Why is it people want to “end” the “culture wars?” Why is public disagreement over important cultural issues something to be avoided? What is wrong in a pluralistic, semi-democratic society with expressing ones views in the market place of ideas, arguing effectively for those views and rejecting the opposite views?
I thought our uniquely American experiment was built on just such a concept.
But, along comes a group called the “Third Way“, an ostensibly Christian group of progressives and self-proclaimed evangelicals who want to call a truce in the culture wars by following their superior ideas. This group thinks there is entirely too much rancour in politics, and, with the new administration coming in, we need to seek common ground to get things done.
Oh dear, oh dear. So, dear reader, what wonderful, brand-spanking new ideas are they propogating, you may ask? Well, these ideas.
Reducing abortions (reducing abortion through reducing unintended pregnancies, supporting pregnant women, and increasing support for adoption)
Supporting employment protections for gay and lesbian people (protecting the rights of gay and lesbian people to earn a living, while protecting the freedom of religious organizations to follow their own beliefs)
Renouncing torture, and
Creating secure and comprehensive immigration reform
Unfortunately, good intentions do not good policy make. The devil is in the details. And the details are ugly and liberal.
1) To reduce abortions, they recommend a comprehensive sex education program which would be medically-accurate, age-appropriate and contain complete contraceptive information with a discussion of abstinence. Also, they would provide [government] support for teen pregnancy prevention programs, after school programs and increased access to contraception for low income women.
This is lunacy. Everything listed is already done! Comprehensive sex-education already claims to be age-appropriate, medically accurate and claims to contains complete contraceptive information. Those sex educators even give lip service to abstinence. That’s the whole point! The program promotes an immoral lifestyle shown to increase sexual activity in teens. Contraception is ineffective in teens, almost always. Anything that encourages teen sexual activity will increase pregnancy rates and therefore teen abortion. Age-appropriate to sex educators means “Heather has Two Mommies” in the first grade, advocacy for deviant sexual behavior, and graphic information about mechanics of sex before young minds can comprehend such adult behavior and concepts. I call it child abuse.
The only sex ed course needed is this: Don’t have sex until married and have one partner for life. You need a whole course for that? I’ll even write it again. Don’t have sex until married and have one partner for life. There. Is that so hard to say?
But, you chuckle, if it were only so simple. Such an approach does not work, does it? Well, yes! Teens can be challenged to a higher, more moral behavior. Abstinence-based programs have shown again and again that they work, but only if they are strictly abstinence-based. They cannot be included with the “If you do have sex, use a condom-or the pill-or the IUD-or I’ll help you get an abortion if you get pregnant” group. The education must be totally abstinence.
Liberal sex educators gleefully report their studies saying abstinence-based programs don’t work. Hogwash. It’s the same reason pro-abortion researchers never find post-abortion syndrome, which, I can assure you, dear reader, does exist and is tragic.
Notice also that these recommendations include no restrictions on abortion. So, reducing abortions through common ground policies is just a rehash of the liberal policies. It must be opposed.
2) Protecting the rights of Gay and Lesbian People to Earn a Living. The Third Way would make it illegal to fire, refuse to hire, or refuse to promote employees simply based on their sexual orientation, except for an exemption for churches and other religious organizations.
Oh dear, oh dear–again.
That policy is no different than the way it is now. Gays already earn a living. The mean income of gay and lesbian people is significantly higher than the general population! What problem earning a living? I don’t see it. The exemption for churches or other religious organizations is a joke. Who defines what a religious organization is? Is a home school a religious organization? Is a Christian school a religious organization? How about a business that sells mostly Christian literature? Is a book publisher a Christian organization? What about the association of Christian businesses that ascribes to a Biblical definition of sin? Should a Christian gynecologist be obligated to hire a homosexual medical assistant? Such a law would effective remove Christianity from the day to day public square and confine it only to churches. Such a law would be a huge advance for the gay agenda, placing gays in multiple business with a Christian emphasis, diluting the Christian message and witness in the world. Christians have a long history of respecting civil rights of all groups which continues to this day. But a sinful lifestyle is not the same as being asian or black or Hispanic or disabled or old or a woman or a man–categories used through the ages to exclude groups of people. One can do nothing about one’s sex, age, race or disability. But, homosexuality is in the mind of the person claiming to be gay. Anyone, at any time, could claim gay status and special privilege. Want the job? Whisper to the interviewer that you are gay, but still in the closet, but you will sue if you don’t get the job. Also, you will sue if you get outed. Who can deny such a statement? Who is to say one is not gay? Would a law require a Muslim business to hire homosexual employees? In many Muslim countries, gays are stoned. I cannot change my race, my disabilities, my sex or my age. All are right out there for everyone to see. But I can fool anyone on my sexual orientation, depending on whether or not I would benefit from such a declaration. How Darwinian.
3) Renounce torture. Do these people understand what war is? This statement is hardly worthy of a response. People who believe such nonsense do not understand that enslavement by an enemy is more horrible than death in battle to defend freedom. War to defend freedom means pulling out all the stops to win. There are no do-overs in war. If you don’t win, you lose. Losing a war is worse than death. Patrick Henry had it right.
4) Create Secure and Comprehensive Immigration Reform. Their proposal would involve “strict border enforcement” (no wall), a path to citizenship for illegal aliens, a “guest worker” program and “keeping families together”.
This is just code for amnesty for illegal aliens who have broken our laws, no wall to stop illegal immigration and a guest worker program which effectively opens our border to anyone. Once across the border, a guest worker could then disappear into the mist. Full citizenship for a woman who races across the border in labor to have her baby in the US would be granted not just to her and her baby, but to the family. I guess that means the husband, brother, sister and on could come across the border, too. And be citizens. Just like that.
All these proposals this group advocates are just liberal re-hash and not a third way at all. Such advocacy is deceptive in its approach and provides cover for those Catholics who were always democrats and want to vote for democrats but feel guilty voting for abortion advocates. Such advocacy provides cover for those marginal Christians who populate church pews because they like the music and the feel-good sermons and want to be accepted and cool in their liberal workplace.
There is no need for “peace” in the culture wars. Standing for life is offensive, but must be done. Advocating for justice is right. Law-breakers must be punished. Children should be protected from those who advocate for immorality. Wars are fought to be won. Defeat and enslavement are not options. I, for one, plan to loudly speak truth. Let the culture wars rage.