Divide and Multiply

I love the freedom of speech in America. This is a diverse country, in which anyone may express his or her views without retribution. There are of course consequences, in that no one will ever agree 100% of the time. Questions of faith, politics, and even sports teams can divide us. At a feast in New Jersey last weekend, our drummer shouted “LET'S GO METS!” when he spotted someone on the sidewalk wearing a shirt adorned with the logo of his favorite team. A moment later, spying a shirt he didn't like, he shouted even louder, “PHILLIES SUCK!!” He immediately remembered where he was as the band leader turned around and glared at him, and he apologized on the spot. “You might be right in that sentiment,” said a priest strolling alongside us in the procession, “But this isn't the place for that.”

For the most part, I respect that people like different things and might have different opinions than I do. I could care less about sports. I make no secret of the fact that I'm a Catholic or usually vote Republican, though in this medium I tend to focus more on pop culture, geek interests, and the minutia of my daily life. My blogroll consists of good writers with similar interests, and just as my friends in real life range from one extreme to another, so too do I have a mix of liberals and conservatives, faithful and atheists. Just last weekend in a diner myself and four friends discussed the current presidential candidates. Two of us were for McCain, while the other two leaned toward Obama. We differed on some issues and agreed on others, notably that these elections often come down to choosing the lesser of two evils. At this point in our history I can't imagine why anyone would want to be president. Forget wealth and historical fame; no matter what you're guaranteed to have nearly half the country dislike or loathe you.

A few days ago, Sean used the term “Anti Choice” to describe Sarah Palin's stance on abortion, and the term's been nagging at me. I'd never heard it before, and wondered if it would be logical to refer to the other side as “Anti-Life”, maybe get this guy as their spokesperson. Some research showed that the term has been used before. I found it interesting that in a point-by-point analysis of the two viewpoints, that site linked religion to the definition of “personhood”. Personally, I'm not so sure. It's a biological certainty that, once an egg is fertilized, its cells will continue to divide and multiply and, uninterrupted, grow into a human being. I believe as early as three months a sonogram will show recognizable features, and while we don't normally have memories of our time in the womb, there may be some measurable brain activity. Some studies have shown the influence of playing classical music for an infant before it's born, for example.

I was always divided on the issue as a kid, despite a cruel childhood nickname. I knew how I would want to proceed should I ever screw up, and I would be a man and take responsibility if I impregnated a girl. The aforementioned drummer has a son he doesn't acknowledge because the kid is inconvenient, and because he cursed at his grandmother the first time he stayed with them, after ten years of being neglected. That's someone I don't want to be. At the same time, while I knew what I believed was right and how I would conduct myself, I wasn't sure I wanted the government telling women what they could and couldn't do. And while I knew what I would want to do, I knew the decision wouldn't be mine alone. I also naturally assumed all women would be pro-choice and I would never get a girlfriend if I didn't support her freedom.

Around the seventh grade, we watched a particularly graphic abortion video in a biology class and my opinion definitely and finally shifted to one side of the fence after seeing a device I can only describe as a “blender” as well as several recognizable tiny limbs and other body parts. I can't imagine the choice is a remotely easy one to make, nor can I know what it must be like to carry a child for nine months and give birth. I only know secondhand the pain my parents went through with miscarriages before I was born, and remember visiting the unmarked grave in the cemetery where my older sisters were buried. Whether approaching life from science or faith, I think we can all agree it's pretty miraculously that the process defies odds and succeeds in bringing more of us into this world at all.

I don't know that the issue will ever be resolved until we can definitively measure and agree upon life. It's more than just a question of the government telling women what to do; it's a question of whether or not you're taking the life of a living human being, or extracting organic tissue that only resembles a human being. I find it difficult to view it as the latter. Why can't my friend's ex-girlfriend kill their son? Is it because he talks and has gone to school and bonded with other people and made friends? Would taking his life now really be so different from taking his life ten years ago? Ten years and three months? Ten years and six months? Does what we become define what we are? Would it be morally wrong if we were able to travel back in time and decided to kill Hitler as a boy? I honestly don’t have the right answers, only what I strongly believe to be the right answers.

The world is an increasingly dangerous place to be. We're fighting on several fronts, and lives are being lost daily to war. Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, China, Russia, Venezuela and more pose threats, and I shake my head in disbelief sometimes when I hear a network like CNN report a “story” on Sarah Palin's glasses. Again, I'm not sure why either candidate would want to take office at a time like this, but you have to commend them for trying anyway. I was glad to see both candidates come together for the 9-11 remembrance. Sometimes I worry if we're on the brink of another civil war. Political agendas notwithstanding, it was still a nice reminder that, Republican or Democrat, we're all Americans. It's too bad we can't have co-presidents in our system. If things as trivial as sports or music can set us at each other's throats, what happens when the larger issues boil to the surface? The best we can do is state our opinions calmly and rationally, and accept that at the end of the day we may have to agree to disagree, and enjoy the freedom we have to state our differences openly.