Catholic Bishops whine and Chris Matthews and EJ Dionne think the end of the world is coming. The amazing thing about watching pundits on television is how little they know. Listening to Mathews, Dionne, or Chuck Todd talk about how mandating contraceptive coverage in religiously affiliated institutions is going to lead to Catholics voting against Obama in huge numbers, one has to wonder if they know anything about actual Catholic voters.
As has been pointed out repeatedly around the internets, huge majorities of Catholics support Obama’s position on the issue. Also, despite the caterwauling by Bishops, many of the Catholic affiliated institutions already provide contraceptive care in their health care plans. One might think they are being disingenuous or something. But the great intelligentsia is convinced the Bishops equal Catholic opinion and repeat stupid claims about how this will hurt the President while there is no evidence it will and some evidence it might even help.
But more than anything what stuns me about this whole deal is that similar coverage is already mandated in 28 states. The Bishops have started a fight over an issue they lost years ago and pundits have gone along for the ride. I long ago gave up any hope that television pundits knew anything about public policy, but the annoying thing is their stubbornness in staying ignorant while pontificating on it for weeks.
As I have been railing about for 8 years, this is another battle in the war on making anything sexual icky and tut tutting about slutty women who do nothing more than act like normal human beings. Mature human beings understand that sex is a normal part of life and sexual health is like any other health care issue. However, our chattering classes constantly cave to a bunch of ninnies who treat the entire subject as somehow strange and dangerous.
People, those average people on the street pundits like to claim to understand, use contraception and not only is that okay, it’s a good thing. Planning being a parent is a very good thing–it’s what a responsible adult does.
Santorum, the Bishops, and other scolds want to deny reality on sex and adults because they think they know better what women should be doing with their bodies. It’s time to tell them to grow up and act like mature adults.
I think there is also a slippery slope concern here. Where is the line between what the feds can and can not do when it comes to religion, the first amendment goes both ways. I think that is why you are seeing some concern from faith groups that don’t have a problem with BC because of concerns on what is next.
May not be logical, but just like people who get concerned every time something religious gets near a government entity (a cross on public property for example) there is an inverse concern as well. If I don’t say anything when they try and work around someone else’s theology I have no right to complain when they do it around my theology.