Today the United States Senate defeated legislation that would have allowed ANY employer or health insurer, religious or secular, to opt out of providing health care coverage to which they have a moral objection. Blunt Amendment Defeated in Senate (POLITICO)
The amendment, pushed by Senators Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Scott Brown (R-MA) has been in the works for a few weeks now, and is obviously a response to the Obama administration mandate that religiously-affiliated organizations provide free coverage for contraceptive services to their female employees. It failed on a mostly party-line vote of 51-48, with three Democrats voting with the GOP and one Republican crossing over to the Democratic side.
It remains to be seen whether the Republicans will continue to push their case that religious freedom apparently gives anyone the license to refuse to do anything with which they disagree. Under this amendment, a Fortune 500 company with a pro-life CEO could theoretically decide that none of their company's female employees should have contraception, because it's against the CEO's beliefs. A business leader who is a Jehova's Witness could decide not to cover blood transfusions. Some Christians believe in "faith healing" - the idea that any medical treatment at all is wrong and that ailments should be cured through prayer. Could they get away with not providing health care coverage at all?
While I do not discount the unlikelihood of the last scenario, that's the logical black hole into which conservatives have driven this debate. Religious freedom gives each of us the right to practice our own personal beliefs - or non-beliefs - in peace, without interference from those who disagree. But this religious freedom does not allow us to live in our own personal world. If I told my boss it was against my religion to go to work this week, would I get fired?
The people who depend on their employers for health coverage - nearly everyone, since that's how our health care system works - also have the religious freedom to not have their medical care affected by a faith that they do not share. Yet conservatives have so warped the concept of religious freedom that they have turned it into something almost un-American: the "right" to impose your beliefs on others.
The government's job is to protect the rights of every citizen, regardless of their faith. Through our democracy, we have determined as a society that people have the right to decent health care, and in doing so have outlined the specific health procedures that should be covered. If an individual who is responsible for another's health care objects, it is not the government's responsibility to enshrine or protect that in law.
Let's not forget that implicit in us being "free" to practice our religion is the fact that we are also free from religious intrusion by others.
I dont know if I mentioned this to you the other day or not, but I was listening to a podcast talk about the shitty Alabama immigration bill that passed a while back. They interviewed a Christian republican senator who sponsored the bill, and asked him "would jesus have voted for this law?" to which he glumly responded "well... Probably not."
ReplyDeleteIf only more Christian republicans who publically profess their faith, would actually follow the example of their professed savior while in office, we would live in a much better country.
Love your neighbor.
Love thine enemies.
Turn the other cheek.
Judge not.
Let ye among them who is wihtout sin throw the first stone.
And when ye pray, go into your closet.
My god, I could go on and on and on, listing the teachings of Jesus and pointing out how hypocritical these "Christians" really are.
This is what happens when we elect religious people into office. Their sense of power corrupts their moral reasoning. I'm sure Jesus would be rolling over in his grave to see what these assholes are doing in his name.
What I struggle to understand is the herd mentality of Christians who tacitly suppost legislation that goes the opposite direction of what they profess to believe. My god people, wake the fuck up. Think for yourselves.