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PDF versionCardinal O'Connor Pro-Life Award goes to Bush
by Tom Roberts on Jan. 24, 2010
The awarding of the Cardinal John J. O'Connor Pro-Life Award by Legatus, a group of Catholic business professionals, to former President George W. Bush, is a graphic display of the limits of language and the degree to which our religion has become politicized.
The award, according to a posting by the Catholic News Agency, is given "for his work in advancing he pro-life cause."
Unless the language is inconsequential, those opposing abortion have limited, at least in this application, the term "pro life" to that cause alone. It would be one thing if Bush were being awarded for his "anti-abortion efforts," for he probably did more practically -- in opposing embryonic stem cell esearch, barring federal funds from use for abortion related projects abroad and appointing two ultra-conservative, anti-abortion Supreme Court justices -- than any president in recent memory to advance federal opposition to abortion.
But he also engaged the country in two open-ended wars, one of them precipitated on false pretenses; he imprisoned people without charge, legal representation or hope of being released and without judicial processes in place; his administration approved of torture and rendition flights where suspects were basically kidnapped and returned secretly to third countries where they were tortured.
As governor, he presided over a state that led the nation in the number of executions since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Its system of justice was repeatedly shown to be notoriously deficient in defending suspects.
George Bush was not a pro-life president.
Nor was Bill Clinton, and not only because of his abortion policy, but because as president he continued relentless bombing of Iraq and imposed the most severe sanctions in history on that country. The sanctions were blamed directly for the deaths of more than 500,000 children under the age of five over a period of less than a decade.
I don't recall ever seeing a release from Legatus, the Knights of Columbus, or any of the other "pro-life" groups who so readily pump out releases regarding abortion, on the slaughter of Iraqi innocents. Not during the Clinton era and not during the bombings and chaos of the Bush II era. The phrase "pro life" has been minced into an unrecognizeable form.
Nor do I remember any releases from such groups when George Bush the elder commenced a war at a time when almost no one saw it as anything other than an attempt to retain access to resources, the oil of the Middle East. Few cried publicly for the dead children or the aborted fetuses of Iraqi mothers who had to live through those bombings.
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The release says that Cardinal Francis George of Chicago and Archbishop Timothy Dolan will be among a "host" of speakers at the event. Perhaps the cardinal, so critical in other circumstances of the secularization of the culture and so wary, in other regards, of relativism, will address how this award mimics the most crassly secular elements of the culture by diminishing "the cause" of protecting life to a single, highly politicized issue. Maybe he'll also point out how the award relativizes the language into meaninglessness.
Or he might simply admit, as he's reluctant to do in other matters, that politics is an often dirty business without convenient, straight lines. He might admit that it is especially messy in a pluralistic democracy and that in such circumstances advancing a good often means holding one's nose and putting on blinders against the attendant evil.
Pro-life is a big phrase, and it has deep resonance in many Catholic circles. It is hardly fulfilled on either side of the political aisle. Its meaning should be protected, not cheapened.
Two words: Notre Dame. If you
Two words: Notre Dame.
If you are going to be outraged at someone who is unfit to be honored by Catholics, be consistent.
In case it is not obvious, I
In case it is not obvious, I do not believe either to be worthy of Catholic laud.
Stop it Tom Roberts. You're a
Stop it Tom Roberts. You're a nasty bitter liberal. The Pro-Life Award is well deserved by President George W. Bush. May we have ardent supporters of the innocent unborn as he.
Give me a break! Is there
Give me a break! Is there anything about Bush or any Republican that you can't criticize? If Bush (41 or 43) were a Democrat, Tom Roberts would be praising him. A swipe or two at President Clinton not withstanding. Talk about politicization!
When will American Catholics of the left come to see that the Democratic party of our parents and grandparents which actually embraced many values of the Church, is no more? This is not a defense for the GOP as they certainly have their shortcomings and problems which run afoul of Catholic social and moral doctrine and common sense. But the point remains blind allegiance to the Democratic Party is not only perilous to America, but to anyone desiring to live as a faithful Catholic in the United States. Sadly, very few of Catholic office holders who are democrats allow their faith to be first in the face of political allegiance. Compromise is often a good thing, but not always and especially not at the cost one's soul and the lives of others.
