July 22, 2008
Several federal agencies have come up with figures for the dollar value of a human life. The purpose is to analyze the costs and benefits of new programs they believe will save lives.
The Environmental Protection Agency says a human life is worth $7.22 million. That’s down from the $8.04 million it said we were worth last year.
The Department of Transportation says human life is worth $5.8 million. That’s up from $3 last year. It must have something to do with higher gas prices.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says we’re worth an even $5 million, unchanged for the past decade.
You see where this is headed don’t you?
Whatever the good intentions of government, if an arbitrary value can be assigned to human life, then government can decide who is worthy of living and who is not. We’re already doing that with the unborn and soon, if nationalized health care is created, a bureaucrat in Washington will decide whether you get an operation or drug based on your value to the state.
If there is no God who is the author of life, what will stop them?
Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.
