1) no person should be forced to give up their health or well-being for the benefit of another.

2) when ‘life’ begins is completely subjective.

And who should be watching them? Our government? They should decide how much money I can make?

I don’t know where you came up with the conclusion that ‘regulated and watched’ equates to the government saying how much money you can make. But yes, I do think that certain business practices should be illegal and punishable by law. I also think that enforcing fair labor practices, enviromental safety, and trading practices is the purview of regulators as well.

Because religion is so diverse and divisive, it belongs in the church not in public policy.– Why?

Why?! Look at Iraq. Look at India. Look at Pakistan and the old Yugoslavia. Look at HISTORY! ANY state that elevates one religion over another, that uses religious tenets instead of the rule of law, that says to its people “This belief is good and all others are bad”, these states end up torn by violence, bereft of freedom of thought and action, crushed under totalitarian dictators, and rife with abuse and cruelty.

So you apparently forgot to chime in when others were saying that Bush was shredding the Constitution. He wasn’t shredding it, he was just letting it breath

There is indeed room for interpretation within the Constitution, but what Bush did was NOT interpretation. What HE did was violate the First and Fourth Amendments, co-opt the responsibilities of the Legislative branch, overstepped the power of his office, and used the tools of the State to intimidate dissent.

But you avoid subjects that call your ridicules stances out

When I do that, it’s usually because you have so misquoted and rephrased my opinions that it’d take *way* more effort to set the record straight than i want to put into a blogpost. And you seldom admit that you may have been mistaken in your understanding. For example, you’re STILL insisting that I did say that pornographers NEVER harmed children or exploited women…when what was said was probably something on the order of “mainstream pornography doesn’t feature underage girls or coerce women into posing…”

either way…I DO get tired of correcting your misquotes and deliberate mischaracterizations so…yes, I DO refuse to get into it sometimes…

A pregnancy involves two bodies, two lives. Why would you believe that only one of those two bodies, two lives would have civil rights?

Mara – People should be free to do as they please (as long as it doesn’t harm the rest of us)

“Us” being the operative word. “them” or “IT” can be harmed at the whim of a woman, right?

Mara – but businesses and corporations need to be watched and regulated.

And who should be watching them? Our government? Our elected officials that are not professional business people, but the lowest form of human life: Politicians? Politicians should be watching my business? They should decide how much money I can make? Too bad some very wealthy limousine liberals haven’t been watched.

Mara – Because religion is so diverse and divisive, it belongs in the church not in public policy.

Why? And what has been the result of this stance over the past 25 years?

Mara – I believe that the Founders expected society to progress and built into the Constitution enough ambiguity to provide structure without restricting moral growth.

The Constitution as a living document, Huh? So you apparently forgot to chime in when others were saying that Bush was shredding the Constitution. He wasn’t shredding it, he was just letting it breath. But of course you hated Bush, so I guess the Constitution can only be alive if it is being driven by wise, kind people offering Hope and Change.

I don’t “get like this”. I’m like this every day that I need to deal with the double standards that liberals insist on. I’m like this every day when people like AW and you insist that churches are just as crime infested as slimy bars.

I think you are all good people, but I think you are indoctrinated. I think you are forbidden to think logically. I think you ignore logic and reason and any pointing out of historical parallels is strictly forbidden.

I don’t want to insult you. I like you and I like almost everyone here. But you avoid subjects that call your ridicules stances out. If I go back and find the exact wording to the porn stance (like I have already done for USinUK), what will your reaction be to a couple of hours of research? Will you even respond? I don’t think so.

If you want your child to receive religious indoctrination in their education, send them to parochial school.

Oh, please. I double-dog dare you to search out the quote (with link, please) where any one of us said that pornographers **NEVER** exploit women or children. Sheesh.

