Imagine you are at an IVF clinic that is on fire and you only have time to save 100 frozen embryos or one 2-year-old.

By questioning how saving an infant conflicts with the belief that 100 IVF embryos are equally deserving, this thought experiment argues that human life and personhood begin at conception. It has long been used against abortion opponents to challenge their philosophy. The right to live.

I personally believe, based on a combination of scientific and philosophical grounds, that humanity begins at conception, and I have previously participated in the so-called “pro-life movement.”

But the truth is that the IVF situation has always been an issue for many anti-abortion opponents, as it challenges their philosophy in a way that many who call themselves “pro-life” would rather ignore.

However, if we try to legislate that the right to life begins at conception, there is no getting around the fact that in vitro fertilization will always end up being an issue.

In its opinion on the case, the Alabama Supreme Court said it did something “pro-life” that has always annoyed me, citing Jeremiah 1:5. “I knew you before I formed you in my womb.”

The reference to this scripture prompted state Rep. Chris England (D-Tuscaloosa), in a since-deleted post about X, to argue that the court's argument is that the right to life begins before conception. He laughed at the verdict.

And his observation was 100% correct. Whether “God knew you before you were formed in the womb” has nothing to do with the law.

But while I often disagree with the Alabama Supreme Court's decision, especially when it comes to bringing religion into places where it doesn't belong, the court interpreted the state's proclamation that “life begins at conception” in favor of longevity. I'm not sure if that's to blame here. For in vitro fertilization services.

This has always been a problem, and it has to do with states' eagerness to overturn Roe v. Wade by any means necessary, regardless of the outcome. Abortion is generally viewed through the prism of politics and religion, with many members of Congress largely unaware of the actual central arguments in one of the most hotly debated topics of our time.

And while many of them believe that life begins at conception, there is a right to balance between women and children, and that brute force is not the way to find a path to a better world for everyone. There is a lack of compassion to understand that this is brought about through gradual cultural change. .

While I believe that Alabama has won the fight for abortion, at least at the state level, I believe that the story so far has seen good faith anti-abortion arguments become superficial and political posturing clouding all credibility. I believe that And control.

The state leaders' apparent failure to understand that this IVF outcome was coming shows that they were short-sighted in preparing these policies. And it will continue to prove that they have never thought through their message enough to claim to have actually believed it.