Wednesday, September 12, 2012

What a Centrist Wants....Part 2

Centrists want social issue proponents to come to the middle: Centrists by definition are people who are of the mind set of "Can't we all get along and find middle ground to stand on?" Polar issues such as Abortion, Gay Marriage/Civil Partnership, and other such issues are issues that divide people sharply. Abortion proponents/opponents will generally not budge on their opinions. I, myself, am a centrist on abortion. While I do have my own personal views about them. My personal views cannot be used to justify legislation that will affect millions of people that do not agree with me. So, my only justifiable solution is to come to the middle when dealing on the public stage. To try and find solutions that are reasonable and justified to both sides (which sound idealistic, maybe, but, bear with me.) I am personally an opponent of women getting abortions (not the right to get abortions however). I would never recommend one, I would never endorse someone having one, even in the most extreme circumstances. But such views do not belong in the legislative process. I believe in regulating the system and making sure women are educated about their bodies when they seek abortion services. I believe that if you must get an abortion, let it be done early, not when the child is 6 months along. but earlier than the 3rd month if possible. Abortion providers should be required to fully educate a woman on ALL her options regarding her unborn child. Should even discourage the decision if there is no medical justification other than "I have too many children." Abortion should be the absolute last resort of any woman and only for medically justified reasons. There are so many people who would LOVE to adopt newborns. Unborn children are reasonably viable after the 5th month with a moderate amount of medical attention. There is no reason why these options can't be explored before asking to have an abortion.

Gay Marriage/Civil Partnerships: The news reported today that a Boston Superior Court ruled that the DoMA (Defense of Marriage act) is unconstitutional on the grounds that it violates a state's right to determine a marriage and that the Federal Legislation overstepped its constitutional authority declaring Marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Many people have very strong feelings about this issue, myself included. Often, gays are the target of conservative "Christians" as abominations, un-natural, evil, hedonistic, rapists, child molesters, and other such unpleasant labels. Nothing is further from the truth. However, social aspects aside, there is no LEGAL justification for establishing a second system of partnerships to accommodate gay and lesbian couples, as marriage grants legal and social benefits that gays and lesbians cannot obtain in an equal forum. 

The aversion to calling the union of two men or two women marriage is mostly a cultural attitude about marriage: One which I personally agree with. A lot of ground can be made by both sides by simply agreeing that Civil unions with EXACTLY the same legal benefits as Marriage is a justified middle ground. Differentiating the two types of unions is 99% of the reason that such reforms keep getting stonewalled. Gays want to call it "Gay Marriage" and Marriage proponents disagree with calling it marriage because of its social and religious significance. I believe that most centrists would agree with this solution. This is not separate but equal, its different but equal. People who equate thinking like this to segregated schools don't know their history very well. Brown vs. Board of Education related to funding differences between black and white school districts under the guise of being equal. The court ruled that the funding between school districts was not equal, and so it wasn't separate but equal. Now, not that I support separate but equal thinking in a racial segregation mindset, but, this is not about school enrollment, or rights to enter the same building as a straight person. This is about showing respect for a legal institution (marriage) while granting the same legal status with a different name to Gays and Lesbians. 

So, there you have it.

Immigration issues: Reasonable reform, institute a guest-worker program.: I believe that a lot of center-minded people do not want open-ended borders that function as everything but. It is clear that there are jobs Americans won't take. Particularly in Agriculture. There is a strong justification for granting temporary status to those who seek work Americans won't do. I also believe that Centrists do not believe in blanket amnesty. Nor do they agree with rigid immigration laws that prevent migration. They believe that everyone should play by the same rulebook and that border security should be enforced accordingly. If a foreign national wants in, let him come legally, jumping through all the hoops. And I guarantee that most centrists believe that the Arizona law is justified in the context of enforcement of federal law. That charges of racial profiling should wait until there is actually a complaint of it. You can't accuse someone of something before it's even committed. 

That's all for now, stay tuned for more installments.

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