This devaluation of life shows up in many ways — some subtle, some tragic, and some completely normalized.
The most obvious is the number of abortions performed every year. According to the Guttmacher Institute:
“…there were an estimated 1,053,200 abortions performed in the United States in 2024. This is a slight increase from the 1,046,600 abortions reported in 2023.”
Now pair that with the alarming number of fatal shootings that happen across the country daily — so many that national news outlets don’t even report on them all anymore.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, in just the last 72 hours, fatal shootings occurred in:
Illinois (x3), Georgia (x2), California (x4), Alabama (x4), Tennessee, New York, Ohio (x2), Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota, South Carolina (x2), Missouri (x2), Texas (x3), Florida (x2), North Carolina (x2), Iowa… and more.
(Their website lists over five full pages of data.)
When over a million unborn children are legally aborted every year, and gun violence is so normalized it becomes background noise, it’s no wonder our culture starts to see human life as disposable.
The Disappearance of Consequences
I also believe this tragedy is a symptom of something deeper: a society where real consequences are becoming increasingly rare — especially in the digital age.
Social media has created a false sense of security and detachment. As therapist Jeffrey Meltzer puts it:
“When people are online, they feel safer behind a screen. There’s no eye contact, no facial feedback, no real-time consequences. Because of that, they feel less accountable for what they say, meaning their empathy drops significantly.”
Empathy isn’t optional — it’s a safeguard against cruelty. Without it, people begin to devalue others almost without realizing it. The result? A culture that becomes numb to the consequences of its choices.
What Could Have Been
If this young woman had recognized the personhood and inherent value of her baby, I truly believe she would have made a different choice.
She might have chosen to raise her child. Or — and this is the heartbreaking part — she could have placed the baby in the Safe Surrender box just eight minutes away, giving her baby the chance to live in another family.
Now, my hope is that through the trial process, she will begin to see the flaws in her thinking, seek forgiveness from God, and pursue healing and restoration for her clearly broken heart and mind.
Final Thoughts
This story isn’t just about one woman. It’s about the culture that shaped her decisions — a culture that has grown numb to the value of life.
Until we reclaim the sanctity of human life — in law, in media, in education, and in our hearts — stories like this will continue. And each time, the cost will be unimaginably high.