Links for 10/01/15 | National Catholic Reporter

Links for 10/01/15 | National Catholic Reporter by MSW. MGB: Both jihad and angelic warfare are meant to be individual struggles for holiness - not public quests.  He mostly sticks to that theme and his theology is mostly correct (besides his homophobia - and for the record, gays are quite capable of being good dads), however some of his language gives me the impression that he has not taken his psych meds - and if none have been prescribed, get a net as he needs help. He at least needs an editor and the screed should have been broken up into pieces and serialized.  Its so long I doubt many ready it.



Linker certainly agrees with MSW, but he gets it wrong.  Under the law, birth is the standard unless Congress uses its enforcement powers under the 14th Amendment to draw a new line - so compromise is possible.  As for the 20 week experience of pain, what should be mandated is pain management for the fetus - which would make the parents think twice about having the abortion.  As for the deal, family leave is not enough for such a significant step on the pro-life side - they should also put amending language into the toothless partial birth abortion act and clarify when the procedure can be done - or the equally grisly D&C - so that doctors know when the provisions are enforceable.  Finally, there should be a vast expansion of the child tax credit, with payroll refundability.  It is not enough to get families to birth and early parenthood - if we care for the unborn, we must assure that EVERY child has enough to eat, a place to live, decent clothing and all the other things that middle class kids enjoy.  Actually, there is one more thing - this should be the last word on this issue - whatever boundary is set by Congress is the last one, with no more efforts to repeal Roe by enacting radical abortion bills at the state level.  This should not be a first step to a total ban but the last one that puts it off the agenda.  Of course, such a final compromise will put most of the pro-life fundraisers out of work.  That would just be a bonus.



Sadly, the features Harold bemoans are designed in, they are not flaws.  The Constitutional Convention was dominated by people with skin in the game, i.e. bond speculators (or their wives were, particularly Mrs. Adams).  It was meant to defend property against democracy, labor and abolition.  The dominant industries of the nation have always been well represented, sometimes even putting a family member in government (2 Rockefellers - one VP and the other a Senator).  I shocked a Ford has not been elected from Michigan. Wait, there was one, but not of the same family.  This is why the GOP can be nutty.  Doing nothing favors their side, although they want to gut the surtaxes in Obamacare which hit the rich - I doubt they really care about the rest of the provisions, which were designed by them.  Of course, the Court is right about money being speech and the difficulty in drawing a line to regulate.  The real problem is not government, its capitalism and not even left will do what it takes to bring it down - which would make constitutional change unnecessary.