Part-Time Pundit: June 2006 Archives

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June 29, 2006

Column : "Is Manliness a Virtue?"

This column has actually been up awhile but I was at a conference in DC and had the most insane travel experience getting there andback (stranded over night both ways, spent one night in the terminal at Detroit... etc). I never got around to posting my latest column at the DI, here it is:

Column: Manliness: Is it really a virtue? John Bambanek
Posted: 6/23/06

I just celebrated my first Father's Day as a father this year. That single day, once a year, is the solitary break from the typical societal hammering of fathers and men in general.

Take a look on any television show that features a father. Usually the father is a bumbling boob struggling to keep up with his much more intelligent wife. There exists not one single show that depicts an involved and intelligent father.

While Miller Lite commercials and puerile shows like "The Man Show" celebrate what they consider manliness - what they are really celebrating is boyishness.

This boyishness has been enshrined into the gold standard of male sexual expression by feminism.
Feminism, at least the branch typically described as feminism, holds two lies as truth: The first is that all men are basically as mature as a typical seventh grader, or more coarsely, they think only with their penis.

The second is that women can achieve fulfillment and happiness by imitating these "men". The problem is that neither of the above are true.

What has happened is that by holding up seventh-grade sexuality as the model to be imitated, many of the boys emulate what has been expected of them. It became socially acceptable for "men" to bound from bed to bed.
With this, along came date rape, objectification of women and the decline of any real commitment in marriage. The reason abstinence education "doesn't work" isn't because of abstinence. It is because in every direction society is telling boys to sleep with anything that walks.

This is most decidedly what manliness is not. Despite the claims of the "adult" entertainment industry, manhood is not glorified penis-idolatry. I enjoy meat and beer as much as the next guy, but that doesn't make me a man.

Manhood involves responsibility, taking on not only the responsibility of a job, but of raising children. Real men are directly involved in their children's lives and don't relegate the duties of parenting to woman.

Manhood involves being able to relate to a woman as a human person, not as a collection of a preferred set of genitalia. Real men can realize that women have intelligence and talents that are useful outside the home. They leave pornography to the boys.

They live lives with a purpose. While boys are running around looking for ways to amuse themselves, men are at the very least providing for their families.

More often, they are pursuing some noble end. The Founding Fathers were men. Hugh Hefner is a boy.

They love their wives. By love, I mean completely and for reasons going far beyond sexual gratification.

They don't view marriage as a relationship where they are recipients of benefits, but as a relationship where they invest their heart and soul into the woman they love, who in turn invests her heart and soul back.

Manhood should not be confused with boyishness and at least one day a year society seems to know the difference. Manliness is a virtue and a pillar of any good society and it is about time we stopped idolizing boyishness.

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June 28, 2006

Wictory Wednesday Presents Senator George Allen

This week Wictory Wednesday is supporting the reelection of Senator George Allen of Virginia. Sen. Allen has been a consistent supporter of conservative values in the Senate, earning a place in the ranks of the American Conservative Union's Best and Brightest.

Sen. Allen is a supporter of fiscal conservativism and introduced legislations to require a balanced budget. He also supported a law that would dock congressmen's paychecks if they failed to produce a budget by October 1st. The idea that legislators should be penalized for failure to do the few things they must do is one that should be whole-heartedly supported.

While Senator Allen does support accountability for school systems and supporting programs that succeed, support for school choice is notably lacking. There is no better accountability than allowing people to leave failing schools, taking tax dollars with them.

Illegal immigration is an issue many legislators are running away from while Senator Allen has the courage to take a stand. He understands what should be common-sense, immigrating legally is a good thing, immigrating illegally is a bad thing. It is obvious that decades of not enforcing immigration law hasn't worked and perhaps it's time we give law and order a chance. We don't need to demean the people who came here while the government basically said it wouldn't enforce the law, but that doesn't mean blanket amnesty… or for that matter, lavishing rewards on illegal immigrants.

