space you can upgrade some time cutting the road. guys and ladies routinely ask what the upgrade competencies are over a laptop computer pc preceding UGG Tularosa Route Cable Boots to they ask what the operation method will in all probability be the actuality that is build for the pc system. once they ask about upgrade competencies they are really asking about a element referred to since the memory space slots.Cheap UGG Roxy Tall Boots The connectivity competencies found out even although laptop computer pc purchasing is relatively extremely important for guys and ladies that would rather browse the internet occasionally, and relatively extremely crucial that you all those that telecommute for just about any living.

feidu's picture

feiduwei In recently years,

feiduwei In recently years, the Japanese cartoon is very popular in Asia, in every Hong Kong Comics Festival,.many cartoom and cosplay fans and lover come together with naruto costumes and velvet cloak and sailor moon costume to show their passion to the cattoon and cosplay walkthrough metal detector,and security products, Auto diagnostic tools GT1,MB star,,renault can clip diagnostic interface At present, the Department purchases haoyinglighting Lamps Wholesale distributors drop of nearly 30 percent, and some large distributors, because they sell their products in different regions can be combined each other in order to “chain” form to purchases manufacturers AVX Corporation is a leading international supplier of electronic passive components and interconnect solutions with 24 manufacturing and customer support facilities in 15 countries around the world. AVX offers a broad range of devices including tantalum capacitor, resistors, filters, timing and circuit protection devices and connectors.

シアリスの効果は36時間!ウィークエンド?ピル! Industrial thin client typically operate on embedded software systems such as Windows?

www.titaniumchina.com company is mainly engaged in the titanium plate, zirconium, nickel, tungsten, molybdenum, tantalum, niobium, beryllium and alloy materials, and other non-ferrous metal materials research and development, production and processing, domestic and international sales And so on. we are manufacturing all kinds of electric tools In the hot day with burning sun, it is no wonder that the sunglasses wholesale would be the suitable tools for you to prevent you eyes, in addtion, the different style sunglasses can reflect your personality and character As we all know, people also like to make them more beautiful and also wholesale jewelry from china market, they also want to show their nice and respect . so women wholesale cheap fashion jewelry from www.karrylady.compurses wholesale handbags wholesale clothing wholeslae replica handbags wholesale.

Wire hanger was also a featured prop in a central scene in the 1981 movie Mommie Dearest, in which Joan Crawford, played by Faye Dunaway, enters the room of her daughter, Christina, at night while the girl sleeps, to admire the beautiful clothes hanging nicely in her closet. Sporty Jerseys provides maximum comfort whatever the cycling conditions.Choose from an impressive range of , They are the same as the official jerseys

We are the best soccer jersey supplier, all the soccer jerseys on jerseybbs.com are REPLICA SOCCER JERSEYS, but their quality are good, because many soccer jersey shopping websites are selling our discount soccer jerseys, espcially the thailand quality cheap soccer jerseys, They are the same as the official jerseys Alpha Scale was established in 2007, and with all Alpha staff hard-working, now we have grown to be the No.1 manufacturer of pocket scale in China, we are proud to declare that we have made more than 1,800,000 pcs scales in 2010

smymry's picture

Critics say they would raise

Critics say they would raise prada handbags costs unfairly for solid countries and could even deepen debt troubles. "Solving cheap prada the current crisis will not be possible with eurobonds, and so eurobonds prada shoes are not the answer," Merkel said in an interview with ZDF television. She added that prada outlet she didn't know whether things might change "in the prada sunglasses distant future.

tibiahqs's picture

buy cheap tibia gold

Downtime Due to Maintenance and Small Patch Two days ago, all Tibia game worlds will be offline from 12:00 until 13:00 CEST approximately due to technical maintenance work at our American service provider. In addition, a client patch will be in. We sell tibia gold for all 77 servers, fast and safe guaranteed. We will bank transfer tibia money to your bank :) . 8mins - 30min tibia gp,tibia gold delivery,amazing! 寓教于乐的游戏 You can purchase cheap tibia gold,cheap guild wars gold,gw gold,guild wars 2 gold,guild wars 2 money,guild wars 2 platinum,guild wars 2 farming,cheap rs2 gold here. 武汉婚纱摄影 Free runescape gp Trade is back, no password is required, unlike before, instead of having to login your runescape account to transfer runescape gold using our transfer methods, now we can trade any much of runescape gp from our stock account to your target account instantly since the trade limit is removed, after your cheap rs2 gold order is confirmed, please login to our 24/7 online live chat immediately for an instant ingame trade Face To Face, our specialists will tell you when and where to go, normally the whole process takes no more than 10 minutes! 衣服搭配 hqs

anniesmith's picture

Amazing

Nice one.

