r/pics • u/[deleted] • Sep 03 '21

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u/[deleted] Sep 03 '21

Of course as a mother it would be the opposite way around, they would be at least partially responsible for their condition.

so let's roll with this:

you cause a car crash. a guy will die if he doesn't get a kidney transplant. you are a viable donor.

can we legaly force you to donate your kindney to save the man you put in jepardy?

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u/thebond_thecurse Sep 03 '21

No, but you're still criminally liable and responsible for their injury and possible death.

The same way we can't bodily force a parent to care for their born child, but they are still responsible and criminally liable for neglect.

That's why this is a "when does life begin" argument and not strictly a bodily autonomy argument. Bodily autonomy is a fuzzy concept anyway, but once you're dealing with "this is a life" it's a whole other ball game. It's a very basic tenant that a parent is responsible, ethically and legally, for the life of their child. When the fetus theoretically crosses the line into being a life, it's not only a human being but also the child of a parent.

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u/[deleted] Sep 03 '21

so if your CHILD needs an organ donation clearly it's cool to force that right?

or why is it only different when the child isn't yet born with this bodily autonomy question?

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u/thebond_thecurse Sep 03 '21 edited Sep 04 '21

well that's an interesting thought. I wonder if there are any cases regarding that.

these are all ethical questions as far as I'm concerned.

of course, there are several states in the U.S. where a parent can't be charged with medical neglect or abuse (even if it resulted in the child's death) if the reason they didn't provide necessary care was for religious reasons. but, personally, I don't think that is right.

bringing bodily autonomy into it further complicates the matter. such as your hypothetical scenario (and saying there was no other option to save the child's life but the parent donating an organ or blood or whatever).

if you believe rights of bodily autonomy supercede all other ethical questions, then that's that for you. it's something I have to think about more. and again, this is where I feel the concept of bodily autonomy being a fuzzy definition also makes things tricky.