Lastly, while it has become chic for members of Congress to suggest it's time to surrender to America's enemies and to proclaim that America is the cause of every world problem, Senator Allen understands that no victory came through surrender. The war on terror and Iraq are difficult problems that lesser men run away from by planting their heads in the sand. Winning the War in Iraq takes time and with plans for troop reductions under way, it's clear that "stay the course" is not only a strategy, but a strategy that's working.

Please considering donating to Sen. Allen's reelection campaign or volunteering your time.

This has been a production of the Wictory Wednesday blogburst. If you would like to join Wictory Wednesday, please see this post or contact John Bambenek at jcb (dot) blog [at] gmail {dot} com. The following sites are members of the Wictory Wednesday team:

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June 26, 2006

Rush Limbaugh found with Viagara, Left Triumphant

Apparently CBS in Florida reported that Rush Limbaugh was detained by customs... they found Viagara, and I'm sure the lefty blogs are triumphant and they'll be spouting dick jokes for weeks.

What a wonderful bottom-dwelling media we have.

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June 20, 2006

Wictory Wednesday Presents Diana Irey for Congress

This week Wictory Wednesday presents Diana Irey for US Congress. Diana is running against ex-Marine Rep. John Murtha from Pennsylvania who needs no explanation as to why he should be replaced. This race began as what seemed to be an uneventful race against an incumbent who not only didn't expect competition, but is planning on making a run to become House Minority Leader.

Diana Irey served for ten years as commissioner of Washington County and served on a number of boards and commissions bring jobs and fiscal discipline to the local government. She supports not only lower taxes but lower government spending. While Murtha's campaign seems to revolve around nothing else but the Iraq War (albeit an important issues), Irey is approaching running for office with a variety of stances on issues including supporting victory in Iraq and treating soldiers with respect, not as criminals.

Most importantly Diana is not a beltway bureaucrat and has served only in local offices until now. She will not only bring a local perspective to a seat that is held by an individual more concerned with his own national profile, she will support balanced budgets and intelligent policy-making to a Congress that has shown itself to be free with the money entrusted to it.

Please consider supporting the campaign of Diana Irey for the House of Representatives for the 12th District of Pennsylvania.

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Catholic Carnival - Corpus Christi Edition

Here's this week's Catholic Carnival, a weekly roundup of self-submitted posts from Catholic bloggers.

Reflections

Harrison Ayre at Witness to Hope presents Reflections on the Problem of Evil. "The Problem of Evil is one of the greatest problems that have ever plagued theologians and philosophers. How do we reconcile evil with a Good and Loving God?"
Audrey Yii at My Journey presents Being Too 'Salty'. "Jesus said Christians are called to be salts of the world. But how 'salty' should we be? This post is about my personal experience when I've added too much 'salt'."
Tom Reagan presents Maturing in a View of Jesus Through the Rosary. This is Part II in Tom's 3-part series Maturing in a View of Jesus, a View of Mary, and a View of Ourselves Through the Rosary. Part I is about maturing in a view of Mary, and Part III will be about maturing in a view of ourselves.

Elena LaVictoire at My Domestic Church presents A Teachable Spirit. "I post a lot about the difficulties of the Titus 2 responsibility and how it is difficult to live out that command. It is my opinion, that a great deal of that comes from an unteachable spirit in many young women today. I came across two examples of this in blogs by first time moms this week. "

Jay at Living Catholicism presents A Penitent Blogger presents Dark Accusations and Hard Questions, a reflection on our need to be diligent as servants of a just and merciful God"

The Feast of Corpus Christi

Leo Wong at Diary of a City Parishioner presents The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ with thoughts on the Real Presence.

Kevin Miller at HMS Blog presents The Sum of All Sacrifices, a reflection on the Mass readings for Corpus Christi, focusing on what sort of sacrifice the Eucharist is.

Father's Day

Christine at Ramblings of a GOP Soccer Mom presents National Review Roundup on Dads discussing how important fathers are.