anmeng's picture

wholesale nfl jerseys

Do you want to buy your personalized jerseys? There are three kinds of cheap authentic nba jerseys are arrival for you to choose. One is cheap MLB jerseys,the other two are wholesale nfl jerseys and wholesale nba jerseys. NFL throwback jerseys and authentic mlb jerseys are playing an important part in our classmates' everyday lives. They say that cheap nfl throwback jerseys could make them perfect. Either when they are playing balls or just in their everyday lives, NFL jerseys wholesale could make them more comfortable. Jose, who is my best friend, says that cheap nfl jerseys and nfl jerseys for cheap could save their family more, all their family love to share discount authentic jerseys online. Wholesale jerseys and cheap jerseys for sale online could save us more than buying from retail store.

windowskeys's picture

We Wholesale Cheap Microsoft

We Wholesale Cheap Microsoft Windows 7 Key,Office 2007 Key,Office 2010 Key,windows xp key,Windows Vista Key, Windows 2008 Product Key.All The keys are issued directly from Microsoft!

Office for Mac Home and Business 2011 Product Key |

Windows 7 Ultimate Product Key |

Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007 Product Key |

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 Product Key |

Microsoft Windows Home Server 2011 Product Key |

Windows Home Server with Power Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade Home Premium to Ultimate Product Key |

Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade Starter to Ultimate Product Key |

Exchange Server 2007 Enterprise Edition Product Key |

Exchange Server 2007 Standard Edition Product Key |

Exchange Server 2010 Enterprise Edition Product Key |

Office Access 2003 Product Key |

Office Access 2007 Product Key |

Office Access 2010 Product Key |

Office Groove 2007 Product Key |

Office InfoPath 2007 Product Key |

Office InfoPath 2010 Product Key |

Office InterConnect 2007 Product Key |

Office OneNote 2007 Product Key |

Office OneNote 2010 Product Key |

Office Outlook 2007 Product Key |

Office Outlook 2010 Product Key |

Office Professional Plus 2007 Product Key |

Office Project Professional 2007 Product Key |

Office Project Professional 2010 Product Key |

Office Project Standard 2007 Product Key |

Office Project Standard 2010 Product Key |

Office Publisher 2007 Product Key |

Office Publisher 2010 Product Key |

Office SharePoint Designer 2007 Product Key |

Office SharePoint Workspace 2010 Product Key |

Office Visio Premium 2010 Product Key |

Office Visio Professional 2007 Product Key |

Office Visio Professional 2010 Product Key |

Office Visio Standard 2007 Product Key |

Office Visio Standard 2010 Product Key |

Windows MultiPoint Server 2011 Full Version |

Windows Multipoint Server 2011 Student Full Version |

Windows Server 2008 Enterprise |

Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard Key |

Windows Storage Server 2008 Basic Product Key |

Windows Storage Server 2008 Enterprise Product Key |

Windows Storage Server 2008 Standard Product Key |

Windows Storage Server 2008 Workgroup Product Key |

Windows Vista Ultimate Product Key |

Windows XP Home Edition with SP2 Full Version |

Office 2010 Professional Full Version-Retail Box |

Windows 7 Ultimate with Service Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition 32 Bit |

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition 64 Bit |

Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition 32 Bit |

Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition 64 Bit |

Windows Small Business Server 2008 Premium |

Windows Small Business Server 2008 Standard |

Windows Web Server 2008 Product Key |

Exchange Server 2007 with Service Pack 2 Product Key(64 Bit) |

Exchange Server 2010 Standard Edition Product Key |

Office 2010 Standard Product Key |

Office Ultimate 2007 Product Key |

Windows Server 2003 IA64 Editions Full Version |

Windows XP Professional with SP2 Key(32 Bit) |

Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade Professional to Ultimate Product Key |

Windows 7 Professional Full Version-Retail Box |

Windows 7 Professional Product Key |

Windows 7 Professional with Service Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard Edition 32 Bit |

Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard Edition 64 Bit |

Windows Server 2003 Web Edition 32 Bit |

Windows Server 2003 Web Edition 64 Bit |

Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 Premium Edition 32 Bit |

Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 Premium Edition 64 Bit |

Windows Vista Ultimate with SP1 Key |

Exchange Server 2007 with Service Pack 3 Product Key(64 Bit) |

Exchange Server 2010 with Service Pack 1 Product Key(64 Bit) |

Office 2010 Professional Product Key |

Office Professional 2007 Product Key |

Windows XP Professional with SP2 Key(64 Bit) |

Windows 7 Home Premium Full Version-Retail Box |

Windows 7 Home Premium Product Key |

Windows 7 Home Premium with Service Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows Vista Ultimate with SP2 Key |

