Senator Ted Kennedy on Government Health Care

First of all, God rest the soul of Mr. Ted Kennedy. All humans are created in the image and likeness of God and destined for eternal happiness with God in Heaven. He died with his family around in prayer the entire day and with a priest by his deathbed until the end. May Our Lord bestow the grace upon Mr. Kennedy's soul to, God willing, earn the promised eternal happiness our Lord gives to those who know, love, and serve Him in this world.

Second, just because a celebrity, whether from Hollywood or from D.C., passes away, doesn't mean they deserve automatic canonization. Even Mother Teresa's life is still being examined by the very Church that thinks favorably of her. An examination of Mother Teresa's life is still being conducted with the thorough scrutiny required to acknowledge the praiseworthiness of her life. This, even after the esteem, pride, honor and example of authentic Catholic charity she exhibited in her earthly life. We pray for her eternal happiness with God in Heaven. There are hundreds of departed Catholics who lived a virtuous life and yet are still not accounted in the book of Saints. Some never will, even though the apparent exhibition of their lives seemed blameless.

When it comes to celebrities, the media quickly takes and misconstrues pity. The pity we should all have for anyone who's time has expired in this world and are facing their eternal destiny. The media twists true pity for a dead celebrity by immediately celebrating their life as one of heroic virtue and a model of sanctity. Elvis, Michael Jackson, Princess Diana, have all been prematurely swooned over immediately after the news of their deaths. Instead, we should quietly pray for their souls.

On the issue of government health control, we are told that Ted Kennedy was one of its strongest advocates. The Democrats are already starting to exploit his death to advance the Obama administration's policy of government oversight of health care. This is sickening. The tacky Democrats did this before in November of 2002 at the funeral of Paul Wellstone. It turned into a huge Democrat DNC pep rally while the corpse lie in repose. When Trent Lott and Gov. Jesse Ventura attempted to publicly give their condolences, they were booed out of the service by the whipped up crowd. A real classy exhibition from the party of 'tolerance' and 'heart'. It appears the Democrats don't learn from their mistakes and are now contemplating calling the Obama Health Bill the "Ted Kennedy Health Reform Bill". Another dose of tackiness from the loony left.

I'm all for reform. We should all be reforming our own lives each and every day and working to make the world a better place. Our Lord said, "Be perfect like the Heavenly Father is Perfect." He also said, "Woe to those who scandalize the children." He also threw out the money lenders from the temple. There are many things Our Lord did that we should not just latch onto any one thing alone. For example many politicians latch onto only one or two of the 8 Beatitudes. Or latch onto one of Christ's Teachings, but usually never all of His Teachings like His Instituting the Blessed Sacrament (John 6), or His condemnation of divorce (Matt 5:32, Matt 19:7-9), or His Instituting the Church upon the Apostles that would exist from then until the end of time (John 14:26, Matt 16:17 and 28:18), etc.

There are some lines one should not cross to make the world a better place. Euthanasia, child abuse, tyranny, birth control, abortion, rape, pornography, communism, etc. are examples of such lines society should never cross in institutionalizing a contrived 'better place'. Another line one doesn't cross is turning a funeral into a political pep rally or a tool to wage political war.

Another line that is trying to be crossed is socialized medicine. Ted Kennedy once chided government involvement in health care with these words in a March 12, 2003 Senate floor speech:

"I do not believe it is the role of the Senate to interfere with or regulate the kind of medical advice that a doctor can give to a patient."

You would think with such a principled viewpoint Mr. Kennedy would oppose Government Health Care. On the contrary, Mr. Kennedy chose to apply this principle and retract it whenever it suited his career. The above quote was used by Mr. Kennedy when he was opposing the ban on partial birth abortion. The atrocious act where a doctor partially delivers the baby late into a mother's pregnancy, inserts scissors into the baby's skull to insert a vacuum to remove its brains, and systematically, limb by limb, using forceps, to dismember the baby all while it's heart is still beating. Mr. Kennedy in this case was wrong and regardless of how the media tries to present his life, Mr. Kennedy will always be wrong when it came to his selective support of Government intervention on a health bill, yet oppose it when it suits his political advancement.

Separation of Church and State? Obama: 'Government Health Care a "Religious Responsibility"'

Whatever happened to the "separation of Church and State" argument liberals are always touting when they want to legalize something immoral? It seems they change their tune whenever they see upcoming failure and start exploiting people's faith in God to advance their agenda. This is the height of liberal hypocrisy. Or far more sinister, this is Obama's divide and conquer tactic at work again as we saw in the Notre Dame scandal.

According to the State-Run Chicago Sun Times, acting as a pawn for the Obama Regime, delivered this one-sided bias report of Obama's attempt to force religious leaders in supporting state-run medicine. The strong arm Chicago-Politics tactic of "if you don't participate with this, you risk being publicly labeled as a 'bad Samaritan'" can only be likened to Brown Shirt Nazis pressuring Catholic leaders into appearing in public with them. The Government along with the State-Run Media are reaching the heights not only of hypocrisy, but also of political corruption:

140,000 Participate in Historic Faith Call with President Obama

Statement from Faith in Public Life, PICO National Network, Sojourners and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good

Washington, D.C. - An estimated 140,000 people of faith gathered on a historic national conference call with President Barack Obama and the American faith community. Sponsored by more than thirty religious denominations and organizations that cut across race and religious traditions, the call helped launch a massive "40 Days for Health Reform" campaign to mobilize people of faith to press Congress to finish work on health care reform when they return after Labor Day Recess.

President Obama and his Domestic Policy Director Melody Barnes spoke directly to the most pressing issues on the minds of people of faith. By addressing the moral dimension of the health care debate, they recognized the important role of the faith community in finally achieving health care reform.

