The Pro-Life position is philosophically sound, logical as well
as moral, please read on.
There are four main differences between the fetus (unborn human in the fetal stage)
and a new born. Those differences are:
1. size of fetus
2. level of development
3. environment
4. degree of
dependency
In this post and subsequent posts, I will be addressing all four of these differences.
You will see that the Pro-Life position is philosophically sound, logical and moral. Keep in mind that when the term "fetus" is used we are referring to a fetus that has human parents. The term "fetus" is a medical term derived from Latin meaning "offspring". If the offspring has human parents then the fetus is indeed human.
1. Size: It is a fact that the human fetus is smaller than he or she will be as a new born. From the moment of conception and on the fetus does a lot of growing and changing. Science tells us that something that is alive will grow and change, this is the two main characteristics of something that is alive. By 9 weeks every essential organ has begun to form in
the fetus' tiny body, even though it still weighs less than
an aspirin. The hair and nipple follicles are forming, and the eyelids
and tongue have begun formation. The elbows and toes are more visible
as the trunk begins to straighten out. At this time everything is present that will be at birth.
So does size determine our status as human being? Is it morally justified to kill a human being as long as it is small enough? So does size determine who is a human being and who is not? No it does not but if
it did, a human fetus is indeed not Human, or less Human than a new born
because of its size. This would have to also be true throughout human life, through other stages in
development. A new born would then be less human than a toddler and a toddler
would be less human than a teenager and a full sized adult. What about
those People who are dwarfs or "little people" does their size make them less Human? Would you dare go up to a little person and tell them that they are less human than an averaged size person? I think not, I am
sure their was probably a point in history where the dwarf person was
viewed as not Human or less Human, that is clearly not the case today. In fact society would look down on that type of discrimination (size discrimination). Many people say that abortion up to 3 months is OK because the baby is small and has not developed enough yet. But as I already stated by 8 weeks or 2 months the unborn human being has already developed everything he or she will need for birth, just not fully developed enough to be born. Size is not the issue and clearly irrelevant to the issue of abortion. Just as size makes no difference in determining who is a human being or not while we are born you can not say that this would be any different in our unborn stages. Size is irrelevant to the issue of abortion.
Stay tuned for more:
Please check out our
fetal development page,
unborn human development...
