May God Save Us - Part 2

One of the first things that struck me as I read the Washington Post article is that the healthcare workers who want this legislation passed seem to be claiming that they are forced to do certain things that violate their conscience. Forced? As in forced labor or indentured servants? No, they're not. They're free, because they live in the good old USA. They were free to chose their profession and did so with full knowledge of the scope of responsibilities that would and could come their way. They have been free to reap the benefits of their profession. And, they remain free to leave the responsibilities of their profession at any time, for any reason. They are like people who knowingly build a new home next to agricultural land and then complain about the dust that blows on their patio.

These ill-considered laws would essentially end the rule of law because they would make every individual a law unto themselves. The subjectivity of personal belief would reign supreme. The variations on the theme of individual conscience are infinite. At some point, society has to function on a level of shared values, allowing for differing values but not trying to conform itself around every possible value permutation that springs into the mind of man or woman. I recall the pockets of ultra-right tax revolts in the 60s and 70s when some "people of faith" refused to pay taxes because doing so violated their "core beliefs", either because of their views about government in general or the things that government did with those taxes. It didn't take long to make it clear to these folks that these protests were not within the definition of "freedom", even in America.

The so-called caregiving proponents of these laws would have us convert our healthcare system into an individually governed conditional process by asking those who are in need of their care to first conform to the caregivers values in order to be deemed worthy of receiving their services. I am relatively confident that these people would not be willing to accept exactly the same proposition in those areas where they need the basic services of daily life.

Most of the apparently offended are Christians who have decided to ignore Christ's golden injunction to, "Do unto others what you would have them do unto you." Assuming these offended servants of God are genuine believers, then we can only conclude that they would have us treat them in the same manner as they now propose to treat others - with a discriminating prejudice that is lighted by a light that has been under the bushel basket so long that it has gone out, leaving only darkness. It is amazing to see these people proclaim that what they're advocating is in accord with the word of God. To me, it is blatantly inconsistent with the most basic values of their professed faith. "Take no thought of yourself," Jesus taught. Listening to them, I'm left with the impression that they are thinking about nothing else.