My most recent quote of the day came from pro-abort Yellowhammer's blog:

If I got pregnant right now, at 21, less than a year away from my batchelor's degree, what would I do? I would probably have the child because a) the child would have two cool, loving parents b) because, although it would be inconvenient for my career, I could still get my education and find a job c) because we'd be able to support the child financially and d) (and this is the selfish reason) the karmic consequences of having an abortion would be really big.

Of course, my point was to show the inconsistency of one who supports abortion but thinks abortion brings "karmic consequences," in her words.

Actually, Yellowhammer stands out as someone honest enough to verbalize what most people who consider themselves "pro-choice" must certainly think deep inside. Polls consistently show that pro-aborts dichotomously believe abortion should be legal but is morally wrong, as Gallup stated last month:

There is a fundamental tension within U.S. abortion attitudes between Americans' respect for individual rights, and their respect for the life of the unborn, particularly in later stages of pregnancy. For instance, most Americans will agree that the abortion decision "should be left up to the woman and her doctor." At the same time, a slight majority (51%) believes abortion is morally wrong; only 40% say it is morally acceptable.

... These numbers fluctuate, but as of Gallup's most recent survey, the slight majority of Americans (53%) consider themselves "pro-choice" on abortion, whereas 42% call themselves "pro-life."

(To be argued in another post is whether those calling themselves "pro-choice" are really that when questioned more specifically.)

Almost all - no matter the religious or atheist belief - believe ones committing moral wrongs are punished in some way.

At any rate, Yellowhammer emailed me, requesting that I remove her quote, stating I took it out of context. When I asked her how I took it out of context, she responded, in part:

As a Buddhist, I feel that there are few cut and dry moral decisions. To me, instead of there always being black and white, there is a lot of gray area where it's hard to know if you're making the right choice. Ultimately, if a mother aborts her child wrongly, she alone will have to suffer the consequences, while the aborted child will simply be born again into another body. This is also the general belief in Japan, for example, where they simply have a funeral for the aborted fetus and move on.

I don't feel that you've taken my words out of context in the sense that you've misrepresented what I said. I stand behind it. However, if you wanted to expose my seeming moral inconsistencies to your readers, I would have appreciated that you talked to me first about my beliefs and why they are the way they are.

There is much to dissect there, but again, another time. I decided since Yellowhammer agreed I didn't take her quote out of context but just wished I'd checked with her first was not a reason to take her quote down, since her blog is public. So I left the quote up until this morning, when I changed it as I normally would. (You can read our complete email exchange on her blog.)

In her Jan. 31 response to my posting, Yellowhammer stated:

I realized that she was just trying to expose a hypocrite to her readers. I guess that's OK, since I said that people could call me a hypocrite for being a pro-choice vegan....

I confirmed elsewhere in her site that Yellowhammer is a vegetarian not for personal health issues such as allergies but because she believes in animal rights.

So yes, Yellowhammer, you're right, some people would indeed call you a hypocrite. Me, for instance.