By Jeff Salisbury JeffreyLSalisbury@gmail.com
An appeals c
ourt recently upheld a lower court’s order halting a federal mandate requiring two Christian colleges – one in Michigan and the other in Iowa – to provide insurance coverage for certain contraceptives.
The court issued an order saying the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate and accommodation process “substantially burdened” Iowa’s Dordt College’s and Grand Rapids, Michigan, Cornerstone University’s “exercise of religion.”
Both schools faced fines for noncompliance.
Translation: “Don’t share my faith? Don’t work here.”
Now I am sure that some folks are upset that employers cannot and should not be forced to go against their deeply held beliefs. But I say: No no no.
It seems to me that just as many people are upset that a private employer can force its employees to abide by the employer’s deeply held beliefs.
I repeat… Translation: “Don’t share my faith? Don’t work here.”
Others might say, “How far we have come from a nation founded by those seeking freedom to worship their God as they saw fit.”
But I would offer this… how far we’ve come to a nation where an employer can deny its employees the freedom to worship (or not) as they see fit.
The “symbolic” faith-based conscience of an employer ought not be allowed to supersede that of its employees. Not in a truly free country.
Shame on such employers.
Shame on their intolerance and my sympathies are instead for the unfortunate employees who find themselves not sharing the same conscience of their employer.
Amazing how religious superstitions and the apparent need to seek out the martyr’s cause in order to follow one’s faith.
As for me, I find myself struggling to tolerate the intolerant.
I know Democrat shills don’t like to remember history, but the whole reason the hold-out Bart Stupak (D-MI)
(aka Bart the Stupid) holding his vote back from the ACA legislation was over paying for abortions and there was also talk of contraceptives. Once President Obama assured Bart the Stupid it wouldn’t pay for those things, old Bart said he’d vote for it. Then, as usual, Democrat politicians never keep their word and abortion and contraceptives were fair game in the ACA. Churches and religious organizations squawked, Obama, essentially, to them “shove it” and now we are paying for both, so why are we also supporting Planned Parenthood when ACA will take care of unwanted babies? Sounds like double taxation to me.
Evidently, Jeff has never had to deal with business – not working on a school board, but actually owning and operating a business to make a profit. If a business wants to offer insurance to cover everything – that’s up to them. It’s also up to them to not offer everything or anything for insurance. If the employee doesn’t like their employer’s decision, they are welcome to find another job.
With the great and growing economy we have and the abundance of jobs created by President Obama and his wonderful administration, I’m sure there are other jobs out there just waiting for disgruntled employees to take.
I guess the court finally recognized freedom of religion within the Constitution and decided in the religious colleges favor. Guess there will be many professors leaving for greener pastures someplace else to get their contraceptives paid by insurance. Whatever happened to not covering contraceptives, Viagra, Cialis, and all those other drugs and letting those wishing to partake buy their own?
Democrats want everything and won’t stop until they get it. And you wonder why the average American taxpayer feels fleeced by their government?
You answered your own question about the ACA covering contraception and abortion. Now that the Supreme Court has ruled businesses don’t have to pay for religious reasons…