Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Recently, the Obama Administration's Health and Human Services Department said employers would be forced to provide health insurance to their employees that includes coverage for contraception, sterilization and drugs that can induce abortions.
This includes Catholic and other institutions that wouldn't be able to abide by the law without violating central teachings of their church.
This alarming move has been covered in the press, albeit quite calmly. NPR, for instance, covered it by noting that some Catholic groups have no problem subsidizing things that violate church teaching. This is like saying "While some Jewish groups are fighting a ban on Kosher food, other Jews eat pork! What's the big deal?" It has nothing to do with the principle at hand, of course.
Now, the Catholic Church has announced that they will fight this. And they certainly have many grounds on which to do so. Legally speaking, I have high hopes that they will prevail and I'm glad that my church body will join with them in fighting this violation of the First Amendment's Free Exercise clause.
Apparently many/most Catholics in the country were read a letter from their bishops yesterday in Mass. I learned this from reading what an actual church-going reporter wrote after Mass yesterday. Each bishop apparently penned their own letter to be read to parishioners about the Obama Administration's efforts against Catholics. (Bishop Zubik's public remarks may have been the most colorful -- that's where the "to hell with you" language came from.) That seems like huge news, and yet I haven't seen any coverage. Other than telling us how few reporters are either Catholic or church-going, isn't this weird?
It's not just Catholics. One of the lawsuits being filed comes from a Protestant group.
Do people just not care about one of the most brazen assaults on religious liberty ever lodged from the executive branch?
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Sep '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Catholic groups and blogs were lit up with it but its been crickets chirping in the mainstream media, though Slate has started running stories on the alarming features of Mormonism (cue the laugh track).
Sep '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Mollie, what was the motivation for the HHS to do this? These services are all pretty low-cost, particularly contraception. You can get condoms for 25 cents apiece plus shipping from Amazon. In all sincerity, why did they pick this fight? There must have been a rationalization of this somewhere.
Nov '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
I would like to understand how they have the authority. Is this part of Obamacare or have they simply decided to step up their destruction of liberty?
Edited on January 30, 2012 at 4:04pmAug '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
The reason we need Moonbase Gingrich is because we're soon going to have to flee the Old World due to crippling taxation and religious persecution. New America, here we come!
Sep '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Plus if the debates on Moonbase get too long, we can just deprive the debaters of oxygen. That would be pretty handy.
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
To quote HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius about why her agency is working so hard against those who support the sanctity of human life, "We are in a war."
And when you're in war, you go for every advantage you can. This administration recently lost its battle to argue that there is no "ministerial exception" to federal rules and regulations. They lost the battle unanimously, but it says something about how little they value religious freedom.
In general, though, in order for government-run health care insurance to work, exceptions are to be avoided. This is one of the many reasons I loathe Obamacare, but it's what we'll be seeing more of.
Politically, though, I can't help but think it unwise. Even liberal Catholics who fought tooth and nail for Obamacare are up in arms. This Michael Sean Winters piece is a must-read.
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Ken Owsley: I would like to understand how they have the authority. Is this part of Obamacare or have they simply decided to step up their destruction of liberty? · 8 minutes ago
Edited 8 minutes ago
Obamacare all the way!
Sep '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Even liberal Catholics who fought tooth and nail for Obamacare are up in arms. This Michael Sean Winters piece is a must-read.
He's a uniter, not a divider Mollie.
Apr '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
In terms of the logic behind it, it is as silly as legislation that says every restaurant in the country must provide a vegetarian option. In terms of the moral implications, to the pro-life crowd (of which I'm a proud member), it seems more like when the Nazis went into conquered territory and told all public and religious officials: "Give us your Jews"
Jun '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
People who--by lack of imagination--are only capable of seeing political motivations, see the Catholic Church as a political rival. So, they respond to it politically, and sometimes that's with the scorched-earth variety of politics.
Feb '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
"exceptions are to be avoided" Unless the exception is for Democrat supporters and donors.
Jan '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Well, I most certainly do. I've fired off a number of protest emails to my congressman and senators.
Even the unbearable EJ Dionne took Obama to task today in an op-ed that described how Obama ... dropped the ball, threw his supporters under the bus, covered his own behind with the radicals ... you know, the usual ...
Obama shows zero respect for everyone else, and I'm hard-pressed to come up with a reason to show him any.
May '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Not only was the Bishop's letter read at each Mass yesterday, it will be read again at each Mass next Sunday (at least here in Palm Beach). The letter has been or will be printed in the church bulletin so it can be read and any references to websites can be retained.
The Church is serious about this. The administration would do well to pay attention.
May '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Added thought: I have NEVER heard a priest refer to the U.S. Constitution during Mass before. I did yesterday.
Jul '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
The Catholic Church has been kicked out of countries before and it will be again. Kings come and Kings go but the Church endures. It is just sad that the country I love will not stand for the beliefs I hold.
It is truly troubling that President Obama a former constitutional law professor does not seem to understand the constitution, its greatness and its purpose.
Jan '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Unfortunately, if we're all waiting for the John Kerrys and Dick Durbins and Nancy Pelosis of the Democratic Party to throw some weight against this, I'm sure we'll get what we expect ... i.e., no help. They'll defend Obamacare. After all, the "Catholic" director of HHS has propelled the policy.
Sickening.
Mar '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
The rationalization is simple: to make us all guilty and complicit. Abortion is nothing less than a holocaust, and as the Nazis made the entire German people complicit, so too do the abortionists do the same to us. It is the line in the sand - to make us all hypocrites or criminals. To truly be pro-life now is to break the law.
Remember, they teach (with full media assistance) that pro-lifers are insane, inhumane, and anti-female empowerment. We're all just one step away from witch burning as far as they're concerned.
Remember, they see themselves as the victims here. It's the abortion clinics that get police protection, not the protestors, we're all just moments away from turning into a lynch mob.
This is a war on Christianity itself, nothing less. It is demonic in its entirety.
Jul '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
Ken Owsley: I would like to understand how they have the authority. Is this part of Obamacare or have they simply decided to step up their destruction of liberty? · 53 minutes ago
Edited 52 minutes ago
They have the authority the same way all governments do. They have the guns.
Aug '10
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
KC Mulville
Unfortunately, if we're all waiting for the John Kerrys and Dick Durbins and Nancy Pelosis of the Democratic Party to throw some weight against this, I'm sure we'll get what we expect ... i.e., no help. They'll defend Obamacare. After all, the "Catholic" director of HHS has propelled the policy.
Sickening. · 0 minutes ago
What we have here is 'failure to (ex-)communicate'.
Edited on January 30, 2012 at 5:01pmJun '11
Re: Obama's HHS: 'To Hell With You'
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof . . ."
I will not render my conscience to Caesar. This is really big.