Things I know for sure, Part One

This month in The New Yorker there's an article on scientific research and the ways that the Bush administration is undermining and contorting science for the sake of ideology, particularly religious ideology. There's even a quote in there from somebody suggesting they'd object to an HIV vaccine because to cure or prevent HIV would remove a disincentive for premarital sex. Excuse me? Let me get this straight. It's worth it for millions people and their children die a horrible, wasting death in order to try to control how and when people have sex? Where the frack in the Bible does Jesus suggest that would be his preferred trade-off? This just blows my mind. I don't even know how to formulate a response to this type of thinking, on any level. So you wish death by a horrible, wasting disease on other people - even children - at the same time that you're all fired up about the sanctity of a "life" the size of a dot on this i? By golly, the dot-sized life is invaluable, but once humans are out of the womb their life ain't worth shit. Excuse my language.

I just don't know what to say to that. But here are some things I know for sure.

The Golden Rule, for one. And a friendly amendment to the Golden Rule: If you wouldn't want something for the people you know and care about, you can't wish it for any human being. AIDS, prostitution, pornography, slavery, having your house bombed - it goes for all those things. And beyond that, if you don't wish it on other human beings, you need to do your best not be a part of perpetuating it. Which we all do, whether we like it or not, being part of a global economy. So first, if you don't want something for your loved ones, don't promote it directly. And second, although it's complicated, we all ought to at least think about what we can do to avoid promoting it indirectly.

I was just in Texas the last couple of days. On the way to the airport, as my colleagues were chatting away in mutal liberal understanding about gay rights, I fell into conversation with our linebacker-sized limo driver - a hard-drawlin' Baptist who'd never lived outside Texas except while in the military. A classic moment of red state meets blue state (or, as he cheerfully put it, "fruits and nuts"). Feeling brave, I asked him what he thought of my colleagues' discussion.

"Well," he said thoughtfully, "I figgur just because somebody wants to rent an apartment from me, or work for me, it ain't no business of mine who they love. If God cares about stuff like that, I suppose we'll all find out after we die, won't we? Until then, we'd all best just treat other people the way we want to be treated, rather than make judgments that ain't ours to make."

Amen. It gave me a little bit of hope.