I received a phone call today from a good friend who I hadn’t talked to in some time. We’d texted back and forth for a few minutes, but he decided to call me. He wanted my opinion. He’d been getting into an argument over the whole contraceptive issue that’s been all the craze. Now, it was a Facebook argument, so there’s a big no-no right away. It’s nearly impossible to win an argument via Facebook, which is why I rarely get involved. For me, the most important place to voice my opinion is here, on TimPreuss.com, where I can say everything I need to say, without bickering back and forth with idiots.

As we were talking I said something along the lines of, “I could write an essay about everything wrong with that argument.” Well – I’m going to. That argument is the one we’ve been hearing about constantly over the past couple weeks. It’s the issue of contraception, and who should pay for it.

Before I get too deep into the issue, I want to go over what the issue is NOT. No one is saying that women should not be allowed to buy birth control. No one is saying that birth control is wrong, or that every woman who is on birth control is a slut. (Limbaugh reference?) In fact, conservatives like myself fully support the right of women to chose whether or not to use birth control, and what type to use. It’s their body, it’s their money – buy whatever you want.

Here’s the first hold up – taxpayer dollars should not be spent on birth control. Our government spends way too much money. We spend too much on entitlement programs, we spend too much on union labor, and we spend too much on useless, yet expensive, bureaucrats. It is not the government’s job to provide birth control pills for anyone. Furthermore, it’s not the government’s job to provide healthcare, period. People may insist that birth control is used for more than just birth control (cramps, acne, whacked out hormones, etc.), but that doesn’t mean that it’s a problem for the federal government to deal with.

In the end, it’s each individual’s responsibility to provide for themselves. I know, that’s a startling concept, given that literally from cradle to grave, we have our government “looking out” for us. Can’t feed yourself? Food stamps. Can’t buy medical care? Medicaid. Can’t educate yourself? Public schools and public scholarships. Can’t retire? Social security. Well, the gravy train has to come to a halt. When we encourage people to live off the government, we make people dependent. A person cannot be dependent AND free.

The other equally large issue at hand is that government should not be able to tell an employer or an insurance company what they have to provide. Some people complain that their insurance doesn’t cover contraception. Well, it’s time to find an insurance plan that suits your needs. There are thousands of options, and its more than likely that one of them will include covering birth control. But its the insurance company’s right to decide what their plans will cover and won’t cover. No one, including the federal government, should be able to tell a business what products they produce. If an insurance company doesn’t want to pay for birth control, that’s their decision, and if customers don’t like it, don’t buy that brand of insurance.

But the issue doesn’t stop there. Not only is the government telling insurance companies what they have to cover, but they’re telling employers what insurance plans they have to provide for their employees. If an employer only offers a plan that doesn’t include coverage for birth control, the employee can either buy insurance independently of their employer, or they can find a new job. A business should not be forced to provide something it does not want to provide.

And there’s more. Not only do businesses have to provide insurance that covers contraception, but even religious institutions have to provide it. This creates huge problems. The Catholic church is 100% against birth control. I don’t agree with their stance personally, but it’s their religion, and we have religious freedom. (I think.) The government cannot force a religious institution to provide birth control for their employees, if birth control is against their religion. This sets enormous precedent. No longer are you free to practice your religion. First, you must practice Obama, THEN practice your religion if it complies with Obama’s vision for America.

The issue at hand is much more than birth control. It has to do with the size of government, freedom of religion, and the ever growing entitlement mentality in America. Do not dismiss this as a minor issue – it’s important. Very important. The founding principles of our nation are at stack – personal responsibility, small limited government, religious freedom. Don’t push this issue under the rug or underestimate it’s importance.