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by Stan Smith
A lot of people over the last few years have complained that folks aren't as considerate as they once were. Now, you might think it's because old people are crotchety, but I'm even hearing it from younger folk. There was a time that we would open doors or let people in front of us in traffic or "ladies first" or ... well, a host of things -- "Common courtesy." And, they tell me, common courtesy is not really common anymore.
As a nation we've decided that a woman should have the right to terminate life at will as long as it's inside her body at the time. Science assures us that this is a human life. But that's okay. A "women's reproductive rights" are far more important than this human life, and we'll do all we can to insure that she can execute it if she wants. Recently Australian Kerry Robertson, 61, became the first to use the new "assisted dying" laws to allow "the empowered death that she wanted." Assisted suicide is legal on the entire Left coast of our country, Colorado, and a few northeastern states. Coming soon to a state near you, likely.
So what does the decline of common courtesy and the rise of elective murder have to do with each other? I would say they are symptoms of the same problem. Christianity (and Judaism) has long held that humans were made in the image of God. So where Christianity prevails, there is a real value placed on human life. For as long as that kind of thinking has maintained a strong influence, abortion and euthanasia have been illegal. But we've put that to rest, haven't we?
America is no longer a nation heavily influenced by a Judeo-Christian ethic. We've decided that Nothing made everything, that humans are a cosmic accident, and thank Evolution for that. With this revised mindset we get a legislator pushing for increased abortion of humans on one hand and the defense of cankerworms on the other. With this kind of thinking, defending the most vulnerable is no longer important just because they're human. With this new ethic, for what possible reason might we expect "common courtesy"? Why should "he" show preference to "she" or why would you expect someone to show deference to you? Self-interest is all there is.
I think our modern cultural ethic is showing signs of the obvious outcome. Saying that humans are valuable is mere speciesism. It is hubris. Since there is no Creator who endows rights or value, why should we not kill small humans or old ones or show courtesy or ... shoot people en masse? You're going to have to come up with a better answer than "We need better laws" when we have no basis for the value of a human life.
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I'm married with four grown children and (currently) four grandchildren. My wife and I live in sunny Phoenix by choice. I hope to encourage people with my words and to share with others what God has shared with me.
For more writings you can see my blog at birdsoftheair.blogspot.com.
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