Proclaiming 'individual' religious liberty

A posse of liberal groups gathered at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday to defend President Barack Obama's contraceptive mandate and "not allow conservative politicians and religious leaders to redefine the meaning of religious liberty," per the press release announcing the event.

About five people, not including reporters, gathered to hear what they had to say. It was rainy outside, said the organizers, explaining the low turnout while tens of thousands of people were milling around downtown Charlotte.

Sara Hutchinson of Catholics for Choice, one of the organizers, said that true religious freedom is "the right to be respected as a moral decision maker, free to follow one's own conscience and religious beliefs." The contraceptive mandate, she said, was protecting individuals' abilities to choose to use contraceptives, adding, "The real threat today is not to religious liberty of the Catholic hierarchy but to the freedom of conscience of the rest of America's Catholics."

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seektruth

This is classic example of individuals being considered CHATTEL (property) of the greater corporation known as the UNITED STATES. Serving in the capacity "of an institution" people are then mandated under the commerce clause to do as the corporation says, regardless of their individual conscience.
This is semantics. Corporations are run by PEOPLE and are not living entities. Therefore they should not be dictated to do ANYTHING. All action is performed by INDIVIDUALS within that corporation and individuals MUST be allowed to act according to their conscience within the parameters of Common Law.
- daves
  
  Then the people behind the corporations should be held liable also. If 50 people die from a defective product, someone should spend the rest of their life in prison but that has never happened.
  - seektruth
    
    YES! But such decisions of production are usually not from one person. So, when a company is found liable and they are fined, the individuals of that company are impacted. Noticed I said, "within Common Law" which DOES hold people responsible for harm to others. Not so sure about the "spend the rest of their life in prison…" that would depend on the degree of knowledge and neglect on part of those making the product and discovery under due process.
    In this article we have a case where Sara H. is suggesting that the INSTITUTION or corporation has to abide by the mandate because it's the individual who has the religious freedom and NOT the corporation. But I'm saying the corporation is made up of those "religious" people.
    Based on her statement, corporations should follow the mandate regardless of the religious conscience of those in the corporation, even if the corporation has as its FOUNDATION and purpose religious beliefs. This is UN-Constitutional!
daves

In Minnesota, gay marriage is against the law. Still this November we get to vote on whether to make gay marriage unconstitutional. Yesterday I saw about the 10th bumper sticker that said "Another Catholic voting NO". Anti-homosexual ballot initiatives have never been defeated in any state. I think Minnesota will be the first.
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004047180339 John Adams
  
  I guess that will just show how many wicked people live in Minnesota.
mallen11

Utopianism, or unrealistic mentality – the refashioning of people to confirm to all kinds
of distorted views of Christianity. Social engineering to distort divine establishment which was established to protect all persons in a national entity. The government is to protect privacy, property and life.
Chris

The government is not forcing you to use contraceptives – it is the Catholic Church which is trying to force its religion on to other people and stop them from having freedom.
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004047180339 John Adams
  
  I've never seen the catholic church "force its religion" on anyone other than those who belong to the catholic church or work for a catholic institution.
  The government is most certainly trying to force its religion of humanism upon EVERYONE in the US.
  - Bighoss
    
    That is because you live in the present and not in the Dark Ages when the tyrannical Catholic Church ruled with an iron hand
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Patton/592034163 Andrew Patton

If you rebel against Catholic doctrine, why call yourself a Catholic?