Michael Flinn
BFD writer Lushington D Brady expressed his opinion recently that professing Christian Scott Morrison should stop trying to cater for the woke lefties around him. He should just man up about his views and be done with it.
I’ve been thinking about that in relation to the media frenzy regarding Luxon’s views on abortion. The Left and their propaganda arm smell blood in the water and they are coming in for the kill. They think Luxon is vulnerable on this and that he is fair game.
Instead of going into the mumble tank, trying to change the subject, and desperately trying to avoid speaking openly about his personal views, why doesn’t Luxon just tell it like it is by responding like this…
Q. Do you think abortion is murder?
Ans. If you mean by the word “murder” the taking of a human life, then the answer is yes.
Q. Would you try to push your own personal view in Wellington if you became PM?
Ans. Not likely. I think I’d have my hands full with many other things. However, if someone wanted to introduce a Private Member’s Bill into the house along the lines of a Texas heartbeat bill, I would have no problem with that. There is no harm in looking again at what is a difficult issue and seeing whether more light can be shed on it. Science and medicine are advancing all the time. We are constantly learning new information about the unborn child. Doctors can do amazing things now, things we never dreamed of a generation ago. They can save the lives of unborn children by giving them blood transfusions in the womb; they can perform life saving surgery long before the child draws breath. Sadly, from my point of view, they can also take the life of an unborn child, but I accept that not everyone would want to put it that way.
Even if I strongly disagreed with Luxon on this issue, I be would impressed by his courage and his cogency. I think we desperately need fearless leaders in Parliament who will stand up for their views and swat away their political opponents and those bullying media sharks. On the other hand, even if I shared his view, and if, when put on the mat by a journalist, he said: “Well, I only have this position because one day my Sunday school teacher told me I should”, I’d be making a beeline for the ballot box to vote the guy out of office. I would say he is not qualified to be in public office.
**Fictional Interview questions and answers
Here’s the thing: this Labour Government has brought about a change in our laws so that now we have some of the most liberal abortion laws in the world. They had the numbers and the votes and they did it. I don’t recall them holding a binding referendum on whether the public actually wanted those laws to change.
From Luxon’s point of view and those who think like him on this issue, them’s the political breaks. That’s just the way the system works. But even though at times they might appear to act like it, Labour is not God. They don’t get to write laws on tablets of stone for NZ law for perpetuity. The mood of the public can change on any given issue. If it does, and if legislation gets passed in Parliament to bring about a change in NZ law, isn’t that part of what it means to live in a healthy, functioning democracy? If we don’t have that, we have a perpetual dictatorship.
So I agree with Lushington and say to Luxon: Don’t avoid or hang back from these views of yours. You’re entitled to them and you’re entitled to express and defend them when challenged. What we desperately need is political leaders who will fearlessly stand up to the premeditated bullying of the media and let the political chips fall where they may.