Microsoft Office 2010 Home & Business Product Key |

Microsoft Windows XP Professional with SP3 Key(32 Bit) |

Windows 7 Enterprise Product Key |

Microsoft Office 2010 Home & Student Product Key |

Office Standard 2007 Product Key |

Windows Vista Business Product Key |

Windows XP Professional with SP3 Key(64 Bit) |

Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade Home Premium to Professional Key |

Windows 7 Enterprise with Service Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows 7 Home Basic Product Key |

Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade Starter to Professional Product Key |

Windows 7 Home Basic with Service Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows Vista Business with SP1 Key |

Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade Starter to Home Premium Product Key |

Windows 7 Starter Product Key |

Windows 7 Starter with Service Pack 1 Product Key |

Windows Vista Home Premium Product Key |

Windows Vista Home Premium with SP1 Key |

Windows Vista Home Basic Product Key |

feidu's picture

feidujiang We are the best

feidujiang We are the best soccer jersey supplier, all the soccer jerseys on jerseybbs.com are REPLICA SOCCER JERSEYS, but their quality are good, because many soccer jersey shopping websites are selling our discount soccer jerseys, espcially the thailand quality cheap soccer jerseys, They are the same as the official jerseys

As a pioneer in the field of automatic wine machines, iTasting has developed the full range of wine dispenserwine dispenser products with one aim: to get the best possible glass of wine regardless of how long the wine had been opened.

We specialize in shower head andtowel rack of high quality and favorable price .The shower head that we provide has many advantages: 1. They quickly bring water; 2. The handles of environmental protection are in favour of our health;3.The color and style are wonderful. At the same time ,towel rack that we provide is durable and beautiful.We are sure that we will offer you satisfactory products and service

Micahrhett's picture

What does the bible say?

What about the life of an unborn child? Well, according to the Mosaic Law, causing the death of a baby in its mother ’s womb was wrong. Yes, even such a life is precious to Jehovah. (Exodus 21:22, 23; Psalm 127:3) This means that abortion is wrong. For more info please visit. www.watchtower.org

laptopsbatteries's picture

laptops batteries

How to maximize your laptop battery?Well,do as follows.Condition the dell inspiron 1520 battery when u purchase it.Charge the dell inspiron 1525 battery to 100 percent,discharge the dell battery completely,and then fully charge dell gg386 battery to 100 percent again to help the dell laptop remember exactly how much electrical it can hold.From then on,you’ll never need to completely discharge the dell inspiron 6400 battery again,but always make sure when charging the dell inspiron 9400 battery that u let it reach 100 percent.Salinas had tip for your dell studio 1535 battery:keep them cool,don’t exposure the dell latitude d600 battery to the high temperatures. Pull up overload programs. Run only the programs u are using,the other programs in the background will drain your dell latitude d800 battery life. Don’t use any external devices. USB and PC-Cards use your dell latitude d620 battery to function, even when you aren’t using them! Power down the display “You can often yield up to ten minutes of hp dv4 battery life per level of brightness lowered,” said Salinas.The more you are doing at the same time with your PC, the more memory and CPU usage increases. Both of which directly use up hp pavilion dv2000 battery. Keep your HP tx1000 battery cool. You can take a page out of the extreme gamer’s handbooks, and have your system perform more optimally by keeping HP HSTNN-DB72 battery cool. Short discharges and recharges do not fully synchronize the IBM thinkpad x60 battery's fuel gauge with the battery's state-of-charge. This can result in the amount of power available in one cycle being less than expected or the Asus A32-A8 battery meter being inaccurate. 1. Turn off Wi-Fi and BlueTooth - Most acer aspire 5520 series battery have shortcut keys to instantly disable wireless networking. 2. Don't play computer games, music or DVD movies - Multimedia activities drain acer aspire one battery. 3. Adjust your screen brightness - Dimming your display saves acer aspire 5100 battery power. 4 If you do not use your laptop for extended periods of time (a week or more), remove the acer BATBL50L6 battery pack from the laptop. 5. Do not expose the apple A1280 battery to high heat or freezing temperatures. Do not leave your apple A1281 batteryin your car in the summer. Hot Sony BPS8 battery discharge very quickly, and cold ones can't create as much power. 6. Fully charge new Sony BPS9 battery packs before use. New pack needs to be fully charged and discharged (cycled) a few times before it can condition to full capacity. 7. For laptops that work as Desktop Replacement, the Toshiba PA3534U-1BAS battery should be re -installed every 3-4 weeks and allowed to fully discharge. 8. Leaving the Gateway Nv52 battery in a laptop while using an electrical outlet for long periods of time will keep the battery in a constant state of charging up and that will reduce the life cycle of the battery.

wonka's picture

One problem.