Other Uncategorized Stuff

Herbery Ely at HerbEly presents Book Review: Just War, Lasting Peace: What Christian Traditions can Teach Us. This book is the result of a one-day invitational forum on the applicability of the Just War tradition to the modern world. Herb recommends the book but wishes that it had given more background on 1) the decline of war over the past twenty five years; 2) von Clausewitz's famous dictum about war being the continuation of politics; and 3) the context of turning the other cheek. He provides links to additional resources.

Rob at Crusader of Justice presents Summer Reading List on eight books with a Catholic theme to them that he really enjoyer many of them from his first year at Franciscan.

BarbaraSzyskiewicz at SFO Mom presents An Open Letter to Woman's Day Magazineon why one Catholic mom cannot, in good conscience, continue to
subscribe to this mainstream magazine.

Humor

cehwiedel at Kicking Over My Traces presents Bill Mauldin Collection

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June 16, 2006

A New Direction for America... Backwards.

Today, after months of waiting, the Democrats have come up with an agenda for 2006. First, some noticeably missing items.

Iraq. For as much as the Democrats continue to criticize the President's mishandling of the war, the peace, or whatever you want to call it, their direction does not highlight any meaningful alternative. How do they believe a free and secure Iraq should be created? Well, if Murtha has his way, apparently by surrendering to Al Qaeda.

National security. Apparently terrorism is not a problem because the polar ice caps are melting. Perhaps we were mistaken, it wasn't planes that flew into the World Trade Center on 9/11, it was chunks of ice from the North Pole. So while they are ignoring national security, they're stumping for Gore's movie.

Immigration. Millions of immigrants took to the streets in protest in recent months. Millions more legal residents have also made their views known. No matter where you stand, this is one of the most charged and important issues on the minds of the people, and on this issue the Democrats are silent.

Moving on to some of the core items of the Democrats platform from items that simply haven't been on the public radar to making current problems worse…

Raising minimum wage. Despite the fact that every time the minimum wage has been raised unemployment has gone up; they believe that having no job is better than being paid some less than some arbitrary number. There are more intelligent ways to get people earning enough to provide for their families, raising the minimum wage isn't one of them. There is a finite amount of money in circulation, those wage increases need to be paid for somehow. It ends up being either lay offs, cut benefits, higher prices (and cost of living), or a combination of all three.

Price gouging. Who isn't against price gouging? However, for as much as that legal term has been thrown around, there has not been any evidence provided to support that it is happening. After about two years of hearing that companies are breaking the law to stick it to Joe Consumer, I'd expect that someone would be able to prove it to nail their ass to the wall for it. However, after two years of complaining they haven't found any evidence, it is doubtful that giving them a majority will accomplish anything except more hearings with legislators bloviating on TV so it looks like they are "doing something".

Fiscal responsibility. One of the most appealing parts of the platform is restoring fiscal responsibility, however, the likely way of doing this will be to increase income to the treasury, not reducing spending. One of the key items to pay attention is that they specifically reference the fiscal discipline of the 90s… i.e. when Congress was run by Republicans. Cutting taxes is one thing, you have to cut spending along with it. At least on this point the Democrats are intellectually honest. They'll at least raise taxes to pay for their spending. If we want to talk about fiscal responsibility, let's start with earmark reform.

Slash student loan costs. This is pandering at its worst because student loans are almost essentially free. I know, because I have them. My wife's student loans are consolidated for an APR of 1.65%. In other words, I could take the money, put it in a savings account, and use the interest to pay off the loan and still turn a profit on the loan. I know students who take student loans for the express purpose of using that money and investing it earning 8%+. Student loans are an incredible deal. Inflation is about 3%, which makes those loans essentially trivial interest. The only thing that could be done to make those loans cheaper would be to pay students interest for taking them out.

Stop tax giveaways for outsourcing. If by tax-giveaways you mean that other countries don't tax the crap out of companies like we do, than you're right. However, how exactly are you going to start taxing companies that aren't in the US? Tariffs? Bring the entire world under the United States tax structure? No one is paying businesses to leave the US and outsource, it's simply far cheaper to hire labor overseas in some industries.

