@DG: I wish you had read the articles you linked because they show I got it right:

— Expecting a well-compensated employee to act appropriately on the job does not equate to “forcing everyone” to do something.

— The availability of a product is not a function of who pays for it.

— There is no anti-life amendment and no amendment redefining marriage.

“Actually, Donald Trump did say everyone should be forced to stand for the national anthem.”

When exactly did he say that? He said that multi-millionaire employees, like anybody else, should be subject to disciplinary action for inappropriate conduct on the job. That’s not “everyone” and it’s not “forced”. (If the inappropriate conduct is so damned important to them, they can own up to the consequences. Heaven forbid they have to part with a little scratch.)

“Governments spend taxes on all sorts of things a citizen may find offensive.”

Well, that’s the problem, isn’t it? Even so, there is a world of difference between requiring someone to contribute to the public treasury, versus compelling them to undertake specific affirmative acts, like engaging an enemy in lethal combat.

“Employers should not have the right to know whether or not their employees use birth control.”

Totally bogus issue. There is no such right. Employers do not have access to any individual employee’s medical information or claims. And there is zero evidence of employers investigating individual employees’ use of birth control. That’s a red herring to distract from the real issue of conscientious objection to abortifacients.

“those who object to [abortifacients] shouldn’t have more rights than the rest of the population”

Nor should they have fewer rights.

Everyone in America has easy access to a wide range of birth control. The only thing I’ve heard Republicans say on the matter is (a) there should be greater availability without a prescription; and (b) the government has no right to force anyone, even an employer, to violate their conscience.

https://www.google.com/search?q=republican+attacks+on+birth+control&oq=republican+attacks+on+birth+control&aqs=chrome..69i57j0.14346j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

And of course no one has ever said anything about forcing anyone to stand for the national anthem. That’s just a canard.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2017/09/26/donald-trump-wants-nfl-create-rule-mandating-players-stand-national-anthem/703318001/

The difference between the Second Amendment, and the amendments redefining marriage and restricting the right to life, is that the Second Amendment actually exists.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielfisher/2015/06/26/supreme-court-rules-same-sex-marriage-is-a-constitutional-right/#6d1c3c65cdd0

https://law.justia.com/constitution/us/amendment-14/31-abortion.html

Really, stop pulling this stuff out of your you-know-what, j.a.m.

Actually, Donald Trump did say everyone should be forced to stand for the national anthem.

Paying taxes is against the conscience of some people. Should they be allowed to opt out?

Governments spend taxes on all sorts of things a citizen may find offensive. Should a pacifist be forgiven the portion of their taxes that fund the military? Should those against any form of marriage have to pay for the bureaucracy of marriage registration? Should those who think that God controls health for all not have to pay the portion of their taxes that goes to HHS?

Why is it that religion is so effing obsessed with everything to do with sex? Because it’s a good way to control people that’s why. Employers should not have to right to know whether or not their employees use birth control. In addition, their are several medical conditions for which it is prescribed that have nothing to do with birth control. Also, for many women contraceptive pills are dangerous and buying them otc is not a good idea. They should only be taken after consultation with a doctor.

And when are Viagra, Cialis, Avigara etc going on to the list if drugs that religion objects too? Surely erectile dysfunction is God’s way of saying He doesn’t want a man breeding any more. Oh, and perhaps you shouldn’t take those heart pills either. A dicky ticker means God wants you dead. The point is, religion can be twisted any way you want it to be, and those who object to contraception shouldn’t have more rights than the rest of the population. They do at the moment of course because Trump wants to mollify his supporters.

Tell me what those ways are? The only things I have proposed increase freedom. Look at international indices. NZ is ahead of the US on almost every index there is. We’re way ahead on press freedom. We’re even ahead on business freedom. The things I propose don’t create less freedom, they create more. When people don’t have to worry about paying for healthcare, they’re more likely to start a business for example. In the US people stay in jobs they hate or aren’t good at for the sake of health insurance. How is that freedom?

@DG: The above comment referred to opinions that I personally have posted on this site (I don’t speak for “Republicans”), and no one can honestly deny it is accurate.

Everyone in America has easy access to a wide range of birth control. The only thing I’ve heard Republicans say on the matter is (a) there should be greater availability without a prescription; and (b) the government has no right to force anyone, even an employer, to violate their conscience.

And of course no one has ever said anything about forcing anyone to stand for the national anthem. That’s just a canard.

The difference between the Second Amendment, and the amendments redefining marriage and restricting the right to life, is that the Second Amendment actually exists.

The bottom line is that, while neither major party is purely libertarian, there really is no contest as long as the Democrats flirt with the radical authoritarian left, and are so keen to turn over ever more power and resources to busybody politicians, bureaucrats and social engineers.

j.a.m.: “I’m the one who wants the state to have LESS power, while you consistently argue the opposite?”

A recent comment from a WaPo article about gun control:

Republicans – we cannot restrict the 2nd Amendment, it is an affront to freedom!!

Republicans – we must restrict a woman’s rights to a medical abortion
Republicans – we must keep gays from marrying
Republicans – we must keep women from getting easy access to Bc [birth control]
Republicans – we must force everyone to stand for the National Anthem, regardless of whether they want to

Let’s talk about the thousand and one ways you propose to empower the state and limit everyone’s rights and freedoms — and then we can talk about a civilized society’s first duty, to protect the right to life.

So it’s up to you to decide what women do with their bodies, based on your opinion that a blastocyst has a soul?

Every wank is murder, and all those nighttime emissions are involuntary manslaughter. You’ll be prosecuting women for menstruating next. All those wasted eggs.