I do not care about OR believe in your religion or your book.

Many others don't care/believe either. If you think abortion is wrong, DON'T have one, but keep your BELIEFS out of our countries LAWS.

Thanks.

esjagjoe's picture

Take babies from a dog and its animal abuse.

You know, think about it. If you decided that you wanted to get your dog an abortion that would end you being put in Jail. On the other hand while it is plainly illegal to murder a human being its okay to kill unborn babies ??? Our society is sick. Abortion is murder.

wonka's picture

My "BS Meter" is redlining...

I could get an abortion from the vet for my dog and there would be no legal repercussions at all primarily because she is considered, by law, to be my PROPERTY.

You're spouting lies because you are bent out of shape about a complex issue that there is no "right" answer to. Yet you fervently believe you are correct because your religion says so. (Even though it states that "life" begins at the first breath... Read your book)

Just keep lying to yourself and you'll keep on believing it.

MrBook's picture

dogs

On what basis do you make that claim that getting a dog an abortion would lead to jail time for the owner?

isotope's picture

zygote se

once you obtain 46 chromosomes your human whether it suites you or not.

archfilejockey's picture

It does not BEGIN at all!

I'm am admittedly PRO-LIFE, I am however PRO-CHOICE on light-bulbs and automobiles, but not on LIFE. With that said, I cannot support the statement:
"Life begins at conception!"
This is simply due the the FACT that if life began at all, it was either during "THE SIX DAY CREATION"(Bible) or 3-4Billion years ago. It no longer begins, EVER!
In the case of humans (or Homo Sapiens), during procreation ONE LIVING SPERM CELL and ONE LIVING EGG CELL come together, share/pick the genes, merge, and begin building until you have a living organism. A BABY!
My point is Conception is only half-way through the process, so Life can't begin at conception, because it has already begun. The same thing is true of the following statement:
"Life begins at birth!"
Again, LIFE has already begun! Doesn't work!
So when does LIFE begin? IT DOES NOT BEGIN! Simply because it has already started. At no point, during the outlined process of Procreation (or events surrounding Conception) is there a NON-LIVING CELL.
THEREFORE, LIFE DOES NOT BEGIN AT BIRTH OR CONCEPTION, IN FACT, IT DOESN'T BEGIN AT ALL, IT SIMPLY CONTINUES!
Think about it! The whole argument is rendered completely IRRELEVANT when the FACTS are brought to light.
I'd love to hear opinions and/or thoughts about my comments.

Blue Linchpin's picture

Who cares about Catholicism?

Is it just me, or is there something wrong about the abortion debate being centered on Catholicism instead of science ?

BrettA's picture

Not just you... This is entirely one-sided.

Neither Ctholicism nor any other (frequenly conflicting) religion should have a say in this - other than mere opinion - and indeed science and the people have agreed for centuries on this... Do we treat the fetus as a person in any context other than abortion - No!

Your age is based on when you're born, we don't name a zygote or fetus, likely 99+% don't bury one if it doesn't get to birth and on and on. It's a sad commentary that the sole issue of the fetus itself is around the abortion issue and it shows just how shallow and slanted those who wish to deny women the right to control their own bodies is.

There isn't a simpler question - a life begins at birth and has almost always been thus.

KentMcManigal's picture

Between conception and birth

Almost no one really believes a fertilized egg is a human being with all the rights that entails. Don't believe me? Show them an unmagnified cancer cell and a fertilized egg and ask them which one is a person and which one is desirable to kill.

One the other hand, almost no one believes that a full-term baby is NOT a human being.

The "line" is somewhere in between conception and birth. Where there is a doubt, I think it is smart to err on the side of the mother. Where there is no doubt, then there is no problem. "Abortion" as an issue is a smoke-screen designed to divide and conquer people who would otherwise agree on enough to make them a danger to the power of the state. It is safer to keep us at each other's throats, than to let us unite against a real enemy.

Renelle's picture

It's hard to believe this is even still being discussed.

