The Libertarian Party will fight to keep abortion safe and legal! That’s the opening statement of a policy puportedly intended to woo pro-lifers. To be fair, they go on to say:
…but we also feel a compromise is needed to ensure that the deeply held views of pro-life Canadians are respected. If elected, I will work to protect the freedom of conscience of pro-life medical workers and taxpayers by getting the federal government out of the business of financing abortions and pro-choice advocacy groups,” Dennis Young, Leader of the Libertarian Party.
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Rebecca adds: Hey, it’s a start. I live in a riding in which 83% of voters consider themselves pro-choice, and it’s far from the only riding that displays this sort of demographic. Not only is campaigning on stopping abortions a non-starter, but the Conservative Party of Canada officially denies that it will even discuss changing the abortion status quo – there will be no radical changes in the aftermath of this election concerning abortion in Canada, no matter what the outcome.
If abortions cost people money, more people would ensure that they didn’t need abortions, just as increases in the per-child welfare allowance in the different US states lead to higher births to moms on welfare. Even three year olds can weigh costs and benefits, and if people know something will cost them, they are motivated to find a way to do without it.
This wouldn’t make me vote Libertarian (I’m not a big fan of protest votes in elections that matter, and this one matters – although don’t they all?) but an attempt to stop using tax dollars to pay for elective abortions is the single most feasible step, that could be enacted in the short term, that governments could take to reduce the number of abortions. Feasible ways of reducing abortion should not be sneezed at.
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Brigitte doesn’t want to sneeze, but golly. Why is it so difficult to find someone willing to say he or she is against abortion because it is wrong?
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Rebecca says: One reason why it’s so hard to find someone who states that he or she opposes abortion because it is wrong is that, if he is running as a CPC candidate, he is not allowed to say that. This may or may not be a sensible strategy for getting elected, but I’m not hugely comfortable with asking people to suppress (as far as I know they’re not asked to lie about) their beliefs on a controversial issue.
The other thing is that I’m pretty sure the leader of the Libertarians, like a lot of his supporters, doesn’t believe it is wrong. Should we not make common cause with whomever we can, in the interests of fewer abortions happening? I personally am not at all troubled by joining with libertarians, who think abortion is morally and ethically fine but are offended by the public purse paying for them, in order to stop taxpayer funded abortions. We may not agree on what step to take next, but SoCons, libertarians, and a lot of other Canadians who may or may not be pro-life can move one step in the right direction in this case.
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In comparison, he is the MOST pro-life of all the leaders.
If any of the others would vow to get rid of public financing of abortion (elective surgery) and pro-choice advocacy groups, it would go a fair ways towards reducing the number of abortions and creating a space in the public square for discussion of the facts of abortion.
We all know they won’t. They don’t feel compelled. They don’t value a pro-life vote. Why should they GET a vote that they don’t value?
Oooh! Something new – politicians who compromise to make sure they get the votes from both sides. Give me a break. I feel like my brain is splitting in two when I read things like this. Will somebody, without compromise, please show some backbone and stand up for the rights of the unborn and the welfare of women?! (I almost wrote that in all caps!)