Health Care Reform

Alexandria, VA - In response to inaccurate online media reports, Catholic Charities USA states unequivocally that it does not support any plan to reform health care and/or any proposed legislative provision that allows or promotes the funding of abortions or that compels any health care provider or institution to provide such a service. In fact, Catholic Charities USA will continue to work with the Catholic Health Association and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to ensure that any health care reform legislation will not include such provisions. All media accounts or public comments that misrepresent this position are inaccurate.

"These attacks appear to be politically motivated by opponents of health care reform. They are distortions of the truth and disingenuous. Catholic Charities USA will continue to work to reform health care in a way that is consistent with the teachigns of our faith." said Fr. Larry Snyder, President.

-http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=1796

That was a statement on the Catholic Charities website.

I'll be up front in stating that I honestly don't know enough about the specifics of the plans before either house of Congress right now. I don't know the perfect solution, either.

I also want to clarify that I'm not condemning the Catholic Charities' statement of standing firm in their values.

A while ago, I ran across this quote: "What does this tell us? Economic policy and abortion are not separate issues; they form one moral imperative. Rhetoric is hollow, mere tinkling brass, without health care, health insurance, jobs, child care, and a living wage. Pro-life in deed, not merely in word, means we need policies that provide jobs and health insurance and support for prospective mothers." -Dr. Glen Harold Stassen, professor of Christian Ethics, Fuller Theological Seminary

If we provide better health care in general, even if it does include the funding of abortion, I wonder how much it would reduce abortions due simply to that better access to affordable health care. I don't know, but I suspect that is part of what would happen. I could be very wrong. I don't know.

Also, health care reform would help to provide life-saving care for people who currently cannot afford it. So what if the public funding of abortions (which may be reduced through the provision of health care) is the trade off of saving other lives? It seems to me either way, we're going to be a loss of some lives and the saving of others.

I honestly wish that there wouldn't be public funding for abortions, but if that's the trade off to get an otherwise good health care bill, I think I would have to be willing to make that compromise. Then again, I have always been an advocate of reducing abortions one person at a time, through love and support, emotional and financial. I honestly don't think very many people truly want to have abortions.

I just think health care reform is too important to completely pass up for one possible provision. I think health care is an important life issue, just like abortion.

So, please, let this incite respectful conversation/reflection. I would love to hear your thoughts!

What I Saw

I just stumbled across this video, and I really like it.

No Kid Hungry

"Internet technology brings more to our fingertips than downloadable music and sophisticated video games. It brings the opportunity to learn and know how other people live across town and across the world. With that comes a responsibility to engage as a citizen, locally and globally, in new and more powerful ways.... If the poor are invisible to us now, they are invisible by our choice, our lack of curiosity, our lack of civic engagement and commitment. Social media can’t ensure social justice. But it can affect the invisibility that is the first barrier to achieving it."
~http://tinyurl.com/kjqbhy

What an incredible opportunity that we have because of the internet. This widespread access to information has created the Invisible Children revolution, in which many high schools have formed chapters to fight the use of child soldiers in Uganda. It has formed a movement around the book Not For Sale to fight all types of slavery, including slavery that still exists in the United States. It has created an awareness of poverty and water issues that have organizations like ONE, Oxfam, and Heifer International working to solve those issues.

Twitter and facebook are possibly the latest additions to the great opportunity to widely disseminate information. With a small comment of a description, I can post a link to an article that provides more information or an opportunity to work for change. And I can follow organizations such as ONE and Catholic Charities and Not For Sale to learn about their projects and their campaigns. We can form coalitions of those asking for our government to do something and those willing to do something themselves. It enables grassroots movements to take hold.

And that's a great responsibility. We have no excuse for not addressing issues of poverty. We have no excuse for not addressing injustice. The poor are visible. The oppressed are visible, if we are only willing to stop ignoring their plights. Whether we want government action or individual action, we can stand up and say "Not this time!" This time, I'm not buying cheap goods on the backs of sweatshop laborers who have no other options. This time I'm not buying into oppressive economic systems. This time, you don't get to earn record profits from the sweat of children. Not this time!

I, for one, am glad that I have the opportunity to know about these issues that I help to contribute to. So that way I can work to reduce my contribution to everything from environmental devastation to the abuse of workers. I'm not perfect, but by knowing about it and about alternatives, I can start to do better.

Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices

That's the title of a good movie that really details how Wal-Mart destroys communities and draws heavily on taxpayer subsidies.

Today's post, however, is Jib Jab style. It's an accurate representation, but it's much shorter and much more entertaining.