He Works Hard For His Money....Go...Somebody!
In my opinion, politics seems to be a lot like football. You have to pick a team.
If you don't have a team and you are still talking about the sport, people just sort of look at you weird. And no matter how many wins or losses, players arrested or monetary loyalty that seems to be running through the team, the fans are devoted.
Of course, not liking football at all myself, maybe that is a bad analogy. And not liking football and living where I do is sort of another post within itself.
But I ran across this letter to the editor in our paper that got me thinking:
The President of the United States is a born again Christian. He claims that God summoned him to the Presidency and told him to invade Iraq. Every member of the Congress is a devout religious believer. I know of no exceptions.
The Supreme Court is 100 percent religious. Five of the nine justices are Roman Catholic. If that doesn't scare you then you are fearless or totally ignorant of the origins of the Roman church in particular and Christianity in general. Not to pick on Christianity, all religions are based on false premises and survive only due to the credulousness of humanity.
Religious belief is a flight from reality. If your beliefs cannot survive an objective scrutiny then why subscribe to them?
XXX ( I won't print his name)
Wow. Looking to stir up trouble Mr. X? I couldn't wait to see the letters in response to this guy. Our area is pretty conservative - people are always throwing bible verses in their political rants in Letters From Readers. But a month has passed and no one has surprisingly fired back.
If you don't have a team and you are still talking about the sport, people just sort of look at you weird. And no matter how many wins or losses, players arrested or monetary loyalty that seems to be running through the team, the fans are devoted.
Of course, not liking football at all myself, maybe that is a bad analogy. And not liking football and living where I do is sort of another post within itself.
But I ran across this letter to the editor in our paper that got me thinking:
The President of the United States is a born again Christian. He claims that God summoned him to the Presidency and told him to invade Iraq. Every member of the Congress is a devout religious believer. I know of no exceptions.
The Supreme Court is 100 percent religious. Five of the nine justices are Roman Catholic. If that doesn't scare you then you are fearless or totally ignorant of the origins of the Roman church in particular and Christianity in general. Not to pick on Christianity, all religions are based on false premises and survive only due to the credulousness of humanity.
Religious belief is a flight from reality. If your beliefs cannot survive an objective scrutiny then why subscribe to them?
XXX ( I won't print his name)
Wow. Looking to stir up trouble Mr. X? I couldn't wait to see the letters in response to this guy. Our area is pretty conservative - people are always throwing bible verses in their political rants in Letters From Readers. But a month has passed and no one has surprisingly fired back.
I feel sorry for him because Faith is such a big part of my life and who I am in my relationship with God. And I'll be the first to admit that I have struggled in the Faith department my whole life, but I feel like my beliefs could surely stand up to objective scrutiny. If you can't subscribe to Faith, then I can see where religion might not make sense to you. But the hatred. That is something far more disturbing.
While I too might question whether God took the time to summon Bush to office, I don't worry whether or not our congress or judges are Christian, Catholic or otherwise. Would I be worried if they were Jewish or Muslim? Probably not. Based on what this man is saying, having spirituality is a bad thing that makes you make bad choices.
There was a current AP News Poll (Gotta love those, my opinion usually is that I don't care what en masse think) that asked Americans who the top villain and hero were. Here are the results:
Villain
G. Bush 25%
O. bin Laden 8%
S. Hussein 6%
...and goes on to name Kim Jong of North Korea and Donald Rumsfeld
Hero
Bush 13%
troops in Iraq 6%
O. Winfrey 3%
Obama 3%
Jesus 3%
Bono2%
I'm afraid that we are going to get crushed just due to our ridiculousness. You may not like Bush but Top Villain? It just goes to show how wonderfully naive we can be over here that one might think he is worse than bin Laden and Hussein....or many, many other horrible dictators that are existing in our world.
And BONO one percent under Jesus?? I mean, his music is great - and he is doing some wonderful things in the world with his celebrity - but REALLY? And Obama? I think he will go on to do great things - but he hasn't really proved himself yet.
I'm starting to wonder if Jen's American-hating British coworkers are on to something. We sometimes DO seems like a bunch of ignorant know-it-alls.
So is it just me? What do you think? C'mon, we welcome all kinds of differing opinions here at Jackonthelake. You won't insult me...really. Unless you tell me that I am looking kind of heavy today.
And I've got to stop reading the paper. It just gets me all mad and then I end up forcing you nice readers to listen to my rants.
7 comments:
Oh… you just got me right where I can’t resist, religion, politics & Bono! Don’t worry, I’ll be nice! But, truth be told, I cannot stand Bush. And honestly, he probably is at the top of my “Villain List” at the moment.
