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Secretary of Defense
The following letter from David Green, CEO and founder of Hobby Lobby, is currently making the rounds via 2nd and 3rd tier media outlets including facebook. I cannot find it in mainstream media anywhere which doesn't mean it's not there, just that I can't find it.
Hobby Lobby has been trying to get itself excempted from the Healthcare Law mandate that the insurance it provides its employees include coverage for abortiofacients like the morning (and week) after pill.
A Letter from Hobby Lobby Stores CEO
11/26/2012
By David Green, the founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
Personally, I support David Green and his Hobby Lobby stores.When my family and I started our company 40 years ago, we were working out of a garage on a $600 bank loan, assembling miniature picture frames. Our first retail store wasn't much bigger than most people's living rooms, but we had faith that we would succeed if we lived and worked according to God's word. From there, Hobby Lobby has become one of the nation's largest arts and crafts retailers, with more than 500 locations in 41 states. Our children grew up into fine business leaders, and today we run Hobby Lobby together, as a family.
We're Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles. I've always said that the first two goals of our business are (1) to run our business in harmony with God's laws, and (2) to focus on people more than money. And that's what we've tried to do. We close early so our employees can see their families at night. We keep our stores closed on Sundays, one of the week's biggest shopping days, so that our workers and their families can enjoy a day of rest. We believe that it is by God's grace that Hobby Lobby has endured, and he has blessed us and our employees. We've not only added jobs in a weak economy, we've raised wages for the past four years in a row. Our full-time employees start at 80% above minimum wage.
But now, our government threatens to change all of that. A new government health care mandate says that our family business MUST provide what I believe are abortion-causing drugs as part of our health insurance. Being Christians, we don't pay for drugs that might cause abortions, which means that we don't cover emergency contraception, the morning-after pill or the week-after pill. We believe doing so might end a life after the moment of conception, something that is contrary to our most important beliefs. It goes against the Biblical principles on which we have run this company since day one. If we refuse to comply, we could face $1.3 million PER DAY in government fines.
Our government threatens to fine job creators in a bad economy. Our government threatens to fine a company that's raised wages four years running. Our government threatens to fine a family for running it’s business according to it’s beliefs. It's not right. I know people will say we ought to follow the rules; that it's the same for everybody. But that's not true. The government has exempted thousands of companies from this mandate, for reasons of convenience or cost. But it won't exempt them for reasons of religious belief.
So, Hobby Lobby and my family are forced to make a choice. With great reluctance, we filed a lawsuit today, represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, asking a federal court to stop this mandate before it hurts our business. We don't like to go running into court, but we no longer have a choice. We believe people are more important than the bottom line and that honoring God is more important than turning a profit.
My family has lived the American dream. We want to continue growing our company and providing great jobs for thousands of employees, but the government is going to make that much more difficult. The government is forcing us to choose between following our faith and following the law. I say that's a choice no American and no American business should have to make.
The government cannot force you to follow laws that go against your fundamental religious belief. They have exempted thousands of companies but will not except Christian organizations including the Catholic church.
Since you will not see this covered in any of the liberal media, pass this on to all your contacts.
Sincerely,
David Green, CEO and Founder of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
I want the people of America to be able to work less for the government and …to have the rewards of their own industry. -Calvin Coolidge
Secretary of State
I see this as very much similar objections that were raised by the Catholic church and contraception as well as abortion.
How was that settled? Did the church get an exception? I don't think so. I think with the church case precedent, that Hobby Lobby will be settled the same way.
Interesting that the government thinks it knows better than the church what the church should be required to pay for and support. Anyone else see arrogance in this position?
If a man were behind four months on his mortgage and was talking to you about his plans to build an addition on his home you would think him daft and delusional. But in Washington, ignoring a current crisis to discuss grand dreams is called “boldness” and “vision.”
Vice President
The church was fighting covering contraception which has legitimate medical purpose aside from preventing conception. ... the pill controls ovarian cysts, it prevents ectopic pregnancies, it regulates menstrual cycles which extends the fertility years for women with irregular cycles.
