On Snooki’s Pregnancy:
Oh the “intelligence” that keeps being tactlessly flung at me lately!
I had shared an article from Live Action’s web site on FB about how pro-lifers need to be able to rationally defend their views, instead of using the same type of closed-down rhetoric that many pro-aborts do. Here’s a relatively small excerpt from the article which gives the best example:
”One of the most common pro-choice
argumentsdismissive statements is “don‘t like abortion, don‘t have one,” but that statement completely misses the point of our pro-life case. We don’t merely believe elective abortion is wrong for us individually. We believe elective abortion is wrong for everyone.
It’s not like choosing a favorite ice cream flavor. I like chocolate peanut butter, you like vanilla. (For some mysterious reason.) “Don’t like chocolate peanut butter, don’t eat chocolate peanut butter.” No, we believe that elective abortion is wrong for virtually everybody because it kills a living, distinct, whole human being. The statement “don’t like abortion, don’t have one” tries to transform our objective claim to a merely subjective one that is easy to dismiss.
Imagine if someone told William Wilberforce, “Don’t like slavery, don’t own a slave.” They would have been missing the abolitionists’ point. They didn’t just not like slavery; they thought slavery was objectively wrong because it dehumanized a whole community of human beings.”
Okay. So that’s what the link above is about. Having posted this, then an old high school friend (whom I have not seen nor spoken with in years) commented underneath the article saying,
“Snookis pregnant… take that prolifers lol”
First of all, this old friend of mine clearly didn’t read the article. If this person had read it, he would have realized that this comment made him look completely unintelligent.
Secondly, I’ve seen this posted from a number of my social network pals over the past 2 days, so I figured I’d want to address it soon anyway…
Here is what I wrote …as I was feeding applesauce to my 1 year old… (Also, I’m changing his name because I do not wish to personally ridicule him on my blog where all the info I give is public for anyone to read. He has always been a sweet guy and this was kind of surprising to hear come from him. I do wish to call-out this type of ideology, however, that with which pro-aborts seem to be plagued) :
I’m sorry? Why do people keep saying, “take that prolifers?” like it’s some attack, some strategy move?
All this shows to me is the people who say this remain completely ignorant to the inherent value of the dignity of each and every human life. If you don’t understand those words, I’ll simplify for you: everyone’s life is worth just as much as yours. Your life’s not worth any more than Snooki’s nor the life within her womb. You all have the same inherent value.
So this tells me that pro-Aborts who think this way are prejudice, and intolerant of people different than themselves, they think they’re higher, better.
I don’t watch Jersey Shore. But I know enough that Snooki’s behavior is not pleasant. Can we not have compassion for this person, however? She is a person, after all. Why would we show her hate? This is exactly what pro-aborts claim that prolifers do to the woman: that they only care for the baby.
Well this prolifer cares for both. This prolifer knows that if Snooki is incapable of bringing her child into a safe environment, there are literally THOUSANDS of parents lined up at adoption centers who will. I also know where Snooki could go if she wanted to change her life for her child. I know who she could talk to.
Pro-aborts seem to have no faith in the human race: maybe this girl would change her ways? It is possible, is it not?
Even if she didn’t change her behavior, would her child starve? she’s a reality TV star, I think not. I believe we all could think about worse circumstances that a chilld may be born into.Have some faith, Bob. Don’t be so derisive. And especially, I ask that if you want to open a conversation with me, you don’t do it in such a mocking, sarcastically hateful way- when was the last time we spoke, Bob- seriously? Years!!
A personal message, maybe an open yet public inquiry of my opinion in the matter, would’ve shown that you’re not so biased and prejudice. But since you’ve shown that about yourself, my arguments- even backed with logic and science probably would not penetrate your brain.”
Why, does it seem, that so many people are not willing to have an open conversation? Why don’t people want to learn, to teach themselves, to better their understanding of life? Why are we all so closed off? We only have this one life here on earth- why do we waste it in closed-minded prejudice, instead determinedly seeking out and attacking people who are the ones that seem to be doing the work necessary to grow as a competent human being? I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but I work hard to read articles— even those I don’t believe are correct — to remain in some tiny way knowledgable about such a sensitive, dividing subject in this world.
Life pertains to every human being, after all. So the argument is paltry to say, “it doesn’t affect me”.
To say “Abortion is BAD” is not enough! To say, “Don’t like abortion? Don’t have one.” is not enough! It’s not intelligent, it’s not informed.
We have got to open ourselves for uncomfortable conversation; civil conversation, not insulting one another or poking fun with mocking jokes. I believe it is a good exercise of mind to think about subjects that might make us question our own actions or words.
Bob has since written to me saying that he “only meant to joke, my bad”
I wrote back saying that if he and I had maintained a close friendship over the years, the understanding of his comment would’ve been different. But that’s not the case and we both knew it. I wrote to Bob that for him to have not spoken to me for years, to suddenly seek me out and post a “joke” under a pro-life article I was sharing, was indeed no joke, but a provocation. I then posed a question to him asking how he would feel if I had suddenly done the same to him, (after years of not speaking) mocking his service for our country (he’s a military man), or something else he is passionate about.
It’s not civil nor in the spirit of community to talk like this to each other! We are all human beings, are we not? We each have a responsibility to bring goodness to our world, to bring people up. We each deserve to have our voices, our beliefs and our research listened to in a way that is fruitful to the cultivation of our minds and way of life. It is a telling mark of intolerance and discrimination to refuse to introduce conversation in a rational manner, asking questions, and patiently awaiting responses from someone whose view is different from ours.
To refute a point that I take time to educate someone about with a dismissive, “it’s a joke, my bad” or any sort of prejudgement— (Once, someone responded to my efforts to explain my views with “Okay, so you’re ____-phobic then. Carry on.”) —shows that those individuals are more intolerant than they accuse me of being.