“I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night.” (Isaiah 62:6a)
Liberal lawmakers in Oregon have declared an “emergency” upon discovering the growing problem that parents are taking care of their own newborns – in their own homes – without intervention by government agents. Senate Bill 526 orders an immediate study be undertaken and completed by the end of the year, so that in-home surveillance of newborns can begin as quickly as possible. According to the authors of the bill, it is “necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety.”
The proponents of the bill don’t even know what they’re going to recommend that agents of the state do in the homes of newborns. They just know they have to get them into everyone’s homes right away. Every new parent would receive two or three mandatory visits from someone sent by the state.
Options floated for this emergency include mandatory vaccinations, health screenings and “linking them to other services,” i.e., signing illegal aliens up for welfare. And again, there is no “opting out” of this emergency program.
Does Oregon have some horrible infant mortality rate that the rest of America was unaware of? Let’s check. Afghanistan has the worst infant mortality rate in the world. 11% of babies born there don’t make it to one year of age. In Nigeria, the infant mortality rate is 7%. Oregon must rank somewhere in that range in order for the government to declare an “emergency,” right?
Wrong: Oregon’s infant mortality rate is 0.005%, which is below the average for all 50 states. In the grand scheme of things, Oregon has one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world. It’s not the best in America but it’s better than most states.
So, what is the big emergency? We’re asking that as an honest question. Because this bill sounds like a violation of the Fourth Amendment protections against unlawful searches, the Due Process clause of the Constitution and possibly even a rare violation of the Third Amendment protection against quartering troops in the home during peacetime.
One thing to note is that Oregon Governor Kate Brown is heavily pushing the state legislature to pass this bill. As Brown is the nation’s first lesbian governor and a radical feminist, most Christians should not be surprised that she has no respect for the sanctity of the nuclear family’s home.
“I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem,” declared Isaiah. In fairness, Isaiah had not received the memo from High Priestess Pelosi that “Walls don’t work,” but we’ll set that aside for now.
As with most verses of Scripture, there is a spiritual message in that verse as well as a wildly practical, everyday lesson. The “watchmen” Isaiah was referring to were prophets, who would warn God’s faithful of when danger was approaching, and it was time to “bug out.” In modern times, pastors are supposed to be watchmen on the walls, guiding and shepherding their flocks.
But it’s also a very, very practical verse for everyday life. Where does the watchman go? On the wall, of course. Where does he watch? Outward, because that’s where the danger is!
When the watchman turns inward, you have a police state. He has abdicated his sacred duty to protect the flock by policing your every move inside and outside of your home. Christians have no need of a police state because we police ourselves in our own homes and we police each other, in love and fellowship, within the church. We are accountable to God and to each other and thus, have no need of a police state.
While we’re on the subject, if there’s a member of Al Qaeda lurking in the bushes in front of our homes, we’ll “take care of it” in exchange for the government no longer reading our emails.
When a state rejects the authority of God, it seeks to become the god of the people. “You can’t take care of your own babies, you stupid peasants, so we will send agents into your home to ensure that you’re doing it correctly.
How arrogant and despicable. This is one of the most anti-family pieces of legislation we’ve seen in a while. The Beaverton Valley Times reports that other states are excitedly watching Oregon Senate Bill 526, so they can set up their own in-home surveillance programs for newborns. These people are sick in the head and Christians need to reject them at the ballot box.
