Archie Bunker Returns

Fresh off placing me among the "wacky" for daring to even question the progressive orthodoxy on birth control (while not explicitly disagreeing with it, I note), Scott Ehrisman now turns his sights on the Bishop of Sioux Falls.  Back in the days of the Clean Cut Kid blog, Prof. Blanchard took great joy in comparing that site's proprietor, Chad Schuldt, to Archie Bunker.  "[I]ntolerant, bombastic, and invincibly ignorant," is how he once described the CCK site, which was fairly accurate.  We don't have enough evidence from Mr. Ehrisman to suggest any ignorance is invincible, but intolerant and bombastic seems accurate enough.  Perhaps we have the new contender for the left-wing Archie Bunker. 

Mr. Ehrisman has, literally, a cartoon image of Bishop Swain and the Catholic position on abortion.  His attack on the bishop is the perfect example of ad hominem.  He can't advance any argument against the bishop, as a smart political cartoon might, so he must attack the man.  To the extent there is an argument in the cartoon it is, "I hate these kind of people."  Mr. Ehrisman tries to portray the bishop as an out-of-touch old man who, because he has certain hobbies and took a vow of chastity, must have no moral authority.  Perhaps our moral authority comes from having cool hobbies and "scoring with the babes," or, just maybe, moral authority comes from study, experience, and demonstrated moral seriousness. 

Mr. Ehrisman apparently hasn't read the bishop's bio. The bishop is actually older than Ehrisman says, (and how Scott Ehrisman knows the status of the bishop's, er, experience with the ladies is beyond me).  Perhaps Mr. Ehrisman was not aware that Paul Swain was 43 years old before he became a priest. Before that he earned both a masters degree in political science and a law degree from the University of Wisconsin.  Perhaps he was unaware that Paul Swain is a veteran who earned a Bronze Star for his service in Vietnam, or that Bishop Swain also held high positions in the Wisconsin executive branch.  No, to Scott Ehrisman the Bishop is a joke because he is old, chaste, and likes bowling, and, more to the point, the bishop has the "wrong" view on abortion.  (Btw, is there something goofy about people who like bowling, fishing and bible study?  Some of the best people I know like all three.) 

It just so happens that Paul Swain has a wealth of life experience and, from what I hear from people who have met him, he is a kind, decent and caring man.  Indeed, if a woman was contemplating an abortion he'd be exactly the kind of man I'd suggest going to for advice.   

I now await the ridicule from Mr. Ehrisman for once again committing offenses against progressive dogmas.