"Popular Mechanics" Raymond Carver

The final sentence of the story says that "the issue was decided." Ironically, the issue that is the decided is who gets custody of the baby. In their selfish attempt of taking the baby for themselves, they both take equal part in killing the baby; therefore, nobody gets the baby. It reminds me of the story in the Bible where Solomon tells two women that are fighting over a baby, each saying that he is her own baby, to cut it in half and both take a half. The woman who was really the mother said that the other woman could just have the baby, because she didn't want it to be harmed, which Solomon knew would happen all along. Sadly, in this story, both of the parents were too concerned with their own desires to beat the other that they did not pay attention to the baby, and consequently killed it. It shows that they truly weren't concerned with the child and just wanted to have it so that the other couldn't.