(May 22, 2013 at 5:24 pm)Tiberius Wrote: That "unwanted, parasitic foetus" is still human. Animals and plants are living things, yet we kill them and eat them to survive. Likewise, we try to get rid of STI's to survive. If a foetus is killing the mother, then I'm ok with it being aborted. Other than that (and rape), there is no justifiable reason to kill another human.So what if it's human? What's so special about that? It's not an individual person, so why does it have more rights than the mother, who is a living individual person? Why is it suddenly OK to kill it if the mother was raped? Does that make the foetus less human to you?
(May 22, 2013 at 5:24 pm)Tiberius Wrote: How are we defining personhood here, because that definition is important. A mentally disabled person may not be able to do everything a "normal" person can do, but we still don't strip them of their personhood (at least, I don't think we should...maybe you feel differently). So what is your definition of personhood?A born human being, for a start. With certain abilities. Disabled people keep their personhood because their inability to do certain things is due to a disability, not because they aren't people.
(May 22, 2013 at 5:24 pm)Tiberius Wrote: Also, pregnancy =/= whole life ruined. Again, if it did mean that, nobody would ever want to get pregnant. What kind of person actively wants to ruin their life? Accidental pregnancies are not the end of the world; you can accept them and change the direction of your life, or give the baby up for adoption.Wanted pregnancies are usually wonderful things, wanted children are a wonderful gift to the parent(s). But unwanted? That's where it becomes life-ruining. Having a child changes your whole life forever. It changes your body forever. It changes the way your mind works forever. Those all become incredibly negative changes if they were not welcome ones. Nobody should be forced into that.
(May 22, 2013 at 5:24 pm)Tiberius Wrote: It is in a couple of them though: Deoxyribonucleic acid.Still nope. Does it look remotely like a person to you?
