The GOP: God's Own Party

Obviously, anyone who has read very much of what I write knows that I'm not fond of religion. I don't equate "god", or your idea of "god" with religion. So, when I use the term religion, do not assume I'm talking about "god". Hope that is clear. Nobody has the truth cornered or there would not be thousands of religions, all saying they worship the one and only deity.

Now that I have that disclaimer out of the way, I can get to it. I never intended for this blog to become so political. I did it mostly to air out things that aggravate me and to expand my ability to amuse myself and a few others. Well, since I don't participate in political discussions on any groups, I use my Facebook account and this blog to comment on politics. Look here, I realize that many of you who read me have always thought of me as being fairly conservative. Well, I think I still lean that way on many fiscal issues and even on a few social issues (which I'm more moderate on than subscribing to an ideological point of view). I just dislike what is happening in politics. More now, than ever. And at the heart of my dislike is my disappointment with how the evangelical Christian movement has infiltrated and taken over the Republican party and have also ruined the politics of the Tea Party. And it has never been more apparent than looking at the top three candidates seeking the Republican presidential nomination.

I was really going to take this to the next level and get in depth on the candidates. Instead, I think I'll choose the "pro/con" route. It'll probably depend on your point of view or politics as to what is pro and con, so I'll stick with what I think (and even what I DON'T think, if I can get some humor out of it!). You can go to Wikipedia or whatever to find out serious stuff about the candidates.

Mitt Romney

The reason Romney is not a runaway success as a Republican candidate is because he is a Mormon. To me, being a Mormon is just a hop, skip, and a jump away from being a Scientologist (damn, I hate having to capitalize that). A lot of Christians don't even consider Catholics to be a part of their faith, so you know the Mormons have no shot. As a Mormon, Romney can't partake of anything that is enjoyable. No drugs. No tobacco. No alcohol (unless it's wine you make yourself). No coffee. Romney believes that Jesus came to North America and took a look around, and his pappy wrote some sacred tablets that only Joseph Smith would be able to decipher. Cuckoo..........

 So, what about his religion makes him an attractive or unattractive candidate?

CON: Mormons do not allow women to become priests. A bit exclusionary, ya think?

 

PRO: Jesus is the older brother of Satan. Now that explains a lot! I'd like to see Jesus assert himself....oops, Himself a little better and slap the master of abortions around a little more.

PRO: Mormons love to take on extra wives. (sex)

CON: Mormons love to take on extra wives. (everything else)

PRO: Says he will not have a litmus test for appointees and will not rule out atheists or people of other faiths.

MOST TROUBLING: He was pro choice....now he is pro life. Was for (and implemented it in Massachusetts) social medicine....now he is against it. Says he won't bow to the NRA....now he is a member of the NRA. Was for the bank bailouts.....and then was against the bank bailouts. He says drug use is immoral, but says it's best not to describe water boarding as torture. How's that for some morality?

My bottom line on Romney is that I think he would probably make a decent enough president, based on his success' with the 2002 Olympics, some of his private sector work, and his governorship in Massachusetts. I just don't know if I can trust a guy who has changed all of his problematic positions. If he has to be someone else to get the Republican nomination, what will happen with him when he gets to DC? Is there room for people to change what they believe? Hell yeah. But he has 180'ed on the very things that would NOT put him in a favorable position with the far right. Romney is one of the most disappointing politicians in my opinion. If he had stayed closer to the man he was when he became the governor of Massachusetts, he'd get my vote, despite his crazy assed beliefs.

Rick Perry

Here we are, finally. Everyone knew Perry was going to run, but he waited until he could make a splash and take away the thunder that would be the Iowa straw poll.....which is a total scam. Hell, if I had enough buses and money, I could have won that poll. Perry, like Romney, is smart guy. He handles himself well and comes across as a person who is in control of himself and what he believes. He's done an OK job in Texas and he has to be doing something right....he's been the governor there since W. went to DC. I don't think there is any doubt that this guy would love for America to become a theocracy. If you think it's insane for many middle eastern countries to be Islamic theocracies, then there should be no reason for you to support that happening in America, whether you are a Christian or not. Read up on the following and you'll understand why;  Dominionism: Not As Cool As It Sounds

CON: No embryonic stem cell research. PERIOD. None. So, he does not support one of the leading scientific paths to healing cancer, spinal injuries and a host of other afflictions and ailments. We must protect the sanctity of a cell that is less complex than the brain of a house fly.

