The White House has escalated the controversy about Rush Limbaugh’s supposedly grave insult of a Georgetown University law student who testified on Capitol Hill in favor of mandatory insurance coverage for birth control. President Obama called Sandra Fluke today to tell her her parents should be proud of her. The call and the effort to inflate Limbaugh’s satirical remarks about Fluke’s complaints about the high cost of birth control during her congressional testimony are clearly part of a Democratic effort to change the discussion from defending religious liberty against ObamaCare to one about the subjugation of women. Unfortunately, for those who care about defending the Catholic Church’s freedom to defend their faith, Limbaugh’s typically over-the-top humorous jibe at Fluke’s expense is being exploited to obfuscate the real issue at stake here.
Republicans are running for cover as the Democrats and left-wing women’s groups attempt to make Fluke a feminist martyr. Speaker of the House John Boehner called Limbaugh’s comments “inappropriate.” He’s right about that, but the problem is that while Democrats seem to regard Rush as some kind of Republican pope, much of what is said on the show needs to be understood to be no different than the rhetorical excesses of Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show.” Limbaugh’s use of the words “prostitute” and “slut” in connection to Fluke were not intended to be a literal accusation but a hyperbolic takedown of the notion that women at Georgetown are oppressed because they must spend as much as $1,000 of their own money for contraception the Jesuit-run school refuses to pay for.
Let’s specify that what Limbaugh said did nothing to advance the cause of civil debate on the issue. But those who decry the lack of civility in politics generally tend to limit their complaints to hyperbole uttered by people whose views they do not share. The same people who are voicing outrage at the hurt feelings of Ms. Fluke do not scruple at mocking or name calling when it comes to Sarah Palin, Rick Santorum or others whose beliefs on this or any other subject they believe to be antediluvian. The church and its adherents have been subjected to withering ridicule.
Moreover, though it has been lost amid the outcry against Limbaugh, he’s right to point out that, those who believe institutions ought to be compelled to fund free birth control are, in effect, demanding a subsidy for having sex. Of course, that is not the same thing as being a prostitute. Nor does it make anyone who wishes to take advantage of such a subsidy a “slut.” Such terms are abusive. But that is exactly why an entertainer like Limbaugh uses them much as Stewart and liberal comics employ similarly nasty terms to people they wish to deride. Need we really point out that comments made in the context of this sort of show is not the same thing as remarks recorded in the Congressional Record and should thus be judged by a slightly different standard?
Rush Limbaugh will survive this latest attempt to destroy him and may, in fact, benefit from being the subject of a White House barb. But conservatives and those who care about religious liberty should be dismayed by the way the left has been allowed to shield an ominous attempt to expand government power and subvert religious freedom behind a faux defense of women’s rights.
No one is trying to prevent Sandra Fluke or any other woman — or man — from doing whatever they want in the privacy of their own bedrooms. But what Fluke and President Obama are trying to do is to force religious institutions to pay for conduct their faith opposes. That, and not Rush Limbaugh’s scorn for Fluke’s birth control bill, remains the real issue at stake in this debate.
Jonathan, the reason Rush called Ms. Fluke a slut and a prostitute is because she said that she had talked to many Georgetown Law co-eds and they and she were having so much sex that they could not afford to pay for their birth control pills. Rush asked what do you call someone who gets paid for having sex. The American taxpayer was being asked to pay for Ms. Fluke to have sex and a lot of it. What is that usually called he asked “tongue in cheek.”
Tobin: Limbaugh called every woman in your family who used birth control a "slut," too. n nYour milquetoast response belies your low opinion of them.
