'This Conversation With You is a Meditation'

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There are number of controversial issues about how government approaches life--whether its abortion, stem cell research, or euthanasia. Is there a connection between your holistic approach about diet and how you would approach those public policy issues related to life?

Yes, I don't insist that anyone follow the diet that I follow. Because there has to be an element of freedom in a democratic society.

And so, in the case of abortion you might be personally opposed to abortion but pro-choice?

I didn't say that. What I said was that in a democratic society, people must be permitted to make their choices and that the choices of women should not be subordinate to the choices of men, otherwise women are less than equal, are second-class citizens. Let women choose, and they will choose wisely. And at the same time with respect to abortion we can create a society where we can all work together to make abortions less necessary which is I think is an important and praiseworthy goal through birth control and sex education.

Why do you think it's an important goal to make abortion more rare?

I think it's self-explanatory. I don't think there needs to be any elaboration on that.

I'm not sure it will be necessarily self-evident. Clinton used to use the line that he thought abortions should be legal, safe, and rare, but other politicians have not used the last part of the formulation which tells me...

I don't think there's any woman out there who wakes up and says, "Gee, I think I'll have an abortion."

[The Catholic Church] says that politicians who don't adopt the anti-abortion line are not good Catholics.

Well, you know when we start to define that, when you get into defining, it begins to establish a latitude that could become problematic.

Could you elaborate on that? I'm not sure I understand.

No. I don't need to.

You had interesting comments about the Founding Fathers and separation of church and state. "Our founders wanted a separation of church and state, but never intended that America would become separated from the spiritual principles which animated the founding of this country." What do you think the spiritual principles that animated the founding of the country?

An understanding of the role of divine providence. An understanding of the connection between God and nature. An appreciation for the possibility that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness flowed from a transcendent source. Things like that.

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