Stealing to feed a starving child

[tango]

I much rather doubt you would be all that happy if someone broke the commandment to not steal and stole all your stuff to feed that child. As you can see, it only looks good to you until you get to be the one who is being robbed then you will see it doesn't work quite the way you thought it would.

There's a big difference between "stealing all your stuff" as you put it here, and stealing enough to feed yourself in the right here and now. Sure, I wouldn't be thrilled to find some of my stuff had been stolen at all but I suspect I have enough other stuff that it wouldn't make a huge difference if someone did take what they needed to provide their next meal.

There's a comparably big difference between someone who steals enough food from the grocery store to feed their family for a day, and someone who walks out without paying for their cart loaded with prime steak and lobster.

 

[tango]

Sure. I'd break the law to feed a starving child. But then again I have money. Funny how everyone is against abortion. But they won't break any of their 10 Commandments to keep a child from dying from starvation. I'd call that a double standard.

It's a perfectly fair point how people expect a pregnant woman to carry her baby to term only to then wash their hands of the situation and say it's all her problem. But then it's always so much easier to present options that are little more than "I wouldn't start from here" or "you shouldn't have..." as if winding the clock back were an easy option, than it is to walk with someone through their plight.

It looks an awful lot like what James said about seeing a man who was hungry and cold and saying to him "be warm, be filled" and sending him on his way. Not hugely helpful to anyone, even if offering a condescending pat on the head (literal or metaphorical) makes us feel like we care.

 

[Member4592]

It's a perfectly fair point how people expect a pregnant woman to carry her baby to term only to then wash their hands of the situation and say it's all her problem.

My opinion is strictly secular. It does become the woman's problem. Most of the time. Aside from my views on abortion. I am anti overpopulation. I am pro birth control. You can't honestly say we need more people in the world?

Do you know how many single mothers I've come across on dating apps alone? More than I count. They say most of the men are out of the picture or want nothing to do with their son/ daughter. It's pathetic.

Most women just get an abortion so they can permanently sever ties with a bum boyfriend or an abusive husband and not have to deal with a long drawn out court appointed custody battle. Not all men are like that. I wasn't. My ex wife dumped my kids at my door and ran off. She has next to nothing to do with them.

 

[tango]

My opinion is strictly secular. It does become the woman's problem. Most of the time. Aside from my views on abortion. I am anti overpopulation. I am pro birth control. You can't honestly say we need more people in the world?

From a simple biological perspective it can so easily become the woman's problem. The man has the easy option of just walking away and depending on the dynamics of the relationship may not even know he has a child.

It does make me wonder how much of the push for abortion is more about the interests of men than women - if women have something that is presented as "quick and simple", conveniently overlooks the emotional impact it has on a lot of women and just presents it as a last-resort method of birth control if all else fails, it does make "I don't want to get pregnant" less effective as a means of saying no.

Do you know how many single mothers I've come across on dating apps alone? More than I count. They say most of the men are out of the picture or want nothing to do with their son/ daughter. It's pathetic.

It's hard to argue with that. As a married man I'm not exactly a regular feature on dating apps but it is pretty pathetic when men really do just walk away. At the same time it's pretty lame the way courts can be so stacked against the men who want to remain involved in the lives of their children but who are shut out by vindictive former partners.

Most women just get an abortion so they can permanently sever ties with a bum boyfriend or an abusive husband and not have to deal with a long drawn out court appointed custody battle. Not all men are like that. I wasn't. My ex wife dumped my kids at my door and ran off. She has next to nothing to do with them.

It's easy to see why that looks like an attractive option. Long term I can't help thinking a bigger issue is how to build the self-esteem of young people - both boys and girls - so they expect better for themselves and won't put up with people who just want to take advantage of them. But that takes time, effort, emotional involvement, and can't be measured in a convenient set of tick-boxes so it's unlikely to come from the educational system.