Liberalism and Abortion

Does the liberal ruling on the inviolability of the right to life applies to the unborn? This is the fundamental question in the debate between pro-choice and pro-life movements. Whether the deliberate termination of pregnancy before the fetus becomes viable violates the ruling rests on two controversial issues – when life begins and parental ownership.

Human life begins during fecundation or sometime during the gestation period? Life itself begins with the first cell split. But an embryo only becomes human once it has developed a brain. The brain begins to develop after the third week of pregnancy and will be complete by the 36th week. However, by the 22nd week it will be sufficiently developed to allow the survival of premature born babies. This is also the period after which the unborn can definitely be considered as separate from his mother.

The critical stage of brain development is between weeks seven and nine when it gains shape and becomes capable of some behavioral complexity. Thus a human being is alive by the ninth week and from then onwards abortion should be condemned.

We have said about suicide that for God-believers life is God's property. Yet, we have also noticed above that an unborn can only be separated from his mother on the 22nd week. So, between weeks 9 and 22 shall we consider the mother as a simple trustee of a God’s life or the rightful owner of the unborn human? If we take the second view then mothers would have the right to dispose of their babies until that stage of the gestation period.

Yet, for non-believers, the rights to freedom and equality based on mutual love would impose on mothers the obligation to protect the unborn human being during that period. Therefore, under the property criteria liberals cannot expand beyond nine weeks the period during which abortion is acceptable.

However, self-defense provides an exceptional circumstance under which abortion could be carried out beyond the ninth week. This includes only the case when the mother’s life is at danger due to pregnancy. It does not include other exceptions often invoked, namely in the cases of rape, incest or malformation of the unborn. Other arguments about saving the parents and the unborn from future pain and misery must be also refuted.

In conclusion, the liberal principles require the protection of all unborn individuals from the moment when they can be considered human beings.

Are God and Mathematics discovered or invented?

There is no doubt that both God and Mathematics are extremely useful for humankind. God helps us cope with death, illness and moral discipline while mathematics is indispensable for computation and for scientific analysis. That is why all human societies always end-up using both.

However, a different issue is whether there is a transcendent god or mathematics, independent of human thought. If that is the case then they may be classified as discoverable. Otherwise they are invented by the human brain.

The recent extraordinary developments in the science of the mind might soon lead to uncover the way learning and memory are processed in the brain. Once we reach that stage we may finally answer the discovery/invention question.

However, that will not be the end of speculation on some fundamental philosophical issues.

For instance, a comparative study of the origin of all religions may conclude that God was everywhere created on the image of his originators. Thus we could go on improving on the existing gods or to create new ones more adapted to our current needs. However, the idea that man created god and not the other way around undermines the basic power of religion which is based on the belief of life after death.

The problem of loss of credibility does not exist in the case of mathematics, but other equally interesting issues remain. For instance, assuming that mathematics is discovered and not invented means that there is a finite body of mathematical knowledge? On the contrary, if it is invented will other forms of intelligent life develop different types of mathematics which are specific to their brain?

Speculative propositions are an important tool of science. But the role of science is to validate or refute such hypothesis.