Zygote measure to be on the ballot

A grassroots group seeking to define personhood in the Colorado Constitution as "any human being from the moment of fertilization" signed up 131,245 voters in support of the amendment.

It is almost twice the 76,000 signatures needed to put the proposal on the ballot this fall.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_9246298

Libertarians can be divided on the abortion issue. However, I think even a pro-life libertarian should have serious concerns about this measure.

Comments

[Philip]

Why should pro-life libertarians be concerned? This is not a question of freedom or choice. It is merely put forth that fertilization is the point at which humanity or person-hood is established. This is because fertilization is the point at which a unique human genetic code is formed, and that a unique human genetic code is what gives us our humanity and therefor person-hood. This argument is well supported by reference to medical texts, and what ever the consequences to the issue of abortion (albeit favorable to pro-lifers) it is cannot be refuted as a scientific fact and sound logical argument.

That being said, if you as a libertarian would like to limit the right to life of those who deserve person-hood, by the same merit that "all men" deserve the inalienable right to life being CREATED equal then by all means vote no on the person-hood amendment. However, realize that it is not because you disagree with the conclusion that person-hood starts at fertilization, it is because you are attempting to protect the institution of abortion.

You may also be deceived by the slippery-slope arguments from Planned Parenthood that birth control may eventually be banned because of this initiative. However, this initiative protects the fertilized egg, and "birth control" would better be termed as "conception control" in that it blocks fertilization. Propionates of this amendment would be more likely to defend the use of "conception control" to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Pregnancies that would be aborted post fertilization would have petition for the right to terminate by citing conditions of the child's development that make it "incompatible with life" or that will substantially endanger the mortality of the woman. In other word this amendment might endanger a woman's current right to use abortion as "birth control".

Also, it is argued that a woman's health may be at risk if this initiative leads to the abolishment of abortion. This is argued not because getting an abortion is a healthy procedure but because women would endanger themselves with so-called "back-alley" or "coat hanger" abortions. This is like saying we should legalize heroin because it would be safer for drug addicts to get clean needles from licensed drug dealers. Just because it makes the procedure safer does not mean that it is an ethical act.

[severin]

It is a question of freedom and of choice, it is also a question of who has more rights the unborn or the living. The subject is really too complicated to argue to a consenus on a blog.

However, besides the deep philosophical questions, there are many practical questions that need to be considered before making an emotional decision. For instance if a woman is pregnant and not taking care of herself and the baby self aborts, should the woman be charged with manslaughter or did the fetus just commit suicide? We might think it is okay to force a woman to carry a pregnancy to full term, but what about forcing a healthy lifestyle on the female just to help make sure of a healthy baby? If she does get an abortion, what should the punishment be for her, life in prison for murder? The death penalty! If a fetus is a person why shouldn’t the punishment be the same as it is for killing any other person? Should we charge a mother in the situation of imminent death if she doesn’t abort due to medical complications, with murder, or would it be considered self-defense?

This is a lot like drugs such as heroin, and the legalization of drugs is a stance that libertarians hold, because to us, the negatives of keeping drugs illegal outweigh the negative effects of the drugs themselves. Many libertarians may see this measure the same way, the negative consequences of categorizing a “person” as a fertilized fetus outweighs the benefits of having more unwanted children for taxpayers to support through welfare, schools, and the prison system as these children grow up.