Slouching Towards Oblivion

Monday, August 20, 2012

Amen, Brother

Roger Ebert on the Separation of Church and State:
I do not propose to discuss the issues of abortion, birth control and in vitro fertilization. I'm more concerned with those who would pass laws enforcing their religious beliefs. They apparently see no conflict between the laws they propose and the separation of Church and State.
What the First Amendment provides is that each and every American is entitled to follow the teachings of the church of their choice, or for that matter no church at all. What if your beliefs, or your church, permit abortion or in vitro fertilization? Are you now to become a criminal? The problem with such laws is that they would legislate the personal religious beliefs of the candidates.
It's interesting to note that Ryan/Romney (and their wingnut supporters) are pushing the issues of Women's Reproductive Health (eg) as "issues of morality", glossing over the simple fact that they'd surely tell us they get their morality from their religious beliefs - if the Press Poodles ever bothered to ask them.

The bible may be a fair place to start - and it's quite possibly the repository of the very best thinking of its time - but the probability has to be extremely high that people have come up with some stuff that's a tad more up-to-date; and at least as likely to make better sense for me than something written 8000 years ago.



No comments:

Post a Comment