I haven’t posted on the tragic story of the Iranian sisters who died last week as a result of a failed operation to split them after 29 years of being conjoined at the head. Charles Krauthammer, a medical doctor by training if not vocation, however, has some very interesting thoughts on the subject in Time.

The twins suffered from an error of nature, a mistake in individuation. They were asking for nothing more than the possibility of solitude. To risk everything for this was perfectly rational — indeed, an act of nobility and great courage. Their doctors were assisting heroism, not suicide. They should feel no guilt, only sorrow that victory once again went to nature, in all its cruelty.

A tough call, but I think he’s right.