As a long-suffering fan...

...of the Chicago Cubs, I can poke fun at them, but you can't.

In a related story, the Obama administration is under fire for requiring Catholic institutions to provide contraceptives as part of their health insurance plans.

(I think they're making a mistake, both on policy and political grounds, and have said so here and here.)

But a front page story in the Times today, "Obama Tries to Ease Ire on Contraceptive Rule," hints at a compromise:

Administration officials say one avenue for resolution might be to look at how Catholic institutions in the 28 states with similar laws have dealt with the issue. One possible compromise might be to emulate Hawaii, where the rule is in effect, but where employees at religious institutions that do not offer free contraception can get birth control through side benefits, which the employees nominally pay for but which often end up being free.

So don't be too surprised if the Obama administration walks back its decision in the next few days.

Now what does all this have to do with the Chicago Cubs? Well, just as you can't criticize my beloved Cubbies, so can't the Obama administration tell the Catholic Church what health services it can and can't provide.  By doing so, they've practically forced Catholics to side with their Church.

I've read that well over 90 percent of Catholic couples practice artificial birth control. They know the Church is run by a bunch of batty old men. And they can ignore their authority, but you can't.

So the only question left is, once this whole brouhaha is over, will all those Catholic couples who defended Mother Church start following its teachings, or just go back to practicing birth control like before?