{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,8]],"date-time":"2025-04-08T11:49:50Z","timestamp":1744112990212,"version":"3.37.3"},"reference-count":11,"publisher":"BMJ","issue":"7","content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["J Med Ethics"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2022,7]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>William Simkulet has recently criticised Colgrove<jats:italic>et al<\/jats:italic>\u2019s defence against what they have called inconsistency arguments\u2014arguments that claim opponents of abortion (OAs) act in ways inconsistent with their underlying beliefs about human fetuses (eg, that human fetuses are persons at conception). Colgrove<jats:italic>et al<\/jats:italic>presented three objections to inconsistency arguments, which Simkulet argues are unconvincing. Further, he maintains that OAs who hold that the fetus is a person at conception fail to act on important issues such as the plight of frozen embryos, poverty and spontaneous abortion. Thus, they are morally negligent. In response, we argue that Simkulet has targeted a very narrow group of OAs, and so his criticisms are inapplicable to most OAs. We then explain why his responses to each of Colgrove<jats:italic>et al\u2019s<\/jats:italic>objections do not succeed, even for this restricted group. Finally, we note that Simkulet fails to provide evidence for his claims regarding OAs\u2019 supposed failures to act, and we show that OAs veritably do invest resources into these important issues. We conclude that Colgrove<jats:italic>et al<\/jats:italic>\u2019s reasons for rejecting inconsistency arguments (en masse) remain intact.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1136\/medethics-2021-107644","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,14]],"date-time":"2021-07-14T17:21:53Z","timestamp":1626283313000},"page":"485-487","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Inconsistency arguments still do not matter"],"prefix":"10.1136","volume":"48","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9115-582X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Bruce Philip","family":"Blackshaw","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0506-353X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nicholas","family":"Colgrove","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2121-7167","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Daniel","family":"Rodger","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,14]]},"reference":[{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1136\/medethics-2020-107207"},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Colgrove N , Blackshaw BP , Rodger D . Prolife hypocrisy: why inconsistency arguments do not matter. J Med Ethics 2021;47(12):e58.doi:10.1136\/medethics-2020-106633","DOI":"10.1136\/medethics-2020-106633"},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Flaherty J , Shimp Mv . 10 PA. D. & C. 3d 1978;90.","DOI":"10.1111\/j.2042-3306.1978.tb02228.x"},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1136\/medethics-2020-107194"},{"issue":"2","key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"103","DOI":"10.1080\/20502877.2019.1602376","article-title":"The problem of spontaneous abortion: is the pro-life position morally monstrous?","volume":"25","author":"Blackshaw","year":"2019","journal-title":"New Bioeth"},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.6","unstructured":"Colgrove N . Miscarriage is not a cause of death: a response to Berg\u2019s \u2018abortion and miscarriage. J Med Philos forthcoming 2019."},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Beckwith FJ . Defending life: a moral and legal case against abortion choice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9780511804885"},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s12905-016-0293-7"},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.9","unstructured":"Scaffidi S . Forced pregnancy in Italy violated \u2018woman\u2019s human right to health\u2019, UN experts rule, 2019. Available: https:\/\/news.un.org\/en\/story\/2019\/03\/1035601 [Accessed 31 May 2021]."},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.10","unstructured":"Paul J . I appeal to world\u2019s scientific authorities: halt the production of human embryos! 1996. Available: https:\/\/www.ewtn.com\/catholicism\/library\/i-appeal-to-worlds-scientific-authorities-halt-the-production-of-human-embryos-8784 [Accessed 31 May 2021]."},{"key":"2022062307250831000_48.7.485.11","unstructured":"Thomas More Society . Frozen embryos, people or Propertyproperty? Thomas more Society attorney explains, 2016. Available: https:\/\/thomasmoresociety.org\/frozen-embryos-people-or-property-thomas-more-society-attorney-explains\/"}],"container-title":["Journal of Medical Ethics"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/syndication.highwire.org\/content\/doi\/10.1136\/medethics-2021-107644","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,4]],"date-time":"2024-09-04T04:27:29Z","timestamp":1725424049000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/jme.bmj.com\/lookup\/doi\/10.1136\/medethics-2021-107644"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,14]]},"references-count":11,"journal-issue":{"issue":"7","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,6,23]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2022,7]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1136\/medethics-2021-107644"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/medethics-2021-107644","relation":{},"ISSN":["0306-6800","1473-4257"],"issn-type":[{"type":"print","value":"0306-6800"},{"type":"electronic","value":"1473-4257"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2021,7,14]]}}}