Few have forgotten the idiocy of August 2009 when U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley and other conservatives falsely proclaimed that health reform legislation would include “death panels.”
“In the House bill, there is counseling for end of life,” Grassley said at a town hall meeting held in mid-August. “You have every right to fear. You shouldn’t have counseling at the end of life, you should have done that 20 years before. Should not have a government run plan to decide when to pull the plug on grandma.”
The statement struck a chord because most Americans fiercely believe that government, insurance companies or really any other-than-family influence should not play a role in end-of-life decisions. The ironic thing is that those who were yelling the loudest while carrying the “Obama lies and grandma dies” signs are the very individuals who believe there are instances where the government should decide such matters — and not just in the case of capital punishment.
To be clear: Sen. Grassley, Sarah Palin, U.S. Rep. Steve King, former N.Y. Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey, U.S. Rep. John Boehner, U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, Newt Gingrich and a host of other conservatives, who like to tout “small government” beliefs, advocate and want the government be involved in end-of-life decisions.
Don’t believe me? Ask any one of them how they feel about abortion when a mother’s life is at risk.
It is not logical or ethical to use some fictional lack of autonomy in end-of-life-decisions as a scare tactic, but it is even worse when those making such hallucinogenic statements would stand up and fight for the ability to enact it. Under the rules these “conservatives” would enact, women, regardless of circumstance, would be forced to carry dangerous pregnancies to labor, term or death — even when there is no hope of a living child ever resulting from those pregnancies.