If there was anything to be gained by the White House taking on Rush it's already been pocketed. I think it gained nothing but extra people tuning in to find a boisterous partisan but not the caricature the WH and allies have tried to draw. That said, do you think this adds people to the Conservative bench? I don't. n nBut more to the point, I think enough people are not going to buy into the freedom for me but not for thee side of the religious freedom argument. n nIf the religious authorities that helped make ObamaCare law really cared about liberty for the individual and not just for themselves then they could fight this battle with hands untied. But they don’t want ObamaCare repealed, necessarily. n nAgainst the WH's mock contraception sign-off form, they could create their own mock-up version of a pap-smear denied due to lack of number of approved symptoms, or implant some equal to or greater than worry and force a real retreat. n nThey’re simply being forced to lie down with bed-bugs they thought absolutely avoidable but tolerable for others.
Not directed at you, Mr. Tobin, but here's what the religious leaders need to realize: n n
Boehner says Limbaugh's remarks were "inappropriate." I think it's inappropriate for a genuine slut to be made a hero which is what Fluke is.
Limbaugh just does not like women. You can rationalize it anyway you want, but the guy is a pig.
Compared to who? Bill Clinton, who could always depend on his gorilla-faced henchman, James Carville to unleash the "trailer park trash" epithets on anyone who dared to suggest impropriety toward women on the part of the Slickmeister? Rush has always been consistent in standing up the NOW crowd and it's a disgrace that "conservatives" let themselves get intimidated into swallowing media spin lies that favor the left-wing NOW crowd as supposedly representative of women in general.
The left-wing NOW crowd? Please check your calendar.
When people start asking themselves why it is that third parties (the school she attends, insurtance companies, taxpayers) are expected to subsidize Sandra Fluke's sex life, Obama will regret having thrown in his (inflation-depreciated) two cent's worth. Experience has shown that it's usually a mistake for a politician to take on Rush Limbaugh. And in that regard, Obama is no Bill Clinton…
Firstof all, did Fluke check her budget before applying to Law school, especially a very expensive one? Did she check to see if she had enough money to pay for food,clothing, shelter,oh, and yes, extraculicular activities? Does she get ALL of these things free,provided by Georgetown Law School? Well MsFluke, this hard working taxpayer feels this is what is wrong with this country today: a bunch of vocal whiners who don'twant to pay for their own way but want everybody else to pay. Give me a break! Ms Fluke, you should be embarrassed and ashamed, regardless of what Rush Limbaugh said. As a woman, I feel alot of women have become a bunch of irresponsible,immature whiners. Grow upand pay for your own sexual activity. Leave me out of it! Do I expectyou to pay for my recreation such as movies, dinner, etc? You have a choice whether to have sex or not. If it's too expensive for you then don't partake. I should not have to pay so that you can have "free" contraception. This is insane.
gigireceda, you are exactly right. I am a man and I like to have sex also. (Sometimes; with the right woman of course! ( laughter) But I do not expect taxpayers to subsize my sex-life. People in this country have become so immature, whiny, and entitlement-minded it is pathetic.
Why is this point purposefully distorted. The Federal regs would require contraception as part of an insurance policy. The same as with other contracts in regulated industries. (Home owners insurance, Life insurance, a gallon of gasoline.) It says that a basic policy should include this coverage. nMost people pay for their insurance with a combination of deductions and employers contribution – part of their employment agreement. So, it isn't free.
You're making some valid observations about the method of payment. But I don't think the distinctions you make really have a substantial impact against the arguments that we conservatives are making. The point is that when government mandates a requirement such as this, something (the insurance policy) becomes more expensive — or more expensive for some — than it otherwise would have been. This is true regardless of whether or not MsFluke pays part of her insurance policy. As an analogy, if the government subsidizes my purchase of a Chevy Volt (which is not happening!), I would be regarded as silly — or as splitting hairs — if I tried to argue that "I didn't get anything for free" merely because I had to contribute something for the puchase of the Volt. … (continued) …
…. (As a side comment, not intended as a real rebuttal to what PJ104 said, it's good for all of us to realize that "the employer" never actually "pays part" of your insurance premium, or your social security contribution, etc. The "employer contribution" is money the employee earns, and which, for the sake of appearances, gets directed straight from the employer to the insurance company or social security, on the employee's behalf.)
