Things that make me go hmmmm....

I just got an email asking me to go sign a petition to stop Obama from repealing the Conscience Clause, a legislation allowing medical workers to be excused from performing medical procedures or even offering medical advice that they are morally opposed to. Of course the big deal is about abortion but it actually covers anything from birth control to vaccinations, or anything else that someone may find themselves morally opposed to doing.

At first glance, of course, we should all jump on and not want this repealed. No one should be forced to participate in a procedure, medical or otherwise that they feel is wrong!

Except,
uh,
no one is FORCING anyone.

What happened to the individual standing up for their beliefs?
Have we SERIOUSLY come so far away from personal responsibility that we need the government to give us a free pass so that we can take our morally superior position but not have to really stand up for it?

Of course it's possible that I have indeed missed something. That if this is repealed then doctors and nurses are facing jail time for not performing abortions. But I find that hard to believe.
I think they are possibly facing censure at work, maybe even having their jobs threatened.
I'm not making light of that, I'm truly not.

However, to say that (as the petition in question was worded) if this is repealed then health care workers will be FORCED into doing things they find morally wrong, well, it's just isn't true.

If I can't face opposition or even the possibility of losing my job to stand up for my convictions... I don't think they are much of a conviction. A preference sure, but a conviction?

Let me clarify, I hope that the longstanding (30 years) protection allowing healthcare workers to opt out of abortion is left intact--from what I can read, it is not being threatened, it's the very new legislation (enacted inauguration morning) that is going to be repealed. I'm honestly not sure of the implications of the new wording and how it differs from this old legislation. Also, since this legislation was only enacted 2 months ago, how is its removal really going to effect anyone? Bush was in office for 8 years. If this was THAT important, why wasn't it brought about sooner? Methinks it was done merely to make a point... and that it was done with the full expectation that it would immediately be repealed. GREAT use of our tax dollars, hey? Of course, it has served a higher purpose of giving the Right a new maypole to dance around, that's always nice.

(no way, my tongue is no where near my cheek!)

My point is... when is a conviction a conviction? When is it a preference? Are you willing to lose your job to stand up for what you think is right?

My real issue is with the wording of the petition... very whiny, self-righteous, if the gov't won't give me an umbrella to hide under then there is nothing I can do about it.
Bull-ony (that's Bologna for those of you who don't spell phonetically).

I think what the issue here is that we have been living fat and happy in the land of the free for so long that we have NO idea what it would be like to face real opposition for our beliefs, religious or otherwise.

One good thing that did come out of this is that Jeff and I had quite a discussion hammering out which of our actions are based on conviction and which are based on preference. For instance, we discovered that while we feel very strongly about homeschooling, homeschooling is not a conviction and we would not go to jail over it. Parents raising their children is the conviction and homeschooling is a great way to act upon that conviction. That conviction would be directly thwarted if they were taken away from us while we were jailed. Of course, that is a worst case scenario (although one that is entirely too real in much of Europe) and we continue to support our homeschool legislative group to protect our right to act upon our conviction.

So anyway... I'll be worried if they try to repeal the long-standing law protecting health care providers moral choice; The future nurses of AMerica or whatever that group is needs to grow up and stop whining, or at least stop the gross misrepresentation shown by that petition; and, it does one good to occasionally stop and take stock in what you truly believe.