The issue of abortion illustrates nearly everything that's wrong with American politics. It's not that the left is full of irresponsible loons who think they have the right to kill, and it's not that the right is full of sexist zealots who think they have the right to impose their beliefs on the rest of us. The problem is that neither side can see the other's point of view. And, by and large, neither side shows signs of caring.
The absolute crux of the debate is when a fetus gains the right to life. If it's at conception, a woman has no right to abort even under the principle of self-ownership. This would be akin to shooting a shoplifter (of course, barring a health risk to the would-be mother). But if it's at birth, then surely the woman's right to take ownership of her own body would trump the fetus's nonexistent right to life.
It's a simple issue with two clear-cut ways of looking at it, but neither side takes the time or trouble to look through the other's glasses. Aside from the eternal bickering this leads to, we also see some outrageous accusations hurled across the aisle. Suddenly, Ted Kennedy assumes the role of a mass murderer for his decades-long advocacy of abortion. Suddenly, Sarah Palin relinquishes her feminist credentials because she, as irrelevant pop "star" Pink says, hates women.
What people should be talking about in regards to abortion is how to determine when the right to life begins. You can't convince an atheist that God exists by saying he or she will go to Hell, and you can't win a debate, or even have a constructive one, by making arguments that ignore the true heart of the matter and rely on the assumption that your side is right.
The absolute crux of the debate is when a fetus gains the right to life. If it's at conception, a woman has no right to abort even under the principle of self-ownership. This would be akin to shooting a shoplifter (of course, barring a health risk to the would-be mother). But if it's at birth, then surely the woman's right to take ownership of her own body would trump the fetus's nonexistent right to life.
It's a simple issue with two clear-cut ways of looking at it, but neither side takes the time or trouble to look through the other's glasses. Aside from the eternal bickering this leads to, we also see some outrageous accusations hurled across the aisle. Suddenly, Ted Kennedy assumes the role of a mass murderer for his decades-long advocacy of abortion. Suddenly, Sarah Palin relinquishes her feminist credentials because she, as irrelevant pop "star" Pink says, hates women.
What people should be talking about in regards to abortion is how to determine when the right to life begins. You can't convince an atheist that God exists by saying he or she will go to Hell, and you can't win a debate, or even have a constructive one, by making arguments that ignore the true heart of the matter and rely on the assumption that your side is right.
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