this post was submitted on 08 Jul 2023
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Public Freakout
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No, what will actually happen is they will wonder how people could ever mistake a clump of cells as a baby and force women to carry a child they don't want.
I like when people use the "clump of cells" argument like that doesn't perfectly describe all life as we know it. You sir are just a clump of cells, can I take your life because you are an unwanted clump of cells?
"I" am not a clump of cells. I am the ghost in the machine. A pattern, existing in a biological computer, piloting a meat mech. Once that pattern ceases to exist, "I" cease to exist, even if the meat mech is still fully functional. At that point, what remains is just a clump of cells. Or, more usefully, a collection of spare parts, for other meat mechs.
For many, the key difference between a fetus/baby and a "clump of cells" is the ability to support similar patterns (a soul, if you will). Almost all abortions happen long before the clump of cells develops to the point it can support such a pattern. (Neurons alone aren't enough, it needs a critical mass and proper wiring)
There is a potential for argument on late term abortions. I agree that should be restricted. Even that, however need to be dealt with with solomness, logic and care, not emotional knee jerking.
Early foetal development stages are literal clumps of pluripotent cells. A lot like most medical test matter when it comes to testing mechanisms in human/eukaryotic organisms. What both lack, is Organisation and viability. If we were to follow your argument, we wouldn’t be allowed to use nearly all medication developed in the last 50 years or so. Also: whom would you try for the repeat murder of Henrietta Lacks?
That clump of cells would need “conciousness” or the ability to think for itself to be considered sentient, something you apparently lack as well.
There's the ad hominem. Out of curiosity how do you determine if someone or something has a consciousness, how do you feel about people on life support that are clinically brain dead? How about people in a coma?
Not a great argument. If they're brain dead then correct, they're no longer sentient. Therefore I wouldn't disagree with pulling the plug at all.
If I was braindead with no hope of recovery then I would seriously hope my family pulled the plug. It wouldn't be me anymore and I would hate to be a drain on resources for nothing.
That's a great point about people in comas. It should be considered murder to pull the plug on a comatose loved one. They're still a living person, and it's disgusting we get to just murder them when they still have so much potential. Sure, it's expensive to keep someone monitored at a hospital, and there's no guarantee they'll come out of it, but they're still a living person.
I call it an "argument" because it is a very standard and typical "argument" made when debating abortion. Yes we are all clumps of cells and if you google "debunking clump of cells argument" you will find much more intuitive and thoughtfull responses.
And you either do not have enough knowledge to be having this debate or you are a troll. Either way you are not able to actually contribute to a discussion on this topic so if you are attempting to convince anyone of your point it isn't going to work.