Saturday, October 16, 2004
Article of Faith, Selective Action
I noticed this MUST READ editorial by Rich Lowry about Senator Kerry's desire to have it both ways on social issues on yesterday's Evening Update at RealClearPolitics. Essentially, Senator Kerry indicates that he can legislate his faith when it serves the liberal agenda, but his Catholism cannot influence his legislation of such issues as abortion and gay marriage. The following paragraphs provide an analysis of one of Senator Kerry's responses at the second debate.
Kerry then shifted to arguing essentially that, even if he were to consider all life sacred, he couldn't do anything about it: "I believe that I can't legislate or transfer to another American citizen my article of faith." This is a sophomoric relativism that ignores the fact that our most important laws have a moral underpinning. In any case, Kerry quickly contradicted it: "There's a great passage of the Bible that says, What does it mean, my brother, to say you have faith if there are no deeds? Faith without works is dead. And I think that everything you do in public life has to be guided by faith." [emphasis added]
Senator Kerry contradicted himself? That's shocking, simply shocking.So, Kerry presented diametrically opposed views on the role of morality in public life within about 30 seconds. He went on to say that his environmentalism and his poverty-fighting measures were borne of his faith. In other words, his faith affects everything — including his position on whether the minimum wage should be $5.15 or $7 an hour — but not how he legislates concerning life issues, because it would be wrong to legislate his morality, although he does it all the time.
