On the same email thread that NH State Senator Ray White’s missive came from came this question:
Not sure why we’re wasting time and political capital on this issue, this year (an election year for God’s sake)…with an almost 100% certainty of a Lynch veto and failure to override…
At first blush, the intent behind the question was correct – the economic issues SHOULD be front forward. I even started off with that thought….and then it hit me: why should we cede all the social issues to the Democrat / Progressives / Liberals? To the Secular Humanists? Why should their morality become public law – why should their’s trump mine (which is far close if not, indeed, traditional American in outlook? The HHS insurance mandate now roiling America’s religious community is a great (and horrific) example of this – Progressives believing that Government has the legal right to so narrowly define what a church is that it can, out of whole cloth, strip their ministries from being “religious” ones to being secular by fiat decision. And then force those newly re-classified secular (formerly religious) organizations to obey Governmental restrictions instead of being accountable to religious ones.
My answer (lightly edited, names redacted):
My take: I, too, would rather see more changes on the economic issues simply if not to allow Democrats to demagogue the “why aren’t you concentrating on jobs like you promised?” (even as Enterasys just moved 540 jobs into NH).
However, there is also the “walk and chew gum” at the same time argument. Thus, I look at this from this perspective – the Republicans did not start the culture wars – the social engineering in recent years has been all Democrat based. We need Republicans to point this out over and over and over and over again (and with better messaging than what has been done to date, I might add).
WHY would we, why SHOULD we, cede the culture war to the Progressives? WHY should we just give up the social engineering side of the war?
All social issues have a fiscal cost. Just look at the current Federal social issue that Obama has brought – that the enumerated First Amendment Right to the free expression to religious expression and personal conscience is being made to be subservient to a culture issue. What we are seeing is the redefining of the word “access” (as in “access now means somebody else has to pay for my birth control wants”). And the Progressive natural follow through is to take that culture war change and codify it into explicit legislation. Does anyone on this list believe that there will not be a philosophical cost if this is allowed to stand?
Does anyone on this list believe that there will not be fiscal costs to this going forward? Or that with further Progressive policies on the culture front, that would be unconstitutional, would NOT incur future fiscal costs for those as well? Make no mistake – there are fiscal policy costs as well as private financial costs if HB437 is not enacted.
But most importantly, I ask the question: when will someone fight for me? Are not my views, as a social conservative, as an Evangelical Christian, worthy of consideration as well? Why is it fair for the Democrats to fight for 60s “do it if it feels good” mentality, Secular Humanistic beliefs (and the libertine lifestyles that can flow from them), but not for mine of the traditional family AND for traditional NH and American values? And add to that the values of self-sufficiency, of self-responsibility, of duty, honor, and truth? Make no mistake – ALL of these (and I know that you all realize this) and more are under attack on several fronts.
If this one value is not fought for, that I see folks like you all remaining silent on one of the pillars of traditional society, why should I fight yet another battle for those that are remaining silent and / or walking away? No offense, but given that the other side brought the war, when WOULD our side actually fight this fight? Or do we simply give up because it is Politically Correct to do so? Or that the “Establishment Republicans” or the “Politics Republicans” (more interested in just the “win” versus about what we should be “winning”) think it is just one of those “icky, silly” reasons that get the “rednecks” all up in arms?
Sorry if this went on too long, but I have spent most of the day fighting local Progressives (local elections coming up soon) and their ideals all. day. long. today. I’m sick and tired of the fact that I have to fight hard simply to stay in place. I’m sick of having to defend my traditional values to taunts of homophobe and bigot, cold-hearted and skinflinted, of Neanderthal and “don’t you realize that times have changed and we’ve progressed past that” because I just “won’t go along”.
But nobody ever asks “Er, what is the end point to which we are progressing – and ‘splain it to me, not at the surface level but 3 or more levels down. Why? ‘Cause I’m betting they have no real clue – or that they do and dare not explore the ramifications of what the real end point ACTUALLY MEANS.
So I ask again – why should I fight for someone later when they won’t fight for me now?
And trust me – you folks know who I am; I am one of those that refuses to remain silent. If I feel like this, how about those that never speak up?
Imagine how they feel?