This topic certainly has legs; again proving that nothing sells like sex. nGovernment mandates sometimes increase costs – should we still have lead in gasoline? (extreme, I know.) nWhat does a reasonable person expect from their health insurance? That is what is being regulated – as in other commodities. The Insurance companies have been silent here as birth control is cheaper than pre-natal care. The question of my employers's religious whims should not be considered. What if he became a Christian Scientist or Jehovah's Witness. nI live in a neighborhood with many Catholic families – all have 2 or 3 kids. Obviously, these women (don't fret Moralists – they're married) are using birth control as part of their planning process. n
Heart attacks can be fatal. No one has ever died from lack of sex. n nI am supposed to pay for the meds to prevent me from having a heart attack — ie remain alive. nShe is not supposed to pay for the meds necessary for her to have sex — ie an optional activity. n nAnd this is equity?
I take the point that some on the left have been egregious in their inexcusable treatment of Sarah Palin, as opposed of course to fair minded criticisms of her, for which there is plenty of self created fodder. But that wrong does in no way justify Limbaugh's needlessly low class, disgraceful calling out of Ms Fluke as as slut. Nor can his remarks be rationalized as humor. Let Limbaugh pick on someone his own size. Let right minded conservatives call him to account. Need ideology so persistently lead to trying to justify such civic indecency?
I've heard she picked that school so she COULD file this lawsuit.. nShe IS a slut – words have definitions. She is also stupid. She thinks she is expanding the playing field – she is helping to destroy it. Exactly as Stalin wanted. When you destroy Integrity, then the wood you are sitting on or standing on will crumble out from under you. nShe would be a prime target for being thrown in a gulag – outspoken rebel creature that she is, if for nothing else than for the guards to have themselves a toy for as long as she could survive it. nMost women who have been thrown in Marxist gulags the last hundred years were not thrown there for such frivolity. nDon't get confused. I am not calling the Conservatives the gulag builders – quite the opposite. Everyone who studies those regimes knows that those they found useful for a while – but do not intend to be let loose to help the NEXT revolution – are quickly gathered and disposed of when the Users are sure they have all the reins firmly in hand. She's useful to Marxists today to stir the pot and pull down more Structure. n But what good is she TO "HER SIDE" after her 15 minutes are over. She's already thrown all her own power/virtue on the ash-heap. No one on the Left can afford her as a liability when this is over.
Luke 8:46 And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me. nVirtue – dynamis – Strong's G1411 n1) strength power, ability na) inherent power, power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature, or which a person or thing exerts and puts forth n nPeople don't think of VIRTUE having POWER. nBy the way, it was not "his clothes" that she touched – per se – it was "THE HEM OF HIS GARMENT" in which the embroidering would have denoted his Position, much as the markings on the sleeve of a military man. She made a claim on her Blood Covenant Rights as a Child of God through Abraham, by "asking Him to extend His Authority/Cover of His Garment over her – His Legal Protection as designated by His insignia, as her kinsman and High Authority of her Tribe.
Yes the woman who touched the hem of His garment was a very wise woman.
I have to pay over $200/month for medicines necessary to keep me alive. Not to have sex, not to avoid unwanted pregnancies, but to remain alive. n nWhy should I have to pay for these medicines — which aren't optional unless I want to die — when she doesn't have to pay for medicines which ARE optional. She doesn't have to have sex to remain alive. n nMoreover, if the young man(men) wishing to have sex with her didn't buy her quite as nice a meal or as many flowers or take her on as expensive a date, they might be able to pay for her B/C for her. After all, they have more to loose from her becoming pregnant than she does.
The taxpayer is supposed to provide Miss Fluke free birth control so she can have a healthy sex life. Wow! Who knew that the sexual revolution would come to this.