Stop wasteful subsidies, Support stem-cell research. These two items are directly at odds. If there are wasteful subsidies, by all means eliminate them. However, funding stem-cell research (particularly embryonic which is what they are talking about) is in itself a wasteful subsidy. Adult stem cell research is curing people, it works. Private money is coming in hand over fist for adult stem cell research. Embryonic stem cell research does not work, which is why they have no investors and need a handout. While it might give the Democrats yet another chance to kill millions more babies and start treating people less as human beings and more as crops to be cultivated for parts, it remains that this science doesn't work.

The Democratic platform here doesn't address most of the issues important to Americans. The three top issues are Iraq, gas prices, and immigration for Congress. Health care is low on the list. Social security is absent. Stem cell research is absent. The minimum wage is absent.

Once again, we're faced with a party unwilling to tackle the big issues that Americans care about. It would be nice in 2006 to have a real choice between candidates, and it looks like the Democratic party has deprived us once again.

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DI Column Up: Cashing In / How to Become an Illegal Immigrant

You can read it here, or quoted below:

During last semester's immigration protests in Champaign, the migrant community wanted to be accepted as Americans and treated as equals. The United States Senate has gone well above and beyond anything they asked for.
The Senate bill will not only grant amnesty, it will actually reward immigrants for braving the desert illegally. Far from being treated as the equals of Americans or legal immigrants, the package offered to them surpasses even the rights and privileges enjoyed by citizens who have lived here for decades.

First, under the bill, illegal immigrants will need to pay three out of the last five years of back taxes to the government. Or, to put it another way, every illegal immigrant gets a two-year break from paying taxes.

Second, the bill would require that they are paid the "prevailing wage" (much higher than minimum wage) for agricultural work. Also, they are granted job protection measures in federal law far beyond what is available to normal Americans and legal immigrants who can be fired for any reason or no reason at all.

Third, they can be paid Social Security benefits based on their employment in the United States while using forged Social Security numbers. With 40 million people having used the Social Security number 000-00-0000, it is clear this measure will generate massive fraud and accelerate the bankruptcy of Social Security.

Many pundits have complained that the proposal to lavish money on illegal immigrants is pandering at its worst. However, instead of complaining about legislators trying to buy new voters, there is a far better solution to this congressional excess. Become an illegal immigrant, too.

Here's how: Take a vacation to Mexico and stop by a U.S. embassy there. Renounce your citizenship and give them your passport. Then travel back to the United States using your driver's license or birth certificate. Congratulations, you are now an illegal immigrant - your La Raza membership card is in the mail.

To take advantage of the two-year tax holiday, return to your job and get a new W-4. In box 7, write "exempt." Do the same for your Illinois W-4. This will stop all tax withholding from your paycheck. Alternatively, get your employer to pay you on a 1099, which has no tax or other withholding. Stop filing tax returns.

Then apply for the amnesty program which will require you to pay back taxes for three of the last five years (which you've already paid). You have now legally evaded taxes for two years.

Now, as an illegal immigrant from Mexico, you can demand affirmative action to get into grad school ahead of those equally qualified (or even a little more qualified). Out-of-state students take note; you can now demand in-state tuition.

Some might say this is cheating the system. I say it is demanding your fair share. The defining image of this nation is an outstretched hand waiting to be paid. It's time we all cash in on the entitlement culture before the government's checks start to bounce.

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June 14, 2006

Radio Interview on Extreme Wisdom

In about 5 minutes, I'll be on the Extreme Wisdom radio show on WKRS. Will post more on what was talked about and possible have a podcast link a bit later... stay tuned on this post.

UPDATE 1:
Topics discussed, Champaign Unit 4 schools, CU Smoking Ban, and the Rex Bradfield - Naomi Jakobsson race.

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FairTax Blogburst: A Really Voluntary Tax Structure

Here's this week's FairTax blogburst.

by Terry of The Right Track

There are many reasons to support the FairTax. I managed to do a little research, and found some rather unique points of view that I had not previously considered, and was reminded of some previously-covered ideas that are still worth mentioning.

