Bravo, President Obama

Obama has signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and I’m happy about it.  Finally, something we can agree on.

My relationship with guns

It’s complicated.  The Justice Party platform endorses gun rights.  I’m a firm believer in the second amendment, and the right to protect yourself and your family.

That said, I am personally very uncomfortable with firearms.  Although my ex-boyfriend and my uncle both visit the gun range on a regular basis, I’ve never so much as touched a gun.  My pro-life, pacifist side doesn’t sit well with it.

My practical side tells me that I really ought to learn how to handle a weapon.  My pride hurts to admit this, but I’m puny.  Sure, I’ve taken the self-defense class offered by the university.  I avoid being alone in sketchy places and so on.  But if I ever found myself face to face with a 6′2″ rapist with muscles, the question would be one of mere survival.  I’d like to have better odds.

When/if I finally suck it up and exercise my Constitutional right to purchase a firearm, I’ll let you know.

Politics and Religion: Touchy Subject, I Know

As I mentioned in my last post, there was one thing that bugged me (and the rest of my group) about the SFLA conference.  It was the implicit assumption that everyone in attendance was at least Christian, and probably Catholic.

I’m not saying that this assumption was necessarily wrong.  After all, it’s fairly easy for pro-life student groups at Catholic schools to thrive and get the funding to go to the conference, compared to secular liberal arts colleges like mine.  But I can’t help but wonder how many non-Christians are not in attendence due to pro-life leadership re-enforcing the stereotype of itself as basically synonymous with the “religious right.”  During dinner, my friend Emma summed up the problem succinctly- she had a great time, but if she weren’t Christian, the conference would have really turned her off.

The problem came up in the break-off session on recruitment, when someone asked about bringing in non-Christians.  The presenter gave the example of “one club that’s hosting a gay pro-life group, if you’re comfortable with that.”  (That club is ours.)  So they were open to the idea.  But in the opening and closing ceremonies, the conference took on a decidedly religious tone, with inspiring stories of being called to pray for forty days outside an abortion clinic, and to remember that with God all things are possible.

The late Tom Sena- a Christian, and former president of the gay pro-life group we’re hosting in April- wrote:

But abortion proponents, not to mention the media, have seized on our pervasive Christian religiosity with delight. It hands them, gratis, innumerable chances to assert: “They’re trying to ram their religion down your throats!” Why shouldn’t the undecided believe them, when that is exactly how it appears? We ourselves have made this possible, and we have only ourselves to blame.

To make a long story short, I have been giving thought to starting my own non-profit to address this issue.  It probably won’t get started up until this summer, but I want to share my ideas and see what you think.  It will be called Pro-Life Union for Secularity, or PLUS.

First and foremost, it will exist to promote secular pro-life arguments.  It will not be anti-religion, but it will not allow religious ideas to mesh with medical and legal ones.  It will produce literature, make the secular pro-life voice heard in the media, and perhaps someday open a chain of pregnancy clinics.  It will promote research to create a PASS recovery program that is neither pro-abortion propoganda nor a Bible study, which are the only things really available right now.

My biggest concern is that some Christian ethicists may say that, when faced with a woman or family in crisis, not sharing the power of the Gospel is wrong.  I’m not sure where I personally stand on that.  What I do know is that we need the support of people from every (and no) religious background in order to make abortion unthinkable in the United States and around the world.

As Promised: My Trip to March for Life 2009

Late Wednesday night: We arrived in Washington, D.C. and settled in to our hotel.

Thursday: We woke up early and visited the Library of Congress.  Then, it was off to the march!  The attendance was huge- an estimated 300,000 marchers.  A large percentage of those were students.  The sense of community was wonderful and I wish I had attended the march sooner.  Some of the more creative slogans I saw/heard were:

• “Catholic University of America!” “Is pro-life! DUH.”
• Leave the earth for children and children for the earth
• “Pro-child/Pro-choice” = Pro-pig/pro-bacon
• Life begins at conception, not consensus

Having made our way to the Supreme Court building, the crowd dispersed and we went to eat.  We ended up at a Spanish tapas restaurant in Chinatown, which was much better than it sounds.

Friday: We visited Arlington Cemetery in the morning, and had the bizarre experience of seeing Justice Blackmun’s grave (the Roe v Wade justice for whom the Blackmun Wall is named).  Naturally we also watched the changing of the guard.  On Friday evening, we got dressed up and attended the Life Prizes ceremony, during which six pro-life activists were awarded $100,000 each.  I got to have a chat with one of the winners- Donna Harrison, the president of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Saturday: The Students for Life of America conference was sold out.  It began with a talk from Steven Wagner, who gave a good talk about having productive conversations and building common ground.  There was TONS of free literature and products, and even what they did charge for was pretty cheap.  I got more brochures than I can count, fetal models, DVDs, t-shirts… enough to last our club for another five years, even though we’ll be back to the conference in just one.  I also got great tips on expanding membership, had a great conversation with representatives from Feminists for Life, and generally sucked every last molecule out of the experience.  (There’s one thing that bothered me, but that’s for the next post.)

