Quote:
Originally Posted by bufftabby
Also, that's not even to say that I agree that religious beliefs permit any sort of egregious behavior, along the lines of letting children go without medical care OR bombing buildings. I think it's more of a question of personal autonomy as it extends to one's children, and religion as the basis for these decisions is irrelevant. If I don't think my child should receive treatment, it shouldn't matter why or why not; what really matters is whether I should be able to make this decision or not. Personally, I'm not sure where this line should be drawn, but I don't think the fact that terrorists don't have the right to commit bombings will affect my decision.
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If we're talking solely about religion should be a basis for restraining the state from being able to prevent harm to those who are legally unable to make their own decisions about life-threatening situations, I don't think that our views are very different. I just don't see religion as any different to any other belief system and object to it being accorded any special status at law.
For me, the acid test should be "the best interests of the child" and I believe that there exist (fortunately rare) situations in which the best interests of the child should be determined by someone other than the parents - especially when the consequences are irrevocable, and the need to make decisions is time-critical.
As I've already said upthread, I absolutely believe that adult children should be able to sue their parents for any long term harm they have suffered as a consequence of their parents failing to provide appropriate medical care when they were fully able to do so. So know, I don't think that you, me, or any other parent should always have an absolute and inalienable right to make decisions which will harm my child to the point of death. When there is disagreement about what
is "in the best interests of the child, I absolutely believe that the state has both a right and a duty to act as guardian ad litem for the child until the issue is resolved.