I don’t claim special insight into the human condition, but I think I am somewhat informed. But I admit I did learn something new from Politico yesterday.

In response to the filing on Friday of Washington’s civil marriage equality bill, the Washington State Catholic Conference issued a statement in opposition called “Marriage and the Common Good“.

During the Christmas mass, the Pope urged the faithful to see through the superficial glitter of the season. At the same time, he wants to continue the Roman Catholic Church’s anti-gay pogrom, but you wouldn’t expect him to sell a ring or a scepter to pay for the discredited ex-gay “therapy”, the ballot attacks on marriage equality and the forthcoming anti-choice and anti-equality campaign dressed up in a cloak of “religious liberty”, now would you?

Attention media: since Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum are running as the True Devout Catholics of the Republican Party, could you please ask them what their response is to this Papal decree?

Pat Buchanan who has a soft spot in his heart for anything Master Racesque is very concerned that Elana Kagan will upset the delicate balance on the Supreme Court between Catholics and the people who killed their blond-haired blue-eyed-savior, and so he wants to know why Democrats don’t pick an Irish or Polish Catholic guy like Republicans always do.

Let’s be clear about this. The only reason that we are in the position where the price of passing health care reform is allowing even liberal Marcy Kaptur to sneeringly dismiss choice activists as narrow class warriors who don’t care about working women is because Planned Parenthood and NARAL have allowed it to happen. They collect millions of dollars in revenue each year. They’ve exacted no price from the Marcy Kapturs of the world, who actually have to care what liberals think of them, and focused instead on anti-choice Republicans who are only empowered by their ire. They have no scalps. There is no price for bucking Planned Parenthood and NARAL. It isn’t a fight that the Democrats want to spend “political capital” on, and these groups insure that they don’t have to.