Killing Machines I

Trey Smith

It is not uncommon for opponents of abortion to accuse those who are pro-choice of wanting to "play God." This same argument often is brought out by opponents of contraception and the right-to-die movement. In their view, only God -- and the Christian version of god at that -- gets to decide who lives and who dies. Anyone who wants to make that sort of decision on their own is a heathen destined to burn in hell for eternity.

Well, I've got some news for Christian (Muslim too) fundamentalists: We humans are killing machines. We "play God" each and every day, so it would appear that these sorts of decisions aren't solely in the purview of the "Heavenly Father."

Almost from they second we are born, our antibodies kill germs and other invaders of the human body. These antibodies don't merely show the uninvited guests to the door. Whenever possible, they pulverize them!

Of course, that's an involuntary act carried through without free choice of the human mind. Some people will argue that such acts don't count.

Okay, what about when we get sick and we voluntarily choose to take an antibiotic? The whole purpose of the antibiotic is to kill germs and bacteria. When we're sick, we sometimes take an antibiotic and sometimes we don't. So, it seems to me that, in such instances, we are "playing God." We decide which bacteria we will kill and which we won't.

Ever smashed a mosquito that's trying to take a bite out of your arm or leg? Ever used a flyswatter to kill a fly? Ever stepped on a spider that is scurrying across the bedroom floor? Ever used a pesticide to try to kill the weeds that spring up near your begonias? Ever gone hunting for deer? In all of things cases, human beings are "playing God," making arbitrary decisions as to who lives and who dies.

I know. I know. In the eyes of Christian fundamentalists, none of these examples count either. Don't you remember? God granted us dominion over all other creatures and plant life, so we can do what we like with them. It only counts when humans are the target.

Tomorrow I will take a look at several situations in which other members of the human race are involved.