Another key issue to discuss, which I left out by mistake:
What about Catholic and other religious teaching on birth control, abortifaceints (sp?) and abortion? Are we allowed to have conscientious objections or morality play a role in making our public policies on these issues? Or do we have to be strictly a-moral?
>>...Are we allowed to have conscientious objections or morality play a role in making our public policies on these issues?...<<
Locally? Yes. Federally? No. At most the fed should simply respond, “No Opinion either way”. Same for abortion. Same for healthcare. Same for the car I drive and the gas I buy. Same for the rainwater I collect. Same for how my electricity is made. Same for the food I eat. Same for the milk I drink. Same for how much water my toilet flushes. Same for lightbulbs. And on and on and on...
Local. Issues. All.
But we’ve all completely lost focus and allowed the fed to over-reach in all manner of ways we happen to like, yet we (Conservatives, Liberals, Indies, *everyone*) have the pure, unmitigated gall to complain when the fed intrudes on something (anything) else that “the other guy” may want.
Now, I know that if you and I had a quiver full of magic wands and a bucket full of pixie-dust, things might be different. But all we have is one vote each against a country full of self-centered gimme-gimme voters, spread across the entire political spectrum, who outnumber us. And the nightmare version is that we are outnumbered by folks who not only want, but *demand* the fed to hand-out goodies and regulate “fairness”, “equality-in-outcome” with an ever shifting moral foundation. Leave these issues to the states so I can pick a community with values I agree with and some lib-tard freak can pick a different community with free dope and no responsibility and my taxes won’t support her habits and contraception.
We either need to learn how to tolerate what “we” as a society have begged, pleaded and voted for -or- start swaying opinions and growing our future leaders *right now* to change it and get the train back on the rails — and hope and pray we can start making headway in a generation or three.
Just my opinion and nothing against your comment — it just struck a chord with me about how far the fed has over-reached over the years to the point where we (our country) just lay down and accept it. We may argue that the specific issue is right or wrong, but it seems *nobody* legislating at any political level ever asks, “should this be a federal issue at all?”