G.W. Bush may indeed have to answer for the thousands of lives lost in the wars in Afganstan and Iraq and those who have died in Texas under capital punishment. How many innocent lives will Decomcartic lawmakers (especailly Catholic democrats) have to answer for with abortions hovering at 4 million per year for nearly four decades and policies that keep people in poverty and ignorance that allowed radical Islam to spread and inflict terror on the world?
Hey Mr. Anonymous, Get real.
Hey Mr. Anonymous,
Get real. If abortion is made illegal, we will once again need to expand the entitlement programs to support it. Your "pro life" party will never go along with this. They use the abortion debate to keep people, like you, voting for them. You are being used, and don't even know it. We just had 8 years of Republican rule. Was abortion made illegal? Stop letting them make a fool of you!!!
As for Legatus, the main purpose is to make issues like abortion the center of the faith, so that these self-righteous rich men don't have the face the words of the Gospels. Read the whole Gospel and think about it.
The point I am making is that
The point I am making is that neither Republican nor Democratic politicans are sending mothers into abortion clinics. It is an individual's decision and each party has its own designs on how to fight abortion either by trying to change the law or effect policies that reduce the number. Those choices involve differing strategies. Democratic and Republican politicans, however, are sending our sons and daughters to battlefields. I am not sparing Democrats, including President Obama and his decision to widen the war in Afghanistan, from the assessment that no president in modern history has been a "pro life" president unless one wants to narrow the definition of pro-life in a way that focuses on one approach to that issue. The point is that pro-life, as a description of a Catholic approach to public issues, is hardly embraced by either party, and is too important an issue to cheapen. Perhaps my point was not made clearly enough. Tom Roberts
"each party has its own
"each party has its own designs on how to fight abortion either by trying to change the law or effect policies that reduce the number." I disagree, I know at least a little from the Republicans, other then rhetoric I only see the policies of the Democrats (I use this term loosely I do believe orgs like Democrats for life are as pro-life as most in DC) as escalating abortion, how else can you explain the Mexico City Policy, the expansion of destructive embryonic research, the erosion of conscience clauses, etc. The only thing I ever hear them offer is to "reduce the need for abortions" which always include abortifacients...which actually increase chemical abortions.
Please tell me that this
Please tell me that this article is a joke and originally appeared in the Onion. Giving a pro-life award to George W. Bush is like giving a civil libertarian award to Dick Cheney.
Steve
My apologies.
My apologies.
"each party has its own
"each party has its own designs on how to fight abortion either by trying to change the law or effect policies that reduce the number"
Reduce the number- ha!! I can't believe anybody is still spouting that nonsense. Hmm, lets mandate health insurance that must include abortion coverage, that'll reduce the number. Really, just give that line up, it's so silly.
To call Bush anti-life because of his track record with the death penalty is solid criticism. To drag in the wars is absolute nonsense. Did you hear Chemical Ali was executed? If it wasn't for Bush, he'd still be picking off Kurds. Maybe without Bush we could have inacted policies to reduce the number of innocent Kurds he could kill.
The Legatus people before
The Legatus people before getting into Champion Death Penalty Governor Bush might take a second look at Admiral O'Connor who put himself on the wrong side of history in his apologia for the Viet Nam was and to the end of his life didn't seem to have any objection to the US Navy lobbing heavy ordnance into Lebanese mountain villages. Comment above on execution of Chemical Ali seems to think that was a proper solution. How 'bout Ali behind bars forever?
I actually agree with much of
I actually agree with much of this. President Bush did some good things, and was far better on life issues then President Obama, but that would be a sad criteria for this award. Even on abortion and embryonic research, President Bush wasn't coherent, he allowed for both under certain circumstances. Only time will tell on those justices he appointed to the Supreme Court.
I don't know what the criteria for this award is, but I'm sure they could have done better, I think this award will hurt this organization.
With the recent Supreme Court
With the recent Supreme Court decision on corporate contributions, it seems that the "stare decisis" element of judicial rulings may not be in play as it has been in the past. Thus, it is foreseeable that Roe v. Wade may one day be overturned by this court, headed by Chief Justice Roberts. Who was appointed by Bush. Now that would be a pro-life legacy!
Oh, and by the way - the death penalty is not an objective intrinsic evil like abortion. Apples and oranges.
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