Kevin's Korner

“If you analyze it I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism” — President Ronald Reagan

Many Libertarians reject the whole “Right-Left” description of their own beliefs. I can understand why, since it does appear that on economics they are more to the right, and on social issues they appear to be more on the left. Of course, the whole Libertarian movement is a lot more complex, with many subcategories and some might even label different “types” of Libertarians.

Anyway, the basis for Libertarianism is the belief in the Liberty of the individual over that of the state. There are different “degrees” for this, so hence the different “types” of Libertarians. But almost always at the center, is the individual. The rights of whom are supreme.

Some have interpreted this to mean that, women have the “right to choose” on abortion. The reasoning goes, that the state would not have the power over the woman to make the individual decision. I believe, however, this position is fundamentally flawed.

The main reason I believe this to be flawed, is that this position does not take into consideration the fact, that there is another human being involved in all this. The unborn child, whose life hangs in the balance. I think if we do consider this, then we must come down on the side of protecting the individual liberty of the unborn.

Now, some may argue that the unborn child, is in fact, not “yet” a human being entitled to any such right to life. Let me point you to another article I wrote addressing this. The argument is based all on science.

“When Life Begins”
http://tiny.cc/sec5d

Say we concede, that the unborn child is a human being. The argument then, many times, turns to this being a sort of, “greater” rights argument. That yes, maybe the unborn have rights, but the mother’s rights always trumps the babies.

Yes, the Mother’s life is changed. It is forever changed and drastically. But after a child is born, the mother’s life is forever altered as well. It is not moral or legal to starve your 3 week old child or deny medical attention to him/her if they are sick.

Why? Because the child has rights. Yes, some of these rights may at times overshadow the Mother’s “privacy” rights, but the right for the child to continue living, and doing so in a healthy manor, have long been considered fundamental in our society. Libertarianism, in fact, supports this view as well.

One of the most well known libertarians Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) is, in fact, pro-life.

If believers of Libertarianism take a look at the facts, and realize that the unborn child is, in fact, a human being and thus entitled to individual liberty and human rights, then we must conclude that the unborn child has the right to live.

Preborn Child about 14 weeks