No Guardrails

Opinion Journal ^ | 18 Apr 07

[rellimpank]

August 1968 and the death of self-restraint.

(Editor's note: This editorial appeared in The Wall Street Journal, March 18, 1993.)

The gunning down of abortion doctor David Gunn in Florida last week shows us how small the barrier has become that separates civilized from uncivilized behavior in American life. In our time, the United States suffers every day of the week because there are now so many marginalized people among us who don't understand the rules, who don't think that rules of personal or civil conduct apply to them, who have no notion of self-control. We are the country that has a TV commercial on all the time that says: "Just do it." Michael Frederick Griffin just did it.

An anti-abortion protester of intense emotions, he walked around behind the Pensacola Women's Medical Services Clinic and pumped three bullets into the back of Dr. Gunn. Emptied himself, Michael Griffin then waited for the police to take him away. A remark by his father-in-law caught our eye: "Now we've got to take care of two grandchildren."

[rellimpank]

--an "oldie but goodie"--

[11th_VA]

If as a society we want to live under conditions of constant challenge to institutions and limits on personal life, if we are going to march and fight and litigate over every conceivable grievance, then we should stop crying over all the individual casualties, because there are going to be a lot of them.

Wow - That's a great essay - I've never read it before !

[auntyfemenist]

That was good! I printed me one.

[SirJohnBarleycorn]

But the personal crackups just float like flotsam through the country's hospitals and streets.

...and universities.

Timely re-publication of this excellent essay.

[syriacus]

Our elite universities give a bully pulpit to people who preach murder of "flawed" people.

Princeton Professor Singer: And I repeat, I would kill Disabled Infants

Singer views disabled infants as flawed and, therefore, undeserving of life.

Cho viewed college students as "flawed" and, therefore, undeserving of life.

I don't see a big difference between the men.

[metmom]

bookmark

[ClaireSolt]

Pretty good, but he misses the reason and responsibility. It is demagogues who organize movements and rally vulnerable people. The demagogues get rich and famous while treating their followers like human debris, and it is the MSM that makes it happen. Yassir Aarafat is the penultimate example.

[Right Wing Assault]

I view Singer as flawed, but I’ll let him live.

[chickenNdumplings]

It sure is. Thanks for posting it!