So that wiley band of black-robe wearers has wreaked havoc all up in here.
Those crazy cats are at it again…
For those of you receiving your mail under a rock, the SCOTUS has ruled that the Individual Mandate in Obamacare is legal, but only if they refer to it as a tax. They don’t have to change it, alter it, remove any of the freedom-sucking parts, or shrink it in any way, except for how they catagorize it: as a tax (which is actually sort of funny, since the President insists it’s NOT a tax). Even in matters of Constitutionality, it’s All About the Marketing.
From the controlling opinion, written by Chief Justice Roberts:
“The individual mandate cannot be upheld as an exercise of Congress’s power under the Commerce Clause,” Roberts wrote. “That Clause authorizes Congress to regulate interstate commerce, not to order individuals to engage in it. In this case, however, it is reasonable to construe what Congress has done as increasing taxes on those who have a certain amount of income, but choose to go without health insurance. Such legislation is within Congress’s power to tax.”
Does that sound to you like they were looking for an end-around, or is it just me? This ruling is an assault on freedom: now, you can (and will, if the law stands) be taxed for your choices with regard to financing your own health care needs. Using this as a precedent, we can conceivably be headed for a future where we are federally taxed for other naughty and irresponsible choices like hitting up Sonic at Happy Hour.
What’s happened here is the government has removed one’s options by making one choice available to consumers punishable by taxation. People often reject God on the same sorts of moral ground: they say a choice between a nebulous heaven and a firey hell is not really a choice at all.
By allowing Congress to pass laws punishing free Americans for making personal choices regarding their own health, the Supreme Court has essentially become Calvinistic: your choices were predestined. What other health “choices” will our caring tender-hearted government present us with? Abort the “imperfect” fetus, or be taxed? Circumsize your son, or be taxed? Breastfeed, or be taxed? Immunize the infant, or be taxed? Place the teen on birth control pills, or be taxed? Euthanize the elderly parent who is draining the healthcare resources that would be better spent on others, or be taxed? Eat the salad instead of the loaded baked potato for lunch, or be taxed?
Tinker, tailor, soldier, whatever…
In a related story, the SCOTUS also ruled today that the Stolen Valor law was unconstitutional: apparently it’s perfectly legal to say you won 87 Medals for meritorious service, 16 Purple Hearts and 2 or 3 Medals of Honor, even if you’ve never darkened the door of a barracks (This is good ruling in my opinion, though highly distasteful to people with any sort of conscience-free speech is free speech.) As long as you don’t profit from these lies (only the gov’t gets to do that. Please see above), you’re Kool and the Gang. Honestly, though, if they had ruled such speech illegal, how in the world would they enforce such a law? How serious of a lie of this sort would be considered illegal? Would, “Dude, I was totally joking!” be a valid defense?
At least the first amendment’s still standing, more or less…sigh…
So many people are just furious about all of this today: my facebook feed is one gigantic temper-tantrum, and talk radio is flat flipping out. Which is understandable: when freedom is lost and wrong is allowed to parade around unpunished, people need to vent, but we have to remember, the Supreme Court does not uphold what is “right”, they uphold what is “legal.”
Don’t make the mistake, dear patriot, of placing your faith in the government. You will be disappointed.