According to Frankena, “the moral point of view is what Alison Wilde and Heather Badcock did not have.” Most of us, however, are not such extreme examples. We are capable of the moral point of view, but we fail to take the necessary time or make the required efforts. We resist pulling ourselves from other distractions to focus on the plight of others and what we might do to ameliorate their suffering. Perhaps compassion is rooted in understanding what it is that connects us with others rather than what separates us, and rests on developing sufficient awareness, to internalize what our actions, or lack of them, mean in the lives of others.
In an attempt to provide some clarification in the abortion issue it has recently been proposed that since 'brain death' is used to define the end oflife, 'brain life' would be a logical demarcationfor life's beginning. Thispaper argues in support of this position, not on empirical grounds, but because ofwhat it reflects ofwhat is valuable about the term 'life'. It is pointed out that 'life' is an ambiguous concept as it is used in English, obscuring the differences between being alive and having a life, a crucial distinction for bioethical questions. The implications ofthis distinction for the moral debate about abortion are discussed. The United States Supreme Court, by recently striking down most laws aimed at discouraging abortions, has reaffirmed its bitterly controversial ruling of a decade ago. Although the ruling has been hailed by 'prochoice' forces and lamented by 'right-to-life' advocates both supporters and opponents agree that the question whether a woman has a right to an abortion has now shifted to the political arena where it promises to be a major debate topic in the Senate and the 1984 election campaign. Until now President Reagan has limited his remarks on the issue to code words fit for slogans, occasional paragraphs in speeches or abbreviated press conference replies. This has changed and, expressing his 'profound disappointment' regarding the Supreme Court's decision, Reagan has launched an effort to rally the country against abortion by writing an article which was published not long ago (1). In it the President argues that abortion is not merely a personal decision since 'We are talking about two livesthe life of the mother and the life of the unborn child'. Reagan is also using the media to lobby vigorously by promising to 'fight as long and hard as I can' to curb abortion, warning that 'we must never become a society in which an individual has the right to do away with inconvenient life' (2). Mr Reagan's view illustrates how the abortion question is inextricably linked with the notion of 'life'
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