> A few matters to clear up off-list first......
None of this warrants offlist, I'm quite happy to leave it on.
Actually, I'm going to drop most of it, except for this:
> Characterizing America as unfit to sit on the UNHCHR,
> and as being "not-so-good democracy."
That's how you read me. I didn't say the first, I said that America has no
more right than anybody else. As I have repeatedly explained to you.
The second: how can you even begin to be offended by that??? It's true!
Britain is exactly the same: the party in goverment got around 44% of the
votes of the people that bothered to turn out, and yet has a majority is
Parliament of 167. How is that democracy?
Yes, of course I understand how representative democracy is supposed to
work, but with referenda or proportional representation, it doesn't
represent the views of the people at all.
> >> Well, you aparently seem to think that women (and only
> >> women) have the right to decide if a particular unborn
> >> child retains the right to life.
> >
> >You know my views on that, and you've just lied about them. That
> is *not* my
> >view, and you know it.
>
> Actually, I don't know it. I don't seem to recall you being any less
> pro-choice than the rest of the Brin List, but perhaps I missed something.
> Care to restate your position in a nutshell?
Yes, alright. I think abortion should be avoided, I think it's wrong, except
in case where there is an immediate and substantial threat to the life of
the mother. I have some very strong personal reasons for this viewpoint
which I'm not going to go into here.
However, I don't believe banning it is going to do any good, because those
people who are desperate will attempt to get an abortion any way they can,
and, as with drugs, alcohol or anything else, as soon as you force anything
underground, you lose any control. So better to have a tightly regulated
system than no system at all.
That is my position, I've explained it clearly before, and I've discussed
that very point here before.
Charlie