For the most part, the FairTax is voluntary. If you want to pay the tax, purchase a new house, car, motor home, etc. If you want to avoid the tax, purchase a used house, car, motor home, etc. The tax only applies to new items.

No one will ever need to take out a loan to pay taxes, interest, or penalties again, as can all too often happen under our current system.

Drug dealers and other criminals, as well as anyone else currently paid "under the table", will pay taxes if they purchase new items. Ever seen a drug dealer driving a used car? Ever seen a pimp shopping at Goodwill? I didn't think so.

Lower income families working multiple jobs get a fantastic incentive to work now, knowing that zero Federal taxes will be withheld from their paychecks. Most of the money from the second job can be applied to whatever previously unaffordable luxury they wish -- perhaps including, for the first time, a home of their own?

With the abolition of the death tax, homes, farms, and land which might previously have had to be sold to satisfy the government's unquenchable thirst for money can now be retained and kept in the family. In cases where the property has been in the family for multiple generations, can you imagine the gratitude of the family?

Friends and family can now actually help each other out with tax-free assistance, since the gift tax will be abolished.

Businesses can actually lower their cost of doing business since they won't be paying the current 7.65% matching FICA tax for each employee.

It's even a good deal for the environment -- think of all the paper we'll save by not having to file taxes!

But even with all this, we must remember that the FairTax initiative is a grassroots effort. If your Senator or Representative does not support the FairTax, find out why. Then let them know that you do support it. Make phone calls, write letters. Let your friends and family know the details of the FairTax, and why you believe it is such a good deal for Americans. Only through the diligent and concerned efforts of ordinary citizens will these bills ever make it through to the floors of the House and Senate.

The FairTax Blogburst is jointly produced by Terry of The Right Track Blog and Jonathan of Publius Rendezvous. If you would like to host the weekly postings on your blog, please e-mail Terry or Jonathan. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll.

TD

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June 13, 2006

DI is back!

The Daily Illini is back in print for the summer. Look forward to my columns on Fridays, and for the record, my first column (6/16) is a satire for those who are satire-impaired.

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Wictory Wednesday Presents Rep. Jean Schmidt

This week Wictory Wednesday is supporting the reelection of Jean Schmidt to the House of Representatives.

Congresswoman Schmidt is a supporter of private property rights against the rising level of abuse of eminent domain by cities and states. Emiment domain is the widely criticized practice by which local governments kick you out of your home, pay you a (now very deflated) price for your house, and then hand it over to big business. Some of the rampant abuse of eminent domain has had governments pay only $1 for property worth over a million, and the City of New London charging "back rent" for citizens who exercise their legal rights and challenged the city's eminent domain action in court. Congresswoman Schmidt is commited to ending the abuse of local governments by curtailing eminent domain.

Representative Schmidt has been a strong proponent of fiscal responsibility and has cosponsored legislation to give the President a line-item veto to help curtail the abuse of earmarks tagged on to legislation. She also understands that part and parcel of cutting taxes is reducing spending, not increasing it.

Lastly, Representative Schmidt understands that a nation worthy of the title of nation must secure it's borders. This is not to say all legal immigration should be stopped, but it should be a matter of common sense that immigration should be regulated and orderly. While it may be difficult to craft a a solution to illegal immigration, it does not follow that an open-borders, full amnesty, and large payoff to illegals is the way to go.

Please consider donating to Representative Schmidt's campaign or volunteering your time.

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Frog-Marching Fantasies Are Over

Rove will not be charged for anything over the Plame game. So after 2 years investigation they have a shaky indictment on Libby and no one charged with leaking the identity of SooperSekret Special Agent 007 Valerie Plame.

It's shaping up to be a bad summer for the Left. Zarqawi dead, Rove exonerated....

UPDATE:
Apparently the link above no longer works, do this one... but you've heard the news by now anyway.

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June 10, 2006

Quote from me Featured in "School Reform News"

The June 2006 issue of School Reform News quotes this column I wrote on Champaign Unit 4 Schools. (Page 6, "In Other Words").

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June 6, 2006

FairTax Blogburst: Tax Reform Still Alive

Here's the latest FairTax blogburst.

