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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank

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To: TimF who wrote (17353)6/26/2001 8:01:34 AM
From: Lane3  Read Replies (2) of 82486
 
I think I can follow (but not agree with) your reasoning for the idea that the best policy is to leave it up to the individual but I can't see how you could call that a compromise in this situation.

Let me try to elucidate further. I think there are a lot of parallels between the abortion and global warming issues that might be useful.

Once upon a time we had pro-abortion and anti-abortion. Now we have pro-choice and pro-life. The change was more than finding more attractive labels. The pro-abortion types co-opted the middle and took on the pro-choice label as their umbrella label. We forget now that, within the pro-choice camp we have everything from Chinese one-child types to abortion agnostics. There are lots and lots of people in the pro-choice camp who hate abortion but who don't think that we have enough certainty or consensus to call a fetus a human and, therefore, call abortion murder.

That's not unlike the continuum of thinking on the global warming issue. For many, while they have some concerns about the prospect of global warming, they don't think we have enough certainty to jump into Kyoto with both feet given the cost and disruption that would cause. Similarly, we have those who look at making abortion illegal much as you look at Kyoto. We just don't know enough or have enough of a consensus to take such a drastic step. Maybe later, but not now.

Now, we have true believers in both the abortion and global warming camps who shrilly wail about murder and a destroyed planet and feel strongly enough to try to impose their views through political action or terrorism. And we have people who think the true believers are totally nuts. Then there are people in the middle who want to wait a bit and see before they leap. Even though their reluctance has consequences, I can't fault it. Leaping has consequences, too.

Karen
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