I do not think that this is a subject that one could easily pick one side or the other. It's important to remember that there are situations where this is no absolute and definite truth. In regards to the question at hand: My life began when I was born. However, I could not have been born had I not spent that time in my mother's womb, or if my mother had aborted me. My first point is merely that our reproductive knowledge and our tools against conception is so much greater than 10 years ago, even 5. I believe that shortly we should be able to move past the controversy associated with abortion . I understand that there are cases of incest and rape where a woman should have a decision to abort the child. Nonetheless, we also have knowledge and access to a pill that can be taken after the fact. I feel a natural sorrow over the idea of creating something just to destroy it. I feel that we should have evolved past this by now. I hate the argument that a woman has a right to do with her body what she wants. Although i agree with this statement, when a woman is getting an abortion she is not doing anything to her body...there is a doctor doing it for her. I realize this is for health reasons. I'd just like to propose that if a mother had to kill (or make her fetus stop growing) her unborn baby herself that it would probably happen way less often.Instead, we allow mothers a bit more peace of mind by not having them involved. Just because sex feels good, doesn't change the fact that its purpose is reproduction. There are so many good points on both sides of the equation, and situations and circumstances that make us all question our stands. Should a mother of 3 who is perfectly capable of supporting another child be allowed to get an abortion? no. Should a 16 year old carrying her fathers child denied an abortion? no. We can't make a list of circumstances and conclusions with our laws. It's quite apparent that this is an issue that we can't solve by debate. We have to change our ways. Instead of questioning when life begins maybe we shouldn't allow an egg to become fertilized in our womb to give the potential of life beginning. We will never know what happens after life or before it to know when it begins. I'm not sure anyone has the right to answer that question.

libliber's picture

EEG

We pull the plug when the EEG is flat... so why not use the same for a fetus?

EAnthes's picture

Life does not begin

Life has been around since the first organisms on this planet have been here but it continues. Your mother and father were alive when their living sperm and egg met and made your living embryo. No one cries for the lives of the other billion sperm. However meaningful life begins when people give it value. If we were to give all life value at conception smoking by or in the presence of any woman of childbearing age should be attempted murder because it has the ability to end the life of a new embryo. Without omnipotence however we don't know how many 'lives' have ended before we ever knew they existed.

With all of that I believe MEANINGFUL LIFE does not begin until much after conception.

scooteraz's picture

All life is equal across the board.

All life is equal across the board.

The value placed upon life is subjective to the individual.

Your personal derivations of that value are purely subjective and render no credential except to self.

Discussion of when life begins is incendiary because no one knows.

We take life, in all forms, daily for our comfort, security, sport, sustenance, anger and fear; to imply or apply value beyond your personal experience is irrelevant as the individual decides.

As a personal experience of such, all discussion is meaningless for it furthers no new knowledge of when life begins as science has yet to discover such.

To attempt to decide such outside of science is to attempt to take ownership of such decisions whereby you impose your personal subjective ideology onto others to force behavior.

It's none of your business.

Naumadd's picture

The Answer is a Choice

As far as we know, life itself began millions of years ago. With each new birth, we are not seeing the beginning of life but rather its continuation and transition from one form to another. The "beginning of life" isn't the issue. As someone else has pointed out, the true issue is at what point is a form of life consider a "person", i.e., a conscious and independent life not relying on the biology of another life for its survival. When does a parasitical, i.e., non-integral part of one life become its own seperate life AND at what point does that independent conscious life acquire the rights of an individual human being?

The key to an answer is the moment when the dependent life becomes independent and no longer reliant on the biological processes of the other. That moment would appear to be at birth, however, science has shown that a human fetus not be born naturally to become an independent life. It can be removed quite artificially and kept alive artificially thus relieving the incubating parent free from its reliance. Still, most if not all of these early fetuses continue to rely on the efforts of medical professionals to survive. Is it yet and conscious and independent life? Is it to be afforded the same rights as a human life that is? What would be the basis for granting such rights despite the fact it does not match the qualifications of those who receive rights and liberties without question? If a life is still wholly dependent on the efforts of other life for its survival, does it continue to be a person in its own right? Is it not a parasite from a certain point of view?

These are all important questions that need answering. They need answering so that some are not denied rights and liberties that ought to be granted and that some not be granted them undeservingly thus limiting the liberties of others unnecessarily.

The question is not when life begins but, rather, when is a life an independent conscious life deserving of being called an "individual"? It is at that point when rights and liberties must be granted without delay. Any sooner and one risks harming one or more persons needlessly. Any later and one has committed the atrocity of enslaving a human being to the will of another or many others.

Ralfe Poisson's picture

How does one define "Life"?

At the moment, there is a lot of debate in the scientific community as to what constitutes life? We have no problem identifying animals and humans as being alive, but what about when it comes to things like virii, bacteria, a planet, a solar system, the collective internet?

If we can accept that single celled organisms are alive, in that they have active micro-organisms working collectively to prevent atrophy and cell decay, then we could say that an egg cell or a sperm cell is 'alive'. However, do such single celled organisms hold the same 'status' or value as the life of a fully formed human? Obviously not, otherwise just about every male would be convicted as a mass murderer. Thus, the question becomes, when does the life of the single celled organisms become "human life"?

