Public Service Announcement
July 26th, 2007Recently, I had a conversation with a young Liberal woman who told me that she was a Democrat because she believes in Roe v. Wade and doesn’t want anybody interfering with her right to have an abortion. I shrugged and said, “What else makes you a Democrat?” She talked about how the Republicans are bad and the Democrats are the “Party of Hope.” I said, “Yeah, what does that mean?” and she hee-hawed about the corrupt and evil Bush Administration but said nothing about Liberalism or the Democratic Party of the United States. So I told her, “If your only political concern is abortion, you aren’t a Democrat — you’re an Abortionist.”
That didn’t go over well, but I stand by it. To be a Democrat, you must believe in economic and social justice. That means, a fair and sensible minimum wage. An education system that provides ample opportunity to everyone in our society with minimal disruption to the process. Healthcare that doesn’t keep families away from doctors they need to see, and it must not sink businesses, either. A belief in the value of every single person, and an appreciation for diversity. It is supporting equal pay for women and minorities. It is supporting small businesses. It is supporting democracy. It is not one issue, and it definitely isn’t simply Roe v. Wade — which is a criticism I’d level at Republicans, too: a Supreme Court ruling is not to be interpreted as a political manifesto and if a movement manifests itself as a result of any one ruling it is not for the betterment of any significant portion of the American public, although that is, I think, the ultimate goal of a Democratic candidate for anything.
We must never lose sight of the important issues facing this country and you should stand up to anyone on any side of the aisle who would take the shortsighted route through life and politics.