Kate Cox is the only name we need to remember when it comes to a woman’s right to choose.
She is the target of what I call thoughtless moralism that is common in America today among Republicans and evangelical Christians. It could be called callous moralism, which is a cruel disregard for others, or even evil, but I’ll stick with thoughtless.
Kate is the 31 year-old Texas mother of two children who is 20 weeks pregnant with a fetus that has trisomy 18, a rare chromosomal disorder likely to cause the fetus to die in the womb, be a stillbirth, or die an excruciatingly painful death shortly after birth.
To continue this pregnancy also puts Kate’s life in jeopardy and/or her future fertility. State court Judge Maya Guerra Gamble ruled this week that it would be a travesty of justice and morality to force her to carry her pregnancy to term.
Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton showed just how thoughtless his brand of morality is when he responded to the decision by issuing a threat to everyone and anyone who would help Kate have an abortion.
“This decision,” he callously opined, “will not insulate hospitals, doctors, or anyone else, from civil and criminal liability for violating Texas’ abortion laws.”
Paxton’s words and threatened actions are a classic example of the evil inherent in thoughtless moralism.
Philosophically, moralism is the practice of trying to imbue or instill society with a particular set of moral laws.
What I am calling “thoughtless moralism” is the practice of imposing so-called moral laws on society without concern for the complexities of the circumstances to which those laws must be applied, circumstances that affect knowing what is the right thing to do in the actual situation a person is facing.
Thoughtless moralism, then, is essentially the tone deaf effort to legislate morality. Every sensible parent knows how futile that is. People who believe thoughtless moralism dictates the right thing to do don’t.
So we have Ken Paxton proving how damaging thoughtless moralism is in real life situations in his response to Kate Cox, her family, and her caregivers as they wrestle with the most heart-wrenching decision anyone can face.
It’s worth mentioning that Kate is not alone. More than 20 other women are suing the state of Texas over its abortion law because of the pain and suffering and near death experiences its thoughtless moralism has caused and is causing them.
But here’s the kicker. Actually doing what is morally right doesn’t matter in Texas. The majority of Texas voters elected Ken Paxton not once, not twice, but three times as their Attorney General. They did the same with Governor Greg Abbott whose moral compass is as broken as Paxton’s.
The level of moral hypocrisy those votes represent is astonishing. That people who consider themselves decent, if not righteous, are willing to give political power to morally obtuse people that guarantees others will suffer harm boggles the mind.
I only hope a majority of American voters will never think, act, or be like Texas voters who either don’t know or don’t care that rigid attitudes about right and wrong always lead to bad outcomes, and any religion that perpetuates them is bad for the world.
Kate Cox is a responsible, loving mother and wife who represents the best of who most of us are, thoughtful moral citizens who understand that decisions in complicated circumstances in life cannot be made by blindly following a morally simple-minded solution.
May God watch over her and her family during this tragic time. As for Ken Paxton, well, he’s another example of why I wish I believed in hell.
linnposts.com 
Man’s inhumanity to man! I have lived too long to begin to understand how the Texas AG justifies this decision, other than the obvious reason, which is he is willing to let people suffer needlessly to make sure he continues to get elected by an electorate in his state, the majority of whom are willing to let mothers and children suffer to advance their own religious agenda. Pure evil wrapped in sheep’s clothing.
Exactly description – “pure evil wrapped in sheep’s clothing.” I would only add, “pretending to do God’s will.”
Jan,
This is an excellent post, calling-out as it does the mostly Republican “moralists” who ignore the dire circumstances of a mother and fetus in favor of thier brand of no-compromise “ethics”! Thank you for your wisdom and courage!!
Bill
Thanks, Bill. And now the Texas Supreme Court has put Kate Cox’s life on hold. There is no end to these people’s cruelty.
Yes, “pure evil” captures it. And if there is one, may they rot in hell !!
Bill
this is a crime against humanity, Paxton is a criminal and should have been in jail long ago. Texas should be boycotted by all until they gain some sense of morality
Texas abortion laws are on the restricted side. California, especially, since the passage of Proposition 1, theoretically, could allow abortion up to date of birth. This is the choice the voters in each state made. If you disagree, vote with your feet. Ca. has never lost population until now when hundreds of thousands of residents have left, many for Texas.
Do agree that your piece is aptly named, “Thoughtless Moralism”, considering the definition of moralism: “ the practice of moralizing, especially showing tendency to make judgements about others morality”.
Late term abortions are less than 1% of abortions in this country, and are done when a mother’s life is in jeopardy. That said, they have nothing to do with the Texas abortion case I discusses. Thus, your comment is irrelevant once again, along with your conclusion that people are moving out of CA to TX because of abortion laws. Another assertion without evidence. Re my blog being thoughtless moralizing, surely you understand that definitions are not a matter of one size fits all.
I brought up California abortion law because it exemplifies the other extreme. You called out Texas politicians for being morally corrupt, yet for many, the possibility of abortions up to birth is way too extreme. A fetus feels pain at 15 weeks, abortions at 24 weeks and latter is something pro life supporters don’t understand. Is, therefore, every politician in Ca who supports this morally corrupt? Most countries in Western Europe allow abortions in the 14-16 week.
Didn’t mean to imply residents were fleeing Ca because of their abortion laws. God knows there are a myriad of reasons to leave
Just more evidence of the extremism and callousness that thrives in the Republican Party. Hopefully people will, indeed, continue to “vote with their feet” by walking to their polling places on Election Day and putting people in office who are driven by empathy and love, not rigid ideology.
Jan,
It feels feeble to say it, but I’m totally at a loss to understand how one human being, let alone understand the political establishment of Texas, can assume that their “morality” is good for others when it is harmful, even deadly, to others. And still believe they are “doing good.” At times, I wonder if I was brought up in the same society as those professing such “morality.
Gene
I have similar thoughts, especially about people I grew up with who attended the same church I did. Makes no sense. Thanks, Gene.
The rigidity is appalling.
It is, indeed, Willie. Thank you for saying so.