{"id":12372,"date":"2019-03-13T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/?p=12372"},"modified":"2019-03-11T09:12:07","modified_gmt":"2019-03-11T15:12:07","slug":"the-paradox-of-choice-a-chilling-glimpse-of-an-all-too-possible-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/the-paradox-of-choice-a-chilling-glimpse-of-an-all-too-possible-future\/","title":{"rendered":"The Paradox of Choice: A chilling glimpse of an all-too possible future."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In cases where there may be severe deformities\u2026 I can tell you exactly what would happen. The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that\u2019s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Paradox of Choice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Enough small talk, Ruth. You didn\u2019t come here to chat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it really that obvious?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m afraid so. Who\u2019s the father?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t know, Jezebel. I can picture his face, but I can\u2019t remember his name. I don\u2019t even have his number. It was just one night\u2014this was never supposed to happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mmm hmm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve made a horrible mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t say that about yourself, dear. You\u2019re a very strong woman. I\u2019m sure we can find a way to fix this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You are?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Absolutely. This is the current year, after all. Women have rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I know, but I think it may be too late. This is something I have to live with now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t be ridiculous, Ruth. It\u2019s your choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, but my baby is already three weeks old. I mean, look at him. He has my eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can\u2019t seriously think of that as your baby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why not? He\u2019s mine, isn\u2019t he? I\u2019ve already given birth to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, you have. But the Supreme Court ruled that personhood does not extend to infants until they possess the ability to comprehend language. Until then, that thing is no different from a dog, or a cat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Jezebel, this is my child!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not until its brain develops well enough that it can speak. Until then, there\u2019s no legal difference between terminating him or putting down a dog.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How can you say that? Look at him, Jezebel! Look at how expressive his face is\u2014how his eyes follow you\u2014how he smiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruth, please. Don\u2019t let your emotions cloud your judgment. Do you know how much other women have sacrificed to give you this choice?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, but\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You are an empowered, modern woman. This is your choice. Don\u2019t be ashamed of that. Be proud. Celebrate it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what if I don\u2019t want to go through with it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Come on, Ruth. Be reasonable. Are you really in a position to raise a child?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, but I\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then the most merciful thing you can do is terminate it, while you still can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What?!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s true, and you know it. If you decided to keep it, you\u2019d most likely find yourself trapped in the cycle of poverty, a single mother for the rest of your life. And is that any way to raise a family? Trust me, Ruth. Better to let it go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how is that worse than killing him?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The statistics don\u2019t lie. A life trapped in poverty is not worth living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you know that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you seriously going to fight with me on this? You\u2019ve led a privileged life, Ruth. We both have. It\u2019s cruel and barbaric to bring a human life into the world under lesser circumstances than you\u2019ve enjoyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I already have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, you haven\u2019t. Not according to the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But\u2014but what if the law is wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruth, dear. Please. You\u2019re changing the subject. We aren\u2019t talking about the law, we\u2019re talking about you. About your life. About your freedom. About your choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t know, Jezebel. It\u2019s just\u2026 it doesn\u2019t feel right to kill my child.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There you go again, calling it a \u201cchild.\u201d Do we need to go over this again? It\u2019s not a real child until it can speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But some babies can learn to make signs when they\u2019re only a few months old. They can make gestures for food, for play, or for when they\u2019re tired or hurt. Doesn\u2019t that count?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t get caught up in the minutiae of it, Ruth. The truth is, this is your choice, and anyone who tells you otherwise is just trying to shame you into silence. Don\u2019t be ashamed. Don\u2019t let them silence you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do you mean, \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d? Do you doubt the science of brain development? Do you think you know better than the Supreme Court of the United States?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Okay, okay. I\u2019m sorry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then what is holding you back?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Look at him, Jezebel. Isn\u2019t he the cutest thing you\u2019ve ever seen?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I know you feel attached to it, Ruth. And I know how hard this must be for you to hear. But I promise you, there is nothing wrong with letting it go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you sure?