"Morally Object." The magic words that allow sexism, misogyny and homophobia into public policy and legislation.
As someone once said to me, beware the sword that cuts both ways.
Morally Object.
I Morally Object to a lot of things.
And when it comes to how insurance premiums or tax dollars are spent:
What if the powers that be had a Moral Objection to any insurance coverage for Type 2 diabetes. After all - you chose to eat badly, not to exercise enough. You are irresponsible. You are lazy and immoral. So you will come out of pocket for whatever you need to treat your diabetes.
What if the powers that be had a Moral Objection to any coverage for cancer. After all - you chose to smoke, to eat badly, not to exercise enough, not to get early screenings. You are irresponsible. You are lazy and immoral. So you will come out of pocket for whatever you need to treat your cancer. Same for your elderly grandfather. Hope he has about $1,000,000 socked away for medical expenses for his pancreatic cancer.
What if the powers that be had a Moral Objection to any coverage for STDs and AIDS. After all - you chose to engage in risky sex and you were immoral (Vitter - looking at you. And your poor, unfortunate wife. Does she want an AIDS test? Prudent, but she can pay for it herself because I find just the mere idea of STDs and AIDS icky). You are irresponsible. You are lazy and immoral. So you will come out of pocket for whatever you need to treat your STDs. Your federal insurance coverage will not be applicable to even one penny of the cost.
What if the powers that be had a Moral Objection to any coverage for erectile dysfunction or a vasectomy? You want to go whoring around behind your wife's back, I will say. You are irresponsible. You are immoral. So you will come out of pocket for whatever you need to for your alleged ED or your vasectomy.
Kidney stones? You made the choice to drink too much coffee. Irresponsible.
Arthritis? You didn't exercise enough. Lazy.
Acne? Poor hygiene. And probably you've been having too much sex. Immoral.
Dental problems? You didn't brush your teeth properly or see your dentist. Lazy.
Your child has a birth defect? You were probably promiscuous or used drugs. Immoral.
WHY SHOULD I BE ASKED TO PAY FOR YOUR MORAL FAILINGS??
See, whatever you need coverage for, you have to pass MY morality standard. YOU have to ask ME first and I can be as judgmental, ignorant and dickish as I want in denying you anything. Not so fun when you look at it that way, is it? It's called a "slippery slope."
Chris Christie, it is not my fault you can't stop stuffing twinkies into your giant maw. Tax dollars will NOT be used to provide you with insurance for any health complaint related to your own obesity, which you brought on yourself through your own immorality and lack of good Christian self-discipline. That goes for your booze-related problems too, Boehner.
In fact, any member of Congress that applies for insurance coverage needs to see me first and I will judge whether or not it is a worthy matter and if they are morally entitled to the health care they seek. Fair warning. I'm very moral and I tend to be a very very harsh judge.
The system works so well when I can pick and choose what coverage you get. Based on my own subjective moral code.