Friday Freeper Follies

As many people know, Patrick Murphy has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood in the election for the 8th district U.S. House seat between him and incumbent Mike Fitzpatrick. Also, as many people know (those who live in Bucks County, PA, anyway), the two targets that are assaulted most viciously by the right-wing hammerheads in this area are Planned Parenthood and any teachers union in existence (though I will say that the Pennsbury teachers, to some degree, did not exactly “cover themselves in glory” during last year’s strike; I hasten to add that I don’t automatically side 100 percent with the school board either).

The result of the endorsement Patrick received from Planned Parenthood was as predictable as a bout of flatulence after an attack of indigestion; namely, the letters started POURING in to the Bucks County Courier Times decrying “the unholy alliance,” or words to that effect, between Patrick Murphy and Planned Parenthood.

I have stated many, MANY times that Planned Parenthood performs a WIDE ARRAY of services for families and children aside from abortions. I’m not going to both to restate that again, and somehow I don’t think it would matter to the crowd that has already made up its mind that “St. Mikey” is their guy. Besides, there is a link to Planned Parenthood on this site under “Give or Get Help”; you can click there if you want to learn more.

Anyway, a letter was printed in the Courier Times from an individual named Bob Haffner that must have been particularly nasty in this regard. I didn’t see it because, to be perfectly honest with you, I stopped paying attention to the endless intellectual flotsam that oozes out of these people on this issue.

Let me just say that the letters attacking Patrick’s endorsement from Planned Parenthood were pouring into the paper before we went on vacation, they no doubt continued to do so while we were gone, and they have continued unabated. And if this were a case of people taking the time to formulate well thought out arguments that showed even a hint of sensitivity towards other people’s attitudes and beliefs, I would be somewhat inclined to take them seriously.

However, that is not the case, and this letter below that appeared today is typical.

Thank goodness for Bob Haffner’s letter nailing the “want it both ways” Patrick Murphy and his unholy alliance with Planned Parenthood. For years, our district was saddled with a pretend Republican in Jim Greenwood who voted with the pro-choice crowd.

Two years ago we finally got a pro-life candidate who proudly stands to protect the lives of the innocent. The best his detractors can do is equate voting for the Iraq War with murdering of (sic) millions of innocent infants. What a joke!

I will proudly support Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick in November, and urge my fellow Catholics to do the same.

Ed Monigan
Lower Makefield

I’m not going to say much for Jim Greenwood except that, for a Repug, he actually wasn’t too bad, and I believe he “cashed out” at just the right time, no doubt reading the writing on the wall because he wasn’t sufficiently doctrinaire for so-called “moral values” crowd.

What was actually gratifying today, though, was to read Patrick’s response that also appeared this morning.

Of all the values my parents taught me as a child, the most important was my faith. They taught me to have faith in God and our church.

The Catholic Church has given me the moral bedrock on which I stand and live my life. To have my faith attacked in a letter by Bob Haffner – a man I have never met – is both malicious and wrong.

I’ve always thought that commitment to the Church was driven by more than any single issue. From my earliest days at St. Anselm’s grade school, being a Catholic meant living a life of faith, hope, and love. My wife and I, like many Catholics, go to Mass on Sundays, yet we sometimes disagree with aspects of our Church. I believe, for example, in the federal funding of stem cell research because I believe that it holds the promise to heal the sick, ease suffering, and preserve life.

I have never thought that it was my role – or Bob’s – to question the faith of fellow parishioners who hold a similar view.

Throughout my life, as an altar boy and later as a lector, I have been an active member of my parish community and its organizations. When I was in the Army, serving in places like Bosnia and Iraq, I prayed even more fervently for the safety of those for whom I was responsible. I was even honored that one of my paratroopers in Iraq stated that he became a Catholic because of my example. Does this mean that I have been a perfect Catholic? Of course not. But that doesn’t meant that the editorial pages should become the place to evaluate my or anyone else’s personal religious beliefs.

Bob Haffner’s criticism of my faith is unwarranted, unfounded, and malicious. He dishonors not only my faith, but the faith of many of my fellow parishioners.

Patrick Murphy
Bristol Township

As a Catholic also, I should point out how much Our Lord’s teachings mean to me as stated in the New Testament of the Bible. These include bettering oneself through love of neighbor and apostolic good works, living a life of temperance and moderation, and speaking truth to power, primarily on behalf of those in need.

Mike Fitzpatrick doesn’t reflect any of those values as far as I’m concerned. By shilling for the benefit of Tom DeLay and the “K” street crowd in Washington, as well as his own shameless demagoguery (announcing that Patrick Murphy, by virtue of his opposition to Fitzpatrick’s sham “Delete Online Predators Act,” automatically supports child predators himself), he more closely resembles the Pharisees who Jesus chastised as “whited sepulchers.”

When I read, hear, and reflect upon the wonderful stories and lessons of The New Testament, I find that the person who more closely resembles the values espoused in this great work is Patrick Murphy, not Mike Fitzpatrick.

And one more thing: though it is a vitally serious issue, the New Testament doesn’t say a damn thing about abortion.