Motley Moose – Archive

The television program “Boston Legal” tackled the issue of abortion and achieved a more balanced and nuanced discussion of this incredibly complex issue than any I have heard on the topic in quite some time.  It was the kind of complex presentation of the information on an issue that is necessary if we are going to make progress in considering the difficult and multifaceted issues that require our attention.

I would like to believe that the blogosphere can provide forums to treat issues as contentious as abortion with the thoughtfulness needed.

Straight talk.

Apparently it’s a dying art.

John McCain was never a maverick. He was a staunch Republican whose positions deviated from those of his party only on occasion. But the one thing he had going for him was honesty and sincerity. He told the country what he believed and why he believed it, firmly and unapologetically. He stood up for his beliefs even if they were unpopular. He defended his principles. But somewhere along the line John McCain gave up. He sacrificed his principles, he surrendered to the sordid tactics of his party, the tactics he once despised and vocally denounced. To fully understand the magnitude of his fall, one must look back — a glance at the McCain of a month ago, really, is sufficient to understand the duplicity of his statements and positions, but the differences between the McCain of 2000 and the McCain of 2008 are staggering. A brief list compiled by blogger Alex Valentine shows the stark contrast between the two McCains:

Gov. Palin is a prominent member of Feminists For Life, a fundamentalist group advocating prison for doctors who perform abortions under any circumstances.  FFL also opposes birth control, even for married couples.

Nice slogan, eh?  “*Refuse to Choose*”

(FFL states that it does not endorse politicians, despite the banner on their homepage endorsing Gov. Palin for Vice President.)