Earlier today I asked Kevin O. to stop turning Delaware Dem’s death penalty post into an abortion post. My comment was brief, but I should have taken the time to explain that his comments were off topic and that he was free to post his thoughts on an open thread. For that, I apologize.
Kevin emailed me saying that my comment sent him a signal that his voice didn’t matter. Now, while I admit I could have taken the time to fully explain staying on topic, I’ll also say that his views on abortion don’t really matter to me. We won’t agree on this, and that’s fine. But only one of us has views that would personally impact others. That said, I’ll give him this forum to express himself.
He did write a blog post…
I will firmly state I am against the death penalty. Like State Rep. Sean Lynn said yesterday, if there is even a chance of an error, than we cannot and should not put a person’s life on the line like that. With that being said, I also oppose abortion. To me, life is life. Yes, the death penalty was put in place to execute the most egregious of criminals out there, but the Bible firmly states “Thou shalt not kill.” Under that line of thought, a fetus is a life just as much as a murderer on death row.
For abortion, I believe that all life has an unfulfilled purpose. I saw a post on Facebook this morning where a woman talked about being raped. She had a child and gave it up for adoption. Many years later, that very same child saved a woman from being raped at a party. I often think about what could happen with children who are not able to reach their full potential. Some don’t have a chance at all. I used to be against all abortion with the exception of a woman who is a victim of rape. I have changed that view in recent years because there are other options. I understand women in those situations are given no choice. But I have no doubt, if even 1% of our most famous inventors, writers, musicians, or leaders were born out of that environment, our world would be a lesser place had they not been born.
There is a difference between the death penalty and abortion – mainly the State doesn’t sentence a person to have an abortion. Abortion is a personal, legal, medical decision between a woman and her doctor. If you don’t believe in abortion – don’t have one. The State won’t order you to – you can, you know… opt out. 😉 (Sorry, I couldn’t resist!)
I get that Kevin feels strongly about this, so strongly that he’s okay with forcing a woman to give birth to her rapist’s baby. That boggles my mind. It also diminishes the brutal reality of rape – it sidelines it and turns the female rape victim into an incubator who loses her voice and autonomy. That isn’t okay.