I filed HB107 a year ago — March 13, 2023. This bill would merely define when we humans consider when and how life begins. We are good at determining when death happens but we have significant political issues defining life.
It was not my intent to get in a huge battle with pro-abortion or planned parenthood folks. I acknowledge (and welcome the idea) however, that HB107 may be used in that arena. The reality is that it was only my intent to apply science to our statutes.
But first, let me say that I have believed in life at conception since I was in high school. At the time, I was not a Christian or even particularly religious. But I did go to a world-class high school and learned about biology and reproductive organs. Because of that classic education in science I have always believed that life began at conception.
Consider that we spend billions of dollars to send spacecraft to mars to “look for life” which we think would be indicated by evidence of a single drop of water. Evolutionists or people who believe in Darwin’s theory believe that all life began from a single cell amoeba climbing out of the primordial ooze. Most scientists believe that life begins at conception.
As a 17-year-old teenager who understood biology and the science of where life came from, pitting that knowledge against my hormones was difficult. I was still in high school and my girlfriend was pregnant. Our families, while maybe more on the liberal side, were not very understanding where teen out-of-wedlock pregnancy was concerned. So, abortion was a consideration – probably more from me than her. I was frantic as I was on my way to college and bigger things. I thought I did not want this child and I also felt like a huge disappointment even before the big reveal.
At the end of the day, though, we decided to get married and have the baby. Whether or not that was a great choice, given my limited emotional age, is up for discussion. It was, however, a great choice for many other people.
Let me tell you why.
My oldest son, the “person” who would have been aborted, is my hero. He is a firefighter and lifesaver. Several years ago, a Cessna 206 crashed while taking off from Merrill field and landed on fire in the parking lot of the business my son worked for.
My son had been a ramp rat for a company in Kodiak, as a kid, so he knew what to do and exactly how to save the people trapped in that airplane. And he did not hesitate. He (and several other Alaskans of course) were there in an instant trying to save the people from the burning wreck. It is what Alaskans do, after all. But what if he had not been there with the knowledge he had from a previous job? What if he had not been there at all?
Now he is a firefighter in the MatSu valley. And even with his limited time there, he has probably lost count — as most firefighters, EMS, and LEO first responders do — of the number of people he has helped, or even saved. What if the smoke alarm he installed saved a life? What if even the child he talked to at school remembered how to dial 911, or how to get out of a burning room?
But what if he were not even here?
Shouldn’t we all wonder how many military heroes, first responders, Einsteins, Curies, Fords, JFKs, Reagans, and other notable humans have been killed in the womb? What if the life a firefighter saved was yours? What if the life of a relative could have been saved by a first responder who is just not here?
Also consider that, with the advent of robotics and AI, we must find a way to define when human life begins, when is life a “person.” The science tells us that the human zygote, in the mother’s body, is a totally separate life, with its own DNA and its own path forward. The moral right of self-determination. Does that path include being a hero? A scientist that will find a cure for cancer? Or the person who will save you or a family member?
Scientifically, should we not also consider the aging demographics of our population? How about the huge number of jobs going unfilled because of lack of people? Are we making a mistake with our rampant declaration of “my body, my choice” and using abortion as birth control? It is a conversation we must have, and HB107 is designed to give us a beginning, not an end. It is not designed to limit any health care choices or put doctors in jail. It is merely designed to find a scientifically statutory way to define life.
I know that there is an alleged plurality of people in Alaska who disagree with me. And I accept that. But notable to me is that many of the comments received, by my office, speaking against HB107, are from out of state. I would even venture to say, without counting them, that the majority are from out of state. This makes me wonder what Alaskans really think. Are we being played again by the abortion-industrial lobby? Played over this simple bill that merely defines life?
For me, it is hard to reconcile that against the good that my son, my hero, has done for so many people.
Rep. Kevin McCabe serves in the Alaska Legislature on behalf of Alaskans in the House District 8-Big Lake area.