Let me explain. I do agree that Hussein, bin Laden and Jong are WORSE than Bush, ethically. The ideas and practices of these other three leaders are reprehensible. I would not hesitate to say they are disgusting, vile human beings who do not deserve to breathe the air on this earth. But, I think the reason most people put Bush at the top of their villain list is, while he might possess slightly better ethics or intentions than the likes of Hussein, the difference is power. Bush has more power than… well, pretty much anybody. Even more so than Hussein did, bin Laden, etc.
Our country is the richest and the most powerful one in the world and virtually anything Bush says goes because he’s running the richest country in the world in addition to declaring that he’s doing what he does in the name of God. He gets away with it; the synergy of money, patriotism and religion has given him a very dangerous free pass for years, despite that the majority of our country and the rest of the world disagrees with him. I don’t agree with Bush’s manipulation, lies, and trickery (i.e., trying to connect 9/11 with Iraq or claiming that God speaks through him in order to justify his actions). It’s about power. He has the most of it and is abusing it, despite protests from hundreds of millions of the very people he’s supposed to be SERVING and LISTENING to, not to mention the rest of the world. So, that’s my two cents as to why he’s at the top of the “hate” list for many people.
As far as spirituality goes.. it’s kind of a tricky thing too. I used to be a Christian for many years but now I’m agnostic - I believe in some kind of higher power but am not religious. I still have lots of religious friends and family members. But what bothers me is, many times when one is so engrossed in their religious beliefs, they sometimes forget to think for themselves. They rely primarily on a spiritual leader, book, preacher, etc. and totally deny their own thoughts about a topic, as if the brain that’s in their head is secondary to their religion. I am in no way saying that all religious people do just that but there ARE too many that blindly follow everything that was recited to them by their parents, church, temple, leader, etc. I feel they “turn off” their independent thinking skills and opt for a pack mentality since most religions do discourage the questioning of one’s beliefs. That’s why, to me, to combine religion and politics is scary and dangerous. Any dissent in thought (in regards to both religion and politics) is considered traitorous and immoral and that scares me. That’s the same element that makes the Al-Qaeda so scary.
I completely feel that one can be religious and be a leader. I honestly don’t care if our President is a Christian, Wiccan, Muslim or an atheist. But to be a leader and have your religion (regardless of which religion it is) be the primary influence over your political decisions (and to persuade a country to subscribe to you and the way your religion thinks), well, that is dangerous. Religion carries too much power and complicates politics.
I’m also a huge fan of Bono (well, who isn’t? LOL). I don’t think he’s god but I understand why he’s almost as popular as Jesus (as well as Oprah, Obama, etc. But I’ll just stick with the Bono example for clarity). Bono is CURRENT, he’s NOW, you know? He has lots of publicity and people can actually SEE in papers, on TV and on the internet EVERY SINGLE DAY what he does with his music, his fight against poverty, AIDS in Africa, trying to drop the debt, etc. He’s doing a lot of wonderful things and I understand that when you see a celebrity in the news every day, doing absolutely selfless admirable things, it makes a pretty big influence over someone versus someone they can’t see, talk to, or have actual pictures of (such as Jesus, Buddha, whoever…)
Whew, I think I’m done. I hope I didn’t offend at all, just wanted to voice my two cents since you asked for opinions on the topic! Ooh, I didn’t realize that this might take up a LOT of space in your comments section. Feel free to delete my entry after a while if it takes up too much room!
Nope, glad you commented! I congratulate you on voicing your opinion, especially one that might make people uncomfortable. I think it is important to understand where other people are at that aren't neccesarily on the same page as you.
I can understand where you are coming from on many of your points. It honestly wasn't until I started going to Crossroads Church in Cincinnati that I finally realized that I could have completely differing opinions on heavy topics than the person sitting next to me and yet still share a love for God. It was very freeing. Now I feel like I can be "different" without constantly feeling like I have to justify myself to someone. That church is a very unique place that brings in people in all stages of life and with different backgrounds. I am forever changed because of that experience.
I see politicians out there who catagorize all Christians the same and think we are all an easy right wing vote for them because they start declaring their relgious beliefs. And it worries me.
No worries on taking up too much room - people tend to stay quiet on sticky subjects around here. I'm sure tumbleweeds will be blowing through this entry!
Well, I feel I should weigh in and encourage the flow of discussion. Karri, I'm proud of you for stating your beliefs and what you know and for not being afraid to say what you don't.
For centuries, religion and politics have danced around each other, one never really winning out over the other. They have to coexist because our nature as humans is to accept God or reject Him and either way you find your self believing in God or believing in not believing in God.
