The staunch conservative holds an extremely firm stance on the controversial subject of same-sex marriage. They argue marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman and are firmly opposed to the idea of two members of the same sex joining together in the institution of marriage. Many of the opposition proclaim that a same-sex marriage violates the integrity of marriage because the Bible emphasizes marriage is strictly between man and woman. However, it is a common misconception that marriage and matrimony are one in the same. Marriage is defined as a “familial bond that is recognized legally, religiously, or socially, granting the participating partners mutual conjugal rights and responsibilities” whereas matrimony is the “rite, ceremony, or sacrament of marriage.” In layman’s terms, marriage is recognized by the authority of the state while matrimony is recognized by the authority of God. Even if people believe marriage is sacred and limited to man and woman, then why is the divorce rate in the United States nearly 50%? Why should our opinions and prejudices deny two people the fundamental right to officially be together? According to a 2014 study, 55% of Americans are in favor of same-sex marriage and trends show that acceptance will continue to rise. We are on the cutting edge of a movement for a group of people that are equal in every other aspect besides marriage. They are equal in our workplace, they are equal in our communities, and they want equality for themselves and their families. They are not asking for the acceptance of the church, they are simply asking for the acceptance of the state for the liberties that a “traditional” married couple receives. By allowing these people the right to get married, we are giving them the ability to build their own America- something everyone deserves.
Abortion:
A common misconception in society is that if you proclaim yourself to be pro-choice then they are automatically in favor of abortions. This is one of the biggest fallacies circulating because being pro-choice does not subsequently make you pro-abortion. Giving a woman the right to her body is not giving women the encouragement to obtain an abortion; rather it is giving them the encouragement to make the best decision for themselves. An abortion is a woman’s choice and therefore the government should not interfere. Having the choice to obtain an abortion is also a method of equality. 50% of all women who have received an abortion stated they did not want to be a single parent and thus had an abortion to evade certain hardship. If men can leave the situation and avoid being a parent, then why not give women the same ability? We want to allow women the right to their own bodies, but we do want to create guidelines by which they must abide by; abortions are unobtainable after viability. Viability is when the child has a 50% chance of living outside of the womb, which has been proven to be about 24 weeks into the pregnancy. We believe at this point the mother should have already made her decision regarding her situation. She is now not only causing the fetus pain, she is greatly endangering herself by continuing on with an abortion. However, we do understand there are medical complications and life threating events that can sometimes force the hand of the mother and these are different cases entirely. There are 42 states including Kentucky that agree with this policy. We propose that abortions be limited to the first 20 weeks of the pregnancy. Once those 20 weeks have passed, we believe that a woman should have already made her choice. Also, for the safety of the mothers in the procedure we would require all abortions to be performed by a physician (there are 11 states that do not require this currently). Finally, we want to federally mandate that a mother who is opting for an abortion must receive counseling prior to procedure and have a 24-hour waiting period to ensure that it is the decision for the situation. It would be required to have a paid counselor at all abortion clinics and if a clinic failed to comply with our regulations they would be fined. We want to protect the rights women currently have but we do believe when a fetus becomes a child we have the duty to protect its rights as well. After all, one day it will be their America too.
Marijuana:
Marijuana
has been a growing topic in the United States over the last decade. We believe
that marijuana should be legalized for medical purposes. It is most commonly
used to treat the symptoms of chemotherapy for cancer patients such as
vomiting, nausea, pain, and appetite loss, as well as symptoms of people
suffering from HIV and AIDS and other diseases. We believe medical marijuana
would be very beneficial to the medical field.
As far
as recreational purposes for the drug, we are in no way opposed to the idea but
we feel in today’s America it is not the right time to completely legalize
marijuana. Unfortunately a limited amount of research has been done on
marijuana for recreational purposes because of legality issues and currently
there are too many factors to consider that are still unknown. Marijuana is a
plant and each plant has a varying ratio of chemicals meaning each plant is
different and sometimes has contradicting effects which has made testing the
overall effect and safety of marijuana very difficult. The primary chemicals
that are present in marijuana and have the greatest effect are THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabino) and the CBD (cannabidiol). However, in each plant there are
nearly sixty other active ingredients as well. Various studies have been
performed about the effects of marijuana reporting both good and bad. None of
these results are final or can be considered complete. Lack of reliable
research can be contributed to restrictions and regulations on researching marijuana.
We plan on lifting some of these restrictions so more complete studies may be
performed in order to determine all of the benefits and risks of marijuana so
that a fair legal decision can be made about the recreational purpose of the drug.
We plan on
legalizing medical marijuana in all 50 states and allowing more research to be
completed for recreational purposes. We are not opposed to legalizing marijuana
for recreational usage, but we must monitor many aspects of places like
Colorado, Washington, and D.C. where recreational marijuana is legal before we
fully commit to the complete legalization of marijuana.
Gun Control:
The second amendment is a widely controversial topic: does
the right to bear arms give the ability for citizens to obtain firearms?
America leads the world in privately owned firearms with over 300 million guns
in circulation; 35% of American households have at least one firearm. Recent
tragedies have sparked the conversation and a considerable amount of Americans
are in favor of strict gun control. However, strict gun control would potentially
disarm law-abiding American citizens. Criminals would still be able to obtain
guns because no matter how heavily guns are restricted, they will always be
accessible. We interpret the second amendment to allow a law-abiding American
citizen to acquire a firearm. Those in favor of strict gun control are not
necessarily in favor of abolishing guns, but they would like to make a firearm
harder to obtain. An FBI study showed that states who adopted concealed carry
laws reduced rape by 5%, murder by 8.5%, aggravated assault by 7%, and
robberies by 3%. According to recent studies, as gun control rises, homicide
rises. The United Kingdom banned handguns in 1997 and since then violent crimes
have risen. Strict gun control would threaten a citizen’s freedom of
self-security. We are not opposed to encouraging a firearm education course,
but we are opposed to requiring one and more intensive background checks would
simply cost too much money to implement. Those who desire to protect themselves
and their family should be able to get a firearm to increase safety. Those who
desire to hunt should be able to get a firearm. Law-abiding Americans deserve
the right to own firearms.
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