.@FoxNews: Sen. Cruz on bill to ban vaccine passports: Health choices are for individuals, not the government or your boss https://t.co/rN9aR5OL31

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) May 28, 2021

 

Ted Cruz and other Republicans are so close to getting it—but in the wrong context.

Cruz pointed out that, “Health choices are for individuals, not the government or your boss”—let that sink in.

He is so close to understanding the desire of women to not have anyone questioning health choices when it comes to abortion. Or why would that be any different?

It is quite obvious that Republicans are trying to hijack well-known terms for their own agenda.

They came up with All Lives Matter as an answer to Black Lives Matter, they view so-called cancel culture as a form of suppression carried out by the elites, and now they try to justify the rejection of vaccinations by saying, “My body, my choice.”

But in all three cases, they are basically missing the point, but receiving a lot of applause from folks who for some reason decided to believe Tucker Carlson over scientists and real experts.

So, why are Conservatives using these terms in one case but not in the other?

The answer is pretty simple—because it affects them. 

Old White men in power don’t care much about women’s rights because they do not directly affect them. The same goes for the Black Lives Matter movement and mass shootings in schools.

No White men affected—no outcry.

But when the White boys have to put on a mask or get vaccinated, things suddenly change. It is not acceptable to follow anyone’s orders when it comes to their own choices.

The attempt of folks like Cruz to have a conversation on personal health choices might be a chance to get this figured out once and for all.

It seems as if millions of American men finally get to experience what it means to get told what to do with their bodies. In this case, to protect their family, coworkers, and friends from a deadly virus. Unfortunately, for some of them, that is not enough to make that choice.

But maybe, this helps these men to get an idea of how women feel when a Supreme Court judge like Brett Kavanaugh sets himself up to limit their choices—that do not have deadly consequences for family, coworkers, and friends.

So, how can we help these White men to understand the my body, my choices part? Maybe the same way as Mary Cheney helped her dad Dick Cheney understand the concept of same-sex marriage?

Cheney’s daughter’s decision to spend her life with the woman she loves led to some controversies within the family but also caused him to accept the choices of his beloved daughter.

We have never been that close to making White men understand the power of personal choices.

Here are a few examples that might help Cruz and others to finally get it:

Choices affecting others.

>> Not getting vaccinated.

>> Not wearing a mask.

>> Discriminating others based on sex, race, or looks.

Choices not affecting others. 

>> Getting an abortion.

>> LGBTQ+ rights.

>> Expressing ourselves.

Let’s give Cruz and others the benefit of the doubt and assume that they are not sexist, evil men. Maybe they just missed an important point while arguing against abortions caused by a lack of empathy.

But after these statements, there shouldn’t be any doubt: they are closer to getting it than they have ever been before.

Let’s remind them of these words next time we talk about choices.