S.T.S. 1.5 [Things that Make Ya Go Hmmm . . . ]

Qualifier:

I’d like to preface the following thought by saying that none of the comments below should be taken to mean that smoking should be legalized for those under 18 years of age. We all know that 2 wrongs have never made a right, right?? Right!! Rather, the point of the scenario below is to give a practical example of present-day double-talk and cheap thinking. It’s ironic to me (not really) how different sets of rules (that being NO rules) seem to apply to the many politically correct, hot-button issues of our time. To see what I mean, have a read below.

In a recent “Reflections” entry on the website of Stand to Reason, Christian Apologist/Philosopher Greg Koukl offered the following thought:

“If a woman – even a teenager – even a minor – even without her parents’ consent – has an inalienable right to have an abortion (at least according to modern-day secular humanists), then how does one argue that she cannot do something less violent to her body than such a medical procedure (can we even call it that??), and less violent to the body of another human being – the unborn child – like smoking, for instance?? For the sake of consistency, how does one argue that this is no longer an acceptable choice??? If the government is willing to say that something as extreme as abortion is a private, personal choice (so much so that even the real father of the girl seeking the abortion can’t interfere), then how do they justify their own ‘paternalism’ by taking a cigarette out of the hand of a teenager because she just isn’t old enough to decide for herself?”

As a Christian, I am quickly reminded of the following passage of Scripture which we find in Isaiah 5:20-21 [NIV]: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.” I can’t speak for you, but the inconsistency and arbitrariness which constitutes the bulk of modern-day “thinking” and “reasoning” ought to be coming into sharp focus, especially during the hour of moral chaos in which we find ourselves living. Well . . . what a message, huh??

Hey kids . . . have an abortion – but not a smoke!?!? Go figure!!