Above My Pay Grade

  If you watched the Rick Warren interviews of both Obama and McCain you may recall interesting while divergent answers to a legitimate question.  The question was…..”when does life begin?”  This is not a flippant remark but an age old question that has shaped the debate over abortion from its inception. 

 

The original position of the so called “pro choice” crowd was that “viability” constituted when life actually began.  Ok that is an understandable position even though the dating of viability was difficult for us to determine, especially since there have been many instants of preemies living when the “authorities” would have given it no chance, but at least during this early era the pro choice adherents believed that there was a pre-natal time when our concept of “life” (not merely Biological) began and that they didn’t believe it began at conception.

 

This was important to them because to have any other position would have been a moral violation even in their own minds.  Over the years the position of the hard core “pro choicers” migrated to literally being there is no pre birth point where you are committing a moral violation.  For some (and we’ll discuss who some of these are at another time) have degenerated to believe it is appropriate to allow a live birth of a child to die without care if such live birth is the result of a “botched” abortion effort (yes, it happens).  

 

You might find it interesting know that both McCain and Obama gave clear and revealing answers to this question.  In McCain’s response he jumped right out and stated “at birth.”  In Obama’s case he stammered a moment and then stated that such an answer was “above his pay grade.”  If there is anyone that is reading this post that didn’t understand that answer please comment here, but I’ll say that what he said meant that he didn’t know (i.e. only God knows).  

When I was in college at Xavier University in the 1960’s even though I was a Finance & Accounting major, I was introduced to Thomas Aquinas whereas all enrolled students were required to take sufficient courses in Philosophy that it would have constituted as being a “minor” at any other university.  I came to appreciate Thomas Aquinas during that time and he helped shape much of what today I consider to be my moral guidelines.  In this line of Thomistic Philosophy he stated that one could only act on a moral question when he could do so without committing a moral violation.  That is to say that we are required to follow the “morally safer” course in unknown situations.In the above situation Obama clearly states that he doesn’t know when life begins as he implied it as being in the domain of God and not within the realm of his own knowledge (hence he called it “above” his pay grade).  The strikingly shocking aspect of this response is that he is fully prepared to supporting a moral action that would take the life of a (for sake of argument) possible human being under the guise that a woman has a right to do what she will with her own body (as though a fetus is her own body). How on earth can he pretend to have a “moral” position on this major question of our time by asserting that he doesn’t know if life (human life) begins but it is okay with him for us to decide to destroy it for the benefit of another anyway.  It seems that this is the REAL point that is above his “Pay Grade.” 

Mr. Obama has failed the most basic of morality tests, one that has resulted in 48.5 million abortions since 1973 (Roe v Wade), almost as many as WWII’s 55 million.  If Mr. Obama is elected and he appoints judges that affirm this decision it won’t be long at all until there is more blood on his hand than the left likes to charge George W. Bush.   

Sheesh………………If this isn’t a deal breaker for you I’d say you have to reorder your priorities.

 

 

August 19, 2008 | Filed Under Abortion, American Left, Presidential Politics 

comments

7 Responses to “Above My Pay Grade”

  1. Obama Looses on Abortion | The Right Opposition on August 19th, 2008

    […] But when prior preparation fails, the true heart of the candidate comes forth. A blogger at Next Stop Lauderdale takes a rather unique look at the moral failure evident in this unprotected […]

  2. Brutus Centinel on August 19th, 2008

    I appreciate the direction you took with this post. I have linked to it at http://www.rightopposition.com.

    If we cannot err on the side of infant life we have indeed become morally bankrupt. It is clear that Obama is already there.

    Brutus…………..thanks for the link……..steve

  3. Barbara (Xerraire) on August 19th, 2008

    I blogged on this as well.

    For a person who doesn’t know when live begins, he sure votes well on how to destroy it. That is the point no matter what your position is.

    Barb

    Hi Barb………….you are right, Mr. Obama is an irony and this along with the “live birth legislation” in Illionois is starting to demonstrate his colors on this………He’s been lying about his role. Isn’t his propensity to vote Present interesting. Wonder why the detractors here at NSL don’t seem to recognize this ploy……..I’m sure they would if it were Bush…..steve

  4. Kristy C on August 19th, 2008

    Just wanted to clarify something, if I recall correctly… McCain’s response was “at the moment of conception”. It may seem like the same thing as “at birth” but there is a big difference.

    I agree with your post. If a candidate for the president of the United States is “above pay grade” to answer that question, then I guess Obama thinks that no one can answer that question.

    Hi Kristy……….thanks……….steve

  5. Erston on August 19th, 2008

    In discussions with liberals I’ve met, I mention that I have adopted
    an anti death penalty position because of the possibility, although
    remote, that an innocent person could die at the hands of the state.
    The liberals generally congratulate me, in very condescending terms.
    I then carry the same precept to the abortion debate - if there is a
    possibility, however remote in the liberal viewpoint, that life begins
    at conception, together with the certainty that all fetuses are innocent
    of any wrongdoing, why do they support abortion? I’m usually met with
    silence, profanity, or a change of subject. As the bumper sticker says,
    “It’s Easy To Be Pro-Choice When You’re Not The One Being Chosen”

    Erston………I do see your point………steve

  6. Erston on August 20th, 2008

    Sorry, forgot to mention Obama. Actually, I think most decisions
    are above his pay grade, current or future. As for me and my house,
    we’ll vote McCain.

  7. M2 on August 21st, 2008

    Because McCain is gonna do so much to end RvW right folks?

    Because Bush sure has (while abortion is up since Clinton & we’ve lost over 3,000 kids in a war, he’s “pro life” right?)

    Because in the event that RvW is ever overturned nearly 30 states have the law protected so everyone will run to those states blah blah blah…

    It’s not about laws (c’mon, where’s everyones republican “let us govern ourselves” theory?), it’s about creating a culture that does not wish to exercise the right to “kill”!
    Effectively creating that culture!

    Abortion clinics should be going out of business because we are all doing our jobs, not because we’re waiting for some amazing break in the SC & a chance to get a conservative majority there…

    But no, every four years the parties draw this imaginary line in the sand so that “single issue voters” stay happy.

    What a boogieman issue…

    M2……You have totally bastardadized the real issue here. This is not a 4 year cycle issue. Obama has been out lying about his participation in seeing that the Illinois law to protect live birth children doesn’t pass. You’ll point to his comments about it but I’m going to tell you they are fabrications out of his lips. He is in favor of abortion while not being concerned about whether it is a child before birth (Higher Pay Grade) nor after birth (live birth abortion). I see why you want to make this about Bush and McCain, like they failed to do anything while in Office, but Bush has done a lot in Judicial appointments and Obama will do a lot to protect abortions if elected. It is a red herring to measure the abortions during Bush (Which were down from Clinton by the way) when it is a judicial issue following successful Democratic/Liberal pushing for the right judges that delivered the Roe v Wade decision. You either support abortion along with Obama or you don’t. Don’t try to pass this issue as a failure of Bush and McCain. I see you behind the curtain………steve

    Abortion Stats: AGI & & CDC

    1993
    1,495,000
    1,330,414

    1994
    1,423,000
    1,267,415

    1995
    1,359,400
    1,210,883

    1996
    1,360,160
    1,225,937

    1997
    1,335,000
    1,186,039

    1998
    1,319,000
    884,273

    1999
    1,314,000
    861,789

    2000
    1,312,990
    857,475

    2001
    1,303,000
    853,485

    2002
    1,293,000
    854,122

    2003
    1,287,000
    848,163

    http://www.nrlc.org/ABORTION/facts/abortionstats.html

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