I was originally simply going to write a response in the comments section of Vassar Bushmills blog titled “The Republican Pro-Life Plank, a Philosophical Stance or a Political Stance? Or Both?” but decided that it was a complex enough subject with enough people on both sides of the issue that it was more appropriate to simply spell out a counter argument in my own diary.
The first issue I have with the point of view expressed is the premise. This is not an issue that needs any moral standing in order to be conservative. The simple fact is that the founders of this country believed that there were granted rights and that there were natural rights. Natural rights include life, liberty & the pursuit of happiness. They saw the truth in these rights to be self evident, as in beyond contestation. To deprive an American citizen of life completely at the behest of another (in other words not a death row inmate who was convicted by a jury of his peers) is to deprive them of one of the most basic natural rights. A right which our government, according to our founding documents, does not have the authority to grant or deny. You do not have to be a Christian to subscribe to this point of view, nor do you have to be a “Bible thumper.” This is basic stuff related to our founding and for conservatives is the only step we need to go to in order to defend the pro-life position.
The Ben Howe Blog 