Freedom of Conscience?
"Freedom of Conscience" is apparently a new expression used by social conservatives to beat down equality and fairness laws. What follows is an excerpt from a story about prospective gay rights legislation:
"With liberals in control, there's a good possibility they'll both pass," said Matt Barber, a policy director with the conservative group Concerned Women for America. "They're both dangerous to freedom of conscience, to religious liberties, to free speech."
The idea is that the very existence of laws requiring equal rights impinges on the "freedom of conscience" of those who do not like gays.
"Freedom of conscience" either needs to be reframed or a competing expression needs to be built.
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Freedom of the heart
I know this phrase sounds sappy, but I'll use it as a place holder until I think of something better. If conservatives can argue about freedom on conscience, shouldn't gays be able to argue about freedom of the heart-- are we not all able to chose who we love and marry?
free love?
- Sounds like the 60s. :)
Speaking of "freedom of conscience" how would interface with conscientitous objectors (like Watada)? It's OK to discriminate against gays (refusing to medically treat them, for instance) but not to refuse to kill people in an illegal and immoral war? How is that supposed to work?
If this right wing meme starts taking hold it should immediately be applied to all the liberal struggles --- no need to pay taxes for unethical government activities; no need to enagage in activities at work which cause pollution, and you can't be discriminated against for refusing to work on those. OK - no medical care for conservatives! No need to let white people into college! No need to let conservative Christians have churches on valuable land -- or live in your neighborhood! Lets have sectarian wars as in Iraq -- that'll work. And if terrorists want to blow people up -- well, that's their freedom of conscience, isn't it? Everyone make up their own rules and laws, and decide which ones to follow -- personal signing statements. And I though those were the people who argued against chaos and "bomb-throwing anarchists". Nahh --- everybody just do what they want, and do whatever THEIR conscience says. Do away with all authority. We don't need no steenking rules.
The say "civil war" as if it was a bad thing...
moral deadbeats
- People who discriminate don't pay their dues to society
- they are moral deadbeats. They want to leech off other the society, getting the benefits but not meeting their obligations, putting their own conscience over everyone elses, and trying to make everyone else paly by their own rules. This is ethical selfishness -- selfish conscience. You can't morally have freedom of conscience at the expense of everyone else: freedom of conscience isn't free; you have to pay the price for it, not cheat on the social contract. If you want to practice bigotry then you have to pay the costs.
You can have your freedom of conscience
I think the old, my freedom stops at the end of my nose adage would apply here. If a person is truly offended to be in an environment that is unpure and tainting their conscience (one where gay people are allowed to interact freely and anonymously with the public, for instance), perhaps they should limiting THEIR own movement in society.
spoiled children
Spoiled brats want to have everything their own way...
New! freedom