Freedom to Do the Right Thing

A Polygamist with his wives and progeny.

 This was previously written as a Note on my Facebook. I thought it would make an interesting blog.

The really nice thing about living in a free society? If there is some activity I find immoral, I can choose not to engage in it. We are not a lawless society. We prohibit some things we agree about in overwhelming numbers: murder, robbery, etc. But on the whole, if conduct is a matter of debate, or is between consenting adults, we are free (or should be free IMO) to act or abstain according to our own guidelines.

• If you think abortion is murder, that human life begins at conception, then you can choose not to have an abortion.
• If you think engaging in sex outside of marriage, or non-procreative sex, is immoral, you can choose to abstain.
• If you think drinking alcohol or eating pork is a sin, you can stick with iced tea and mutton.
• If you think homosexuality is "unnatural" you can choose not to engage in homosexual conduct.

BUT WHY WOULD ANYONE'S BELIEFS NECESSITATE PASSING LAWS - OR CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS - TO POLICE OTHER PEOPLE'S MORAL CONDUCT?

If everyone behaved like the Christian Fundamentalists, we would have Jehovah's Witnesses and Christian Scientists campaigning to outlaw blood transfusions and organ transplants. How many lives would be lost? Yet their belief is quite sincere.

If orthodox Jews and fundamentalist Muslims joined together, they could mount a serious movement to outlaw pork. This might render me suicidal!

If the FLDS folks in Colorado City were larger in numbers, they could start a Polygamy Party that advocates plural marriage and the marriage of 16-year-olds to their uncles. They believe God has instructed them to do these things. (FYI this IS illegal since 16-year-olds are minors.)

My point is this: just because someone believe something with great fervor and conviction does not mean he/she have the right to impose that belief on everyone else. No one wants to be told what he/she can and cannot do!

In principle many Americans would agree with me. In practice, many of those seemingly reasonable Americans vote to impose their personal moral views on all Americans in every election. In recent months I've seen some support for laws that would declare a fertilized egg a person, thereby making the use of "The Pill" a homicide since it prevents pregnancy after fertilization.

My question is, "Why?"

According to philosopher John Locke, the natural state of man is to be free to act as each person sees fit within the bounds of Reason (Yes, with a capital R). Part of the failing in this philosophy in human society IMO is the conflict between Reason and Theology. There are religious people who are reasonable. There are also religious people who are not reasonable.

In my opinion, contending that a fertilized egg is a "person" defies Reason. Many churches do not even contend this. It is as extreme and irrational as tying rocks to witches to see if they will float in the river. That is not to say that I think all people who find abortion immoral are silly or ignorant. I don't. Thinking abortion is immoral is not the same as thinking a fertilized egg is a "person."  I do think making your entire political life about policing other people's reproductive choices is creepy and self-righteous. I also think judging women who have abortions is directly in conflict with the lesson to cast stones only if we are without sin ourselves.

Finally, I want to share the epiphany I had recently. The debate over marriage equality is not about opponents protecting the "sanctity of marriage" as was made very clear this week when proponents of Prop H8 and DOMA could not articulate how same sex marriage has any impact on heterosexual relationships. Moreover, as individual couples, many marriages are very sacred, some not so much. The real issue, IMO. is this: legalizing marriage for same sex couples would make their relationships credible, acceptable, legitimate.

Whether you like "the gay" or not, it is credible, acceptable and legitimate. Some homophobe's (or mild-mannered conservative's) problems with gay people have no bearing on this, and in fact is just a demonstration of their own hang-ups. Opposition to marriage equality is just another expression of bigotry that will give rise to regret in the future.In addition, opposition to gay couples marrying is no different from the opposition in the 1960s to interracial marriage.

I would ask these folks - like the ones who rallied for their view of what marriage should be in Utah yesterday - what if you were the minority instead of the majority? What if Warren Jeffs FLDS polygamists were the majority, and you had to marry whomever Prophet Jeffs told you to? What if you had to marry 4 people he told you to? You would hate that, right? You want to be free to choose whom you marry and build a life with, don't you? Don't you think everyone else wants the right to do that too?

And no, "But it's just wrong," is not an acceptable response, nor is "God says it's wrong." YOU think it's wrong because of YOUR beliefs. Someone else thinks your use of birth control is wrong. Someone else thinks your eating bacon with breakfast is wrong. Someone else thinks your consumption of coffee is wrong. Someone else thinks the organ transplant you got to save your life was wrong.

Not everyone agrees with me or with you. But the best part for all of us? None of us has to do any of the things you think are "wrong"  and we can do all the other things. And everyone else gets to refrain from what they think is "wrong" and do all the "not wrong" things they want to as well. That's what it means to be free. When we can all get Above Our Raisin', we can all truly be free to live our lives doing the right things as we each see it.