An unwanted new-born baby
Wrapped in today’s swaddling clothes
Is left, freezing, on my doorstep overnight
Is it morally acceptable for me to say
Not mine, I don’t want it
And leave it to die
Of course not
A moral dilemma?
No, an absolute imperative
I am driving in the dark of night
Late for my flight again
A cyclist, no lights, wobbles off the sidewalk
We collide, all his fault, no one else around, but he is down
Is it morally acceptable for me to drive on
I repeat, not my fault, I will be late
Of course not
A moral dilemma?
No, an absolute imperative
Moral questions, in my humble opinion
Are, at best, rhetoric
We all know the right answer
Even if transiently we are tempted into denial
The wrong decision and action
May live with us forever
I sit on a Supreme Court
Drafting opinions on the interpretation of laws
A child is terminally ill
On life support
Negative quality of life, never to become positive
The parents, through an abundance of love
For their first, and probably only child
Argue for continuation of life
The hospital, insurers and state attorney general
Argue for termination, on the grounds that
To keep the child alive would transgress
A centuries-old constitutional amendment
There are opinions and beliefs, but no right answers
This is the realm of ethics
Not morals, but ethics
Where we are all equal, but none of us right
Who is qualified to be the judge
Winston Salem, North Carolina, USA, June 2018
