Opinion

Let me begin with a bold assumption: If the thunderous voice of God himself, clothed in smoke and fire from atop Mount Sinai, commanding “thou shalt do no murder,” is not enough to stay the hand of human evil, then a law passed by the United States Congress isn’t going to do the trick.

Recently, the Rev. Billy Graham’s organization bought full-page ads in major newspapers – including the Review-Journal – encouraging people to vote for “biblical principles.”

Recently on Facebook, I noticed a post from a conservative friend: “I would like someone out there to ask an ACLU-loving, radical liberal what they [sic] really want our country to be. It would be very interesting to hear it from their own lips what their twisted view of freedom is!”

In a perfect world, newly appointed District Attorney Steve Wolfson would not have learned of the police assault of diabetic Henderson motorist Adam Greene from the media.

For all the pride Iowa takes in its first-in-the-nation caucus, for all the attention the state’s voters get from candidates, for all of the column inches and broadcast hours consumed by reporting stories before, during and after voting, the impact is almost entirely rhetorical.

Finding hypocrisy in politics is about as difficult as finding drunks in a bar, so detailing each and every double-standard could fill the entire newspaper. But sometimes, one stands out enough to deserve a little extra scrutiny.