It’s absolutely impossible to have any conversation with you when you get like this. You say that I “don’t really take a stance. You just argue”. This is factually, provably false. I think that pretty much anyone here can name at least two issues I’m adamant about.

but just for you, here are some of my ’stances’ –

a woman’s body is her own and she can, if she chooses, terminate a pregancy for ANY reason.
Because religion is so diverse and divisive, it belongs in the church not in public policy.
I do not believe that there is a God, but I could be wrong.
People should be free to do as they please (as long as it doesn’t harm the rest of us) but businesses and corporations need to be watched and regulated.
I support the Fair Tax.
I support decriminalizing marijuana.
I believe illegal aliens should be tracked down and deported.
I believe that the Founders expected society to progress and built into the Constitution enough ambiguity to provide structure without restricting moral growth.
I believe that children are usually smelly, messy, unmannerly, annoying, and should be seen, not heard.
That zydeco shouldn’t be considered ‘music’.
That all animals should be treated gently and with kindness, most especially those we intend to kill and eat.
I believe that most people mean well.
I believe that there are smart people and stupid people, but most of us fall somewhere in between.
I believe that you are responsible for your own happiness, nobody can ‘make’ you happy.
I think that “In fact…” is one of the most misused phrases in any language.
And lastly, I believe that saying ‘always’ or ‘never’ is very, VERY seldom accurate.

AH, so now it is left to the kids to teach morals. And isn’t that working out really well. Thanks for the clarification.

But strangely enough, you didn’t answer my central question: Why ws it necessary that it be changed? What was the HOPE for the CHANGE? Why would liberals, (sorry, not liberals, more like you people here, who of course would never be considered a liberal) want religion taken out of our schools (sorry, not taken out of our schools, but turned over to the students, or whatever you are claiming today).

So what was the reason? And where do you think kids get their morals and character training? It is prohibited in public schools, so where do they get their training, now?

And of course that lack of training for the past 25 years has absolutely no effect on our culture. The crime rate increase is imagined and the unwed mother rate is actually a good thing. So see? I’m really happy about all those good things that liberalism has taught us all. I just can’t wait for when our incredibly efficient government gets to tell executives how much money they can make. Wasn’t the AIG stuff GREAT!!!! I think Unions should show up at people’s homes threatening their children. I think the kids deserved it. Hell, they probably had nice clothes. Somebody get a rope.

Yep. Liberalism. We are definitely on the right track, now. I have to go, now. I need to listen to our incredibly smart president who is going to tell us a new strategy about sending tens of thousands of troops into Afghanistan. “The situation is increasingly perilous.” And now he is talking about terrorists wanting to kll Americans. Wow. This is new. Too bad Bush never thought of that.

But this isn’t about fear, like with those mean old Republicans, this is about HOPE.

Andy – I guess Bristol Palin is a libural?

heh, heh, heh.

People in prisons are almost always Christians. So I suppose those big yards are for prayer meetings.

The rise in crime since the 50s is all in my imagination. There was just as much crime but people just didn’t tell. I guess people are faking the murder rate increase.

Since Sarah Palin’s daughter was pregnant, all sins are now the fault of Conservatives. that’s good to know.

And it wasn’t liberals that insisted that religion be taken out of schools. In fact I now remember that it wasn’t a liberal atheist that fought to have it done, I think it was a missionary.

Got it.

Now excuse me while I board this big old spaceship and head on back to the good old planet earth.

You guys are one laugh after another.

And Mara, the argument that day was in fact that you and several others said that women and children are never exploited in the porn business. You covered yourself by saying that child porn was not actually the real porn industry.

Once again, you don’t really take a stance. You just argue,

Let’s approach this from a different tac. So why should have religion be taken out of schools? It was deeply embedded in schools for 200 years before the divine atheist insisted that it be taken out. Why was that important after 200 years? Could the SCOTUS just not read? Was the Constitution a different document back then?

Please explain to me why it became incredibly important?

I would ask other questions about crime and the coarseness of our society, but apparently, all is just fine. There is no more crime and children are just as safe as they always have been. Liberalism WORKS. And hasn’t it been GREAT for our society.