Dmytro Taranovsky
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Thesis: Abortion should be legal since it is useful and since humans become conscious after birth, not before.
I. People are protected since they can feel.
II. If a fetus does not feel, aborting it is equivalent to not creating a person which is not immoral.
III. Abortion is very useful.
A. Abortion prevents
creation of unwanted children.
B. Abortion prevents creation
of abnormal children.
IV. Ability to feel is supernatural
A. Physical laws do
not predict the ability to feel.
B. Quantum mechanics places
special powers on observers.
V. Humans gain ability to feel at about three years after
birth.
A. Feeling requires special abilities since it is
supernatural
B. The special abilities are abilities to
think, understand, and form direct memories.
C. Fetuses are
unable to reason.
C. First memories trace to the age of
three years.
D. Fetuses cannot be second-class people.
E.
Abortion should be legal since it does not kill a soul.
VI. Infanticide has important differences with abortion.
A.
Infants are much more similar to people than fetuses are.
1. Killing infants may promote violence.
2. Infants do not alter bodies of women like fetuses do.
B.
Infanticide should only be allowed for the first week after birth and
only in limited cases.
VII. Bible supports abortion.
A. Genesis states that
people are "in the image of God", that is they have ability
to understand, solve problems, and remember.
B. The
recommended penalty for causing miscarriage is a fine; the penalty
for killing a person is death.
C. According to the Bible, in
case of adultery, women should sometimes be forced to miscarry.
D.
According to the Bible, some prophets have a gift of being human
before birth.
E. New Testament does not oppose abortion
VIII. Human embryonic development provides additional evidence for
abortion.
A. Since zygote is just a cell, it cannot be a
person.
B. Natural fetal death rate is high.
C.
Fetuses do not ask for rights.
D. Fetuses are too small for
people.
IX. If legal abortion is not available, most of the abortion would occur anyway but would be illegal and unsafe.
X. Conclusion: Abortion is beneficial and should be allowed on demand.