Mary Ellen's logic is -- illogical.

There has been a rule proposed by the Bush Administration that would protect medical workers from being forced to provide "treatments" that are against their religious beliefs -- for example, a nurse who finds abortion morally wrong could not be compelled to assist in the procedure. So Mary Ellen Geherardi of Coppell, Texas, questioned the logic of such a rule in a letter to the editor in yesterday's Dallas Morning News.

Mary Ellen compares it to military service. She says, that anyone who objects to murder, wouldn't have to fight. There's a little problem with Mary Ellen's logic, too. Number 1 -- military action is not murder. Not every instance of taking a life is murder. Number 2 -- let's give Mary Ellen her point and say that military casualties are murder. Helllooooo -- we have an all-VOLUNTEER army, so she is right when she says, if you find it "morally wrong to invade another country and murder innocent people" you don't have to do it. Number 3 -- Even when we had the draft, we had a thing called "conscientious objection." If your religious beliefs were compromised by combat, you could file for conscientious objection and be assigned something else. Number 4 -- Doctors take the Hippocratic oath which states, in part, "I will follow that system of regimen which, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of my patients, and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous. I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel; and in like manner I will not give to a woman a pessary to produce abortion. With purity and with holiness I will pass my life and practice my Art." I don't think soldiers ever take an oath not to kill another person -- I think their oath involves protecting their country and following the orders of their Commander-in-Chief.

Mary Ellen concludes with the question, "Can you imagine this logic applied fairly, across the board?" I agree -- kind of looks like the medical field got the short end of the stick.

"Moral point, to logical end." The Dallas Morning News; August 26, 2008; p. 18A.