Posted on 07/05/2004 12:58:47 AM PDT by miltonim
DYERSVILLE, Iowa — As Sen. John Kerry campaigned across Iowa yesterday with Gov. Tom Vilsack, widely reported to be on Kerry's vice-presidential short list, both men dodged repeated questions about whether their joint appearance might be a preview of the Democratic ticket.
But even as he tried to avoid making news, Kerry broke ground in an interview that ran in the Dubuque, Iowa, daily, the Telegraph Herald. A Catholic who supports abortion rights and has taken heat recently from some in the church hierarchy for his stance, Kerry told the paper: "I oppose abortion, personally. I don't like abortion. I believe life does begin at conception.
"I can't take my Catholic belief, my article of faith, and legislate it on a Protestant or a Jew or an atheist," he continued. "We have separation of church and state in the United States of America."
The comments came on the final day of a three-state Midwest swing, during which Kerry has repeatedly sought to dispel stereotypes that could play negatively among voters in the Midwest.
President Bush's campaign said these instances are further evidence of what it says is Kerry's propensity for misleading flip-flops.
"John Kerry's ridiculous claim to hold conservative values and his willingness to change his beliefs to fit his audience betrays a startling lack of conviction on important issues like abortion that will make it difficult for voters to give him their trust," said Steve Schmidt, a Bush campaign spokesman.
"...will have a difficult time explaining his position to the pro-choice crowd."
Not really, it seems to be what many of the 'pro-choice' mindset seem to be saying. It's not for me, but if you want one go and get one.
I won't hazard a guess if he believes in God. God and faith are not photo-ops. They are deeply held and lived accordingly.
I will say though that he cannot believe in the Catholic faith if he refuses to uphold its tenets.
#1: Describe a partial-birth abortion
#2: Say that is an acceptable practice for a civilized society
#3: Say that you can support that and remain a communicating Catholic.
There appears to be some wiring (of some kind) missing between Mr. John Kerry's ears.
KERRY: "I'VE GOT A BRIDGE TO SELL TO STUPID, GULLIBLE VOTERS"
I didn't know it was only Catholics who were pro life. Aren't any Jews, Protestants, and atheists against abortion? I know an agnostic who believes life begins at conception.
John Kerry: "I have a set of core beliefs, I just don't use them in public."
That's before the Catholic Church started to whoopass. Kerry's supporters know that he needs to lie to the stupid voters until he is elected, then it's back to "Stabbing babies in the head again, is a good thing."
Absolutely! He believes that life begins at conception. He also believes that a person has the right to kill that life. He supports the right to murder a life as long as the murderer isn't Catholic. What a defense! Will it hold up in court? What if the murderer is "Catholic?"
No one needs the revelation of God or an act of faith in his word to know that abortion is ethically and morally wrong. People of all faiths and of no faith at all can reason to that fact. Witnessing an abortion certainly accelerates the process.
The fact that the Church reaffirms a human right or a civil right of mankind does not make that human right or civil right a "religious belief." When the Church teaches that rape is wrong, the immorality of rape does not thereby become a "religious belief." When the Catholic Church continues to affirm—century after century, in every country the world over—that abortion is a gross distortion of human rights, a horrible crime against humanity, it is simply stating what civilized society, in its dispassionate and nobler moments, can figure out for itself, without the help of revealed religion.
In other words - John Kerry does not need to invoke his Catholicism for his DEFENSE of supporting abortion. The Moral Law, independent of his 'Catholicism' is telling his conscience that it is wrong. It is NOT a religious issue at all.
I posted the full statement here.
A_R
That life exists after conception is a scientific fact. Strictly speaking, the notion of "begin" contradictions the scientific notion of the space-time continuum.
The imprecision of the vernacular sometimes leads to misconceptions.
Especially taxpayers' money.
There is no end to this silliness. Kerry is woefully misinformed on these matters.
Far from mitigating his culpability, this admission effectively eliminates all doubt about his sinfulness in this matter. By admitting the humanity of abortion's victims, his continued defense of his votes in favor of the unrestricted and state funded murder of these innocent children becomes unambiguously grave and scandalous. His intent is now clear and his error certain.
At any rate, the legal prohibitions of abortion in America before 1973 were not because the country was under the control of Catholic "articles of faith." No idea what Kerry is thinking of here. He is an oddball.
Once again, Kerry is trying to confuse Christians into voting for him. If he thinks voting to ban partial-birth abortion violates the seperation of church and state, then he needs to explain why voting to use tax dollars to fund abortions does not.
True. One has to assume in that context that by "life" is meant "a human being". Still, like most other observable phenomena, the process is a continuous one, without a sensible beginning. For pragmatic reasons the law favors sharp age cutoffs for many types of laws. Scientifically and morally, however, no sharp division along a continuum is well-justified. When it comes to driving age, no one much cares, but when it comes to life and death, mistaking pragmatic for moral reasoning can only lead to hostile, even violent, irreconcilable differences.
At any rate, the legal prohibitions of abortion in America before 1973 were not because the country was under the control of Catholic "articles of faith." No idea what Kerry is thinking of here. He is an oddball.
Apparently he thinks that any declaration the Church makes is suddenly taken out of any legitimate moral or political consideration. It makes me wish the Church would come out for higher taxes.
How anyone can consider Kerry a smart politician after making that calculated yet indefensible blunder is beyond me. But then, it's all about anyonebutbush, anyway.
kerry's Catholic beliefs are for show only. This creep has voted for partial birth abortion, is a regular defender of abortion rights and oh yes, is against capital punishment. He's a hypocrite at the very, very least.
Apparently Kerry thinks a believing Catholic should not vote his conscience. I'll have to review the CotUS, but I do believe we all have the right to vote however we dang well please.
There you go. He can not claim innocence about the horror he supports. Where would a Pastor go with him from here? He seems to have no conscience.
A_R
These statements about the nature of human life or the human person which pop up in pro-abortion discourse are ontological propositions. Liberals tend to be rather underendowed (and underwhelming) in this area of cognitive exercise. All "science" involves a certain set of ontological presuppositions about the nature of reality.
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