of politics and religion
(if you don't know the blog format, I outline my topics, then go on rants about them, but I do summarize everything into short blurbs at the bottom. feel free to skim the mass if you don't want to go through it all and then read the summary at the end)
Blog Topics:
1. Obama
2. The two political camps
3. Foundation of our country
4. More student loan nonsense
5. Thoughts on Jesus Camp
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1. Although I consider myself a democrat, I'm not exactly the most liberal/left person you will meet.
In reality, I like to consider the political diamond, rather than the strictly left-right line that many consider.
Libertarian is where I fit best, although I am obviously more towards the left and liberal side.
Anyway, even before I started doing my research and considering the topic with more thought, I was biased towards the democratic ticket.
Honestly, I had a slight preference towards Hilary, but mainly because I thought it was time that America had a female president and that I barely knew anything about Obama anyway.
James has really helped spark some political interest inside me and I've been doing a lot of consideration on the topic over the past few days.
Obama really has the vision, passion and excitement that this country so dearly needs.
More focus on helping the middle class, college students, going after renewable resources, etc.
I also didn't quite understand why he picked Biden as his running mate, but once again, I was left in the shadows due to assumptions and a lack of knowledge in the subject.
I know think he was a great choice and although Hilary would have been the emotionally charged choice, I think we have to be serious and rational at the same time.
I have no doubt that Hilary would have made a great vice president (president as well), but I am pleased with what I have heard about Biden.
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2. Democrat vs. Republican.
I had a fairly decent idea of what separated the two camps, but I have really put it together recently.
Please keep in mind that these are my opinions/observations and I am NOT a political expert.
Some vague assumptions have been made about the two main camps. Here is what I have come up with...
Please keep in mind that I am trying to simplify things and yes, I may be making stereotypes, but only to make a point or to introduce a broader topic.
Those who are conservative and consider themselves Republicans often (key word) accuse the left of being excessively liberal, atheistic and feel that we should just hand out money to everyone, especially those who have little or none of it.
Those who are liberal and consider themselves Democrats often (key word) accuse the right of being closed-minded, too old-fashioned, excessively conservative, evangelical Christians and feel that they want to cut taxes from all of the weathly and they have no interest in renewable resources.
In reality, here is how I would have to summarize the MAJORITY of the two camps:
Conservatives/Republicans tend to be Christians, so they usually follow the Bible very closely and sometimes even completely literally. Yes, they are old-fashioned in some respects, but those traits have been passed down from generation to generation. They usually don't see a huge need to worry about things like fossil fuels, renewable resources, etc. It may be on their mind, but things like global climate change and the limited amounts of fuel don't really consume their minds. They feel that there should be someone in charge, the government should be in control. Just like God is in control of this world, the government should be in control of this country. In many respects, the government should try to spread this mentality across the globe. The weathly have the power and since they run the country, they don't need to be taxed as much. This also means that those who are less fortunate do not necessarily need support from the government. When it comes to capital punishment and abortion, they feel that the Bible indicates that we should not kill the innocent (babies, fetuses, etc), but capital punishment is often justified.
(I have not done my research, but I would be willing to bet that more conservatives are pro-life on abortion, than are pro-death for capital punishment)
Once again, homosexuality is a sin, since conservatives tend to follow the Bible, or at the very least a more traditional means of lifestyle.
Liberals/Democrats tend to be moderate in religious affiliation. Many are Christians, but a large number are also deists (although we rarely use this term anymore), agnostics, and simply the non-religious (not necessarily atheists). They are generally open to new ideas and feel that global climate change is a real thing. They feel that we really need to be careful with what we do on this earth and that we cannot continue to rely so heavily upon fossil fuels. When it comes to taxes, there should be more taxes on the wealthier, simply because they make more money! Those who make millions of dollars a year can easily handle giving what would seem to be large sums of money to those who are less fortunate. All in all, the middle class is who makes up the majority of the country. They do the hard labor, they are the teachers, students, scientists, etc that really make our country run and be as great as it is.
Although most are not Bible literalists, many tend to agree with many philosophies of scripture. We should treat others as we wish to be treated. We should not kill, etc.
These people tend to be less religious, but that does NOT mean that they have lesser or non-existant morals.