This is a more interesting question. Is an organism defined as human according to physiology? If so, then is a person missing a limb less human than one with all four limbs? Well, that is absurd. Thus, the question of classification as human is not dependant on physiology. I would like to argue that it is thus dependant on DNA. So, at which point does an organism hold complete human DNA. It is at the point where the chromosomes from the sperm cell and the egg cell combine. It is at that stage, that human life begins.

It is thus a logical conclusion that a fetus, from time of conception, should be considered a human, with equal value placed on it's life.

H2O's picture

Sea Turtles

Walking an a beach I came across a sign that read: "Sea Turtle eggs - Stay out. Fine $ 1000.00"
So we may not walk on a beach with eggs of a turtle, but we may kill over 4 000 000 human eggs per year that holds the same potential as the turtle eggs - life. And we get the state to pay for it? Where did we loose the plot.

wonka's picture

Yeah. You got it.

Two reasons.

One; They are endangered animals because of us and we're trying to minimize additional damage by NOT invading their breeding grounds

Two; WE ARE NOT ENDANGERED.

You are comparing apples to a deck of cards.

H2O's picture

Not endangered?

Please tell the children that are being murdered that they are not endangered.

If space is the problem why don't you go the extra mile and commit suicide and make some space. Then we can have the babies grow up and decide for themselves if they want to live.

The question remains: what is more valueable: a human or an animal.

wonka's picture

ummm...

"The question remains: what is more valueable: a human or an animal."

First, That was the worst possible question you could have possibly asked me because my answer (Animals) will do nothing but piss you off and surely do little more than set off a miniature explosion of self-important blow hardness, poorly thought out accusations and possibly threats. I suppose the extent of your blathering would depend on how much faith you still have in humanity.

So, I have a better Idea; I continue to exist as I am unable to have kids and thus unable to add to the problem of overpopulation OR be directly responsible for anyone considering or having an abortion and YOU follow my example.

How about we find a way to make LESS new people to begin with? That's the best solution and as an added bonus, abortion becomes less of an issue because it wouldn't happen as much!

My word! It's a 2 for 1 special!

Second; I don't give a toss what your opinion is of abortion for one reason. It's not mine.

I have deliberated long and hard over my stance on abortion and hold that until there is some brain activity, a fetus is little different than a tumor and I ENCOURAGE abortion as a matter of my personal opinion. After the brain has developed enough to have coherent brain activity, then I would PREFER to see abortion to become an option less used, but I'm not about to stand in the way of womens rights.

Until you are willing to give up your right to decide have your brain cancer removed because someone thinks it's more worthy to let it develop in order to study it, I don't want to hear your anti-abortion and anti-rights rhetoric because YOU are morally WRONG. You might as well lock pregnant women in their birthing pens with chains right now because it'd be the same end result as preventing them from having control over their own lives. Potential life is NOT more important than existing life, I don't care how you try and illogically convince yourself OTHERWISE.

TerryT's picture

Irrelevant debate title

Life doesn't begin. Life is always transferred. Amoeba. Egg. Live birth. This was determined pretty much definitively in the 18th century (fruit fly experiment).

A better title would be "When Does Human Life Begin?" or "When Does a Separate Life Begin?". Or is that even the relevant question? Perhaps simply, "Should Abortion Be Legal?" is really what people want to debate.

America is not a great land of compromise but surprisingly there is common ground on this issue. The common belief is that as the fetus matures the act of abortion becomes increasingly heinous.

How do you feel about a 4 cell egg/sperm combo being snuffed out?
Now how do you feel about an 8 month fetus being lethally injected?

Most individuals feel a different level of repulsion (viscerally if not intellectually). That lays the grounds for compromise as follows:

Abortion should be legal up to 60 days and illegal after that (with possible exception of saving mother's life).

The reasoning behind this is that it would eliminate the abortions that most individuals find repulsive while still giving the mother a second chance to correct a mistake. 60 days should certainly be enough time for an individual to recognize and address pregnancy.

Pragmatically, RU-486 (the day after pill) should be available over the counter. This would increase the number of 4 cell abortions while decreasing the number of 3 month abortions.

Currently, both sides of the argument have planted their feet because of "slippery slope" reasoning. Approaching the problem pragmatically would actually result in the real progress that both sides want.

