Laying down the Lawton - Andrew Lawton A rookie Alberta MLA is taking a stand for healthcare practitioners’ conscience rights. The organization that’s supposed to be standing up for the rights of doctors is, bizarrely, fighting him on it. Dan Williams, a United Conservative Party MLA for Peace River, introduced a private member’s bill in early November that would amend [...]
Laying Down the Lawton Andrew Lawton It’s hard to recall an election in which social issues were brought to the surface as often as they were in this year’s federal election. Of course, this didn’t come from social conservatives, but rather from scads of progressive politicians trying to embarrass and humiliate Conservative candidates for holding the apparently unconscionable belief that, [...]
Andrew Lawton It’s difficult to imagine a lot less worthy of compassion than politicians, by and large. Much as politics may sap the humanity out of some, they’re people nonetheless – with the same messy histories that the rest of us have. I found myself mildly sympathetic with Justin Trudeau when news broke of his penchant for donning blackface for much [...]
Andrew Lawton If something is false, you don’t need to censor it. If it’s true, you shouldn’t. Nevertheless, there’s an inclination from those less confident about their beliefs to shut away uncomfortable truths things they can’t or don’t want to explain. Graphic abortion imagery forces viewers to confront the reality of abortion, which is why so many people want these [...]
Laying Down the Lawton Never doubt a group of politicians’ ability to find a cure that’s worse than the problem it is attempting to solve. This is truer than ever when it comes to the government’s efforts to curb online hate. Wishing to combat bigotry is a noble endeavour, but it isn’t the role of the state. Certainly not at [...]
Laying Down the Lawton Andrew Lawton If you want to practice medicine, leave your beliefs at the door. That’s the key takeaway from a May decision by the Court of Appeal for Ontario ruling that conscience rights for healthcare practitioners effectively don’t exist. At least not when doctors are anywhere but in their own homes with the doors locked and [...]
Laying Down the Lawton Andrew Lawton "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Those oft-cited, immortal words from the Book of Matthew are in many cases used to extol the virtues of small groups for Christians. They took on a fundamentally different meaning for me as I watched [...]
Laying Down the Lawton As the progressive war on free speech wages on, some strange schisms in the left-wing mindset are being revealed. You’ve seen all the stories by now: students are reprimanded for not minding their male privilege, white privilege, heteronormativity, cisgender privilege, and all the other phrases that seem to have been created by a random drawing of [...]
Andrew Lawton It’s hardly novel when university campuses capitulate to the whims of social justice warriors. So I can’t say I was surprised to see this sign on a washroom door during a visit to my old stomping grounds, Western University. “Western respects everyone’s right to choose a washroom appropriate for them. Trust the person using this space belongs here.” [...]
Laying down the Lawton To err is human; to forgive, divine. Though no one promises the latter to be easy. When it comes to criminals, we must not only question our own willingness to forgive, but also how that squares up with our legal system and its mandate for justice. Canada’s justice system – rooted both in civil and common [...]
Laying down the Lawton While I’m not generally one to set New Year’s resolutions, I may take it upon myself to assign one. Make 2019 the year you get involved. Not just in church and community, but also politics. I know, it sounds like a snoozefest. Try to embrace politics for the importance of it, if not the excitement. The [...]
Laying Down the Lawton Andrew Lawton If Celine Dion has her way, the children of the world will “be free and find their own individuality through clothes.” Clothes that pretty much look alike and are all the same colour, that is. The pop diva launched a gender neutral children’s clothing line last month, Celinununu, which supposedly “breeds equality and freedom [...]
Andrew Lawton There is a big difference between what is legal and what is right. With the legalization of recreational pot in Canada (however mired in bureaucracy and regulation), it’s high time for people to realize that the government is not a moral standard-bearer. Nor should it be. This becomes ever more difficult to understand in a society that increasingly [...]