The philosophy of abortion-on-demand

Yesterday, the US Senate passed a bill which, when signed into law by the President, will make it a felony to cross state lines to bring a minor to an abortion “provider” without her parents’ knowledge. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-California), among others, wanted to make an exception for grandparents and clergymen or other confidants, but her attempt to amend the legislation failed. In the eyes of some of these pro-abortion lawmakers, any restriction on abortion is an attack on women’s rights, and, in a fit of hyperbolic rage, they declare that the restriction will result in women’s deaths. Ann Coulter, author of the bestseller Godless: The Church of Liberalism, makes the case that abortion is this “church’s” “sacrament.” Indeed, those of the pro-abortion view do treat abortion as a sacred right, to be held inviolable.

I was reading comments on Blogs for Bush about this issue. If you have the time, you can check them out. Notably, those who defend abortion cannot come to grips with the humanity of the unborn child. They try to say that human life begins with sentience, or conscious awareness of one’s existence. Instead of dependence on the pure, simple biological fact that life begins at conception, they must resort to human philosophy and opinion. When you read about Descartes (Cogito, ergo sum=I think, therefore I am), and realize that this philosophy is being used to dehumanize the unborn, or when you see waved the existentialist banner in order to defend the butchery that Roe v. Wade legalized, I hope you see that understanding philosophy—even non-Christian, humanistic, atheistic philosophy—is important and relevant.

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