Posted: 2/2/2012 3:46:34 PM EDT
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A few weeks ago, Rick Santorum got some criticism for saying the Supreme Court erred in saying states may not outlaw contraception. The idea that Americans could legally be forbidden to buy condoms or birth control pills struck most people as a gross violation of personal liberty.
They are right, of course. But many of those who think it's wrong to forbid Americans to buy contraceptives think it's just fine to require them to buy contraceptives. In this group, unfortunately, are President Barack Obama and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, who are hell-bent on enforcing that mandate on nearly everyone. Under the Obama health care plan, employers that provide health insurance to employees must purchase coverage for contraceptives and sterilization. Individuals who buy their own policies have to get the coverage even if they've taken a vow of celibacy. For Catholic institutions, this is not trivial. The church regards artificial contraception as a violation of the natural order, insisting that "each and every marital act must of necessity retain its intrinsic relationship to the procreation of human life." The administration makes only miserly room for such views. Churches are effectively excused from the mandate, but other religious institutions –– such as hospitals, universities and charitable organizations –– are not. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2012/02/02/inoculating_against_religious_freedom_112995.html |
). Their conclusion was: don't accept ANY federal funds and you can do as you please. 