LIFE DIGEST: Trig Palin’s life prompts defense of abortion for Down children
- Sep 23, 2008 - 2
The decision of Todd and Sarah Palin to give birth to Trig, their Down syndrome son, has prompted one promoter of objectivism to offer a shocking defense of the right of mothers to abort unborn children with the condition.
Nicholas Provenzo, chairman of the Center for the Advancement of Capitalism, wrote Sept. 16 on the center’s weblog, “Given that [Sarah] Palin’s decision is being celebrated in some quarters, it is crucial to reaffirm the morality of aborting a fetus diagnosed with Down syndrome (or by extension, any unborn fetus)—a freedom that anti-abortion advocates seek to deny.”
Trig, five months old, has gained much attention since his mother, Alaska’s governor, was selected by Republican presidential nominee John McCain to be his vice presidential running mate. Palin learned of her son’s condition through testing months before he was born.
“A parent has a moral obligation to provide for his or her children until these children are equipped to provide for themselves,” Provenzo wrote. “Because a person afflicted with Down syndrome is only capable of being marginally productive (if at all) and requires constant care and supervision, unless a parent enjoys the wealth to provide for the lifetime of assistance that their child will require, they are essentially stranding the cost of their child’s life upon others.”
Provenzo’s organization espouses objectivism, a philosophy advanced by late author Ayn Rand. Among objectivism’s beliefs are that reason is mankind’s sole source of knowledge and self-interest is humanity’s highest pursuit in life.
Biblical Christianity teaches that every human being, regardless of his condition, is made in the image of God. Therefore, Christians espouse a sanctity-of-life ethic rather than a quality-of-life ethic.
When Trig was born in April, Palin said he is “absolutely perfect” to her husband and her. “It just feels like he fits perfectly,” she said. “He is supposed to be here with us.”
Palin emailed a letter to family members and close friends on the same day she gave birth, writing it as if it came from God and signing it: “Trig’s Creator, Your Heavenly Father.”
“Many people will express sympathy, but you don’t want or need that, because Trig will be a joy,” the letter said, according to the Anchorage (Alaska) Daily News. “You have to trust me on this.
“Children are the most precious and promising ingredient in this mixed-up world you live in down there on Earth. Trig is no different, except he has one extra chromosome.”
Down syndrome normally results when a person has three copies, rather than two, of chromosome 21.
Assisted suicide advocate takes own life
An Australian assisted suicide promoter has taken her life rather than go to prison for helping in the euthanasia death of an Alzheimer’s patient.
Caren Jenning, 75, committed suicide Sept. 18. She was to be sentenced in October for being an accessory in the manslaughter of Graeme Wylie, a friend who died in 2006, according to The Daily Telegraph. Wylie’s partner, Shirley Justins, will be sentenced for manslaughter after using the barbiturate Nembutal, an illegal substance for human beings in Australia, in the killing, the newspaper reported.
Jenning, who had terminal cancer, gave herself a lethal dose of the same barbiturate, according to the report. She went to Mexico to purchase the drug for Wylie and herself.
She was a member of Exit International, a euthanasia advocacy organization.
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission works to protect the sanctity of human life. If you would like to learn more about this issue, additional resources are available here. If your church is interested in purchasing bulletin inserts or other materials on the sanctity of human life, please visit our online bookstore and “erlc.com“http://erlc.com/products/sanctity.
Further Learning
Learn more about: Family, Children, Life, Abortion, Disabled, End-of-Life Issues, Suicide
2 comments (post your own) feed
1 On Sep 23rd, 2008, at 7:44pm, Don Davis wrote:
I admire Ms. Palin for making the choice that the many mothers that I work have; that is to carry a Downs Syndrome baby full-term and to deliver him. Yet, she chooses to sacrifice the child for a career in politics rather than provide the child the full time nurturing and care that makes the positive difference in the lives of the many Downs kids I have met. What am I being goaded into to praising here in the case of Ms. Palin if the only issue is that she delivers a child for others to care for?
2 On Nov 10th, 2008, at 11:15am, Pogue Mahone wrote:
A person who chooses life over abortion(=death) IS morally superior, no doubt about it. She deserves praise for doing the right thing. God created all life and we do not have the right to destroy it.She is also a good example of someone who lives what they believe.