I think the lesson here is quite clear.
Reasonable people, yes, even Libertarians, can interpret
the meaning of this part of the platform, and other parts,
differently, and it might be to our advantage to clarify it.
I can tell you for sure that when outsiders, as in non
libertarians, read this, and other parts of the platform,
they get a very negative impression of things.
It would behoove us to ensure we are using wording
that's non-threatening, and crystal clear as to meaning.
It seems to me both Harland and I want the same
meaning to be taken from the words in our platform,
so certainly we all can team up to ensure this is so.
harlandh5 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
No, Brian, that sentence has nothing to do with prostitution, and
never did. Even without
"Therefore", a sentence remains part of its paragraph. That paragraph calls for
medical
care, information, etc for minors. Someone might criticize the wording, but you
already
dismissed Howard Pearce's suggestion that it was only a problem in wording:
Brian Holtz wrote:
"If it's merely bad wording, it managed not to get fixed in any Platform from
2004 all the
way back to at least 1990. Nothing in the context of these platforms rescues
this
wording;"
We want to write the platform so that nobody miscontrues the meaning; let's not
try to
misconstrue the platform ourselves.
Harland Harrison
LP of San Mateo County CA
--- In [email protected], "Brian Holtz" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Harland Harrison wrote:
>
> HH> The language clearly states that it means contraception. [...] The 1990
> platform says: "We regard the tragedies caused by unplanned, unwanted
> pregnancies to be aggravated, if not created, by government policies of
> censorship, restriction, regulation, and prohibition. Therefore, we call for
> the repeal of all laws that restrict anyone, including children, from
> engaging in voluntary exchanges of goods, services, or information regarding
> human sexuality, reproduction, birth control, or related medical or
> biological technologies." <HH
>
> The "therefore" was taken out in the 2004 Platform. This change clearly
> implies an intent to make the second sentence stand on its own and apart
> from the first sentence's context of unwanted pregnancies. Also, "human
> sexuality" is a much broader topic than "unwanted pregnancies".
> Grammatically, the second sentence as written in the 2004 Platform appears
> to call for the legalization of child prostitution.
>
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