It’s a bare-knuckle brawl in every segment of American life today, even in those areas where we once thought a little compassion and the milk of human kindness could be found.

The church is pretty much Old Testament today. The one segment of the New Testament that gets invoked is the Book of Revelation and it is cited as proof that American society is going straight to hell as a result of this, that or the other. Grisly ol’ Phil Robertson, the patriarch of the “Duck Dynasty” clan, has emerged as an expert on all matters spiritual and heavenly. Obviously, Phil’s Bible must have been gutted of the Sermon on the Mount the way he would gut a swamp critter, which is what he needs to stick to doing: guttin’, not preachin’, since they’re one and the same for ol’ Phil.

The friendly family doctor was once an icon of understanding and compassion, at least, we like to think it was so in the halcyon days of yore. As proof that the compassionate doctor is as endangered a species as the tiger, elephant and small farmer, allow me to introduce you to the Honorable Dr. Larry Stutts, Republican Senator from Alabama’s 6th Senate District in northwest Alabama.

A little history if you please. (By the way, I’m calling him Larry plain and simple.) Larry is an Ob/Gyn from Sheffield, who decided to enter politics. Last year, he defeated an incumbent Democratic senator in the 6th Senate District by 0.2 percent of the votes, about 70 votes total. Larry set out, by his own admission, to rid the state of the crippling effects of Obamacare. Thus, this freshman senator recently introduced SB 289, a bill that would have repealed a woman’s right by law to remain in the hospital for 48 hours after giving birth. If the woman had a complicated delivery, the law allowed her to stay in the hospital for 96 hours.

               Larry got a half dozen or so Republican senators to sign on to SB 289 as sponsors. Then it came to light that ol’ Larry was trying to repeal a law that was inspired by the death of one of his patients.

The law Larry was trying to repeal – “Rose’s Law” – was passed 10 years before Obamacare became the law of the land. Rose Church gave birth to a daughter in 1998 and died shortly thereafter. She was released from the hospital 36 hours after delivering a daughter and died as a result of bleeding that triggered a heart attack. An autopsy showed that she left the hospital with placental tissue still inside her womb. Had she stayed a little longer a blood test would in all likelihood have pinpointed the problem and saved her life.

Rose’s husband named Larry, his wife’s Ob/Gyn, in a wrongful death suit and Larry settled out of court. Again, following Rose Church’s death both chambers of the Alabama legislature unanimously passed “Rose’s Law” thanks to her husband’s tireless lobbying for a law that would have resulted in Rose Church living to see her daughter grow up. Along comes Larry the politician, hero of democracy and defender of the American way, and tries to repeal the law. Ladies and gentlemen, I present Alabama’s version of Dr. Frankenstein with apologies to the original Dr. Frankenstein who created a “monster” and wasn’t one himself!

Naturally, when the facts about ol’ Larry came to light the other Republican co-sponsors pulled their support of SB 289. Larry is infamous now, having been called-out in state and out for his small-mindedness and mean, revengeful spirit. I gotta say, however, with the meanness prevalent today, I can see Larry ending up as U.S. Surgeon General if Ted Cruz gets the Republican nomination. And Phil Robertson? How about U.N. ambassador?

Bob Morgan is a retired, award-winning journalist and author.