For years, libertarians and Republicans alike have complained bitterly about the left wing's interference in the private life of the average citizen.
And they had some reason to do so: At their worst, social liberals can sometimes push too hard, acting as though there were only one proper way for to live and work.
But just as the rightwing has shown, through the actions of Tom DeLay and Bill Frist, that they can be more dishonest and more corrupt than the left, the right wing is also proving how it can be more intrusive and autocratic when it comes to dictating the lives we lead in our own homes.
The one place where Americans have generally assumed no one -- from the left or the right -- could interfere was the freedom to reproduce. An adult who wishes to have a child, has the right to have a child.
Not any more.
According to the gay news site 365gay.com, legislation has been introduced in the Indiana legislature to prohibit gays, lesbians and even single people from using medical science to assist them in giving birth.
The bill has the support of State Senator Patricia Miller (R-Indianapolis), who is the chair of the Health Finance Commission where the legislation is currently being considered.
If passed, no Indiana doctor would be able to assist any pregnancy involving a woman who wishes to be artificially inseminated, or impregnated through an egg donor, or given in-vitro fertilization, unless the woman meets a number of conservative-based factors.
Among these factors: The woman would have to be married to a person of the opposite sex. She would have to meet certain standards of a family lifestyle. She could not be a lesbian. She would have to engage in faith-based or church activities.
There are a number of other regulations being considered, but the real point here is to prevent a lesbian from having a child with the help of medical science unless she is basically so closeted that she herself doesn't know she's gay.
The other point here is something that has become a standard theme of the Republican party, despite the fact that its own chairman, Ken Mehlman, has never denied that he himself isn't gay: To try and do everything it can to make it impossible for a gay man or lesbian to live a normal and happy life.
You just have to wonder: With all that's going on in the world, is depriving an American citizen of the right to use medical science to have a baby really one of the most pressing issues facing the country?
If you live in Indiana, the answer seems to be yes.