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes. In fact, it would be a mercy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Jezebel\u2014I can\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do you mean?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I can\u2019t put down my baby. It doesn\u2019t seem right. Even if it is a mistake, it\u2019s my<\/em> mistake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then why should you have to carry it with you for the rest of your life? Why do you refuse to let it go? There\u2019s still time for you to make this right. Be brave, Ruth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How is it \u201cbrave\u201d to kill my child?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve been over this, Ruth. It\u2019s not a \u201cchild.\u201d Not yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Child or not, it\u2019s still my own flesh and blood. I carried it to term and gave birth to it. I gave it life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, but it\u2019s not a real person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How can you say that? It laughs, it cries. It has feelings. If I don\u2019t put it down, it will one day grow up to be a man. To be my son. His children will be my grandchildren. And who knows but what he\u2019ll accomplish more in his life than I will in mine?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There you go, letting your emotions get the best of you again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But where\u2019s the line, Jezebel? When does he become a real human person? I\u2019ve already brought him into this world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, you have. But until the law says he\u2019s a person, he\u2019s not one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is that what it all comes down to, then? The law?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t come here to argue with you about the law, but if that\u2019s what it takes to convince you, then so be it. Yes, it all comes down to the law. If the law says you\u2019re a person, you\u2019re a person. If it doesn\u2019t, then you\u2019re not. Why make this more complicated than it needs to be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because\u2026 what if the law is wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It isn\u2019t wrong. This is your right. Your choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But isn\u2019t murder a choice, too?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, Ruth. Murder is a crime. It breaks the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But is that the only thing that makes it wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why should it matter?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because putting down this child\u2014I mean, terminating this life\u2014it feels a lot like murder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not, Ruth. The law says so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what if the law said that I\u2019m not a person? What if it said that you were within your rights to kill me? That would be murder now\u2014would it still be murder then?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruth, I\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And who makes the law, anyway? How do we know that they\u2019re right? I mean, yes, I know that without law, we can\u2019t have a functioning society, but what if our laws are bad? What if following the law is wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t be ridiculous. Following the law isn\u2019t wrong, because it\u2019s the law. And the law says that you have a choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enough arguing, Ruth. Are you going to make your choice, or not?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What if I choose not to?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruth, Ruth, Ruth. How many times must we go over this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But you said it was a choice. That means that I have options. I don\u2019t have to kill\u2014I mean, terminate it. If I did, it wouldn\u2019t be a choice, would it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s not the point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, it is. And it feels like you\u2019re trying to make the choice for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Only because it\u2019s the right one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because it\u2019s empowering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then why does it feel like you\u2019re trying to force it on me?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t argue with me, Ruth. This is for your own good. One day, when you\u2019re a happy, successful woman, you\u2019ll look back on this conversation we had and thank me. Oh look, it\u2019s beginning to snow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s too warm outside to be snow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My mistake. At least it\u2019s good for the plants. Now, do you need me to come with you to the crematorium? I\u2019m here to help you, Ruth. Every step of the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t know. I just\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You just what?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Never mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Author\u2019s Note<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On January 22, 2019, New York enacted the Reproductive Health Act, which legalized abortion up to the moment of birth and repealed criminal charges for harming unborn children. A few weeks later, the Repeal Act was proposed in Virginia, which would have similarly repealed abortion restrictions in the state. In discussing this bill, Governor Ralph Northam said the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn cases where there may be severe deformities\u2026 I can tell you exactly what would happen. The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that\u2019s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.\u201d (Julie, Cary, Ralph Northam, Ask the Governor with Va. Gov. Ralph Northam,<\/em> WTOP-FM, 30 January 2019)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Governor Northam\u2019s hypothetical case bears a striking resemblance to the 1939 case of baby Knauer, one of the first victims of child euthanasia in Nazi Germany. Baby Knauer was born with many severe deformities, including blindness, imbecility, and missing limbs. Hitler himself authorized the killing of the child. (Staatsarchiv N\u00fcrnberg, United States of America v. Karl Brandt et al., zitiert nach Ulf Schmidt: \u201cOutbreak of War and Euthanasia. Results of Recent Research into the \u2018Knauer Child\u2019 in 1939.