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Article 5676 of comp.ai.philosophy:
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>From: nlc@media.mit.edu (Nick Cassimatis)
Subject: Re: AI failures
Message-ID: <1992May15.091025.21133@news.media.mit.edu>
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References: <1992May12.002440.5501@psych.toronto.edu> <1992May12.160815.6496@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com> <RJBODKIN.92May15042019@lister.lcs.mit.edu>
Date: Fri, 15 May 1992 09:10:25 GMT
Lines: 23

In article <RJBODKIN.92May15042019@lister.lcs.mit.edu> rjbodkin@theory.lcs.mit.edu (Ronald Bodkin) writes:
>In article <1992May12.160815.6496@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com> petersow@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com (Wayne Peterson) writes:
>    ...  Pro and anti abortionist for example.  But both groups would appose
>    the killing of a 3 year old child, or a 3 second old baby.  They both are
>    against the taking of human life.  The controversy stems from when they think
>    human life begins.
>
>	Not really.  I remember reading an essay by a (professional)
>philosopher who advanced the position that the real question was when
>does the RIGHT to life begin, and argued that infanticide in the first
>week would be acceptable (not my position, but your blanket statement
>is wrong).  
...
>		Ron

Question: why does it matter "when life begins"?  What are the
criteria for the begining of life?  And isn't such a question simply
one about how to use a word?  Because there is nothing after all that
is intrinsic to the symbol "life".  The symbol would be as
insignificant as an ink blot if it were not for the interpretation we
give to it.  So why should the way we decide to use the phrase "the
begining of life" have any effect on the social issue of whether
abortion should be permitted?


