So when does a fertilized egg become a human being?

[dave_c]

And where does the Pro-Life Protetors stand towards abortions, are they completely against it?

[badams]

Continued

I think that killing a baby (or whatever term you prefer) in the womb is no different from killing it outside. My position is quite simple - the only possible reason for aborting/killing a baby in the womb is because the mothers life is in danger.  This I consider acceptable only because it is a choice between one life and another - a choice which a person must make. (Not making a decision is effectively the same as choosing for the mother to die).  In most cases, if the mothers life is in danger, so is the childs, so unfortunately the doctor must choose based on his experience, whether or not to kill the baby to save the mother, or risk both of them dying.  Not a decision you would wish on anyone.

I find offensive your suggestion that my religous views would in any way condone nutters who shoot, or in any way injure, doctors who carry out abortions.  A few head-cases who claim to carry out insane acts "in the name of God" should not colour your view on others with religous views.  Your sweeping remarks are about as irrational as saying that all Muslims are Suicide Bombers!  You take specific minority cases, and turn them into generalisations.

[MargeB]

Good as always to read your concise posts, badams. I take back what I said about shootings, it was meant as a bit of a joke, any movement in the world will have extreme nutters like this.

At the moment of my conception, and then just after the sperm has fertilized the egg, there is no difference between the egg that will then go on to develop an individual, and an egg that will go on to develop into identical twins. If some people call the abortion of an individual's embryo murder, is it a double homicide if it would have become twins?

[badams]

MargeB - thanks for your reply. The honest answer to your question is, I havn't a clue!  In reality there is no single defining moment.  Can we define "conception" - is it when the sperm reaches the egg, is it when it enters it, is it after the first or second cell division....

While conception is not a defining "moment", it is a very short period compared to the length of the pregnancy, and is a defining process.  Even agreeing that abortion after conception would still leave unresolved issues, but I personally feel it is a lot more meaningful than to say that after "x" weeks, this life in the womb takes on the legal status of a person rather than a bunch of cells!

What do you regard as acceptable and why?

[lizbang]

when it comes out!

[MargeB]

badams, I don't know.

I have the feeling that ethics has no objective absolute foundation.

I'm not too happy with abortion being used as a means of contraception, and I definitely don't think you can go around eletrocuting child killers on the one hand, and passing a bill that lets you get out a wee bit of a baby's head and then killing it after 20 seconds of daylight. You can't have both! (Mr Clinton).

[MargeB]

You draw a line. On this side of the line you say 'Ok, we're government, you're all in society, and we are going to tell you how to behave, in these matters. On the other side of the line you have 'all those things that are yours as an individual. E.g. sexual practices between consenting adults in their own home. No one else's business.' E.g. consent for life saving surgery.

The problem is..........what side of the line does abortion fall? It's a woman's own body that's 'making' the baby. But it's the life of another human being that could survive on its own if only it were on the other side of her tummy. So what's the determing factor that decides a long and rich life for the person as opposed to getting zapped in the womb? Being on the wrong side of 2 inches of skin and fat?