The Rational Anarchist

We all have to make choices in our lives and those choices determine who we are. Those we make for our own lives are relatively easy. Should we make a bad choice, it is only ourselves that suffer.
It is when we interact with others that our choices become more difficult. Simple courtesies such as yielding the right of way or holding a door open for a heavily burdened fellow shopper add simple joy to our daily lives. It is in life or death choices that who we are really comes out. Any parents worth their salt will automatically put the life of their child first. It is the child’s life that matter most and that is how it should be. Below is a simple metaphor that helps bridge the gap between a child who has been born and one still in the womb.

A worried woman went to her gynecologist and said: Doctor, I have a serious problem and desperately need your help! My baby is not even 1yr. old and I’m pregnant again. I don’t want kids so close together. So the doctor said: ‘OK and what do you want me to do?’ She said: I want you to end my pregnancy, and I’m counting on your help with this.’ The doctor thought for a little, and after some silence he said to the lady:I think I have a better solution for your problem. It’s less dangerous for you too. She smiled, thinking that the doctor was going to accept her request. Then he continued: ‘You see, in order for you not to have to take care of 2 babies at the same time, let’s kill the one in your arms. This way, you could rest some before the other one is born. If we’re going to kill one of them, it doesn’t matter which one it is. There would be no risk for your body if you chose the one in your arms.’ The lady was horrified and said: ‘No doctor! How terrible! It’s a crime to kill a child! ‘I agree’, the doctor replied. ‘But you seemed to be OK with it, so I thought maybe that was the best solution. The doctor smiled, realizing that he had made his point. He convinced the mom that there is no difference in killing a child that’s already been born and one that’s still in the womb. The crime is the same!