Editorial

On Tuesday, Feb. 17, citizens in Wisconsin will be going to the polls in the state's presidential primary. Our state has moved its primary earlier this year to afford voters an opportunity to have a greater impact on the selection of candidates.

Wisconsin also happens to be one of the few states with an open primary. Voters can mark their ballots for a candidate in any party without prior registration. It often makes for some interesting results with voters crossing party lines to vote for candidates.

Faithful Citizenship. The Catholic Church in the United States has always encouraged citizens to participate in the democratic process. The U.S. bishops issued a document called Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Responsibility designed to offer a blueprint for electoral decisions in 2004. The bishops do not tell Catholics how to vote. Rather, they say Catholics "have the duty to participate now and in the future in the debates and choices over the values, vision, and leadership that will guide our nation."

The bishops' document and a resource kit were mailed to all U.S. parishes at the end of January. Resources are also available on the Internet at www.usccb.org/faithfulcitizenship and will be updated as the year goes on with new ideas. The aim of the program is to provide American Catholics with a basic education about Catholic social teaching. This will help voters in making decisions about candidates and policy positions.

Catholic teaching. Basic themes of Catholic social teaching focus on the life and dignity of the human person; call to family, community, and participation; rights and responsibilities; option for the poor and vulnerable; dignity of work and the rights of workers; solidarity; and caring for God's creation.

Although many issues are important, the right to life is a primary issue - some say the most vital. Our Constitution emphasizes the right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Without the right to life, we have nothing.

Yet, our American culture has seen a continual decline in respect for human life in the past 50 years. The legalization of abortion, calls for assisted suicide (already approved in the state of Oregon), use of capital punishment, and destruction of human embryos for stem-cell research are just a few examples.

Form our conscience. Catholics make up over one-fourth of the voters in presidential elections. They have the opportunity to make a difference in the outcome of our elections and set the course for the future of our country. As Catholics, we must form our conscience according to the wisdom and teachings of the church.

I encourage voters to study the Faithful Citizenship document and materials personally and in groups at the parish level. Check the candidates' records and statements on issues pertaining to Catholic social teaching, especially in regard to respect for all human life.

Although it is sometimes difficult to find a candidate who fits 100 percent with Catholic teaching, we can set our priorities and determine which candidate best matches those priorities. Then we should pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit, go to the polls, and exercise our right and responsibility to vote.

Mary C. Uhler, editor

Mailbag

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Speak and defend the truth

To the editor:

I'm deeply saddened by some comments not supporting Bishop Burke in defending our faith. As one of the shepherds of our flock he is obligated to teach and defend the TRUTH, not some feel-good, washed down version of it that reflects today's cesspool of moral relativism.

We, as sheep, should follow and support our shepherds in defending our faith. Catholic politicians and especially priests hold positions of great authority and great responsibility. Failing to defend the truth, and in this case LIFE, would consist of a grave scandal by leading others into sin and dissent from church teaching.

The story about a millstone around the neck comes to mind (Luke 17:2). That is why Bishop Burke asked the politicians to refrain from Communion until they go to confession. This is the same message for everyone in the church guilty of mortal sin. Reproclaiming this message of our faith to those in authority in no way restricts their freedom to vote. We all still retain our free will to choose good or evil. There are eternal consequences for our choices.

God is the author of life. Anything we do that goes against that is supporting the culture of death. At the very heart of this battle is abortion and contraception.

I thank God for giving us Pope John Paul II, Bishop Burke, and all people of faith who are not afraid to defend and speak the truth in these troubled times. Let us pray for our priests, politicians, and families. May we all have the courage to fearlessly defend and proclaim the message of truth that our Catholic Church has been given and accept it into our hearts, especially those in positions of authority.

Robert J. Winter, Lancaster

Be pro-life in fullest dimension

To the editor:

For those who accept and respect the sanctity of life from conception until its natural end, from a purely religious perspective, perhaps Bishop Burke is correct to ask priests to refuse Communion to Catholic politicians who support abortion and euthanasia. If so, the bishops should be consistent in the application of this dictum.

To not appear hypocritical, Communion should also be refused to politicians who support the tobacco industry, by which over 400,000 people die annually in the U.S. Communion should be refused to those who support the automobile industry and culture by which 40,000 plus Americans die annually; to those who support the death penalty by which sometimes innocents are wrongly killed and guilty robbed of a full life for potential repentance.

Communion should be refused to those who support a system that denies affordable health care coverage to over 40 million people, which results in premature deaths and a diminished quality of life for many; to those who support weakened environmental protection which results in deaths and illnesses from poisons in the air, water, ground, and food and destruction of ecosystems on which life depends.

Communion should be refused to those who supported the war in Iraq, which Pope John Paul II said is illegal, immoral, and unjust, where the civilian death toll is upwards of 10,000, not to mention the deaths of American and coalition military personnel and Iraqi military.

If one claims to be pro-life, then please be pro-life in its fullest dimension.

Frank Barone, Madison

Refuting anti-casino arguments

To the editor:

As someone who has worked for tribal governments in Wisconsin for 12 years, let me share my perspective on the DeJope Casino. The arguments against DeJope boil down to a few. "It's not my kind of economic development." "It will hurt downtown Madison." "There are too many social costs." These arguments just don't hold water.

Madison leaders cry about losing 30 Ray-O-Vac employees and 70 Oscar Mayer jobs but turn their noses up at the more than 1,300 Dane County jobs the casino would create. How many millions in loans, grants, planning funds, and worker training dollars would officials throw at someone other than an Indian nation who said, "We want to hire 530 people at an average salary of $28,000 per year and give them full benefits?" How many millions more if the 530 jobs would bring 780 more? Counties (with casinos) have seen their economies improve: poverty, welfare, and crime decreased faster than the rest of the state.

When our churches had bingo, it was okay. When the state added a lottery, that was okay. When taverns offer illegal, unregulated, untaxed slot machines, that is okay. But when Native Americans want to open a regulated, taxed, and legal casino, that is past the point of moderation.

If you are looking for reasons to vote no, two are legitimate. If you are a businessperson who pays low wages, you have a good reason to oppose the casino. There is no doubt that the casino will raise salaries in Madison. When the HoChunk opened their casino near Wisconsin Dells, they raised the effective minimum wage by 50 cents per hour.

The other reason to vote against the casino is opposition to gambling on moral grounds. If you are one of the 10 percent of Wisconsin citizens opposed to all gambling on moral grounds, then go ahead and vote against the casino. I totally respect that view. At the same time you may want to be consistent and ease your conscience by returning your lottery tax credit to the Department of Revenue.

When you look at the beauty that is Dane County and consider how we came by this land, I would suggest a small casino in an isolated location is a small price to pay.

Thomas Krajewski, Madison