The Only Moral Abortion is My Abortion

[Borachio]

It's all a bit disablist, though. I'm not comfortable with it. And where do you draw the line?

At one end is the baby born with minimal brain - and teratogenesis, even. At the other, designer babies.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Not being comfortable with this is only human. It's not a comfortable choice to make. I wouldn't think that to-be parents who find out their baby will be blind from birth, whichever choice they make, will be a comfortable one.

 

[El_Machinae]

Well, that would be the rather delicate point of this whole rather polite disagreement, would it not? Parenting seems to be a choice that largely carries value to the parent insofar as it provides an opportunity to give to another. Given that, doesn't it seem rather counterproductive to qualify or attempt to custom-order what should rather be a prime example of unconditional love?

To be fair, we cannot express unconditional love for our children. We'd like to, we'd really like to. Some of us are pretty damn good at it, but "expressing unconditional love" is like "drawing a perfect circle". The theory is there, we know it when we see it, we enjoy giving it a go, but it's not physically possible to express perfect love.

 

[Farm Boy]

Where do we decide to give up on trying then?

 

[Farm Boy]

I don't think many people look at it from that perspective. And even if they do, not all would put aside all practical considerations. Some prospective parents are simply not going to be that selfless. While others will have enough self knowledge to know that they are not up to the challenge/potential heartbreak. This is not a one size fits all. And maybe they would love the child, but be unable to meet its needs. You cannot project your values and your strengths onto others, because often they will not have the same.

You are correct, it's never one size fits all, but really what I was more gunning to answer was this.

Who says anyone will be making a choice for someone else rather than just for themselves?

Isn't that the whole point? That would be what we are both advocating is probably a bad thing.

 

[El_Machinae]

Where do we decide to give up on trying then?

Never! Never, never, never!