Callista's picture

Just a technicality:

RU-486 and the "morning after" pill aren't the same thing. RU-486 is an abortifacient that can terminate a pregnancy up to two months; and it has to be used under a physician's direction because of the very real possibility of an incomplete abortion . (It can be used as a morning after pill, but it would be unsafe to sell over the counter because women would try taking higher doses later on.) The "morning after" pill is a high dose of the same hormones in birth-control pills, and only work up until about 5 days after. It is markedly safer; but as a method of birth control is not very effective--about 75% or so. Condoms are a great deal safer--and they are ethically preferable, too, because five days after conception is still *after* conception. If it could be proven that the twelve-week embryo is not human (and I doubt that it could, honestly, being a philosophical issue more than a scientific one), then selling either one over the counter doesn't make much sense because of the risks involved with poorly-informed consumers buying and using them.

TerryT's picture

Thanks for the clarification

I don't really have first hand knowledge on how easy/difficult either drug is to obtain. My argument should probably be clarified that all unnecessary obstacles (insurance, political, medical policy) to obtaining the drugs should be removed.

I find the argument that women would take higher doses somewhat sketchy. There is a risk of any drug being abused. Thus we find Sudafed behind the counter. Maybe that's a better approach. Antibiotics, Propecia,... Which drugs are truly dangerous?

Callista's picture

Clarification

If RU-486 were sold OTC as a morning-after pill, women would be aware that it is also an abortifacient. As a result, those who were too far along to take it at the low dose it would take to prevent implantation, but too embarrassed to go to a doctor for a higher dose and medical supervision, might try taking it at the high doses necessary to cause an early abortion .

Check this for the complication rates--especially why this is not something you can do over-the-counter:

http://www.fda.gov/cder/foi/label/2005/020687s013lbl.pdf

Clinical trials showed about 8% of the test group required surgery afterwards, usually for incomplete abortions, excessive bleeding, or because the abortion failed altogether. Apparently there were a few deaths associated with infection, but they can't find a clear causal relationship so that's still up in the air...

Anyway--not something you want at your local pharmacy.

TerryT's picture

I agree

You're right. Medical supervision is warranted because of the multi-step process involved and also because of a real risk of complications requiring immediate attention.

My common sense just kicked in. If I'd taken a step back and looked physically at what is happening in an induced abortion (forced contractions, expelling fetus, etc) I would have clued in that this is a very invasive situation which god knows one wouldn't want to do without supervision.

On a side note, it seems like RU-486 abortions might be more traumatic than surgical? You're doing this on your own. It's messy. It hurts. I wonder if there is a lower percentage of repeat abortions with RU-486 vs. surgical. Certainly no walk in the park.

brakers's picture

when does life begin?

At conception

Callista's picture

It depends on your definition of "life".

The problem depends on what you say "life" means--and every definition has problems!

Separate genetic identity: Conception.
But: Many fertilized eggs naturally do not implant. That makes this definition problematic unless you accept that the majority of human beings live only for a few days.

Heartbeat: 22 days.
But: We can stop an adult's heart, or re-start it after it has stopped, and still not say that the adult has been dead. New technology has made heartbeat as a definition of life relatively meaningless.

Brain waves: Detectable at the 6th week.
But: Are early brain waves "thought"? And note that these are detectable brain waves--not necessarily the first nervous impulses of the embryonic brain.

Viability: 20 weeks.
But: As technology advances, we are able to support younger and younger premature infants. We have also been able to support embryos later and later into their development. The ability to support life should not define life, especially since it is very arbitrary that the premature infant's life is supported by technology rather than another human being (the mother)--and eventually, if we reach the point that pregnancy does not even need to involve a human mother, this criterion will become completely meaningless.

Birth: Anywhere from 20 weeks to post-due: Current legal definition.
But: A preemie born at 30 weeks is legally alive. A fetus not yet born at 30 weeks can legally be aborted. This is very problematic, and very arbitrary. The only difference here is the complications the fetus causes for the woman carrying it; but if the 30-week premature infant is alive, and the 30-week fetus is not, then you are defining life as no more than the fetus's location and whether it has a single human being for full support, rather than a staff of nurses and doctors doing the same job. Same problem as with viability.

Self-awareness: Around 18 months after birth, later for mentally retarded individuals; possibly never with severe impairment.
Knowing that you exist is a complicated concept to grasp. A very young infant lives in a world of sensory information; he doesn't have a sense of object permanence, and can't tell the difference between his mother and himself. Around 18 months, a child becomes capable of recognizing himself in a mirror, and begins to feel emotions like shame and pride. We theorize that it is at this point that the child divorces "self" from his surroundings and from his caretakers.
But: 18 months is quite a long time after birth. Several species of animals (dolphins, elephants, and some apes) also demonstrate self-awareness. Of course, defining severely disabled individuals as "not alive" (profound mental retardation, for example), despite that they are post-birth humans who can feel pain, happiness, sadness, and love, would be an ethical problem in its own right.