It's Still Alive! by Ms.Underestimated

Folks, I told you about the good news Congressman John Linder gave us about an impending face-to-face with President Bush about the Fair Tax, and now the word is out! The Gwinnett Daily Post catches us up on this great news:

FairTax still kicking
06/04/2006

By: Dave Williams

Many political observers were ready to bury U.S. Rep. John Linder’s FairTax bill last fall when President Bush’s tax reform commission gave the back of its hand to the proposed national sales tax.

The panel chose to recommend tweaking the current income tax system rather than such a dramatic overhaul of the way the federal government collects the revenue it needs to operate.

But the FairTax won’t go away. During a raucous public rally in Gwinnett County last month in support of the legislation, Linder, R-Duluth, announced that he is being offered an opportunity to present the bill to the president and House Republican leaders.

He will meet this week with the House GOP leadership, then head to the White House on a date yet to be set — accompanied by House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. — to outline his bill to Bush.

So much for the demise of the FairTax.

“The national sales tax is very much like Freddy,’’ said University of Virginia political scientist Larry Sabato, referring to the main character in countless installments of the “Nightmare on Elm Street” horror movie series. “It just refuses to die.’’

See? I TOLD you so! It’s POSSIBLE! And that’s not all - the Gwinnett Rally was just the beginning:

A capacity crowd of 4,500 jammed the Gwinnett Convention Center for last month’s rally, which featured Linder, Atlanta-based syndicated radio talk show host Neal Boortz and Sean Hannity of the Fox Television Network.

“We think there were 3,000 people turned away,’’ Linder said. “I was amazed.’’

The event was so successful that Linder and Boortz are talking about following it up with a series of rallies. Linder said they’re looking at Orlando, Fla., as the next stop.

Okay you guys, here’s your next chance. We gotta stick together and make this happen. If you live in the southeast (or anywhere else, for that matter), I urge you to call your local radio talk shows and implore them to get Neal Boortz, John Linder, Sean Hannity, and whoever else is on board with the Fair Tax, to come hold a rally in YOUR area! If we keep up this momentum, this could truly be a present-day Boston Tea Party that we have on our hands. It’s time to get the government out of our lives, and as John Linder said that night “it’s none of the government’s business how much money I make.” YES!

We’ve got to be vigilant, though, as well all know there are those detractors out there who want to stop us:

The FairTax also faces competition from other proposals aimed at overhauling the current system, including the flat tax on incomes once championed on the presidential campaign trail by Republican Steve Forbes.

“The vast majority agree the tax code needs drastic revision,’’ Sabato said. “The problem is nobody agrees on what the revision should be. … There just isn’t a national consensus for it or anything close to it.’’

But Sabato gives Linder high marks for persistence.

“He is trying to plant the seed,’’ Sabato said. “Who knows whether the seed may sprout and even flower? On the other hand, the seed may die in the ground.’’

My friends, we can’t let that seed die in the ground. We must keep nourishing it with our voices. If we can get 1, 2, 4 or 50 more rallies like this going, we will send a loud and clear message to Washington: “I WANT MY FAIR TAX!”

Also, send these radio stations copies of the Fair Tax book. I know it has been previously called for us to send copies to our representatives, but I’m sure they’ve gotten their copies already. It’s the people of this country we need to change - the Congress is hopeless. If your local talk show hosts can believe in this, then this movement will carry forward. You can buy them here. The government cannot ignore an informed country. The time is now!

The FairTax Blogburst is jointly produced by Terry of The Right Track Blog and Jonathan of Publius Rendezvous. If you would like to host the weekly postings on your blog, please e-mail Terry or Jonathan. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll.

Posted by John Bambenek at 11:06 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Wictory Wednesday: Rep. Mark Kennedy for US Senate

This week, Wictory Wednesday presents US Rep. Mark Kenney for the Senate in Minnesota. Having served 3 terms in the US House of Representatives, he has the advantage of name recognition in the state.

