When I talk to Jewish and Muslim people, they generally say abortion is wrong and of course some disagreement between them about exceptions. Christians tend to engage in very dogmatic rhetoric. Maybe somebody else has insight about this and why, but I have heard about the haunted hell houses and other things which leads me to believe that abstinence and pro-life philosophy is something instilled in children very young. So in comparison to other religious groups, Christians are very politically active and use strong political rhetoric. The pivot of it being "abortion is murder." That then leads into a lot of other rhetoric that I have a hard time taken seriously.
Here are few things they say:
I would never murder my children at any age for any reason. Killing your kids inexcusable.
Abortion is genocide.
Abortion is worse than the Holocaust.
And if you believe all of the above, then it logically leads to pro-lifers saying:
Women who try to murder their kids (have an abortion) deserve to die.
Abortion doctors are not actual doctors, they are serial killers.
Almost every pro-lifer on this board makes these kind of statements on some level, and I just can't take it seriously.
First of all, when you start equating abortion to genocide, it really ignores a lot about what genocide is and what it entails. I have been reading some of Danial Jonah Goldhagen, and he studies and writes about genocide (his family was in the Holocaust). Genocide is in essence carrying out one's hate. It's committed against a group because you believe they threaten to your own group. The underlying cause of bigotry and hate is fearing a group of people. Genocide involves overkilling the targeted group. History sees targeted groups killed in the most horrific and brutal ways. The deaths are unnecessarily brutal, as they are a manifestation of hate.
When I think of somebody killing prisoners at Auschwitz, I don't even think that that is how Andre Yates felt when she killed her kids. I don't consider what she did as genocide or an act of hate towards the children. She killed five kids. It's truly disturbing, but I don't really think of her her mental state was like a guard at Auschwitz fearing and hating her kids, thinking they threatened her status, way of life, etc. I can think of a few other people in the news for killing their kids, and I don't think genocide or hate was the underlying cause. I also think going from Auschwitz to killing your own kids to having an abortion is another leap. I really don't think abortion is hate and genocide. I believe all three categories of killing are different and involves a different mindset.
(I did say killing, it wasn't an accident. I don't take pro life philosophy seriously.)
Secondly, there is a difference between a five year old and a unborn baby. I am not comfortable with late term abortion, so I would say embryo to be more precise on "unborn baby." Killing a five year old and having an abortion is not the same. I am not saying one is right and one is wrong. I am personally pro-life, but this is another crinkle in pro-life philosophy.
Using this line of reasoning prevents you from admitting the identity of the female plays a role. Her identity, well being, mental state, physical health, and how she feels about carrying a pregnancy to term actually plays a role in how she feels about her pregnancy. That is not a factor when you have a five year old.
A females identity deeply matters to her when she is raped, when is having a health issue, or when her life is in danger. I have absolutely no problem with abortion in those situations. If you say abortion is murder, then you put yourself in the corner... why should a rape victim get to murder an innocent baby... why should a baby be executed for somebody else committing the crime of rape? This thinking is exactly why we get news stories like the Catholic pope excommunicating people for helping a 12 year old girl get an abortion after being raped.
In closing, I don't take pro life philosophy seriously. When I hear pro lifers use such language, it doesn't really make me see things from their perspective. Instead, it makes think they are committed to a flawed philosophy and incapable of having a conversation.
