Previously I mentioned Garry Wills, and here is another non-viable tissue from his works, appearing in the LA Times, of all places. So, I must keep to a tiny extract. I encourage reading the whole thing at the link, though, if anyone seeks to understand Garry Wills more than I would. The title says enough.
Whether through serendipity or through some sort of causal connection, it now seems that the onset of a functioning central nervous system with a functioning cerebral cortex and the onset of viability occur around the same time -- the end of the second trimester, a time by which 99% of all abortions have already occurred.
Opponents of abortion like to show sonograms of the fetus reacting to stimuli. But all living cells have electric and automatic reactions. These are like the reactions of Terri Schiavo when she was in a permanent vegetative state. Aquinas, following Aristotle, called the early stage of fetal development vegetative life. The fetus has a face long before it has a brain. It has animation before it has a command center to be aware of its movements or to experience any reaction as pain.
Abortion isn't a religious issue
8mm