" Rush Limbaugh’s supposedly grave insult" … "Limbaugh’s satirical remarks about Fluke’s complaints" … " Limbaugh’s typically over-the-top humorous jibe at Fluke’s expense" … " Limbaugh’s use of the words “prostitute” and “slut” in connection to Fluke were not intended to be a literal accusation". Tobin is making lots of excuses here. Let's recall what Limbaugh actually said: n nWhat does it say about the college co-ed Susan Fluke [sic] who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex. What does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute. She wants to be paid to have sex. She’s having so much sex she can’t afford the contraception. She wants you and me and the taxpayers to pay her to have sex. n[...] nSo Miss Fluke, and the rest of you Feminazis, here’s the deal. If we are going to pay for your contraceptives, and thus pay for you to have sex. We want something for it. We want you post the videos online so we can all watch. n++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ n nDo conservatives REALLY regard this as an appropriate response to someone who testified about a classmate who needed birth control medication to control ovarian cysts…? The argument Fluke made in her testimony is that a classmate of hers had difficulty convincing pharmacists she needed the contraceptive pills for her medical problems, As she could not afford the medication herself, she stopped taking the pills and (according to Fluke-) developed a dangerous cyst. n— nFace it, folks: breathtakingly stupid remarks such as Rush's do not help the "religious freedom" cause at all. n n
"The argument Fluke made in her testimony is that a classmate of hers had difficulty convincing pharmacists she needed the contraceptive pills for her medical problems." Huh? Why would this woman have to convince a pharmacist of anyhting? Didn't she have a prescription? Fluke's heartrending tales does seem to have a few holes in it.
So every time a conservative is criticized we have to hear about poor, poor Sarah Palin – the Republican Joan of Arc? No criticism is justified because some Liberal, somewhere said something nasty about Sarah or Rick. nThis entire argument is disingenuous, Churches are not being made to offer birth control , but their business ventures are being held to Federal standards. Tuition at top Catholic schools is north of $35k , Colleges and hospitals benefit from tax free status and millions in federal payments. These are major employers. n nOf course, employers could really save by becoming Christian Scientists.
Mr. Tobin, I don't understand why you are trying so hard to defend Rush Limbaugh's disgusting remarks, and even trying to make him into a victim when he was so obviously the aggressor. In any case, it won't fly. n nYou write, "Limbaugh’s use of the words 'prostitute' and 'slut' in connection to Fluke were not intended to be a literal accusation"–not literal in the same way that Jon Kyl's blatant falsehood about Planned Parenthood was "not intended to be a factual statement"? In other words, both men have utter disregard for the truth? I would heartily agree with you there. You certainly cannot claim with a straight face that Limbaugh was anything but "literal"–all too literal–in describing Sandra Fluke's supposed romantic exploits and demanding that she post a sex tape on YouTube. n nYou also attempt to justify Limbaugh's vileness by claiming that the left is guilty of comparable offenses: "Such terms ["slut"] are abusive. But that is exactly why an entertainer like Limbaugh uses them much as Stewart and liberal comics employ similarly nasty terms …" Pray give me an itemized list of all the times Jon Stewart has called public figures "sluts" and "prostitutes" on the air, as well as all the times he has demanded video of their sexual activities. n nYour argument equates attacking a person's public statements (as Jon Stewart has certainly done) with attacking their character and morals (as Limbaugh did to Sandra Fluke). The first type is fair game, but the second (known as "ad hominem" if you were one of those snobs who went to college) is supposed to be off limits in civilized debate. n nThe coup de grace is your attempt to portray Limbaugh as a victim. You assert that he "will survive this latest attempt to destroy him"–did you mean the self-inflicted one that we have all been forced to witness? With any luck, hopefully not. n nCut your losses, Mr. Tobin. In trying to defending Limbaugh's gratuitous ugliness, you just damage your own cause. n
You forgot Bill Maher, the guy who uses the c-word about Sarah Palin frequently, and then let''s collectively add up all the sexual crude epithets hurled at conservative women from Maher, Olbermann, Stewart, Pervert Letterman etc. down through the years and you will find that what Rush did, in which he was commenting on something Fluke made fair game based on her own comments, pales before that crowd. The difference is the Left (which I will note also expressed their displeasure when an ex-JFK intern dared to reveal some further unpleasant truths about their secular hero) believes it can do anything based on WHO a person is in the name of their supposed greater good. n nIf you really think Limbaugh's actions amounted to "vileness" then let's hear your outrage over Maher and company or else stand exposed for being a total first class hypocrite.