Karri touched on our experience in Cincinnati and I have to agree. Faith should be real. It should be challenged. And it should be reinforced. I've long felt that faith is relative. You can have faith in science, medicine, diet, atheism, politics, God, Shiva, Buddha, money, nature. Whatever. Where you put your time and resources is the best indication of where your faith is, so there is no real way to seperate religion from politics. They actually NEED each other. In that definition of religion, politicians that do NOT express their religious beliefs might be more dangerous than those that do. "Where your treasure is there will your heart be also." Iw ant to know where my leader's treasure is.
The area that is critical is the heart--what's inside. What seperates a man like bin Laden from Bush is the heart and intent. Both men are passionate and religious about what they believe, but I see Bush having a genuine heart for bettering the world instead of destroying it. Am I defending all of his choices and strategies? Absolutely not. But I am defending the character of someone with tremendous responsibility that simply isn't perfect.
Leadership is a tremendous responsibility that we are all capable of screwing up at our own level. A good leader is someone that makes decisions to try to make their world a better place. That world can be a country, state, city, office, home. A good leader is someone who surrounds themselves with quality people that are both like-minded yet challenging. Someone who is engaging yet unafraid to be unpopular at times. Someone that follows the line yet redraws it when necessary. Is strong yet humble.
Remember, if we want change, if we want growth, choose it.
Keith
Karri are you going for tumbleweeds too?
People can look at me weird too for not choosing a team in politics.
I am an independent. Jason says if you say you're Republican or Democrat and vote entirely on that basis then you are ignorant and can not think for yourself. Being intelligent is being able to see both sides even if you don't agree.
To say that Bush is a devout Chrisitan is to be an idiot. He's a dirty politician (and I believe that of all politicians) you can't not be in office without some blood on your hands. God isn't speaking to George Bush, but it sounds good to the evangelical Christians who he wants to vote for the republican party in the upcoming elections...
He isn't as outwardly evil as the dictators listed, I actually had a lot of respect for him when 9/11 hit, but now, with the political war he has created (smells like Vietnam to me) and so I lost respect.
I support our troops, thank god for them. I don't support the war and I don't support Bush. And don't get me started on BONO. He's a hollywood star with money. WHOO HOO. He has done some good things, but there are people out there who deserve HERO status far more than he does, he just happens to be in the spot light. He is just a irritating as the stupid RED clothes etc they sell at the GAP. How about donating to a charity instead of buying goods for yourself where what 2% goes to help it. PLEASE.
I am glad to see that Tumble weeds are not flowing through your area!
It's sad to think we live in a place where the greatest evil is so "local" without thinking of the bigger picture. Regardless of stance on politics, it's hard to ignore what's going on around the world. We are "ugly Americans" for a reason unfortunately. We need to take a more global view, especially since our foreign policies take us there. If we expanded our knowledge to learn more, we would be in a better position to understand all the ins and outs of what's going on... and be able to intelligently disern and elect the people who will serve us the best in all that our country does and needs - both local and foreign. Our voter turnout numbers are abominable compared to other nations. It's time we look at the bigger picture and see what's really going on around the world in more places than Iran, Iraq and Afganistan.
The guy's rant about religion sounds like it comes from someone who is searching for a bigger truth somewhere in his/her life. Faith is crucial in my life and I don't know where I would be, nor my family would be, without it. I hope that he/she finds whatever it is that the person is looking for.
I have been a little intimidated to post. Everyone has stated their opinions so eloquently. Here are my two cents...
I feel that I am more of a "Spiritual" person than a "Religious" person. I have a hard time with a lot of organized religion because I feel that so often people use it as a check in the box. "I went to church on Sunday", "I prayed before dinner", etc, etc, but they don't actually live a good and righteous life. I think there are people of all faiths that are inherently good and people of all faiths that are not.
Nothing bothers me more than hearing someone say, "Well, he's a good Christian man..." Just believing in God doesn't make you a good person. For centuries people have used their God, Allah, Buddah, whatever to justify and make excuses for horrible or intolerant things that they do. That is my main issue with Bush saying that God summoned him to office and told him to invade Iraq. I think that we as people should take responsibility for our own actions and decisions.
As an ex-Navy wife, I fully support our troops, but just don't see that the cost of this war is worth the outcome. It seems that it is creating more of a hatred of America and causing more religious extremism and intolerance.
Now- the poll is a whole different comment in my opinion. As we get ready for another Presidential election, I am equally intrigued and horrified to see the ignorance of much of America. I remember reading some stat after the last election about the percentage of Americans whose primary information source was Saturday Night Live. Scary.
Great post Karri. Thanks for getting us all thinking!
As everyone else said- I hope I didn't offend anyone!
Well, I'm sure we all insulted SOMEONE - but good for us in having a great debate of it!
I for one learned some things and have new perspectives to mull over.
Thanks all!
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