This camp tends to be pro-choice and anti capital punishment, although there is more room for interpretation and argument. (coming back to the open-mindedness)
Finally, I suppose that most people in this camp are at least supportive of those who are homosexuals, although they may not necessarily agree with the "lifestyle". (this may come back to religion, or it may simply mean that the majority of people are heterosexual and it is simply something that has a clear minority and majority)
***I know that these may be generalizations or stereotypes, but they basically outline what I feel makes up the majority of people who consider themselves either a Democrat or a Republican***
I don't think it's black and white. You don't have to be an evangelical Christian to be a Republican and it is not true that all Democrats are atheists.
I don't know, I just like to spew out my ideas and maybe it will make some people think.
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3. Going back to religion.
Many claim or assume that our country was founded upon Christian morals and that the Bible and Constitution go hand in hand. This really is not true.
I feel that if we had to compare a current political group to our founding fathers, it would be the Democrats!
I mentioned that many people in this camp are religious moderates, deists, agnostics and non-believers.
Although it is fairly clear that our founding fathers had more belief than non-belief, but their beliefs were not consistent with what we see many conservatives claiming.
A deist is someone who believes in a higher power, ie. God, but this creator simply put everything into place and doesn't care so much (if at all) about our personal lives. He does not perform miracles, give or take away cancer from certain people or care what we do with our everyday lives.
I feel that many people today really are deists, although we almost never hear the term used.
I know so many people who believe in God, but don't believe that the Bible is literal.
For example, they may be respectful of homosexuality, have no belief in heaven or hell and often times don't think that God is jealous, attention-hungry and overly obsessive about our personal lives.
Basically, our country was founded by those who were largely deists, although some were definitely Christians, while others were agnostics and atheists.
Just my $0.02.
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4. I received a statement in the mail today that said I owe X thousands of dollars by January 2009.
Basically, they student loan people lied to me. They said that everything was straightened out and I wouldn't have to pay a cent until six months after I graduate. They obviously made an oopsie and think that I already graduated.
This is nonsense. How hard is it to see that I haven't graduated yet. It's clear in my academic process, meaning credits, years enrolled, etc. I made a phone call a month ago and everything was supposed to be sorted out. I don't need this stress. I am working 60 hours a week for crying out loud and I shouldn't have to worry about paying back student loans, when I am still over 8 months away from graduation! ARGH!!!
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5. I won't really talk much about Jesus Camp right now, but I will say that everyone should watch it. It's a chilling account of a Christian camp that advocates that children should give their lives to God and fight for him, to death. It's about indoctrination and brainwashing, some of which is admitted!
Just a quick point:
If muslim children are brainwashed or nazi children were brainwashed, why should Christians be doing the EXACT same thing to their childen?
I'm sorry, but the only rational thing in my mind is to let children grow and make choices in life. Let them look at the evidence and think for themselves. Just as Christian parents should not be labeling their 5-year olds as Christian children, I will not forcefeed my children atheism when and if I have them.
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Summary:
I like Obama and I think he is exactly what this country needs. Biden is not a bad choice and although I would have liked to see Hilary on the ticket somewhere, I am still very excited about the propects for our Democratic nominees.
Democrats and Republicans are obviously harshly categorized into two camps. They are NOT necessarily overly liberal or excessively conservative. Democrats are often religious, although it may not be as extreme as it is with most Republicans. At the same time, Republicans are often more liberal than some assume. Either way, there are clear differences between the two and if you want more of my thoughts on the two, scroll up and read my rantings.
Our country was NOT founded solely upon the Bible or Christian morals. In fact, most of our founding fathers were more moderate with their religious beliefs, often times deists or even agnostics and sometimes atheists. I feel that this is very similar to what we see today. (Although I will say that we have more extremists on both ends of the spectrum these days)
I received a letter in the mail today that I said I have to pay back my student loans beginning in January 2009, but this is in severe error. I don't graduate until May 2009 and everything is one year off. I don't need more stress in my life, especially since I am already working 60 hours per week!!!
Jesus camp is a chilling film that everyone should watch. Look for it on YouTube and the series that breaks it up into 9 parts seems to be the best way. It is full of indoctrination and brainwashing and it really disturbs, sickens and worries me. I will talk more about it in the future, this is for sure. What I will say is that the last thing we should do is force our beliefs upon children. Children who are vulnerable, don't know any better and don't have the experience or knowledge that adults do.
Quincy