Limbaugh has apologized. n
No ma'am. What has piqued Mr. Limbaughs ire, along with folks like myself, is that an individual attending an expensive law school went before a Congressional committee and said that she (and others) are having so much sex that they can't afford to buy contraception and that she needs government funding in order to continue having sex. n nI'm sorry, but when did it become the responsibility of the tax payer to provide birth control for anyone? Sex is an elective activity, she isn't being forced to have sex in order to attend Georgetown. If she cannot afford the contraception, perhaps she should abstain until she can, I know, shock, horror! n nWhat ever happened to "keeping the government out of women's bodies?" In the case of abortion, the government should butt out, but in the case of contraception, all of a sudden the government is supposed to subsidize a person's sex life. n nIt has nothing to do with your attempt to paint Mr. Limbaugh as some sort of misogynist and everything to with individual liberty and responsibility for one's own actions. No one is being denied the right to have sex or buy contraception, they are just being denied FEDERAL FUNDS with which to purchase it.
She should pay for her own supplies. The fact that this conversation has "progressed" to this stage shows how incredibly out of whack our nation is.
Particularly if she is using sex as a means to advance herself…
Actually, this should be seen as a women's health issue, not a religious freedom issue. If a religious institution doesn't believe in diabetes meds for overweight patients because they should be dieting and exercising more, does that mean that their insurance coverage for their employees should be bereft of that coverage. Heck, they could do things like that just to save money. Per religious freedom, anyone who doesn't want to use contraception for religious or any other reason doesn't have to. But religious freedom doesn't extend to employer cherry-picking of medical coverage.
You are right that Rush is not the primary issue, but he made an ass of himself nonetheless. n nPrudence used to be considered a fundamental conservative virtue, and we would do well to hold our own to account far more often.
We Got Flucked. It's what the left does best. n nBeing Liberal means never having to say you're sorry. n
Georgetown Legal Ethics nThe Student Disciplinary Code prohibits conduct that is dishonest, evidences a lack of integrity or trustworthiness, or may unfairly impinge on the rights or privileges of members of the Law Center community. nGeorgetown University Law Center considers the development of an understanding of legal ethics on the part of its students a central part of its educational mission. nDoes Sandra Fluke's behavior model these ethics? nIt was then revealed that prior to attending Georgetown she was an active women’s right advocate. In one of her first interviews she is quoted as talking about how she reviewed Georgetown’s insurance policy prior to committing to attend, and seeing that it didn’t cover contraceptive services, she decided to attend with the express purpose of battling this policy. During this time, she was described as a 23-year-old coed. Magically, at the same time Congress is debating the forced coverage of contraception, she appears and is even brought to Capitol Hill to testify. n
This is a wedge issue manufactured by Obama, nothing less, and I ask again, why should something that is OPTIONAL to the preservation of life be free while that which is NOT OPTIONAL is not? n nSimple — we must ram radical feminism down everyone's throat. n nThe middle is not going to hold. I think Rush's comment is indicative of that.
Limbaugh did not owe her a personal apology – I find that people have very conveniently self-serving and shifting definitions of what constitutes sexual promiscuous behavior. Maybe she IS a slut. But that is besides the point. It's outrageous that she expects other people to pay for her contraception. All Limbaugh needed to say was that he was addressed the issue in the the wrong way, with the wrong words, and with the wrong attitude.