Has anyone else noticed how swiftly the fires of rage and controversy surrounding Planned Parenthood died down? I have; at the beginning of the month it was the topic on the tip of everyone’s tongue, and over the last week I’ve heard almost nothing about it. Apparently our government was dangerously close to closing up shop not too long ago, and today everyone is going about their business as if nothing out of the ordinary has been happening. I think this points to a larger issue in our society, but I’ll get to that in a second.
OPPORTUNISTIC MORALITY
I’d also like to point out that when the PP videos were first released, the great majority in secular society didn’t bat an eye. Conservative’s were appalled at this, but I don’t think the reaction of Planned Parenthood supporters should surprise anyone. In fact, I have what I imagine is a fairly controversial view of this issue….
I don’t think it matters that Planned Parenthood was selling baby parts. It doesn’t make a difference, at least, not in comparison to what they were already doing; performing abortions. I happen to be of the opinion that abortion is murder, which is heinous enough as it is. The fact that an organization is profiting off of abortion is small potatoes compared to the crime itself. I recognize that this analogy may be a little extreme, but this would be like America not doing anything about the holocaust until we heard that Hitler was selling the ashes of those he burned alive, and then we got outraged.
But, that didn’t stop the nation (well, half of it) from going into an uproar. Let me be clear; I absolutely think that we ought to be outraged at the selling of baby parts, but my point is that we ought to have been outraged already. Maybe I’m wrong, and just too cynical about this… I hope that’s the case. But, I can’t help but feel that the reaction of conservative society, and consequently the republican party, is suspiciously opportunistic. I feel like this issue is being treated as a convenient hot-button talking point during election season, and as soon as voters the nation is bored with it, we’ll stop hearing about it.
I think this pattern is common in our society. We are fickle and shallow creatures, happily forgetting about everything that doesn’t immediately concern us until something exciting happens, and then suddenly its time to stand up for our morals. We’ll make our angry social media posts, and then go about our business. I think too many people are just looking for a good fight, instead of looking for ways to make a positive change.
THE REAL ISSUE
This entire issue boils down to one thing: the morality of abortion. Abortion is either horribly wrong, or completely acceptable. The cavalier attitudes with which Planned Parenthood executives and supporters discussed the sale of baby parts doesn’t surprise me in the slightest. To them, they’re not selling baby parts, they’re selling fetal tissue. Much like my point earlier; if abortion is fine, then so is selling fetal tissue.
Defunding Planned Parenthood is akin to putting a band-aid on someone’s arm when they’re suffering from internal bleeding; we’re not addressing the real issue. As unfortunate as it is, PP is far from the only organization that provides abortions, and even if the move to defund them is successful, another organization will soon take their place. Abortion is legal right now, and until that changes, there is little we can do to stop organizations like Planned Parenthood. I think its time to stop bailing water out of the ship and just patch the hole; Roe v. Wade needs to be overturned. We need to push our congressional representatives to push legislation that will force the issue. If we are truly interested in protecting the unborn, this should be our priority. Its time to stop worrying about talking-points, and start dealing with the problem.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
I’m sure I’ll hear all sorts of arguments from all sorts of people over this post, and I’m happy to address any of them. In fact, I will probably write more in-depth about abortion in a later post, but I wanted to stick with the topic at hand.
Thanks for reading, feel free to leave comments!
Unto The Brink 
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I’m curious what your opinion is on the selling of any part of a dead human body, and whether you believe there is any significant difference between that sort of a situation and the selling of baby parts before consciousness is possible. I understand that the point of your post is more about the immorality of killing a baby, but I wonder nonetheless.
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Good question. I’d have a hard time making a biblical case against the selling of any dead body part, so I can’t give a hard answer one way or the other. And I do believe that once we die, we are absent from the body and present with the Lord. However, at the risk of sounding a little vague, selling dead body parts seems a little unsavory. I feel like such treatment of the dead would be representative of a lack of respect for our bodies, even though we no longer occupy them after death.
But, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with organ donation, for example. One reason is that the person who has died is knowingly and willingly giving their body to help others. And to stick with the same train of thought, I don’t think organs are sold with a donation.
Now, as to your second question, I don’t really think so. Whether or not is was moral to perform the abortion in the first place is beside the point. If the child is dead, its a dead body just like any other dead body, and the same principles of respect apply. Again, a trained theologan may be able to make a better argument than I have, but I generally feel uncomfortable with the sale of dead body parts.
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I agree that the issue at hand is whether or not performing abortions is morally acceptable; arguing about lesser subjects distracts from this very basic divergence in opinion between conservatives and liberals.
In the vein of full disclosure, I have not been convinced that abortion is akin to murder. Nontheless, I’m sure you realize that a supreme court decision can only be overridden by amending the constitution, which is a very tall order.
As a side note: planned parenthood never profited from selling fetal tissue, they merely asked to be reimbursed for the cost of supplying the cells. Regardless, this practice has ended.
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Thanks for the note about planned parenthood not profiting from fetal tissue sales. I did not intend to communicate misinformation. As you already clearly understand, though, the focus of my post lies elsewhere, so for this argument it really doesn’t matter if they were or not.
And I believe that the Supreme Court can overturn their own decision. Another case surrounding the same laws would have to reach the Supreme Court, and then the previous decision could potentially be overturned if, for example, the first decision is decided to have been unconstitutional.
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