[clue-talk] Obama, McCain, and the American flag

[David L. Willson]

Looks like it's not going through, so I'm resending this...  I hope it doesn't show up twice.

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All,

Obama never said anything against the American flag, and he's not friends with a terrorist.  The comments that Obama supposedly made were part of a comedian's satirical work, not intended to be taken seriously, but somebody took it seriously, and they sent out a statement of outrage.  That caused others to believe it was true, so they echoed his outrage.  I looked it up on "that site", Snopes, and found this:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/stance.asp

Obama is not the enemy within.  If anything, we all are the enemy within when we hate and fear each other, when we trivialize each other's beliefs, rather than taking the time to understand them.  Let us be willing to listen to one another, to understand one another.  Let us be prepared to say what we believe, and why we believe it.  Let us be prepared to be "wrong", and let us be willing to become right, even if it means the loss of some excess pride.

We can vote on facts, rather than hysteria.  I'm sorry some of our religious leaders believe outrageous things.  It seems that fear passes as faith sometimes in the Christian community, but I believe that fear and faith are opposites.  Neither of the candidates I liked made it onto the Colorado ballot, so I'll choose the best man that ~is~ on the ballot, because we are in a too-militarized world, because he has good experience with military conflict, and yet he is a peaceful and loving man, and because his running mate has good common sense and really ~does~ believe that no child should be deprived of life, no matter it's age, if it can possibly be avoided.  I will somehow get over my belief that privately he is willing to continue to tolerate the offering of horrible choices to our young people.  I will get over my perception he is playing political games with the people's money when he offers tax incentives.  I will get past, somehow, my belief that he will not reform the government, and will instead hold the line, just barely, even if he wins.  I will vote for John McCain, not because I approve of him entirely or even mostly, but because he's the best man on my ballot, that I know of.

I currently have a President who is willing to fight for the right of an unborn human child to continue to live.  I have a President that is unwilling to offer horrible choices to young people.  I have a President who fights my fight, as best he can, and I'm going to lose that in a few months.  I'll vote to preserve what little I can, but I will lose some of that, and in all likelihood, I will lose it all and watch while a black man works ~against~ human rights.  I will have to watch while a smart man continues to erode our understanding of 8th grade biology, because it's "above his pay grade".  It's not above his pay grade; it's inconsistent with his world-view, and he is willing to dehumanize humans, which is miserable irony when just a hundred or so years ago ~he~ would have been in the dehumanized subclass of humanity.

If you're voting this year, please be aware that the issue of human rights will not stay where it is.  Unborn humans will be more or less human in "our" eyes in two years, and again in four, than they are now, because of what our elected representative do on our behalf.  Please care about that.  Please carefully consider how you regard our unborn young, and vote that perception into your government to the best of your ability.

I am now going to state my own belief, arrived at after careful consideration and some experience of all sides of the issue:  I do care about women's rights, unborn, recently born, and not so recently born.  I love women.  I love men.  Young and old.  I do NOT believe that killing unborn humans is choice that should be offered to anyone as a "remedy" to the natural and known result of sex willingly participated in!  I believe that offering that choice is a sign of a sick community.  I believe that sick people will make that choice no matter what the community does to prevent it, but that, as a community, we can only endorse life and health and sanity and responsibility and accountability.  I believe that no political issue is more important than this one.  I think my big house and your second car can be lost profitably if our respect for our unborn children can be restored.

I submit all this humbly, with sincere respect for and understanding of your beliefs, whether or not they agree with my own.  If you feel that I don't understand or respect your beliefs sufficiently, contact me, I stand ready to listen to you with an open mind and heart.

-- David