Keep Religion Private and Out of the White House

Presidents are not elected to serve God. They’re elected to serve the people. Religious figurative servitude is strictly a personal choice and something that should never enter into a political campaign.

This election isn’t about religion, spiritual faith or messianic hopes. It’s about what will be the outcome of the anger and suffering Americans have been faced with at the hands of Bush/Cheney.

It’s about the fact that religious conservatives like Palin and Bush consistently hide behind their faith in times of political and personal crisis refusing to admit their wrongdoings and mistakes, instead chalking it up to a minor setback in their path to a Christian ideal.

As evidenced for the past 8 years, the Bush administration will stop at nothing to wrest control of democracy from the people of the U.S. Election tampering, torture tactics, disregard for the supreme law of the land the Constitution, spying on ordinary citizens through the guise of homeland security, squandering of our land and natural resources, control of the press, control of equal educational opportunity in the name of reform, police state tactics against journalists, censorship, intimidation, propaganda against immigrants. None of these are beyond the agenda of a rightwing administration that aligns itself with the same ideals as Bush/Cheney.

The real underlying omen in this election is the possibility that one day under an administration as Bushlike as the McCain/Palin one, anyone of us ordinary women, men, mothers, fathers, seniors, students even children could become a target based on our educational background, racial makeup, health condition, public expression, financial situation, spiritualism/religion, literary tastes, dissenting opinion, or sexual preferences.

In an oppressive intolerant administration based on a single religious viewpoint , any number of very subtle preferences or traits, however personal could easily be viewed as disqualifying you as a citizen and undeserving of rights under the law depending on those controlling the law of the land.

Let’s cut through the “popularity contest” media coverage of the election and be serious. True, the presidency isn’t the be all and end all of political action. But an intelligent, well respected president leads by example in his or her national leadership, not by restriction of freedom and censorship of political, spiritual or intellectual beliefs.

-Christine Modern English

Comments

[Morna]

We are interviewing these people for the jobs of President and Vice President, correct? As my friend pointed out, asking these questions in any other job interview would be deemed illegal. Think on it.

[WriterGal]

I recently returned from a trip to Europe, which included tours through what's left of the Jewish center of Prague and also through the Documentation Center, a museum in Nuremberg that documents the rise of the Nazi party. Here's what we forget: the Holocaust started small. At first, Jewish people were only required to identify themselves, then the restrictions started, one at a time in small steps, until six million people were dead.

This post points out exactly what I said: we've seen the small steps. I'm a gay woman who is now a second class citizen in my own home because those with a certain religious viewpoint got an amendment into the state constitition that prevents me from marrying the person I love.

Religion does not belong in politics or public policy. It belongs in the homes and churches of its adherents. And I wish that those adherents would stop for one second and realize that their beliefs are for their own lives and nobody else's. Otherwise, it's just a weapon with one purpose: to hurt people.

Thanks for a great post.

[Summer]

Thank you.

[Sarah Granger]

Nice post.

I worry about so many things in terms of separation of church and state that it's not possible to put it all in one comment, but right now...

a) I'm sick that there is fear mongering out there related to Muslims when most Muslims have anything to do with terrorism and no religious group should ever be put in that position - this country was founded on religious freedoms and no one should ever be afraid to share what they do or do not believe;

b) I don't like that so many religious organizations take advantage of their status to put pressure on public figures - having conversations is fine, but becoming major advisers is walking a dangerous line;

c) I think it is absolutely wrong for religious institutions to be talking about politics, politicians, recommending any specific actions to their members, organizing their members for political purposes, or anything else related. I know this is done in large part in Republican circles and it needs to stop and that needs to be enforced;

d) absolutely I believe religion should not be used as a political tool - I think it's terrible that politicians have to say "God bless America" or they'll be shunned, anyone running for president pretty much has to be a Christian (forget that you're black, a woman, whatever - if you're not a Christian... all bets are off), whether you go to church or not and which one should never be an issue, your personal beliefs should never be held in question, and although 'God' is all over our government money, our documents, our songs, and our buildings, it was never meant to be there in any way that assumed one belief or another. Whether a candidate for any office is Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Pagan, Athiest, Buddhist, etc. should never be an issue.

Unfortunately that's not our reality, but finding people to run for office who understand and agree with these principles is a step in the right direction.

[darker]

Remember this: REPUBLICAN GOD is really Cheney and Bush is his servant.

GOD-SCAM "reverends" sell their faithful's vote to Republicans in exchange for power and millions in gov't subsidies for their "programs". War-Profiteering is the Republican WAY TO RICHES. That's all they care about.

Coward McCain lets clueless silly-chick Palin run his show. NO MORE YEARS for the CORRUPT REPUBLICAN PARTY LIARS. Republicans can give themselves a GOING AWAY PARTY.

[Robin]

This post was great! Unfortunately, a candidates religion is one of the most important factors for me in deciding who to vote for. And it's becuase of so many of the facts you have mentioned. My son will not say the entire pledge of alligence - we don't belive in God - hence 'one nation under God'. He also doesn't say 'and justice for all' because he doesn't believe there IS justice for all.
I think it takes a very intelligent and morally/ethical person to be a leader of our country and keep his religion separate from how he leads.