\u201d) After baby Knauer, the Nazi eugenics program rapidly expanded to include forced euthanasia of the mentally ill and handicapped, and ultimately evolved into what we now know as the Holocaust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In today\u2019s political discourse, we have a tendency to use the Nazis as a proxy for the ultimate evil. Nazis don\u2019t just exist on the spectrum of good and evil; Nazis are the scale.<\/em> However, a compelling argument can be made that abortion in the United States exceeds the evil of the Nazis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, consider the numbers. Six million Jews were exterminated in the Nazi Holocaust, plus several hundred thousand Romani, Homosexuals, Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses, and disabled. However, since Roe v. Wade, more than sixty million babies have been aborted in the United States alone. (Number of Abortions – Abortion Counters. http:\/\/numberofabortions.com\/<\/a> accessed 9 March 2019) The number of babies aborted in the United States is an order of magnitude larger than the Holocaust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second, consider the historical context. In the 1920s and 30s, Germany was a shattered nation laboring under the burden of war reparations, hyperinflation, and starvation. In contrast, we are living in an unparalleled era of prosperity. The Germans turned to the Nazis out of fear and a sense of national crisis; we \u201cshout\u201d our abortions out of the apathy and selfishness of our own decadence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Third, consider the victims. The German Jews were a distinct people with their own unique culture and religion. It wasn\u2019t very difficult for the Nazis to \u201cotherize\u201d them, because they were already a peculiar people. In contrast, we are slaughtering our own flesh and blood, the fruit of our loins\u2014our children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United States was founded on the principle of three unalienable rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And yet, when we look back at our own history, we find it difficult to comprehend how our fore-bearers could believe these things and still own slaves. I believe that future generations will look back on us in much the same way, and question how a people who claim to believe in the unalienable right of life could assent to the wholesale slaughter of the unborn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any woman who has carried a child to term will tell you that the baby inside of her has their own tastes and personality; that they sleep at certain times and wake at certain times, and get angry, happy, upset, or calm while still inside the womb. The science of biology tells us that from the moment of conception, a fetus possesses its own unique DNA, which determines hair color, eye color, sex, genetics, personality\u2014everything that makes us human, short of actual lived experience. The point of viability is constantly being pushed back by developments in lifesaving technology, making it a poor moral standard. Is a child aborted at twelve weeks today any less of a human being than a child born in future decades, when we will have the technology to save that baby outside of the womb?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t want to judge anyone who has had an abortion. I don\u2019t know the details of every case or what lies in every human heart, and I cannot say with certainty that every abortion is wrong. However, I can say with certainty that every abortion ends a human life. When I look at what my nation has done, and the blood on our hands of the most innocent and powerless among us, I feel to echo Thomas Jefferson\u2019s words: \u201cI tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that his justice cannot sleep forever.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This story was very difficult for me, and I wasn\u2019t originally going to write it. The idea for it came to me several years ago, but it wasn\u2019t until April 2017 that I felt impressed that this was something I needed to write. Even then, I only wrote it halfway. But the events of 2019 convinced me that I needed to dust off this old manuscript and bring it to completion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because I want this story to have the furthest reach, I am publishing it under a Creative Commons Attribition 4.0 International license<\/a> (CC BY 4.0). Feel free to download it, upload it, meme it, rewrite it, and even resell it for your own profit. All I ask is that you copy this license and provide a link to the original.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ll end with this quote from Defying Hitler<\/em> by Sebastian Haffner:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe watched the earlier events unfold. They occupied and excited us\u2026 but they did not confront us with ultimate decisions of conscience. Our innermost beings remained untouched. We gained experience, acquired convictions, but remained basically the same people. However, no one who has, willingly or reluctantly, been caught up in the machine of the Third Reich can honestly say that of himself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe that we are living in a similar time. The assault on the sanctity of life deeply affects us all, both individually and as a society. In writing and publishing this story, I hope to have done some small part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you for reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Creative<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Paradox of Choice by Joe Vasicek<\/a> is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In cases where there may be severe deformities\u2026 I can tell you exactly what would happen. The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that\u2019s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother. The Paradox… Continue reading The Paradox of Choice: A chilling glimpse of an all-too possible future.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[170,1],"tags":[1186,457,1178,414],"class_list":["post-12372","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-short-stories","category-uncategorized","tag-abortion","tag-current-events","tag-nazis","tag-politics","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iXK-3dy","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12372","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12372"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12372\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12375,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12372\/revisions\/12375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12372"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12372"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12372"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}