Project ETD

Section Two - Reality

They say that millennials are the least trusting of any other living generations (Honestly, is that really surprising?). So, why do I think you're going to trust me at all? I mean, just because I say that science concludes that human life begins at conception doesn't mean you should automatically take my word for it.

So don't. Look it up yourself. We have the internet after all.

That's what I did. And if you're interested, I'm going to share my findings in this section. WHY should you be interested? As I said before, if you're going to argue one side or the other, you need to know what you're talking about. If you don't, the conversation devolves into one side screaming their opinion at the other. And we all know how well that goes.

Time for all of those boring facts and definitions, so get ready.

Now, when you Google "when does human life begin", (OH NO is he using google to do his research? I already can hear those complaints so don't bother), you get a myriad of results all stating that biologically there is no question. I've read them, but you can read them for yourself if you want to. Ill put a link to some of them at the bottom. But here's the gist -

There are a few things that determine whether something is "alive" or not:

It is made of cells

It uses energy (Metabolism)

It grows/develops

It responds to stimuli

It has genetic material

It can maintain/regulate its state (Homeostasis)

It can reproduce

Without even doing any more research, when you look at the human zygote (the resulting product when sperm cell and egg meet) it's easy to see that a few of the qualifications are met. It's even easier to see when the zygote develops further into the fetus. Spoiler alert: when you do the research, all of the qualifications are met.

Okay, so it's alive. But bugs are alive too. Now we have to prove it's human, which is fairly easy when you know the facts. 

A human sperm cell and a human egg have 23 chromosomes each. When fertilization occurs, the two combine into the human zygote that has 46 chromosomes -- half from the mother and half from the father. You know what else has 46 chromosomes? You do! Chromosomes are the little thread-like structures that contain your DNA; the stuff that makes you... well, you! They aren't cow chromosomes. They aren't plant chromosomes. They are human. The DNA in the zygote will always direct its growth towards building and maintaining a fully functioning human organism.

 And let's clear something up here as well: this zygote isn't just a potential human being. It's lack of development has nothing to do with it. I often hear the argument put forward that says "Saying a fetus is a human is like saying an acorn is an oak tree". It sounds good, but the premise is false. The correct correlation in this scenario would be "acorn is to oak, as zygote is to adult."Follow the logic here:

First of all, an acorn is the nut of an oak tree. A nut is a fruit made up of a hard shell and a seed. The oak seed inside of the nut is an embryonic oak plant. An oak tree is a developed oak plant. Of course an oak seed isn't an oak tree, but it is always oak. Likewise, a fetus isn't an adult, but it is always human. Therefore, the premise of the argument is invalid.

But, as I was saying, at no point after fertilization occurs, is the product not human. As you sit in front of this screen, you have copies of the same chromosomes and DNA that you did when you were a zygote. The DNA that decides how to instruct your cells how to create you - your eye color, your skin tone, whether you're a boy or girl - has been present in you since conception. Pretty crazy, huh?

So it's settled then. A human life is ended in an abortion.

... A human life is ended in an abortion...

This fact isn't opinion; it isn't a hypothetical.

It's sad, but it's reality, and abortion is a relatively accepted (or at least defended) practice. So I can't help but ask again.

When is it okay to take a human life?

How is the action of abortion defended in light of this information?

That is question that I think i will cover in the next section...

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Again, anyone's comments are more than welcome! I'm not a mad person, ranting and raving over here XD. But I think these are legitimate questions. What do you think?

Research Material:

https://www.princeton.edu/~prolife/articles/wdhbb.html

https://lozierinstitute.org/a-scientific-view-of-when-life-begins/

http://naapc.org/why-life-begins-at-conception/

https://www.reference.com/science/seven-signs-life-99412cd418f35c92#

https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cell_Biology/Introduction/What_is_living

https://www.quora.com/In-biology-what-are-the-seven-signs-of-life

https://carm.org/the-acorn-is-not-the-tree

There is more, but really... You can find it yourself :P.