The pro-choice and pro-life sides of the debate tend to focus only on the legality of abortion. They forget that both sides are arguing for human rights. They just have a different definition of "human".

Here's an issue both sides should be able to agree on: No woman should be forced to have an abortion because having to take care of a child would force her to lose her job or even to end up on welfare. Being unable to afford child care on a small salary could mean exactly that. Many working-class women face this dilemma and end up essentially forced to have abortions they don't want--something that violates the rights of both woman and fetus.

It needs to be possible to carry a child to term without eliminating options in life for the mother. Women need to be able to keep their jobs; they need access to good, affordable child care; they need to be allowed to adopt out their children easily and without the fear that the child will be forever lost to them; they need to know that children left with relatives will be taken care of, and not a burden. Employers need to ignore gender when they make their choices. Make open adoptions easier; support family members taking care of infants. Colleges should have day-cares, so that young women are not forced to choose between education and children. Women with new children should have access to job training and job-search services, rather than being shuffled into the welfare office for food stamps and a pitiful monthly check.

And, oh, yes: We can dodge this issue altogether, in many cases, by just making birth control easy to use and informing people on how to do so.

UrsulaMinor's picture

Thank you.

Thank you for this logical and well reasoned post.

mangueken's picture

One of the best

posts I have read about this question.

bagpiper2005's picture

Life Began 3 Billion Years Ago

Asexual/sexual reproduction is not the beginning of life. It is the continuation of life. Life emerged on earth some 3 billion years ago. This was the only beginning of life. Through processes of evolution , life is where it is now.

Thus life doesn't begin after conception nor does it begin at conception. Rather, life is continued upon conception.

jumpstart's picture

Viability!

(of a fetus) having reached such a stage of development as to be capable of living, outside the uterus.

As others have pointed out, even the sperm and eggs, are alive. The unused die off by the millions.

tbcass's picture

Cells

The Sperm and egg are cells with 50% of the chromosomes. It's not are they alive? Every cell in our body is alive but they cannot develop into a complete organism. I think the argument could be amended to when the fertilized egg begins to divide and the cells begin to differentiate to separate organs. As I keep saying, it's not a cut and dried argument. The closest one could come is the moment of conception.

jumpstart's picture

My Point Carried Further

Nature doesn't just dispose of unused sperm and eggs. Miscarriage, gets rid of fetus that have
started to develop. Many species of animals have large numbers of off spring. Which aren't meant to
reach maturity.
So until a fetus has fully developed, and is viable. I don't think we should call it life.
We got to draw the line some where. For legal
purposes.
Nature doesn't work that well for us; when left
to itself.

tbcass's picture

Yours is no solution. Only an opinion

You have your opinion fine but it is not a universal one and is so nebulous it solves nothing. When is a Fetus viable? As medical science advances it gets earlier and earlier. Technically a newborn baby isn't viable without external help. There are no hard and fast answers. I think the answer to this is indefinable by law.

jumpstart's picture

Viability Means:

Viability means, fully formed,
all the functional organs in operation. Some viable infants may need incubators. Sometimes, after all, some adults need artificial life support .
This as all definitions, can be, hair split down to the nth degree. That is what happens in courts of law.
So if we're looking for some magic bullet, definition. That fits all possible situations.
Are search is in vain.

tbcass's picture

I agree

That's why any legal definition as to the creation of life would be an exercise in futility. From my POV as someone with a degree in Biology conception seems like the best definition but that's still an opinion. There are several definitions of viable so the dictionary offers no answer.

tbcass's picture

Viabality

Another definition is able to grow. Where does that put us?

tbcass's picture

No

Technically speaking sperms and eggs are not living species as they have only 50% of the chromosomes of that species. From a purely biological POV life would begin at conception.

mangueken's picture

Wrong

For biology, life is a continuum. Obviously there could be no conception without the living participation of the sperm and egg.

Adam Hammond's picture

Yes they are

Sperm and eggs are alive. They don't have an independent life, but neither does any cell of our body, including a fertilized egg. You are just wrong about the biological POV.

tbcass's picture

No I'm not wrong

The difference biologically is the sperm, egg, or any independent cell are part of or the product of a complete organism. They are not nor cannot develop into a complete organism. From the moment of conception the fertilized egg becomes a separate entity that has all the chromosomal information necessary to develop into an independent organism and is genetically different and unique from any other organism. Sure the developing organism is parasitic but that doesn't change the fact that this human organism is in a developing process that biologically isn't complete until Puberty.