Question for anti-abortionists

[Altfish]

This question has been floated in the press in the last few days...

You're in a fertility clinic. Why isn't important. The fire alarm goes off. You run for the exit. As you run down this hallway, you hear a child screaming from behind a door. You throw open the door and find a five-year-old child crying for help.
They're in one corner of the room. In the other corner, you spot a frozen container labeled "1000 Viable Human Embryos." The smoke is rising. You start to choke. You know you can grab one or the other, but not both before you succumb to smoke inhalation and die, saving no one.

Do you ....
A) save the child?
B) save the thousand embryos?

There is no "C." "C" means you all die.

 

[DavidFirth]

Save the child. The container might be mislabeled.

 

[Altfish]

Save the child. The container might be mislabeled.

It is not wrongly labelled. It does contain what is said on the label on the container.

Still the same answer?

 

[Enoch07]

This question has been floated in the press in the last few days...

You're in a fertility clinic. Why isn't important. The fire alarm goes off. You run for the exit. As you run down this hallway, you hear a child screaming from behind a door. You throw open the door and find a five-year-old child crying for help.
They're in one corner of the room. In the other corner, you spot a frozen container labeled "1000 Viable Human Embryos." The smoke is rising. You start to choke. You know you can grab one or the other, but not both before you succumb to smoke inhalation and die, saving no one.

Do you ....
A) save the child?
B) save the thousand embryos?

There is no "C." "C" means you all die.

Well to be fair, if you want to reduce the chance of the clinic burning down, and thus then not having to make the choice of A or B.. Then the best bet is to stop playing with fire.

 

[DavidFirth]

It is not wrongly labelled. It does contain what is said on the label on the container.

Still the same answer?

Well, scientists and lab assistants have been wrong before... so yes, same answer. How do I know for sure the container is labeled correctly?

 

[Nakosis]

This question has been floated in the press in the last few days...

You're in a fertility clinic. Why isn't important. The fire alarm goes off. You run for the exit. As you run down this hallway, you hear a child screaming from behind a door. You throw open the door and find a five-year-old child crying for help.
They're in one corner of the room. In the other corner, you spot a frozen container labeled "1000 Viable Human Embryos." The smoke is rising. You start to choke. You know you can grab one or the other, but not both before you succumb to smoke inhalation and die, saving no one.

Do you ....
A) save the child?
B) save the thousand embryos?

There is no "C." "C" means you all die.

How about if those are your embryos. One's you helped to create with your "superior' genetics.

And the child looks like this?

 

[Altfish]

It is already going to form, the gentleman who originally set the question said in his summary...

"In a decade of arguing with anti-abortion people about the definition of human life, I have never gotten a single straight A or B answer to this question. And I never will.
They will never answer honestly, because we all instinctively understand the right answer is "A." A human child is worth more than a thousand embryos. Or ten thousand. Or a million. Because they are not the same, not morally, not ethically, not biologically"

 

[Mister Silver]

Do you ....
A) save the child?
B) save the thousand embryos?

Before I answer the above, I just want to make it known that I am pro-choice. I know the thread and question is directed toward those against abortion, but I feel like answering anyway.

I would save the child.

 

[Valjean]

Save the child.
The child is a person, with all the qualities that entitle it to moral consideration.
The embryos are not people, and do not possess the features that qualify them for moral consideration.

 

[Kemosloby]

The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Save the crying child.

 

[columbus]

Save the child.
Because I value human individuals to different degrees depending on a host of factors.
One would be ability to experience the horrible pain of burning to death. But that's only one of them.
Tom

 

[DavidFirth]

Well, answer A is the best also because how can we be sure we can keep said embryos frozen and safe so they won't die? The container is probably made of something that breaks easily and could be dropped or lost trying to get out of the building.

This really isn't hard at all. A is the obvious answer and it has nothing whatever to do with how a person feels about abortion.

 

[DavidFirth]

Also, this isn't a choice as to whether to kill an unborn child or not for no reason other than the convenience of the mother. Whoever did this study wasted valuable money and time.

 

[Valjean]

Well, answer A is the best also because how can we be sure we can keep said embryos frozen and safe so they won't die? The container is probably made of something that breaks easily and could be dropped or lost trying to get out of the building.

This really isn't hard at all. A is the obvious answer and it has nothing whatever to do with how a person feels about abortion.

So what does it have to do with? What are the principles involved?

 

[Altfish]

Well, answer A is the best also because how can we be sure we can keep said embryos frozen and safe so they won't die? The container is probably made of something that breaks easily and could be dropped or lost trying to get out of the building.

This really isn't hard at all. A is the obvious answer and it has nothing whatever to do with how a person feels about abortion.

So why all, "How can I be sure..." excuses.
When a woman with mental trauma goes for an abortion how can you be sure her embryo will survive if it is not aborted?

 

[columbus]

Also, this isn't a choice as to whether to kill an unborn child or not for no reason other than the convenience of the mother. Whoever did this study wasted valuable money and time.

Let me rephrase this.
How does this question have any relevance to the fundamental question "Do some human beings have the right to choose death for other human beings? "
Tom

 

[DavidFirth]

So what does it have to do with? What are the principles involved?

Reread my post. The correct answer is obvious or should be.

 

[Valjean]

Let me rephrase this.
How does this question have any relevance to the fundamental question "Do some human beings have the right to choose death for other human beings? "
Tom

By calling into question the definition of "human being."

 

[DavidFirth]

Let me rephrase this.
How does this question have any relevance to the fundamental question "Do some human beings have the right to choose death for other human beings? "
Tom

Still not relevant. The correct question is,

"Should a woman have the right to kill the unborn child in her body and therefore prevent a live birth?"

So why all, "How can I be sure..." excuses.
When a woman with mental trauma goes for an abortion how can you be sure her embryo will survive if it is not aborted?

The correct question is how can she be sure it won't? Not being sure a human being is going to live or not is no justification for killing that human being.

 

[DavidFirth]

By calling into question the definition of "human being."

And there it is. That's the real question.

So is a human embryo a real human being?