[Peace-discuss] Re: [Peace] Re: Memorial in Champaign-Urbana

[Heather Ault]

Actually, I meant Carl and everyone! But really... just everyone! Thanks
again. :)

Heather

On Wed, 03 Jun 2009 13:16:10 -0500, "C. G. Estabrook"
<galliher at illinois.edu> said:
> Neil--
> 
> A large number of Dr. Tiller's procedures resulted in the premature
> ending of a 
> human life, the denial of a "future like ours." That phrase is used in
> what to 
> my mind is the best philosophical demonstration that abortion is
> unethical: Don 
> Marquis, "Why Abortion is Immoral," The Journal of Philosophy, 86:4. 
> There's a 
> summary at <www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/philosophical/future.shtml>:
> 
> "The claim that the primary wrong-making feature of a killing is the loss
> to the 
> victim of the value of its future has obvious consequences for the ethics
> of 
> abortion. The future of a standard foetus includes a set of experiences, 
> projects, activities, and such which are identical with the futures of
> adult 
> human beings and are identical with the futures of young children. Since
> the 
> reason that is sufficient to explain why it is wrong to kill human beings
> after 
> the time of birth is a reason that also applies to foetuses, it follows
> that 
> abortion is prima facie morally wrong."
> 
> I think you over-generalize a bit about the "pro-life movement."  There
> are of 
> course people who are opposed to abortion, the death penalty, and war
> (and I 
> agree that not to do so would be inconsistent).  See, e.g., Feminists for
> Life 
> <http://www.feministsforlife.org/>.
> 
> Solidarity indeed, Carl
> 
> 
> Neil Parthun wrote:
> > Carl et al.
> > 
> > There is a significant difference.
> > 
> > Dr. Tiller's procedures were done for certain situations: -the fetus was dead
> > in the womb and it would ridiculous for the woman to carry it to term -the
> > woman found out she had a disease (i.e. cancer) late in the pregnancy and
> > having the child may kill her -the woman was a victim of rape/incest -- I've
> > had the opportunity to hear from some doctors who worked with him who
> > discussed a 10 and 11 year old child who was raped by a family member.  He
> > performed the procedure so they could have the opportunity for a normal life.
> > 
> > 
> > These were done for documented medical reasons that are widely considered to
> > be valid when one looks at the facts rather than the hysteria of "Tiller the
> > Baby Killer".
> > 
> > The usage of US forces, as documented many times by Carl himself, in the name
> > of empire is the use of intimidation and violence to achieve geo-political
> > goals for the service of a nation state.
> > 
> > Such fundamental differences are glossed over here.  I understand the 
> > consistent life ethic from people like Fr. Berrigan, but this position is
> > almost non-existent in today's political structure.
> > 
> > Today's "pro-life" movement has many inconsistencies (i.e. for the birth of
> > children, but for the death penalty, for the wars in 
> > Iraq/Afghanistan/Pakistan, etc.) and as such, there are significant 
> > difficulties in equating the two deaths and the issue of war/abortion here.
> > 
> > 
> > Solidarity, -N.
> > 
> > Neil Parthun Sports/politics writer, UC-IMC
> > 
> > "There are many victories worse than a defeat." - George Eliot
>  >
>  >
> C. G. Estabrook wrote:
>  > Dr. Tiller was murdered Sunday 31 May in Wichita, Kansas.  On Monday 1 June
>  > US Army Pvt. William Long was shot and killed outside a military recruiting
>  > office in Little Rock, Arkansas, by a man opposed to the wars in Iraq and
>  > Afghanistan.
>  >
>  > If a vigil, prayerful or otherwise, is appropriate for Dr. Tiller, why is not
>  > one also being organized for Pvt. Long?  The only reason I can see is that
>  > the bien-pensant is in favor of Dr. Tiller's activities but opposed to those
>  > of Pvt. Long.  The vigil therefore becomes a certain "propaganda of the
>  > deed."
>  >
>  > In default of an adequate argument, war is no more justified by the
>  > victimization of those who practice it than is abortion.  --CGE
>  >
> 
...
Heather Ault
MFA Candidate, School of Art and Design
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
www.heatherault.org