PRO: Death penalty for aggravated rape. No, I'm not much for the death penalty, but it's hard for me to hold a position on something like this. I can see how both sides of this issue have valid points. So, I'll go with PRO on this one, although "Thou Shalt Not Kill" sounds kind of final, doesn't it?

CON: Whoops......he vetoed a bill that would have banned executing mentally retarded inmates. Maybe he missed that commandment. :-)

PRO: Medical marijuana legalization should be up to the states.

CON: Supports executing marijuana users. (OK, I made that up.....sorry)

CON: Held a 3 day "Prayer - A - Thon" to end the drought in Texas back in April. The drought continues. Will we have a 3 day prayer event for jobs? Is that a policy? Geez, social security is out of money? Pray for a couple of days. Yeah, makes perfect sense.

PRO: Believes the civil rights movement fulfilled the Declaration of Independence.

CON: Doesn't see any trouble with prayer in public places that are funded with tax payer dollars.

CON: Believes "Intelligent Design" is scientific.

MOST TROUBLING:   How about this quote:  "God has chosen an elite, his new apostles here in America, to rule over the land through great monied business associatio­ns whose sole purpose is to further their divinely ordained agenda: economic, social and political.­"

I simply can't trust that this guy will do the right thing by America and for ALL Americans. He's going to follow a rigid set of standards that are self-imposed as a direct result of his religious beliefs. Electing Perry could be like the proverbial snake. You grab the snake and it bites you. Then you are pissed off that it bit you. Well, it's a snake....that's what it does.

Michelle Bachmann

This should be lots of fun. But, first things first. It seems that she is the type of person who is sincere in her care for her family. She has taken in many foster children and has been very charitable in helping teenagers with eating disorders. Also, while in congress she, at times, was very measured in her comments on how to go about a "troop surge" and whether or not it was needed and how it would effect our ability to get out of Iraq more quickly. Alright......from here on, she kind of comes unglued. It will become obvious to you, that if this woman were of any other religion, her ass wouldn't sniff politics in this country. If nothing else, she is a straight up "reconstructionist" or "dominionist". So, if you prefer personal freedom, which includes freedom from the government being able to implement Christianity as our national religion, then this isn't the girl for you.

PRO: Believes in the strength of families.

CON: So long as those families are the way she describes them.

PRO: Seems to be committed to her marriage.

CON: She is married to a gay guy.....errr....yeah....I'll leave that alone.

CON: Thinks the swine flu break out under Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama are related to them being liberal Democrats....only the outbreak in the 70's began under Gerald Ford's watch.

CON: Wants to do away with the minimum wage to create jobs. We did that once. Pretty sure we called it slavery.

CON: OK, this isn't a "con", it's just a very stupid thing she said....and I could fill this blog up with that shit. "That's why people need to continue to go to the town halls, continue to melt the phone lines of their liberal members of Congress, and let them know, under no certain circumstances will I give the government control over my body and my health care decisions."

PRO: Talked to Michael Steele the way any white person should talk to a black person. ''Michael Steele! You be da man! You be da man!''    :-)

PRO: Maybe this isn't a "pro", but you have to give it up for the sheer intellectual vacancy she displays. As if somehow considering herself lacking in knowledge is a favorable trait. "I look at the Scripture and I read it and I take it for what it is. I give more credence in the Scripture as being kind of a timeless word of God to mankind, and I take it for what it is. And I don't think I give as much credence to my own mind, because I see myself as being very limited and very flawed, and lacking in knowledge, and wisdom and understanding. So, I just take the Bible for what it is, I guess, and recognize that I am not a scientist, not trained to be a scientist. I'm not a deep thinker on all of this. I wish I was. I wish I was more knowledgeable, but I'm not a scientist."

PRO: She helped start a K-12 school called "New Heights".

CON: She took government money for it and then proceeded to include "The 12 Biblical Principles" into the curriculum.One parent who was opposed to it being added to the curriculum was told that a member of Bachmann's team said that god spoke to them directly and said that they all should be "laying it down" for Christ every day.

