Those naughty Nordics

While the name Rebecca St James will not be familiar to most, she is apparently a big wheel among afficionados of Christian Contemporary Music. Her regard in these circles stems primarily from the fact that her approach to pre-marital sex seemingly draws its inspiration from the “Just Say No” approach to drug awareness (and, incidentally, is likely to meet with a similar degree of success).

I have commented on this article in the past, but it incensed me to the degree that I have decided to revisit it on this blog. Specifically, it is the final line of the article, “I’ve got a lot of mainstream media attention even in countries like Norway that are not known necessarily for their morality” that raised my ire.

Evidently we are talking about a version of morality consistent with the Gospel according to St James, rather than one that accords with any objective measure of social cohesiveness. For when a rational comparison is made between Norway and St James’ adopted home country of the United States, it becomes abundantly clear which is the more “moral” of the two.

Just by way of example: Norwegians do not live in fear of the next school rampage. Recreational homicide does not rank among popular sporting activities. Norway looks after its citizens – medicine is affordable, and those requiring major treatment do not risk financial ruin. Norway does not execute the mentally handicapped, or anyone else for that matter. Norwegians are aware of their place in the world, as one country among many, and do not suffer from the delusions of exceptionalism. Norway is an egalitarian society, with its citizens entitled to a wage that they can actually live on. Finally, Norway outshines the United States over a range of other important social indicators, such as infant mortality, literacy, and life expectancy.

However, the difference that should be of greatest interest to St James is that Norway also boasts of substantially lower teen pregnancy and STD infection rates than the United States.