Not for the first time, we see that Orval, the Arkansas Times’ in-house sage/cartoon pig, understands large public issues better than do the two-legged pundits of the corporate media. Pigs have an undeserved reputation for gluttony; discriminating swine will turn up their snouts at garbage that human columnists wolf down. Imagine what Charles Krauthammer’s diet must be like.

Orval (March 28) rejects the pious humbugs’ argument that asking religious organizations to obey the law is a violation of the First Amendment. Religionists plead, in essence, that anyone who says he’s religious must obey only the rules of his own church, and is therefore exempt from the government mandate that employees of religious organizations receive health insurance for contraception just as other Americans do. Employees don’t lose their own freedom of religion merely because their boss doesn’t want them to have it, the Obama administration has properly ruled. There are many things that some unscrupulous bosses don’t want their workers to have – decent wages, reasonable hours, safe shops – but a government of the people demands they be provided anyway. This is not a violation of Freedom of Religion; it’s not even a close call, as Orval points out to a misguided cleric. An old rule, often cited by conservatives, says “your rights end where my nose begins.” But some of these same conservatives forget the rule when it’s the other fellow’s nose that’s in the way. The First Amendment ensures the other fellow’s nose is protected. Smart people, we.

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