Important headlines for May 22nd - God's gays and subsidized abortions
Bottom Line: These are stories you shouldn't miss and my takes on them...
LGBT community cheers pope's 'God made you like this' remark - Sun Sentinel
Excerpt: Pope Francis’ reported comments to a gay man that “God made you like this” have been embraced by the LGBT community as another sign of Francis’ desire to make gay people feel welcomed and loved in the Catholic Church.
Hot Take: This is first of two social issues I decided to address today. I'll probably offend most people by the time I'm done with both. In the case of this first story I'm glad to hear this story from the Pope. Few people have the potential to impact more people with a potential change in sentiment than the Pope. Simply put, if you're a believer, you believe we're all God's children with self-determination, right? But regarding predisposition...did you have a choice? If you're heterosexual did you "choose" to be heterosexual? It wasn't even a consideration because it was natural right? Why would it have been anything different for homosexuals (except for often a more difficult path of understanding/acceptance). Why would anyone choose for a harder path/life? And if you believe we're all God's children – what the Pope's doing could prove to be profound.
Trump Takes Taxpayers Out of the Abortion Business Marjorie Dannenfelser, RCP
Excerpt: Last week the Trump administration took decisive action on the president’s pledge to disentangle taxpayers from the abortion industry, delivering a policy win that promotes better health care alternatives for women and may save countless lives.
The Protect Life Rule stops taxpayer funding of abortion through the Title X family planning program. Most Americans agree that abortion is not family planning and oppose taxpayer-funded abortion. The Protect Life Rule does not cut a single dollar from family planning. It instead directs tax dollars to Title X centers that do not promote or perform abortions, such as the growing number of community and rural health centers. There are already more than 3,000 Title X service sites nationwide – including state and county health departments, community health centers, and nonprofit clinics – where women and families are already accessing comprehensive preventative and primary care, not abortion.
Hot Take: There are currently 325.7 million Americans. Since Roe V. Wade there have been 63.2 million abortions. That's the equivalent of 1 in 5 Americans since 1973. It's a number that's hard to fathom in context. The good news is that abortions have been trending downward, under a million last year. This is an issue that's seldom discussed in media because it's considered a lose-lose for those who espouse a perspective openly about the topic. As is always the case I don't shy away from an issue based on the perceived popularity of a position.
For those who aren't aware I'm pro-life in my personal life but I'm libertarian minded in my view of the role of government regarding social issues. For that reason, I don't favor the government stepping in to stop them for people who're inclined to obtain them. However, it's reprehensible to make taxpayers subsidize the practice. I've been deeply disturbed about the thought of my work leading to the perpetuation of abortions for many years. It's something I've prayed would come to an end. I'm literally thankful to God for this finally happening.
Until tomorrow...