The problem is statement’s like the Cardinal’s are meaningless without specifics, which he won’t give, because he can’t. Most people agree with some controls on weapons, which we already have. No problem there. So we all agree with the cardinal in theory, but as soon as he leaves the podium and says now what, he shrugs and say “I’m no expert in the details.”
It’s like saying I share common ground with Obama in that I support sensible immigration reform, or access to medical care for all. Well whoopty do. Who doesn’t? The devil then lies in the details, and EACH SIDE in the debate can point to the Cardinal and say “see, I share his view.”
Only on black and white issues can orthodox, faithful Catholics point and say “I share the Cardinal’s view.” There is no cause for abortion. There is never justification for euthenasia. Homosexual marriage is never acceptable.
And the problem is, the President is diametrically opposed to us on every single critical, undebatable issue.
The Cardinal is a spiritual leader, but also needs the politcal savy to not confuse his flock, espeically in these times. Giving even the appearance of being on the same side on a minor issue compared to the intrinsically serious issues of no agreement just looks poor, and gives dissident Catholics a chance to say “see, the Cardinal agrees with the president on somethings.”
Like i said, he might as well have said “One thing I agree woth De Fuhrer on is we both love bread pudding. (Too bad we disagree on the slaughter of millions of jews.)”
In the end, the pro-gun folks could easily point to the cardinal’s statements as agreeing with them too. I don’t support selling guns to minors, or selling tanks on ebay. Yes, very profound statement.
