Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Healthcare Reform or Conservative Revanchism?

The healthcare debate has, in many ways, taken on a relatively surreal tone in the past few months (Obama as a socialist, fascist Hitler-like figure, the healthcare reform somehow leading to a tragedy worse than the Holocaust, the bill allowing the government to decide when people live and die, etc.), but it seems as if the Catholic Church has taken the debate to a new level of inanity. So healthcare reform was supposed to be a movement forward to insure those who are uninsured, to cut costs and to reign in the excesses of hospitals, insurers, pharmaceutical companies and others involved in the “industry.” To progressives, it was offered as a way to free people and improve our quality of life. That was until “progressive” Nancy Pelosi decided to heed the warning of Catholic bishops and include a provision that disallows coverage for abortions. Even worse, it prohibits any health plan that seeks federal subsidies from offering abortion coverage. Huh? Last time I checked, abortion was legal in America. So if they can’t win the battle in the courts, or in the ballot box, use a backhanded deal in Congress to undermine a women’s right to chose.

Essentially a potentially huge progressive victory will all but outlaw abortion in America. Women can supposedly buy supplemental coverage for abortion, but isn’t that a stigmatized solution to the problem that will give many women (and particularly young girls) pause? Can the young even get coverage for abortion, given that they are on their parents plan? What of poor women, who might not be able to afford the additional coverage? And how can a rider like that be legal, given the reality (again) that ABORTION IS LEGAL IN AMERICA. Whatever your position on the matter, it is hypocrisy to allow that people should be free to do what they want as long as they don’t do what you don’t want them to. Why are we allowing the government to step in and take control of women’s bodies? And does this make the bill a progressive, or conservative, triumph if it does eventually pass in the Senate? Even with a huge victory in the election a year ago, the Democrats again show that they have the backbone of jellyfish.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i-CXZID-rNNxiUfAE2wP4oUU1ZLAD9BT71980

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