At every moment in American history when a movement was needed to solve a great challenge facing the nation, people of faith have led. This moment is no different. Today's call lifted up the inspiring efforts of tens of thousands of people of faith across the United States to promote a civil dialogue and ensure Congress passes legislation in 2009 that makes quality health care affordable for all American families. The call put the focus of the health care debate where it should be - on the needs and voice of American families working to keep their loved ones healthy and their communities strong.

Like the Nazi Regime, the Obama Regime is using propaganda photo-ops and exploiting people's faith in God to advance their agenda. Apparently the only Catholics the Obama Regime could have possibly used as their political pawns were Notre Dame style Catholic leaders (Catholics like the cardinals pictured on photographs with Nazis). The only Catholics the nazis could've summoned were the easily coerced since staunch Catholics in leadership during WWII opposed Hitler and today oppose Obama's socialist proposal. Just as Notre Dame style Catholics were photographed with Nazis, Notre Dame style Catholics today are standing by Obama.

According to a CNS article:

In an August 11 letter to members of the House of Representatives, Cardinal Justin Rigali, chairman of the pro-life committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (U.S.C.C.B.), told lawmakers that health-care reform must “respect human life and rights of conscience in the context of abortion.”

“Much-needed reform must not become a vehicle for promoting an ‘abortion rights’ agenda or reversing longstanding policies against federal funding and mandated coverage of abortion,” Rigali wrote.

“We urge you to make this legislation ‘abortion neutral,’ by preserving longstanding federal policies that prevent government promotion of abortion and respect conscience rights,” he added.

Richard Doerflinger, associate director of the U.S.C.C.B. secretariat for pro-life activities, told CNSNews.com that the conference, which represents 424 active and retired American bishops, is also urging lawmakers to support amendments against pro-abortion provisions in the bill.

“We would like to see an amendment that takes out the abortion funding and coverage mandate,” Doerflinger said. “It is safe to say that the conference of bishops does not support the House health-care legislation in its present form.”

“Presently, it will lead to mandated abortion coverage in the public health insurance plan and will require anyone purchasing that plan to pay for abortions even if they oppose abortion,” he explained to CNSNews.com.

‘Fabrications’ vs. ‘Forced Abortion Coverage’

President Obama, when addressing religious leaders on August 20, said, “You’ve heard that this (health-care reform) is all going to mean funding of abortion. Not true.”

“These are all fabrications that have been put out there in order to discourage people from meeting what I consider to be a core ethical and moral obligation,” he added.

But Rigali, the archbishop of Philadelphia, Pa., pointed out in the letter that the legislation would give the secretary of health and human services the power to make unlimited abortion “a mandated benefit” in the “public health insurance plan” the government will manage nationwide.”

“This would be a radical change,” Rigali wrote, “Federal law has long excluded most abortions from federal employees’ health benefits packages, and no federal health program mandates coverage of elective abortions.”

Because some federal funds would be authorized and appropriated without passing through the Labor/HHS appropriations bill, Rigali pointed out they “would not be subject to the Hyde Amendment or other federal provisions that prevented federal funding of abortion and of health-benefits packages that include abortion.”

Under the Hyde Amendment, the only instances where federal subsidies may be used to cover abortion are in cases of incest, rape, or when the pregnant woman’s life is in danger.

But the House Energy and Commerce Committee had rejected an amendment to extend “this longstanding policy” to the use of federal subsidies for health-care premiums under the bill, Rigali noted.

“Instead the committee created a legal fiction, a paper separation between federal funding and abortion,” he said. “Federal funds will subsidize the public plan, as well as private health plans that include abortion on demand; but anyone who purchases these plans is required to pay a premium out of his or her own pocket (specified in the Act to be at least $1.00 a month) to cover all abortions beyond those eligible for federal funds under the current Hyde amendment.”

The letter acknowledged the claim that federal taxpayer funds do not support abortion under the health bill, which the bishops dismissed as “an illusion.”

“Funds paid into these plans are fungible, and federal taxpayer funds will subsidize the operating budget and provider networks that expand access to abortions,” Rigali wrote.

Furthermore, Americans who may be forced “ by economic necessity” to purchase insurance through the government-run “public plan” will be forced by the federal government to pay directly and specifically for abortion coverage, the bishops argued.

“Government will force low-income Americans to subsidize abortions for others (and abortion coverage for themselves) even if they find abortion morally abhorrent,” Rigali wrote.

“By what right, then, and by what precedent, would Congress make abortion coverage into a nationwide norm, or force Americans to subsidize it as a condition for participating in a public health program?” he added.

The cardinal urged Congress to “help ensure that any legislation that comes up for a vote in the full House does not include these unacceptable features.”

“Please support amendments to correct them, and oppose any rule for consideration of H.R. 3200 that would block such amendments,” he added.

The positions of the Catholic Church may carry added sway in the health-care debate, given that Catholic hospitals are major health-care providers in America.

According to data from the Catholic Health Association (CHA), the nation’s largest nonprofit health-care organization, there are currently 624 Catholic hospitals, 499 Catholic long-term care nursing facilities, and 41 hospice organizations in the U.S. alone, including 11 of the nation’s largest health-care systems.

Of the 4,897 community hospitals in America, 12.7 percent are Catholic-run organizations that “often provide a higher percentage of public health and specialty services than other health care providers,” according to the CHA, which defines community hospitals “as all non-federal, short-term, general and other specific hospitals.”

Catholic facilities accounted for more than one-fifth, or 20 percent, of hospital admissions in 21 states and the District of Columbia. Last year, Catholic-run health care saw more than 16.9 million emergency room visits, at least 92.7 million outpatient visits -- and admitted more than 5.5 million patients.