Sometimes the most obvious things pass us by unnoticed. One thing that I am keenly aware of, as a biological sciences major, is that our planet is overrun with life. I know; no news flash here, but our planet is simply thick with the stuff — so much so that we take it for granted.

Earth is literally dripping with life. Its teeming abundance is impossible to ignore. Life extends from Antarctic climes to boiling thermal vents. Life takes hold in places as gentle as shady forest glens or as harsh as, in the case of Deinococcus radiodurans, radioactive waste.

With so much life on our planet, it is easy to forget that we are the only place in the universe where such a phenomenon occurs. Self-replicating, balanced and interconnected, life is truly a rare and special thing.

Something so exceptional as life should certainly be respected and protected. Pope John Paul II was probably thinking along these lines when, in 1993, he coined the phrase, “Culture of Life.” As he defined it, a culture of life is one in which all human life is revered and protected.

This must be a very politically popular phrase because it made its way into the common vernacular by way of President Bush during his first run for president and was instated into the Republican Party Platform in 2004.

Unfortunately, for all of the rhetoric, the administration does not live up to the ideals of a culture of life. Instead, it uses the phrase as a diversion to distract people from a political agenda that could be better described as a Culture of Death.

When Bush was governor of Texas, Mr. “Culture of Life” himself signed a law that was recently used to remove an infant named Sun Hudson from life support against his mother’s wishes.

This is an interesting contrast to the emotionally charged Schiavo case in which Republicans were falling over themselves trying to squeeze in a sound byte about the “tragedy” of a husband following his wife’s wishes to die with dignity.

The circus they created stripped whatever dignity Terri Schiavo had and made her into a tool to be used for political gain. I find it hard to believe that people who truly respect life would engage in the personality rape of a dying woman as they did.

Under the laws signed by Bush, Texas not only kills babies; it kills full-grown adults — as fast as it can. Texas has the highest capital punishment rate in the nation, having executed more than 300 people since 1982.

Capital punishment is no deterrent to murder, however. Therefore, the only reason for such blood lust must be pure, visceral revenge. With all the born-again Christians in the Republican Party, one would think they would know that vengeance is the Lord’s. Even Jesus asked his Father to forgive his executioners.

It almost makes one wonder: What would Jesus do if he was president? Would he execute the mentally ill, juvenile offenders or anyone else for that matter — having himself been a victim of capital punishment? Would he lie about the reasons to go to war, resulting in the deaths of thousands of U.S. service members and tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians? If the Christians are right, I guess we will all find out one day.

A culture of life does not take revenge. It does not lead needless, unilateral invasions or use the sick and dying for political gain. It recognizes life as something more precious than the rarest jewel and more sacred than the holiest artifact.

I favor the idea of a culture of life, but only if we hold all human life sacred. Life deserves nothing less.