Juggling the Protection of All Freedoms

This issue about religious freedom and the opinion that the ACA infringes upon it is only presented in the context of the religious side versus the government's side. I don't think I have heard anyone in government, from the religious groups that feel so threatened by it, from the media, from the political parties that use this issue as just another fund raising trinket to attract the attention of their core groups, or from the public at large about the "third party" involved in this issue. If you don't instantly recognize who the third party is then I would contend that that exemplifies that this issue is not being discussed or examined in the proper and necessary context that it not just deserves but that is required if the public's constitutional rights are to be adequately addressed and protected.

After all, while there is a desire to make and keep politically sensitive issues as a one-facet issue that cleanly and clearly divides people onto one side or the other; there is almost never only one dimension to such issues and in the case of the ACA versus religious freedoms example it is not and never was a one-dimensional issue. This is true even if no one involved seems to have comprehended that the complaint about the ACA forcing religious groups to violate their personal religious views and beliefs involves more than those religious groups' First Amendment rights. I am sure that as you read this comment you yourself immediately recognize the other important third party, so given that how do you see their Constitutional rights and interests playing into this issue?

As is often the case when there are points of contention between Constitutional rights and freedoms or rights versus governmental authority the decision that the Supreme Court is to render must of necessity include a determination of precedence of one right relative to another, or of a proper balance between the two if one doesn’t have an absolute priority over the other. Now if by some chance Justice Sonia Sotomayor (or any of the other Justices) doesn’t or hasn’t recognized the importance of the third party to this issue then how will this factor be properly accounted for and included in the decision making and judgment of the Court?

Will the rights’ of the people of the United States be served if the rights of all the people aren’t considered? Will my freedom be protected if my interests are not considered? Will your’s?

We should be more demanding of those in politics, the media, the courts and well the public when these issues are being dealt with. Maybe we should just be more aware that when these issues surface in our political environment today that the public’s interest and need to know is not just under-served but that the information that is presented is likely being provided without any competency from our elected officials and media outlets.