Sunday: Although I’m not Catholic, the rest of the students in my group are, and they wanted to go to the National Basilica.  I’m glad I tagged along, because it is so beautiful.  Then it was off to the National Archives, where we stayed just long enough to peek at the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights.  After days of activism, it all came back to these short founding documents, affirming our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

The last event of the trip was when the D.C. metro shut down, I tried not to run around like a chicken with my head cut off in panic, and we just caught our flight home.  Good times.

White House 2

Just a quick post encouraging you to check out White House 2, a community where you can endorse/oppose political priorities and track their progress.  Registration is free.  I’ll post again when I get back from D.C., and I’ll have lots of pictures!

National Day of Service

This Monday, which is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Obamas invite you to honor MLK’s vision by volunteering in your community.  Their website lists a number of great volunteer opportunities.  Of course, you need not limit yourself to the events listed.  Some other ideas:

• Do your spring cleaning early this year and make a donation to Goodwill or Salvation Army.
• Give money to a local student organization, especially one that is just starting up (like this one).  I’ve been there, and trust me, your gift will go a long way.  It’s as easy as calling up your local high school or college department of student activities.
• Start microlending at Kiva, volunteer at your local pregnancy center, or give to any of Justice Party’s good causes.

I won’t be able to participate, as I will be getting ready for the March for Life in Washington, D.C.  This may cause me to miss a few days’ posts but I’ll be sure to give you a full report upon my return.

Closing Guantanamo

Barack Obama appears to be making good on his campaign promise (shared by McCain) to close the Gitmo prison in Guantanamo Bay.  The fate of its prisoners is highly unclear.  Some are clear to go home but for opposition from their home countries; others are too dangerous to release, but will have the right to a fair and speedy trial once transferred to U.S. soil.

Of course, incarceration in a mainland prison does not guarantee that the prisoners’ rights will be fully honored.  The domestic prison system is plagued with various degrees of abuse.  However, I doubt that it will be as bad as what has been reported from Gitmo; even if it is, there is at least the advantage of having it occur right here at home, where people might actually care.

Throughout this post I have assumed that the  human rights violations occuring in Guantanamo are inherently bad.  I’m sure some will disagree with me.  Certainly, at least some of the Gitmo prisoners are guilty of horrible crimes against humanity.  We may legitimately ask why we should care about their rights, when they have so grossly disregarded the rights of others.  But in the United States, the time for punishment is after conviction in court.  I have no doubt that there are many guilty people in Guantanamo, and once the proper legal processes are taken care of I have no problem with them spending the rest of their miserable lives in prison.  But if even one Guantanamo prisoner is found innocent in court, after years of torture and indignity, it will be on our nations’ conscience.

Bush Showed Restraint with Iran

The New York Times reports that Bush rejected an Israeli proposal to attach Iran last year, going with a covert program instead.

According to the Times, Bush decided against an overt attack based on input from top administration officials such as Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who believed that doing so would likely prove ineffective and could ignite a broader Middle East war.

Sounds like he possibly learned something from Iraq?

Defense of Marriage Act

Tomorrow, LGBT activists around the country will be gathering in opposition to the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).  DOMA’s author, Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr, has recently opined that the act should be repealed.  He argues that, while DOMA was originally meant to preserve federalism and states’ rights, it “is not working out as planned.”

First of all, let me congratulate Bob Barr for having the courage to publicly change his mind and share his thoughts.  We need more politicians who are willing to do that.  The law isn’t working out.  But the question that needs to be addressed, is why?

I believe that whenever an issue is framed in terms of natural rights, compromise legislation is doomed to fail.  The Missouri Compromise on slavery was doomed to fail, as was “separate but equal” educational policy.  I love the Constitutional principle of federalism as much as anyone else, but nobody truly believes that the possession of a natural right is dependent on one’s state of residence.  Once the gay rights movement convinces enough people that there exists a natural right to marry the person of one’s choosing, DOMA-style federalism just isn’t going to cut it.

Planned Parenthood Indiana Update

New investigation gives pretty convincing evidence that PP of Indiana is drastically underreporting the number of abortions done at its clinics.

As my mother likes to say, “Let me put on my surprise face.”