LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Schwartz, speaking on a talk show, Tuesday regarding the tragic murder of 20 children and six teachers, took a comment from a caller who aptly pointed out that the U.S. has adopted a culture of death since Roe vs. Wade in the 1970's.

The caller said, "Roe v. Wade took away the right to life. We encourage the culture of death by giving money to Planned Parenthood - they kill more people.  Now it's terrible what happened in Connecticut but unborn persons killed with the support of taxpayer money - these are persons too."

Schwartz replied, "Well, I don't see the connection here. Of course we have seen gun violence against those who actually do provide reproductive health services and abortion services and that's been pretty tragic."

She continued, "I do think the respect for life is something that we were built on certainly in our country and that means - obviously different things to different people. So I would just respectably disagree with you on the connection here between gun violence and the opportunity for women and their families to make reproductive decisions independent of government intervention."

The doublespeak is astounding, but demonstrates the fundamental flaw in the Representative's thinking. There is a pervasive, insidious notion, that life does not begin until birth. There is a notion that life is disposable, cheap and something to "make decisions" about.

The sad facts is, "respect for life" means something different to Schwartz than it does for many practicing Christians.

Yet, who should define what respect for life is? Shall this core understanding be individually determined in a postmodern fashion? Unfortunately, allowing each person to decide for themselves is the path to tragedy, since some people may "choose" not to respect certain lives, including the lives of children, the sick, the disabled, the elderly, and so on.

Self-interpretation of the concept "respect for life" isn't a virtuous aim of freedom, instead it is a recipe for tragedy. Such a loose attitude towards the concept allows for any form of horror to be justifiably practiced by one person against another. In this regard, self-interpretation is the path to evil.

This is why we have guidance from God, his scriptures, and the magisterial teachings of the church. Although, God reserves to Himself the right to define some concepts on Earth, such rule is not tyranny as some would suppose. Instead, it is freedom in the greatest sense. By imposing a functional understanding of fundamental truths, such as what life is, when it begins, and what respect for it means, we can build a society that is free from the tyranny of the individual as well as the regime.

What a tragedy that a full half, or more, of our civic leaders and lawmakers do not have this very basic understanding and appreciation for life that would solve so many of our problems. These same lawmakers consistently refuse to take steps to protect unborn children simply because they reside in the womb rather than the crib.

In America, Planned Parenthood performs an average of 800 plus abortions per day, based on their own statistics. That's the same as 30 or more Sandy Hook Elementary massacres every day, or just over one such mass murder per hour. And those are just the abortions performed by Planned Parenthood.

Do you see the connection now, Representative Schwartz?

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