The Iowa Legislature considers the Heartbeat Bill

When does human life begin? Scientists state the obvious that it begins at conception. Even pro abortion advocates agree, as you can see in the video below.

An adult, a teenager, a child, an infant, a fetus, an embryo, a blastocyst, and a zygote are all human beings at different stages of development. The culture divides over who is deserving of 14th Amendment protections. Some politicians suggest that the zygote, blastocyst, embryo, and fetus should have no human rights whatsoever, despite the acknowledgement of their humanity.

Some of these same politicians even honestly refer to the baby in the womb as an “infant.”  Nonetheless, they support “human” abortion. (The word human is an important descriptor for an act that ends a human life.)

Fetal pain bill passed last year

Last year, the Iowa Legislature passed a law which provided legal protections at the stage when a fetus can feel pain, which is at the 2oth week. The rationale is that it is inhumane to kill another person in a cruel and intentionally painful manner. Human abortion subjects them to excruciating pain. We don’t even subject murderers on death row to this kind of treatment. The fetal pain bill remedied this injustice.

The Heartbeat Bill

This year, the Iowa legislature proposes to extend human rights protections to the preborn at the stage when a heartbeat is first detected. This occurs around the 5th week after her conception.

The proposed legislation is simply called the Heartbeat Bill, or SSB 3143 as it is designated by the legislature.

Here’s an excerpt:

“The bill prohibits a physician from performing an abortion upon a pregnant woman when it has been determined that the unborn child has a detectable fetal heartbeat, unless, in the physician’s reasonable medical judgment, a medical emergency exists. A physician who knowingly and intentionally performs an abortion on a pregnant woman, when it has been determined that the unborn child has a detectable fetal heartbeat and a medical emergency does not exist, is guilty of a class “D” felony.  A class “D” felony is punishable by confinement for no more than five years and a fine of at least $750 but not more than $7,500.”

The rationale: all human beings should be treated equally. The Heartbeat Bill  suggests we shouldn’t discriminate against a human being just because she has a tiny heart. The sweep of history demands an ongoing expansion of human rights. That is what the Heartbeat Bill does.

This rationale very much comports with the compassionate thinking of social justice warriors from the 19th century. They fought a racist status quo that considered people with black skin as being subhuman. The culture then considered the slave unworthy of basic liberties of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The culture today imposes the same injustice on persons with tiny, beating hearts.

The Heartbeat Bill is an important piece of legislation that advances the cause of human dignity. We encourage advocates of social justice to vigorously support this bill by contacting their legislators. For every voice they hear, they know you represent another hundred people.

You can make a difference today.

[You are encouraged to attend a committee hearing at the statehouse tomorrow at 8AM, room 22. The more supporters of human dignity in attendance, the better.]

[subscribe2]