Current the race is to replace retiring Senator Mike Dayton (D) and is considered to be a race where the Republicans stand a chance in picking up a seat in the Senate.

Mark Kennedy spent 20 years as a CPA before entering politics, which brings with it the hope that when he gets to the Senate he might help his fellow Senators on their problem of spending more than they have. He has come out against the spending habits, and the "earmark" process specifically. A particular reform he mentions which is unique is giving the President a line-item veto that allows the President to veto specific clauses in legislation instead of having only an up-or-down say. This increase in the accountablility of the Congress will only help the problem of a tax-and-spend Congress.

Rep. Kennedy understands that the best way to educate children is to put control of the schools in the hands on local officials and parents, not Washington or detached bureaucrats.

Lastly, he realizes that the path to a better health care system is not further detaching patients and doctors from the decision-making process. Our health care system is designed so that insurance companies don't have to meaningfully answer to their customers which results in what every economist would expect, a system that doesn't meet the consumer's needs.

With public opinion of Congress at an all-time low, Rep. Kennedy provides one of the few examples of someone who has some ideas and fights for them. Please see his website and donate or help his campaign.

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Yet Another Great Idea - Are we all Democrats now?

I got an idea on how to deal with Iran!

Let's give them the same deal that North Korea broke when we gave it to them. We're only America, of course we should grovel to third-world crackpots!

It's not like they've ever invaded an embassy or anything.

Posted by John Bambenek at 9:47 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 4, 2006

The Economics of Life

The pro-life movement is celebrating victories that after over 30 years of Roe v Wade, the scourge of abortion, at least public support for it, has waned and is now the minority position. South Dakota passed an outright abortion ban believing the time was right to challenge the law. Poll after poll demonstrates that the public knows that conception is the "moment that changes everything" where a new life is created and begins its journey to birth. Are we a pro-life nation then? The answer to that question is still no.

It seems a contradiction to say that while most oppose abortion that it does not follow the nation has become pro-life. That is, until you take a look at the new battlefields of the pro-life movement. Terri Schiavo is the most popular example.

An unbiased observer would certainly be taken aback at the concept of the individual making decisions for Terri was her husband that has since gotten engaged to another woman and had two children with her. There is an obvious conflict of interest there. However, the public was largely unconcerned with that.

The point where support for Terri fell the most was when the cameras showed images of Terri Schiavo to the world. The public saw someone who was unmistakably alive but unmistakably having a "low quality of life". Most felt that it was not worth being alive in those circumstances. Suddenly, it didn't matter what Michael Schiavo's motivations were or his conflict of interest. He was making the "right" decision to end a life not worth living.

It is known that the abortion movement grew out of the eugenics movement and it should come as no surprise that the husband of the lawyer who litigated Roe v Wade lobbied Bill Clinton to approve RU-486, not for easy access to abortion or women's rights, but because "twenty-six million food stamp recipients is (sic) more than the economy can stand." It isn't about life, it is about a productive life (in Ron Weddington's case, where the financial output is greater than the input).

This can also been seen in the recent burst of "futile care" cases (where hospitals unilaterally decide who should die independent of the families wishes or objections). While few would argue that those who are alive only with the help of life support equipment (i.e. respirators, not a feeding tube) can be "unplugged", futile care laws have been used to try to kill children, including a child perfectly able to heal, the uninsured, and Katrina evacuees that were "no worth moving". With talk of universal health care, one wonders if that will finally put complete control on whether (poor) patients should be left untreated.

One could argue that doctors know best and if they determine care is futile, then it really is. However, in the case of Haleigh (the girl who recovered above), doctors can and are wrong. Medical advances developed a year later may have helped Terri Schiavo recover. Then there is the case of just using futile care law to avoid dealing with poor and uninsured patients and leaving them to die legally. After all, more is going in to them than is coming out.

Going back to the original premise, it can be seen that the nation isn't becoming more pro-life, per se. What has lead to the downfall of support of abortion is the realization that unborn children have the potential to be productive citizens save some external force that prevents them. The rise of an anti-abortion culture is the convergence of pro-life forces with those who believe that the potential of productive life should be allowed.

