re: #178 Mattand

Maybe it’s because it’s the end of the day, but I’m just not understanding this.

I’m against any restriction on abortion. One of my reasons is that the arbitrary and throughly made up assertion that sentience/life/the soul somehow begins at contraception. Another is that the idea that your religious beliefs should not prevent a woman from seeking medical care

Therefore I’m a dupe of the religious right?

If you conflate sentience with life and the soul then yes, you are. Try thinking about what distinguishes these terms. I’ll start you off with the fact that the first is actually relevant to a discussion of comparative rights, and since it requires a functioning central nervous system it doesn’t begin at conception. If you’re going to be against any restriction on abortion, a position that goes beyond Roe v. Wade, then you should be able to intelligently state why. That requires a discussion of comparative rights, which necessitates a discussion of when rights attach. As long as you’re simplistically tossing in significant terms like sentience / self awareness with nebulous concepts like life and the soul you’re allowing your opponents to define the terms of the argument before you’ve even begun to articulate your position.