Right On Life

Downplaying Abortion Issue to Let Economics Trump: A Faustian Deal

A Path to Prosperity

Some tell us that the economy trumps the social issues. Others try to make the economy into the defining social issue, thus demoting social issues into something like “those other, lesser, social issues”. But are jobs, tax cuts, and the gold standard more important than the abortion issue?

There are well-informed voters who have a conservative position on abortion, marriage, and public decency that still vote Democrat. Why? Because they vote pocketbook issues first. Many of these are the salt-of-the-earth Democrats who feel that neither party can be trusted to do the right thing so they may as well vote selfishly. If nothing else, they can benefit their families and other wage-earning Americans.

There are well-informed voters who have a conservative position on abortion, marriage, and public decency that still vote for Libertarian or Moderate pro-choice, anti-marriage candidates. Why? Because they vote pocketbook issues first. Many of these are salt-of-the-earth Republicans, Independents, and Constitutionalists who feel that the best way forward is to set aside divisive social issues.

So, if we can turn this economy around, get more people back to work, reduce taxes and regulatory burdens, and increase our paychecks and all we have to do to is look the other way on abortion… isn’t that worth the cost? Isn’t economic prosperity a social issue equally as important as protecting the unborn? If we’re probably not going to save many babies anyway shouldn’t we give up on the babies and vote pocketbook issues—those few more dead babies could put money in our pockets?

Or let’s ask it this way, should we not pursue the greater good of increased prosperity for the many even if it comes at the cost of a few lives that would often threaten families with poverty and burden a system already on the brink of collapse. Once we get our economy going again, and get our government reduced again, and we get out of foreign entanglements, and return to our Constitutional foundation, and reduce the tax code, and lessen regulations, and return to a gold standard, and …, and …, and… Then, oh, what a blissful day, then, we will unite and outlaw abortions (or at least some of them).

If we sacrifice babies for economic gain, what differentiates us from pagans of old who offered human sacrifices to improve the weather? (I can imagine Molech’s priests arguing that everyone might starve to death if the harvest fails: “We have to kill the children so that the village can live”.) If we gain from the killing of children, what differentiates us from abortionists who profit from the murder industry? What separates us from cannibals? If we could gain the whole world for the cost of our souls, wouldn’t that be Faustian deal?

No, such an approach will not win us. We cannot participate in that plan. We will join in the fight for Constitutional liberty and economic happiness, but only secondarily to the pursuit of life. Will you join with us for life, first?

Related articles

• Barbour discourages GOP from talking about social issues (iowaindependent.com)
• Haley Barbour Again Opposes Abortion-Social Issues “Truce” (lifenews.com)
• Economy trumps social issues in conservative SC (boston.com)
• No Truces on Abortion: Social and Economic Issues Must Go Together (crosswalk.com)
• Has the abortion issue been reopened in Canada and what does this mean for social movements? (mobilizingideas.wordpress.com)

29th December 2011 1:42 PM - Posted by Christopher Levi | Abortion Reasoning | Abortion, Pro-Life, Republican Candidates