Am I just being a jerk or am I right to be pissed off by conservative social policy?

[Green_Lantern]

For instance after the ridiculous letter on contraception was read at Catholic churches, my Catholic family members in disagreement wanted to discuss its merits. Whereas I got pissed and offered no argument but "This is crazy."

I of course got the lecture about being nice and tolerant. I keep being told saying things like "It is wrong to call birth control a sin" is just my opinion. Which is hypocrisy because nothing is said when conservatives judge other opinions as wrong.

My family is a mix between anti-Obama conservatives and others who avoid political discussions. But even my more liberal family members won't make definitive stances on political issues. Someone could say "I think I should punch you" and they'd say "I don't think you should but hey, that's just my opinion."

Meanwhile they let the conservatives say anything.

Am I nuts to be so pissed?

[louslobbs]

1. You are not nuts for being so pissed, I feel your frustration. n/t

Lou

[russspeakeasy]

2. I don't know you personally, but you are right to be pissed.

[Mz Pip]

3. It's frustrating

I figured we'd at least put all this birth control controversy behind us in the 60s. People who didn't beieve in it didn't have to use it, just don't make a fuss about people who do. Now it seems ideology and dogma are creeping back into our politics at an alarming rate. While there have always been fundies who object to anything that doesn't fit into their narrow world view, at least they weren't making the fuss they are now.

[bowens43]

4. You don't have to be tolerent of stupidiy or ignorance. nt

[truedelphi]

5. Here is a very senseible question to ask of your

"Catholic" relatives and friends -

"If it is very very wrong for some nineteen year old in her first year of college to have an abortion, why is it perfectly okay for large numbers of rich people (many of whom are Catholic) to have work places that cause tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of "spontaneous abortions" (ie miscarriages.) ???

This is not something that only happens to the uneducated, either.

I always follow news out of Silicon Valley, as I once lived there. By the early nineties, it became obvious that the "clean rooms' of semi-conductor manufacturing processes are places now notorious for the effect they have on young women.

This first came to light when ob/gyn practitioners all around Silicon Valley noticed the very low birth rates that women working in the clean rooms were experiencing. And it dawned on the ob/gyn people that what was happening was not that these married women wanting a family were unable to get pregnant - what was happening was that the toxins in the air caused the women to abort spontaneously without ever knowing they were pregnant.

So why can the rich foist unsafe, and miscarriage-causing conditions on the rest of us, yet we are the ones guilty of a mortal sin? Even though their crimes are in the tens of thousands, while we chose only once to have an abortion?

[rhett o rick]

12. Stop, stop of plez stop

I have nothing against Catholics, I rode on a bus with one once. But you cant fight dogma with reason. Silver bullets* maybe.


*No Catholics were harmed by this post, nor do I wish any to be harmed. My reference to silver bullets was meant for dogma not Catholics. So get off my back in advance. Love you.

[truedelphi]

15. Oh, sometimes a person can fight dogma with reason.

I have a good friend who is a Catholic nun. And I have managed once in a while to win an argument by providing reason and rationale thought to the discussion. I would probably win more arguments, but often my debate skills are not as good as hers.

[madrchsod]

6. no.........

you have every right to be pissed off

[KansDem]

7. "Meanwhile they let the conservatives say anything. "

Then respond with this:

I've given up trying to reason with them...

[Initech]

8. I'm getting more pissed at social conservatives by the day.

Although this week it's been so great to see their asses getting handed to them w/ Komen, JC Penny, and the end of Prop (h)8.

[rhett o rick]

9. Studies have shown that the lower the IQ the greater the odds of being conservative.

Now some might challenge that because they can point out some very smart people that “are conservative”. I say that those conservatives that are smart are conservative because they see that it’s much easier for them to gain power among the conservative gullibles.

Having said all that, I still think you are nuts. DU posters are nuts by definition.

[pennylane100]

10. If you really wanted to encourage a more lively discussion.

you could mention while the church has seen fit to publicly air its position on birth control it should give the same consideration to its position on the widespread cases of pedophilia and the years of coverup by the church. It would be hard not to take a stand on that subject.

[Motown_Johnny]

11. Not being pissed would be nuts.

The ability to comprehend the consequences of these policies does not make you a jerk.

[Green_Lantern]

13. the most hypocritical statement I got from family

Was "You're not a woman. Why worry about it?"

So...the bishops aren't women either.

If 100% of women got to vote on this then it isn't my business.

[tallahasseedem]

14. Nope...

This shit has pushed me so far over the edge that I automatically negatively judge anyone who hints at being a Republican.

Nice and tolerant my ass!

[Honeycombe8]

16. Birth control not being a sin IS your opinion. That's the point.

Your opinion counts...to you. His opinion counts...to him. And so on and so forth. There's nothing wrong with something being an opinion. I think it's important never to lose the ability to think for yourself and form your own opinion.

But the Catholic Church and its dogma doesn't allow for freedom of opinion on certain issues. Being a Catholic, you know that. If you want to have the freedom to have a different opinion on matters like b.c., then you have to join a different religion. It's as simple as that. Or...you have to learn to keep your opinion to yourself, or tone it down when speaking about religious matters with the devout. To keep the peace, you know.

I am not Catholic (well, I'm babtized Catholic), but come from what you might call a Catholic state, Louisiana. And most of my family before my generation are/were Catholic. So I think I kinda grasp some of the basics of the Catholic religion. It's a beautiful, ritualistic religion, that follows a fairly strict dogma, and does what a Pope and his hierarchy tells them they can do (and think, on certain issues). So that's the deal. I never understood why Catholics complain about this but never leave the Church for another. But it's simple...the Catholic Church preaches that birth control is wrong. When I was growing up, the only acceptable b.c. was the rythm method. I thought it had relaxed that over the years, but I guess not.

Maybe the Episcopal Church allows birth control? It's a spinoff of Catholic, isn't it, only more liberal?

Religions are very different. Other religions allow b.c., but think that dancing or drinking are sinful. Catholics drink, that's for sure. And all the Catholics I've known sure knew how to trip the light fantastic. So should be no problem to find a religion that suits you better, if this upsets you that much. But one thing is for sure....you won't be getting the Pope to change his mind on his dogma.

[Green_Lantern]

18. I'm not really a believing Catholic even on just matters of faith..

Mainly because I interpret many Christian teachings to be for lack of a better word symbolic. Many of the faith teachings make more sense when looked at through the lens of the Greek and Hebrew philosophies of that time.

Most Catholics believe Christ's bodily resurrection means his actual flesh came back to life. They need to read Greek mythology.

[Populist_Prole]

17. I don't like their policy, but I'm glad they're running with it...off a cliff that is

Let their "base" win the battle but lose the war.

[librechik]

19. it's totally infuriating--we already fought and won these same battles long ago!

How can they just start up again as if decades haven't passed in established law??!!!

Just pretend we have no memory? Many of us don't it seems.