In the case of Hobby lobby, provided they're willing to cover normal pregnancy prevention (pills, iud, etc), I don't see any problem letting them out of covering for the "morning after" pill, unless its a case where the pregnancy is determined to be an ectopic pregnancy (which probably would be far enough along the morning after pill wouldn't be effective).
Liberals fail to recognize that modern conservatives are direct evidence of the failure of the public education system.
County Executive
NewsBusters is carrying a clip of it being discussed by CNN.
I don't believe the government should be forcing anyone to do anything, within reason. A person shouldn't have to provide any medical coverage they choose not to and, as the letter points out, the Administration has been willing to grant waivers to plenty of businesses out of convenience. I see no real reason not to grant religious exemptions, especially in the case of a Church, outside of just not liking religion.
President
This has already been in court, and the judge ruled that while the people who own Hobby Lobby have religious rights, the secular, for profit business they own does not.
If such coverage is not in place January 1, 2013, Hobby Lobby will face fines of up to 1.3 million dollars a day.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/medical/hobbylobby.asp
Last edited by goober; 11-28-2012 at 01:49 PM.
City Council Member
Let the fines happen. After a few businesses go bankrupt with debt to the government maybe this madness will end.Originally Posted by goober
Vice President
I thought it has been christian tradition to follow the laws of the land, whether you liked them or not. I am pretty sure I have read that in the bible. "Render unto Caesar those things that are Caesars" HE was referring to more than simply a coin that had caesar's likeness on it. It involved obeying roman law and paying them the taxes they require.
I think if a christian wants to do business in the secular world, he is not exempt from that world's laws. I don't see what the problem is anyways with a christian employer paying for insurance for his employees that includes this sort of birth control No one is asking the owner to take the pills, to violate his faith by his personal action of abortion. If his employees take the pills that the insurance covered, that act is between the pill taker and his god. As long as the owner doesn't commit abortion, why should he feel like he will be judged for what another person with free willl did?
I think the owner just doesn't want anyone to take those morning after pills, and he feels it is his right to deny them simply because of his religion. Religious people really like imposing their own morality upon others. That is what this amounts to IMO.
"Like every other good thing in this world, leisure and culture have to be paid for. Fortunately, however, it is not the leisured and the cultured who have to pay." Aldous Huxley.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Member
Except Hobby Lobby is hardly a church. The owner's personal beliefs have no bearing on having an exemption from a law.
This land was made for you and me
-Woody Guthrie
County Executive
I was referring to the Catholic Church which the previous two posters commented on.
I could understand if Exxon was denied an exemption on religious grounds but I don't see any real reason why the Church and Hobby Lobby, etc. should be denied exemptions to the parts that there is a clear religious conflict. The Administration certainly doesn't seem to have any issues granting exemptions to friends and family who find it merely inconvenient.
Moderator
So, the government can tell an employer what benefits he must give to employees. I'm going to lobby for a new car for every employee, then a new house, then, then, then,
Where does it end. The government has now given itself power to put any business out of business.
The modern Liberal is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. OMD
Secretary of State
It already had the power, for a very long time now. Obamacare is just throwing another glass of water into the ocean of ways to bankrupt a company.
- Frustrated Independent
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin
"Every time something really bad happens, people cry out for safety, and the government answers by taking rights away from good people.” - Penn Jillette amazingly enough, and I agree.
Secretary of State
This is true, Hobby Lobby will probably not succeed in this effort.
- Frustrated Independent
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin
"Every time something really bad happens, people cry out for safety, and the government answers by taking rights away from good people.” - Penn Jillette amazingly enough, and I agree.
Vice President
Let's see how long it takes them to go bankrupt?
You should always have an informed opinion, so after I inform you, please feel free to express my opinion...USCitizen
Joint Chiefs of Staff Member
Good god, indeed, Dan, when does it end? How long can the US suffer the outrageous misfortune that is the Obama administration. Woe be unto us all, evil tidings surround us. The business of government is no business at all. We're doomed I tell you, doomed and dying fast.
This land was made for you and me
-Woody Guthrie
Moderator
I think the end may be here sooner than you think. Heard on the news tonight that there were 186,000 handgun sales on Black Friday this year. A record.
The modern Liberal is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. OMD
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