Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Religion and abortion

Anyone who has read this blog knows I have touched on the subject of abortion, mostly regarding the hypocrisy right-wing Christians display on this topic. 

Here's the deal for me: If you don't believe in abortion, fine. I have no problem with that. Everyone is entitled to their beliefs. If you think abortion is murder, good for you. Don't do it. If you want to raise your family that way, again, that's fine.

But when you force your beliefs on those who aren't asking for your opinion, that's when I have a problem. You have no right telling someone what they can/should do with their body, and the Supreme Court is on my side.

Another problem I have with some anti-abortionists is when they lie to further their cause. There's a story that's been floating in cyberspace for ages that perfectly exemplifies this perpetration of disingenuous practice. There are numerous versions with delineating variations, but the crux of the story is this: If you knew of a woman who had syphilis, and because of that she had given birth to three deaf children, another child with tuberculosis and another with mental retardation, would you recommend an abortion for her when you found out she was pregnant again? If you say yes, congratulations, you just killed Beethoven.

First, this is the most pathetic bit of logic I have ever read and it shows just how desperate and scandalous these clinic bombers are. Beethoven's mother didn't have syphilis, he was the second child in his family and none of those horrible details were true. Some stories have him as the fifth or ninth child born, his father had tuberculosis, etc. But the fabricated story, which is on par with the use of a childhood Albert Einstein "schooling" the atheistic professor, isn't even the problem.

The logic isn't sound at all. If you were to subscribe to this train of thought, then that would mean every time someone abstains from sex they are depriving the world from a potential genius or philanthropist, etc. I've seen other ridiculous variations on this theme, listing all of the great types of people who could have been born. But the obvious other side of this twisted coin is the presence of evil. For every Beethoven born there's a Stalin or Osama Bin Laden coming out of their mama's vagina. Here's the flip side to the original story: A pro-life Catholic family in 1888 didn't abort their child when given the chance, and that baby was named Adolf Hitler. And unlike the Beethoven story, the Hitler one is true.

Some other thoughts:

* When Christians say they are pro-life, why is it that the majority of them are also pro-death penalty? Did you know George W. Bush, who is as pro-life as anyone, was governor of Texas and presided over more executions than any other state? During his term in office, he saw an execution every nine days on average, yet he'll defend a zygote with his last breath. A life is a life, W. Religious hypocrisy rears its ugly head yet again.

* How about in vitro fertilization? This procedure has delivered countless babies to couples who otherwise would be childless. But part of this process involves numerous zygotes being killed, otherwise the mother would turn into a human gumball machine. No one questions this practice because ultimately a life is the goal and desired outcome. But what about the unborn zygotes that are intentionally destroyed? Why aren't there picketers outside IVF clinics? 

This is what happens when people are indoctrinated and blinded by irrationality. And that irrationality often leads to lies, deceit and violence. So sad. 

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