Here’s a troubling and baffling headline:
“Republicans Are Quietly Trying to Kill No-Fault Divorce”
Suppose the headline was:
“Republicans Are Quietly Trying to Force People Who Don’t Love Each
Other Anymore to Stay Together In Potentially Risky Marriages”
Aren’t both headlines more or less saying the same thing?
Slate.com reported that some Republican-controlled state legislatures
and some prominent Republicans like Rick Santorum, Rick Perry and Michele
Bachmann are working to force folks in troubled or dysfunctional or dangerous marriages
to do marriage counseling and endure arbitrary waiting periods before heading
for divorce court. In some cases existing no-fault divorce laws are being directly attacked.
OK, I get it, these Republicans don’t like divorce. But where do they
get off trying to impose their philosophical or religious convictions on other
people?
Aren’t these the same Republicans who crowd our cable channels with chatter and ads
attacking “big government,” “government intrusion in our lives,” “laws that
limit our freedom,”….
Aren’t these the same Republicans who oppose “excessive government
control” and “mindless bureaucratic tampering” and ….
Why don’t we call these folks on it?
If what they mean is, “we’re in favor of intrusive government controls on
other people that satisfy our personal views on morality and good behavior,”
why don’t they just say it that way?
I wonder how many divorced folks voted for those Republican legislators
and high profile politicians?
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