Tonight I was watching the documentary counterpart to Freakonimics, and in it it discussed the theory of the decline in crime rate being linked to legalized abortions and it makes perfect sense. I myself don't take a stand either way on the topic of abortion, I think its best to remain impartial. But as I was saying it makes perfect sense when you think about it, less kids being born into unwanted homes, to parents who don't want them in the poorer inner city parts of the country could be linked to it cause they wouldn't be turning to a life a crime as a means to survival, gaining attention, or simply lashing out. Point is they wouldn't be committing the crimes they potentially would have, now this is a slippery slope though it makes me think of the Steven Spielberg film Minority Report and the concept of future crimes. And is it fair to say they would have committed these crimes anyways? But that's neither here nor there, throughout the segment they used clips from the classic film It's A Wonderful Life to help illustrate the thought and this got me to think could It's A Wonderful Life really have been an abortion propaganda film? You have a man who feels like he's lost everything and contemplating giving, could this be a mother contemplating the life her child would have if she were to keep the child? And then the man reflecting on his life and in the in his guardian angel telling him, you really didn't have a bad life after all, could this be a statement on the pro-life side of the argument saying that regardless any life is worth living despite the hardships. Like I said, I'm impartial just an interesting correlation between the film and the argument.
keet:
Interesting theory. The Eugenics movement was popular among influential people in the first half of the 20th century, they advocated population control, especially among the poor and minorities, and it was around the time that It's a Wonderful Life came out that Planned Parenthood really starting taking off. I would say there's a definite possibility of a link between the two.