PRO: Now, here is a quote I can get along with.  “The Lord says be submissive. Wives, you are to be submissive to your husbands.”  

MOST TROUBLING:  "I am convinced in my heart and in my mind that if the United States fails to stand with Israel, that is the end of the United States . . . [W]e have to show that we are inextricably entwined, that as a nation we have been blessed because of our relationship with Israel, and if we reject Israel, then there is a curse that comes into play. And my husband and I are both Christians, and we believe very strongly the verse from Genesis [Genesis 12:3], we believe very strongly that nations also receive blessings as they bless Israel. It is a strong and beautiful principle."

Not that I'm against supporting Israel, but they are a sovereign nation and we should not blindly follow a policy that is based on a book....or series of books that was written thousands of years ago. Hell, we barely pay attention to the US Constitution anymore.

I could go on and on about how delusional and out of touch this woman is. It's OK to believe anything you want, but when you are running for political office and especially if you are wanting to be the leader of the free world, you must be accountable for what you say and do. Bachmann has said that god told her to get a tax law degree (she worked for the IRS at one point), marry her husband, and run for political office. Well, is that supposed to comfort me? Whoever is elected, I'd like them to use their experience and knowledge of the US Constitution and bill of rights when considering issues. If she is the nominee, Barack Obama should thank Jesus....Allah or whoever the hell he prays to! Bachmann is a bad candidate if you love freedom, and equal civil rights for everyone. I have not even started to touch on all the ways that Bachmann is a supporter of theocratic government. I got you started. If you are alarmed, and you should be, do some more research.

I think I'll stop with these three. Rick Santorum would be another easy target, but he has only a slightly better chance to be the GOP nominee than Elvis does and he's been dead for a few decades. Santorum says he's pretty sure that it's "God's will" that he run for president. Newt.....not gonna get it....hope he doesn't get it.....better not get it. Herman Cain? I like his demeanor, but running a pizza parlor doesn't mean you should be president, and I'm not totally convinced his claim about Jesus healing him from cancer so he could become president is true. Ron Paul? A very interesting candidate. I really like his libertarian views. But, he has advocated in the past that it's OK to bring religion (and by religion, I mean Christianity) into the world of tax payer funded government. He also has supported it being OK to keep atheists from running for public office.

Now, here is an interesting dude....Jon Huntsman. Here is a quote from Huntsman he gave to TIME; "I'm a very spiritual person," as opposed to a religious one, he says, "and proud of my Mormon roots." Roots? That makes it sound as if you're not a member anymore. Are you? "That's tough to define," he says. "There are varying degrees. I come from a long line of saloon keepers and proselytizers, and I draw from both sides." Doesn't sound like he is using his religion (or lack of it) in his campaign efforts.

He has worked for Obama as the ambassador to China. He is pro-civil union, he believes we should take better care of our environment, and he has done a great job as Utah's governor by adding jobs and cutting taxes. At one time he had an 80% approval rating in Utah. He has worked for Reagan, the Bushes, and Obama. It's hard to get a candidate who has had that sort of experience working with different styles and different ideology. Did I mention that this guy actually has a sense of humor and loves rock n roll? Here is what he had to say when he was told an event in South Carolina was going to be "black tie"...."That kind of sucks." What does he say about how to deal with difficult situations? "You can be stern and forthright, and that's my management style," he tells me, "but when you lose it totally, that's a sign of weakness." I'm going to link up the TIME article. I think this guy, from my limited knowledge of him, is the one person in the GOP primaries who really deserves attention. If you are a Republican and are having a tough time with Bachmann, Romney, or Perry, perhaps this is a guy you may want to find out about and start talking about him to others. Perhaps?

TIME article on Jon Huntsman

I don't want to give the impression that I don't think it's OK for politicians to talk about their faith. Faith is important to many people and they like to share it. But, we have a Constitution and bill of rights. That comes first when you are sworn to protect those things. We are a nation that is diverse. There has to be room for everyone's beliefs on god and no religious doctrine should hold influence in our government to the detriment of others. I'll be back to a lighter subject later in the week. Tah, Tah!