The Washington Post in a story on the conscience clause which allows health care workers to refuse to perform actions they deem objectionable, the Washington Post had this paragraph:
The rule is supported by a variety of conservative groups, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Catholic Health Association, which represents Catholic hospitals, the Christian Medical Association and the Family Research Council.
Can the U.S. bishops be accurately described as a “conservative group?” I would think not. Firstly, to attempt to paint the Catholic church as conservative or liberal is a mistake. The Catholic Catechism doesn’t fit neatly into political party platforms. But it’s a story about politics and public ethics so I understand some confusion.
But even if you’re adamant on attempting to stick a religious peg into a political hole you’d have to consider that on the War on Terror, poverty, immigration, and the death penalty the U.S. bishops are clearly not in the typically conservative camp.
I think what this shows is that to the liberal media, conservative simply means anti-abortion and anti gay marriage. That’s what it all comes down to. It’s quite a simple formula: If you’re pro-life you’re anti-women and if you’re pro-traditional marriage you’re anti-gay.
One added note. It seems that the Post has amended their story and now it has taken out the “conservative” label for the USCCB. See! They too can learn. The new graph reads:
The rule is supported by groups including the Concerned Women for America and the Catholic Health Association, which represents Catholic hospitals.
“We urge the incoming Congress and administration to honor this much-needed implementation of longstanding laws,” said Deirdre A. McQuade of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. “Individuals and institutions committed to healing should not be required to take the very human life that they are dedicated to protecting.”
December 20, 2008 at 5:59 am
As a body, the US bishops are a “conservative group” when compared with Ben Aflek, Rosie Odonell and Hugh Heffner…but just barely.
December 20, 2008 at 12:45 pm
And liberal when compared with other groups. When they speak up for the poor, the immigrant, the disabled, the press loves them, and they are labled liberal. When they speak up for unborn babies, the family, and morality, they are not so popular, and labeld conservative.
The problem with comparisons is that it always matters whom you’re compared to. If they actually compared everyone to a standard of truth and morality, well, most of us would come up short, but the bishops wouldn’t be too bad. But if they will never do that, because that would be “imposing” things on people. Cecil B. DeMille put it well: “It is impossible for us to break the law. We can only break ourselves against the law.”