Facing the Unborn

(excerpt) An ultrasound video of an unborn child sucking its thumb makes a case against abortion that reason hardly need supplement. But a zygote photographed just after an in vitro conception is not so easily recognizable as a human being or person. Pro-lifers often assume that this difficulty has been overcome by modern science. Since the 1820s, when evidence of ovular fertilization first became known, it has been clear that the life of a human being runs from conception to death

Abortion as Betrayal

Abortion is worse than ordinary murder, principally because it involves the betrayal of a dependent by a natural guardian. Furthermore, abortion is emblematic of wider lethal betrayals of radically dependent persons. All these betrayals are rationalized precisely by the victims’ lack of autonomy-based dignity. Christianity counters by affirming the concern and respect due to those who helplessly suffer worldly disdain

Principles, Pragmatism, and Politics: The Evolution of Washington State’s Sentencing Guidelines

Although the U.S. Federal Sentencing Guidelines have received much attention (and criticism), we do well to remember that the United States is a federal system, and that each of the fifty states has its own sentencing rules and procedures. Today, roughly half of the states have sentencing commissions that issue guidelines -which are generally similar to the federal guidelines in form but different in structure and content. This article examines the history and operation of sentencing in Washington state, an early leader in the development of sentencing guidelines in the United States