We’ve been having this little back and forth on whether Stephen Harper, the Canadian prime minister, is a wimp on abortion. Herewith a viewpoint worthy of consideration sent by Prof. Tim Perry, who teaches theology at Providence College:
Stephen Harper is, in my view, a political realist on the matter of abortion. Meaning:
(1) He thinks that one of the reasons there is no abortion law in Canada right now is because militant pro-lifers would brook no compromise when Canada’s original abortion law was struck down by the Supreme Court in the 1980s. In their view, any law that fell short of an almost exclusive ban was deemed to be a bad law. This fragmented the majority of Canadians who favor at least some restrictions and allowed the radicals to win: There is in Canada no abortion law. Which situation is better¯living with a bad law that rescues some, or living with no law that condemns all? As Fr. de Souza rightly points out, Canada is now in the latter predicament.
(2) Prime Minister Harper will not go near abortion until he has a majority in Parliament and has crafted legislation in such a way as it will survive a Charter of Rights and Freedoms challenge before the Supreme Court. What is the point in passing legislation that will not survive a confidence motion and may lead to the only moderately pro-life party’s defeat?
Those who barked at Fr. Neuhaus for saying nice things about the current Canadian prime minister would do well to read Robert T. Miller’s postings on this site and begin to contemplate the merits of accomplishing what is possible in this world, rather than refusing to settle for less than the ideal, thereby indirectly exacerbating the very problem they oppose.
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