Where the pro-life movement has yet to engage in is the rising notion of reducing human life to matters of economics. Taking whatever subjective equation is used, if someone comes out having a "negative" balance they can be killed. If they have a positive balance, they can live. This quantification system, even if it aligns with those against abortion, is decidedly not pro-life, usually because the poor and minorities (however they are determined) tend to cluster on the "negative" balance side of the equation.

The value of a human life has been determined. The problem is that those subjective measures mean that the most vulnerable in society will be the ones most likely to be considered "without value". Fighting against the valuation of life is the next big pro-life challenge.

Posted by John Bambenek at 11:42 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 2, 2006

Haditha, the Laws of War, and the Terrorists

If the Marines at Haditha started indiscriminately killing civilians, they should pay for their crimes. I want that clear right now. The point of this piece is not to defend their actions. However, there are those who never cease the chance to start throwing corpses at political opponents who are using this event to paint the military as a bunch of baby-killers or "prove" the policy of the United States is just to start killing people wherever they are. Unlike disgraced ex-Marine Murtha (he disgraced himself after his service), I'm willing to let the facts be heard and a fair trail be had before trying to score political points on the backs of others.

There are laws of war in place to prevent this kind of thing. They've been in place hundreds of years before anyone conceived of a United Nations. At each step, the terrorists (and they are terrorists) have not only violated the laws of war, but used those laws of war against us to further attacks on our soldiers.

First, a military uniform was not created to give something for the woman to oogle at (though it is certainly effective at that). A uniform is a public statement to the enemy that you can shoot the person wearing it. Plain and simple, a military uniform is a full-body bull's-eye. Why would any government want their soldiers to wear them then? Simple. It let's both sides easily figure out who the civilians are so they don't engage them. When the terrorists don't wear uniforms, they might be able to eek out another kill or two, but they also but their own civilian population at risk because it becomes impossible to tell who is a combatant and who is not.

Second, the laws of war dictate you don't attack civilian structures such as schools, houses, and churches. This should be obvious why this is so, but the rule comes with a caveat. The price for not getting your residential areas attacked is that you don't use them for fighting to begin with. Many like to make much of the fact that US military has attacked mosques. What those same people refuse to acknowledge is that those buildings were used as weapon's stores, sniper nests, and central places to coordinate attacks on the US military. The military was left with two options; either engage the enemy or surrender. It is not the US's fault that fighting involved mosques, it was the terrorists defiled those buildings from houses of worship to dens of killing.

Third, when an enemy surrenders the fighting is over. Once an enemy affects his surrender by throwing up a white flag, raising his arms, or getting wounded they are no longer valid targets of attack. This also comes with a caveat. The surrendering person may no longer fight. Once they pick up a weapon, they are a fair target again. When the terrorists use our mercy against us, they put at risk those who legitimately want to surrender. Is this one going to pull out a grenade on us when we get close or does he really want medical care?

This is not an exhaustive list of all the ways that the terrorists have violated the laws of war but a mere few examples. These laws are not western impositions on the world but practices developed over centuries to minimize the abuses that could come with war. Almost every nation at least says they are going to respect these customs because they want to protect their own civilian population, even though some tactical benefit could be derived from violating those customs of war.

The terrorists simply don't care about the civilian population. If the military mistakenly engages civilians or they hit civilian buildings after taking fire from them, the terrorists mark up another PR victory because of the willingness of the allies on the American left to use these incidents for political gain. In this way, the terrorists are extremely intelligent… and incredibly evil.

So those who wish to sit in judgment against the Marines at Haditha (before the investigation is even completed, mind you) manage to put on the blinders and refuse to consider how the actions of the terrorists almost guarantee these events will happen. If these Marines did snap and break the laws of way, they will be tried and punished. It is a damn shame, however, no one seems to blink and eye and stand up for the soldiers who have to put up with an enemy who consistently break the laws of war. It's a national disgrace that some will stand up for the actions of those terrorists as legitimate.

Posted by John Bambenek at 11:20 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack