Two Mothers

. Today's news carried a story from Blue Mound, Texas contributed by the Dallas News. Two 20-something male intruders smashed their way into the Hoehn household while the whole family was home. The Hoehns have two children: a 12-year old son, and daughter age 5. Here is a news excerpt:

"As Mr. Hoehn emerged from the bedroom, Ms. Hoehn grabbed hold of the intruder's shotgun and pointed it upward and away from the children's rooms. "I wasn't going to let them get to my babies," the 34-year-old mom said. "No way in hell." While Mr. Hoehn wrestled with the intruders, Ms. Hoehn reached for a candle – the only heavy object within reach – and threw it at the man with the shotgun."

. Sarah Palin, governor of Alaska and now the Vice Presidential candidate for the Republican Party is also a mother. Her 19-year old son Track joined the Army last year. She has one other son Trig a new-born. Her daughters are Bristol (18), Willow (13), and Piper (7). Trig, was diagnosed prenatally as having Down syndrome. Quoting from the Wall Street Journal:

"She has said she would make abortion illegal in all cases, unless the life of the mother was at risk. Sen. McCain would make exceptions for rape or incest as well. Unlike Sen. McCain, she opposes stem-cell research, which involves destruction of human embryos. And she supports abstinence-until-marriage programs, where teens are taught to refrain from sex until marriage and contraception is discussed only to explain its failings."

. I do not know Kellie Hoehn's opinions on abortion. But I am absolutely sure of her love for her children, proven by her emotion under duress that even at 12 and 5 they are still her "babies." Although the stories seem far apart they each illustrate something in Nature, especially among birds and mammals, that I call the Centrality of Motherhood or the Authority of Mother. In choosing to allow her Down Syndrome fetus to be born Palin was exercising her primal authority.
. Birds are known to salvage what they can of their fledglings in times of short food by selecting the strongest and nourishing them to survival, obviously at the expense of their sibs. Primates, especially humans, have more options because they know they can enlist others to assist in raising weaker offspring.
. However the place of men in making these decisions is questionable. There is no demonstration of similar authority in Nature for them. In a few cases among mammals they may even be a threat to their own offspring. Therefore I am not going to state an opinion. But I will note one weakness in logic for female extreme pro-lifers like Palin. By deduction it appears that they grant the right of any male, even the lowest scum, even by force, to sire a child on any woman, even their own mother. That rankles me as I am definitely for the protection of women. Without something to keep a lid on them, the record of men is not universally good in this respect, witness the infamous treatment of females, even little girls, recently exposed at the Yearning for Zion Ranch near Eldorado, Texas.
. Well, enough dark thoughts. This is intended to point out the central role Nature carves out for Mothers and the reinforcement given by the highest standards from the greatest moralists, purportedly even God, as recorded by Moses in the Fifth Commandment, and even from that time of extreme patriarachy:
* * Honor thy Father AND Mother * *