For several people, their opinions about social issues are a gut feeling that they often defend despite the facts, not because of them. As the issues of religion and contraception take center stage in American politics, let's be sure we're making informed decisions, not inflammatory ones.
Here is a little background: In January, President Obama announced that most health insurance plans must cover contraceptives for women free of charge.
"The rule does not apply to church organizations themselves, but rather to affiliated nonprofit corporations, like hospitals," according to an article from The New York Times.
Even though 28 states currently have similar rules, the policy set off a political firestorm between religious organizations and the Obama administration.
Ultimately, it boils down to religious groups not wanting to supply contraception, free of charge, and Obama wanting to mandate that certain organizations supply contraception, with a few sensitive exceptions. Even as a conservative, I believe Obama is correct in his decision.
The Roman Catholic Church requested full exemption from the rule, which means that they would not have to cover contraceptives for Catholic hospitals, colleges or charities. Such an exemption is ridiculous. The Catholic church should have to follow the law just like everyone else.
Republicans - and, mind you, I am Republican — often suffer under the delusion that Obama's policies are an all-or-nothing game, and that we are either forced to partake in the policy or get nothing at all. Indeed, the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released a statement saying, "Never before has the federal government forced individuals and organizations to go out into the marketplace and buy a product that violates their conscience."
Well, Mr. Bishop, nobody is forcing individuals to buy and take birth control. The U.S. government is rightly mandating that institutions make it available, which is a completely separate issue. To force women to take birth control would be wrong. To allow women the choice to take it is right.
Ultimately, government is about the separation of church and state. Religious organizations must follow the same rules as every other organization. Mitt Romney is wrong in saying that the administration is "using Obamacare to impose a secular vision on Americans." No, Obama is rightly maintaining the balance between church and state. While religion must be respected, so too must the law.
You know, the Bible also says that a disobedient son should be stoned to death, but thankfully our government does not make an exception for this just because it clashes with religious teaching. We cannot function as a society if we create our laws on the basis of any one religion. Our religious organizations cannot shape our laws, and it is unfortunate that the Roman Catholic Church has as much influence over our politics as it currently does.
Obama — being the political milquetoast that he is — sought to ease the tension by creating an "accommodation" with the Catholic bishops over the rule. Unsurprisingly, the zealous United States Conference of Catholic Bishops rejected the compromise. President Obama should not be bowing to the will of these religious organizations merely because he needs them for reelection. While I do support Obama's initial decision, his consistent ability to back down from a fight is stunning.
The fact is that this is the 21st century, and we shouldn't even be debating about the use of contraception. The fact is that 98 percent of Catholic women have used artificial contraception anyway. The fact is that Obama should stand by his initial decision and not be making accommodations for religious groups.
Garrett Bruno is a political science sophomore at UF. His column appears on Thursdays.
