Everyone seems to have an opinion about the Kentucky county clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses.
First of all it needs to be understood that everyone has a right to live by their faith, but no one has a right to a government job — a right that can’t exist.
If a job would require you to do things you believe are wrong, don’t take the job. If you hold a job and the requirements change so you would be asked to do things you believe are wrong, it is your responsibility to find a different job. No need to raise a fuss to get attention, just resign and move on. It’s that simple.
Kent McManigal
This clerk’s morals seem fluid. She has apparently never had a problem with processing divorces. Or with living on money forcibly extorted from the local residents. She seemingly never questioned whether it’s ethical to hold a position that licenses basic human rights; activities not subject to government permission.
What if she refused to issue marriage licenses for anyone who had been previously divorced? If she were living consistently by her faith, she would not only be refusing marriage licenses for same sex-couples.
What if she were Muslim and her faith forbade her issuing driver’s licenses to women? Would her supporters still be standing with her decision?
This is why her claim of standing up for her morals falls utterly flat with me. Her morals seem to be a convenience, giving her an excuse for refusing to do something she doesn’t want to do. It’s like if I were a janitor, but claimed my morals forbade me cleaning the new toilets.
She wasn’t letting anyone else in her office issue marriage licenses, either, regardless of their personal beliefs on the matter.
I don’t believe in government, and certainly don’t believe government has any authority to issue licenses for anything, including marriage. Knowing this, should I take a government job that includes issuing licenses and then refuse to do so? Should I still expect to be paid?
But jail? She should not have been jailed for refusing to do her job. It was a ridiculous penalty, calculated to cause maximum drama. If a person won’t do their job, they should lose the job, not be caged.
None of this would be an issue if government were forced out of the marriage business — where it never had any business getting involved in the first place.
Farwell’s Kent McManigal champions liberty. Contact him at:
dullhawk@hotmail.com
