tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1268539650499556740.post70359367783282715..comments2023-06-29T02:51:51.236-05:00Comments on 1517: Trig Paxson PalinTodd Pruitthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08614293087144493430noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1268539650499556740.post-17801787239529179672008-09-01T20:14:00.000-05:002008-09-01T20:14:00.000-05:00Heroiclife - Where do you get your "genuine moral ...Heroiclife - <BR/><BR/>Where do you get your "genuine moral virtues" from ? For example, why is honesty a genuine moral virtue ? Can you explain ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1268539650499556740.post-32874818122986826292008-08-31T19:24:00.000-05:002008-08-31T19:24:00.000-05:00I am going to leave the comment by "heroiclife" ev...I am going to leave the comment by "heroiclife" even though I find it morally repugnant. His comment is good proof of one man's arrogance and moral ineptitude. <BR/><BR/>His attitude toward parents who choose not to kill their unborn babies is outrageous. I have known many people throughout my life with Downs Syndrome. They loved and were loved deeply. To assume that they are condemned to a life of suffering because they lack the stunning intelligence of "heroiclife" is dangerous arrogance. I think he would be good company for Peter Singer.<BR/><BR/>The only "freak-show" I see here is the stunted, self-centered, and down right frightening "morality" of heroiclife. Let us hope he and his ilk are forever a minority voice in our culture.Todd Pruitthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08614293087144493430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1268539650499556740.post-73163205863123454362008-08-31T17:50:00.000-05:002008-08-31T17:50:00.000-05:00Whereas previously, a Down’s child could be born w...Whereas previously, a Down’s child could be born without the prior knowledge of the mother, going forward, a parent with a Down’s child will likely have made a conscious choice to have that child. As prenatal testing for trisomy 21 becomes ubiquitous, Down’s children (and eventually those with other genetic disorders) will increasingly become symbols of faith – a freak show meant to communicate the “family values” of their parents. The children will become public sacrifices made by their parents for their faith. They will be a symbol of religious reverence in the same way as the scarred backs of Catholics who flagellate themselves, or Buddhist monks who set themselves on fire, or Sunni Muslims who mutilate their girl’s genitals or Shiites who bloody their children’s heads with swords. <BR/><BR/>Genuine moral virtues – such as integrity, honesty, and productivity are not useful as evidence of religious virtue. To the extent that their practical benefit is visible to everyone, they do not represent the special domain of religion. To demonstrate religious virtue, it is necessary to sacrifice authentic moral values in favor of “religious” values. The particular object of the sacrifice is not important – there is nothing particularly “biblical” about being prolife (the Christian bible just as easily supports the opposite position.) If Christian fundamentalists decided that cutting of one’s hand sufficed as proof of moral virtue, they would be wrong to do so, but not much more so than the numerous other ways that people find to be self-destructive. <BR/><BR/>What is really vicious about fundamentalists in America is that the prey on the most vulnerable –poor pregnant young girls and women, those dying from painful terminal illnesses, the loved ones of brain-dead patients, — and children afflicted with terrible genetic illnesses. One can at least grasp the moral indifference with which a fundamentalist can force a single young mother to abandon her goals and dreams and condemn her and her child to poverty. But what can we say about a parent that chooses a life of suffering upon their child? If we are morally outraged by child rapists, how should we judge a parent who chooses a lifetime of suffering on their own child?David Vekslerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09056363942505323454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1268539650499556740.post-58507737011949793692008-08-30T21:57:00.000-05:002008-08-30T21:57:00.000-05:00The Palin pick is awesome!!!The Palin pick is awesome!!!AmPowerBloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18236333181889271910noreply@blogger.com