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Who Speaks For The Real Victims?
By Kay R. Daly
January 10, 2005

Liberals have always claimed they fight for the underdog, the downtrodden and the little guy. It has led to a widely-held perception that Republicans are the heartless party of the wealthy who only care for their checkbook balances rather than people. Nothing could be further from the truth and perhaps it is time to set the record straight.

The worldview of the Left is that there is an inequity in life that must be equalized. If not, the "have-nots" will do anything to survive the oppression allegedly perpetrated upon them by the "haves". It is their perception of victimization from which an entire philosophy of social justice springs. Literally, the Left will excuse nearly any behavior because of their deep-rooted belief that poverty or any kind of gender or racial inequity is the sole cause for any bad choices.

The real victims get lost in this justification shuffle.

For example, the gals at the National Organization for Women could not wrap themselves around Andrea Yates fast enough. Yates was the "mother" who systematically drowned her five children, even chasing one down and dragging him to the bathtub to meet his fate.

Was it Andrea's fault? Heck no, according to NOW. It was her evil husband, that, that, man who forced her to stay at home with all of these children and home school them. She was also a victim of post-partum depression and the medical industry that didn't prioritize understanding women's health issues.

Could any one of these spokespeople for NOW, so quick to blame any external circumstances for this unforgivable act, name any one of the five children who were drowned by their own mother? Doubtful.

NOW has fostered a splinter organization of particularly vocal anti-war activists called "Code Pink." This group, led by the uber-feminist Medea Benjamin, has given more than $600,000 to families in Fallujah, who they believe have been the victims of the evil American military. They even have attempted to stage protests at the Iraq border of the military activities in Fallujah.

Once again, the Left conveniently overlooks that the real victims in this situation are those who have been murdered by the terrorists who have taken up residence in Fallujah. Code Pink doesn't seem the least bit interested in donating to the innocent citizens who have been slaughtered by terrorists as they flee from capture, the families of the soldiers attempting to free Iraqis, and the families of those murdered or maimed by Saddam Hussein. Why, for instance, is the Left more concerned about the terrorists tormented at Abu Gharib with panties on their heads than those who have been beheaded?

In almost any death penalty case, the Left has made shifting the blame an art form by successfully creating the illusion that capital punishment is hopelessly cruel, racially biased and yet, a lesser form of punishment than a life sentence. By highlighting anecdotal evidence of a few cases of innocent men wrongfully accused, they have cast doubt upon almost any case. Once again, never mentioning the real victims who never had a chance to appeal their fate, the hyped stories of the condemned have either focused upon casting doubt on their guilt or excusing their behavior because they had really been the victim of either poverty, abuse, undiagnosed medical issues, whatever would put the criminal in the best, most sympathetic light possible.

Even in the abortion arena, the Left has successfully made the woman the victim rather than the innocent child. It is a strange dichotomy. The gals at NOW, Planned Parenthood and NARAL portray women as equal, competent, savvy individuals who should be the only ones to make the decision about what happens to their own bodies.

Apparently, though, that competent, savvy woman only has the smarts during the consequence phase when it comes time to choose an abortion. However, before the consequence phase, when the critical decision is made by the woman to either be exposed to a potential pregnancy or not, a woman is helpless. Listening to the Left, the issue of control seems to only kick in when she decides to have an abortion.

Just as the Left portrays a death row inmate as a victim of circumstance or the system, they portray a woman choosing an abortion as someone who is a victim of circumstance, male dominance or failed birth control.

The consequences of actions seem to be lost on the Left in their quest to justify their pet causes. It should be pretty clear. If you kill someone and you are convicted of murder, you might end up on death row. If a woman has sex with a fella, she could become pregnant. If you are a terrorist who is killing Americans, you are going to be targeted for your activities.

And yet the Left, rather than fighting for those who have been victimized by murderers, abortion or terrorists, is busily finding excuses for the perpetrators rather than the truly innocent.

As liberals continue to examine the reasons for their defeat in November, at some point, the excuses ("Bush stole the election", "we aren't communicating our message effectively", "the corporate media is biased against us"......) may just fall by the wayside and true introspection can begin. A philosophy based entirely upon despising capitalism and everything America stands for just isn't going to be a majority building message.

Embracing an Andrea Yates or a Fallujah terrorist or an abortion under any circumstance simply because it fits into a social justice framework that is fatally flawed from the get-go, is not going to attract many red state voters or hold up under scrutiny in many blue-tinged areas for much longer. Wonder if the Left has even noticed that, metaphorically speaking, their Berlin Wall is crumbling?

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Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.