Oh, yeah, and they use the rationalization that, well, it's the mother's choice and her own business what she does with her unborn child, but once the kids are born then it's everybody's business. This is the pro-abortion, anti-death penalty bunch. They completely reject the moral and philosophical moral equivalency of pro-choice and anti-death penalty. They don't see a contradiction at all. Because, they don't see abortion as ending a life, they see it as a mother's right to choose, and he death penalty becomes a completely different issue.
The anti-abortion crowd who wants to put as many people on death row as possible is certainly steeped in the same hypocrisy. They don't see it as a contradiction, either, and they also completely reject the moral and philosophical moral equivalency of pro-death penalty and anti-abortion. But what links anti-abortion and pro-death penalty is a sort of fundamentalism, a literal interpretation of the Bible, and an inflexible way of viewing society in general. There's a punitive attitude toward both of these issues - more or less like, if you don't want a child, don't engage in risky sexual behavior; if you kill someone, you deserve death.
You'd think people would be more consistent with their death wishes, like people would be anti-abortion and anti-death penalty, or they would be pro-choice and pro-death penalty. But no. Only about 8 percent of Americans are consistent when surveyed on studies. I find that astonishing. Especially when you consider the Catholic Church after centuries of bread and butter capital punishment now has the official stance of the Consistent Life Ethic, where the "seamless garment" philosophy (referencing the seamless robe of Jesus) holds that issues such as abortion, capital punishment, militarism (unjust war), euthanasia, social injustice, and economic injustice all demand a consistent application of moral principles that value the sacredness of human life.
When you have people who are against the death penalty and for abortion, it's pure politics. And when you get people who are against abortion and for the death penalty, that's not even so much a religious effect as it is a politics effect. Turns out, politics trumps any religion. And isn't that just hilarious.
I'm for people minding their own business and not telling others what to do. If you are against abortion, great, don't have one. If you are for abortion, well OK then, but don't expect me to help pay for it. If you are pro capital punishment, fine, but you have to make absolutely certain that an innocent person never ever be put to death by mistake, because if that happens, you're murdering the innocent, just like killing innocent babies.
One interesting question to ask yourself is, if you are opposed to abortion but favor capital punishment, or you are the other way around and favor abortion but are opposed to the death penalty, if you could get your wish for one of them, but had to give up the other, which one would you keep?
