11 thoughts on “Abortion and the Middle Way”

  2. What an excellent post, Maha. I have bookmarked it and will go back to reflect further on it.

    Sadly, we know that the fascist Christian right will remain unswayed by this thoughtful, measured approach.

    And while we’re at it, have you thought about writing a piece on the striking similarities between the Republican party and the rise of National Socialism?

  4. DW — you don’t know the half of it. Of course, you didn’t read the article so you have no idea what I wrote, or that you are dissing a 25-century-old religion. BTW, you’re banned for being an asshole. Bye.

  6. Instead of imposing rigid, one-size-fits-all rules to every situation, Buddhists are encouraged to resolve moral problems by considering the complex causes, conditions and relationships surrounding a particular situation.

    Nothing scares me more than people who crave inflexible rules. They’re always so crumbly around the edges.

    I’ve actually heard anti-abortion activists say, in public, that the deaths of thousands of women from illegal abortions are acceptable to them. I guess because the women are “sluts” or”sinners” or something; I’ve never heard a sane reason, to be honest. Without one, I have to chalk it up to the true agenda of the anti-abortionists: keeping women in their place.

    I’ve never understood, either, how “pro-life” is usually “pro-war.” The same idolaters of the American embryo don’t shed a tear for the Iraqi children run down in the road by Humvees, or the Afghani infants killed by our bombs. If these folks traded in their inflexible rules for some intellectual honesty and moral consistency, the world might be a better place.

  7. I’ve actually heard anti-abortion activists say, in public, that the deaths of thousands of women from illegal abortions are acceptable to them. I guess because the women are “sluts” or”sinners” or something; I’ve never heard a sane reason, to be honest.

    It’s what Aitken Roshi said, and I love this quote, “The absolute position, when isolated, omits human details completely. Doctrines, including Buddhism, are meant to be used. Beware of them taking life of their own, for then they use us.”

    I think most of the “moralizers” cling to the concept “abortion is absolutely bad,” and to resolve cognitive dissonance they have to omit human details completely. They have to deny the humanity of women who seek abortions and the realities of their lives.

  8. I’ve been thinking a lot about how people refuse to think for themselves, how they refuse to own their mental process.

    Aitken Roshi’s statment (#7) about doctrines taking on a life of their own, fits this. Fundies and righties are terrified to think for themselves. They want daddy or someone’s interpretation of a holy book to do it for them.

    It isn’t even so much the particular doctrine that’s the issue, since nearly any of them, even the best intentioned, will be destructive at some point. It’s the ceding away of our natural human ability to draw our own conclusions and take responsibility for them. I have to believe this was drummed out of some people at an early age, since it’s an innate human ability that everyone has.

  9. I think most of the “moralizers” cling to the concept “abortion is absolutely bad,” and to resolve cognitive dissonance they have to omit human details completely.

    Well, that was the case for me. In my younger days I took a pro life position based solely on my own selfishness. In my heart of hearts I thought I was morally correct, and found immense self satisfaction in my goodness, and believed I was pleasing to God in my judgment. I also felt a pride in my morality, and in the way I perceived people would judge me. I was the defender of the defenseless!( goodness personified?). I know now that my overarching motivation was grounded in self and inconsideration. Never once did I stop to consider that my judgments and my morality where mine alone, and were without right to be projected on another human being.

    I wasn’t until I matured and seriously questioned other issues in my life in trying to understand my own sovereignty as a human being did I come to know where the only choice for abortion lies — with the women who is faced with the pregnancy…and nobody else. It’s between her and her conscience.

  10. Nearly any [doctrine], even the best intentioned, will be destructive at some point.

    Yep. If I were a better person, I’d be constantly vigilant as to my own words and actions– not checking, “Am I right?” so I can think of myself as always being right; but rather asking myself, “Do I make sense?” Our perceptions, awareness and judgments (as Webster’s defines “sense”) need regular exercise, too. Note to self!

  11. I can’t wrap my head around the arrogance of many of these fundies. This really struck me when I was watching the new Rachel Maddow show last night. She was showing tape of Palin speaking to her church congregation, asking them to pray for the construction of a pipeline and other mundane things.

    Now, you would think that if an all-knowing God had wanted the pipeline, it would already be there. (I think Rachel made the same point.) Since it is not there, what makes them think that they can call upon God and tell Him what they want done? Is He their lap dog? Do they think He sits around at the fast food window waiting to take their order? And that He’s going to ignore the prayers of some other Christian group who might be praying that the pipeline NOT be built because their relationship with Him is so much better than the others?

    With arrogance like that, of course they have no problem telling mere mortal women that they’d rather see them dead than see them have an abortion. Adult human life is small potatoes when you can order God around.

    They fear radical Islam and rail against the abuse of women (not allowed to vote, not allowed to drive, not allowed to show their faces in public, etc.) under Islamic rule, and they can’t see that they are Just As Bad. Whups. Sorry. I’m ranting and drifting off topic. I’ll stop there.

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