[ellielouwho]

Everyone lives by faith. Some people are guided by a faith in Jesus Christ. Some are guided by their faith that Christianity is a myth. But on some level every politician brings his or her faith to the job. Those that support socialism run around touting the need for larger Food Stamp allowances (forgetting that it was designed to supplement the food budget of the working poor not be the sole resource for the life-time welfare recipient), Socialized Healthcare, and a redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor (popularized by the Soviet block nations and that turned out really well didn’t it).
I’m tired of paying the highest tax rate because I’m not rich enough to really hide my money while my co-workers that are receiving section 8 housing vouchers, WIC, welfare, and Food Stamps not only don’t pay any Federal Taxes but receive SSI and a tax refund check. Tell me how that makes sense on any level. And they used their incentive check to buy a new dog instead of paying their utility bill or rent payments and were eventually evicted while my spouse and I didn’t get a dime of that money.
I’ve lived long enough to know that the Socialist Ideals being touted by Barak Obama aren’t the solution to the mess we’re in and he’s no messiah. I find it ironic that people are stating that GW Bush is the worst President in history yet they seem to forget about Jimmy Carter. Now he was someone with no experience and he made a mess we’re still reeling from. I guess they’ve forgotten about the oil shortages and long lines for gasoline, giving away the Panama Canal for FREE (and we now pay to go through it) and how his administration choked the nuclear power industry which means instead of being 70-80% nuclear power for electricity we’re more dependent on Foreign Oil than ever. The fact that the US burns fossil fuels for energy is a travesty.
To imply that the left wing liberals don’t control the media, or that the Clinton’s were saints (Bill lied to a Grand Jury that lead to his impeachment) paints a lop-sided portrait comparable to what you’ve accused the conservative right of doing.
What we need is a Federalist – someone that will scale back the Federal government and put the power back to the People. Then the majority of people that don’t support the right of a homosexual to marry can vote to ban it and those that support it can relocate to a state that allows it.
John McCain is trying to emulate Ronald Reagan while Barak Obama is trying to emulate the Democratic Party leaders of the 60’s & 70’s. So – nothing new – more of the same.

[Christine]

ellielouwho: Why would you want to "hide" your money? Too difficult to part with it to help your fellow neighbor? Or is that not part of your faith, helping one's neighbor?

It's funny how you claim to know in detail so much about your co-workers alleged abuse of the system yet you have so much disdain and envy that you yourself and spouse didn't receive your incentive check?

I seem to recall the bible having lots of passages about greed.

[cynematic]

@ellielouwho: You used the term "Socialized Ideals"--can you define what this means? Because I don't understand you.

Also, if McCain is like Reagan (and more of the same), and Obama is like (pick a Democrat from the 1960s or 1970s), then who are you going to vote for?

[Melissa]

OK, Ellie Lou Who:

Point-by-point.

Everyone lives by faith.

---Not us atheists.

Some people are guided by a faith in Jesus Christ. Some are guided by their faith that Christianity is a myth. But on some level every politician brings his or her faith to the job. Those that support socialism run around touting the need for larger Food Stamp allowances (forgetting that it was designed to supplement the food budget of the working poor not be the sole resource for the life-time welfare recipient), Socialized Healthcare, and a redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor (popularized by the Soviet block nations and that turned out really well didn't it).

---Redistribution of wealth. Umm, we do that now, sort of. Any system with a progressive tax model has redistribution. (As an aside, I want to require econ 101 of every American before they start spouting bullshit.)

---Socialized healthcare. And what do you think we have now? What would call Medicaid and Medicare and the Veterans' Health Administration? They are government-sponsored health care programs that bargain for pharmaceuticals and save money. The VA actually has pretty decent health outcomes too (Walter Reed aside).

---The United States – with our poor outcomes, not-so-great infant mortality rate, actually spends a greater percentage of GDP on health care than other nations (see http://www.kff.org/insurance/snapshot/chcm010307oth.cfm or if you think Kaiser is too liberal, see the Nat'l Center for Policy Analysis http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st/st286/)

---By having a hybridized system, we're actually spending more and getting less.

---And yes, single payer systems have rationing. But what exactly do you think the US is doing now when we force poor people to wait in overcrowded ERs? Or when people on Medicaid, Medicare, or S-CHIP can't find a doctor willing to accept the piss poor reimbursement rates so they go without care? Or when we reimburse for kidney dialysis but not for a nutritionist that could have prevented the diabetes in the first place?

I'm tired of paying the highest tax rate because I'm not rich enough to really hide my money while my co-workers that are receiving section 8 housing vouchers, WIC, welfare, and Food Stamps not only don't pay any Federal Taxes but receive SSI and a tax refund check. Tell me how that makes sense on any level. And they used their incentive check to buy a new dog instead of paying their utility bill or rent payments and were eventually evicted while my spouse and I didn't get a dime of that money.

---Welfare is gone. AFDC was replaced by TANF around the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (enacted in 1996, under a Democratic president). PRWORA ended lifetime welfare, as much as lifetime welfare existed anyway. Now, the maximum benefits are limited to 24 months (some exceptions, especially for those with young children; some states offer longer benefits). But, the law requires recipients to find work within two years or perform community service, mandates a minimum of 30 work hours per week (for parents with children over age 6), imposes a lifetime limit on receipt of aid, and rewards states with financial bonuses for reducing their caseloads.

---It offers NO additional cash benefits for any additional children; that is, if you have two kids while on TANF and then give birth to a 3d, you are not entitled to any additional cash benefits for that kid (though you may receive add'l non-cash benefits like child care vouchers and food stamps).

---WIC and food stamps are provided in electronic benefit form now. That makes it harder to use these benefits to obtain non-food aid such as alcohol or whatnot. That isn't to say it doesn't happen but it makes it less likely. If you suspect fraud, contact a local office to report it.

---Section 8 vouchers are no great shakes and neither are food stamps. The average benefit is just $21 per week. A number of congressman/women recently tried to stick to the plan and wound up buying very little of nutritional value (see http://foodstampchallenge.typepad.com/) The average Section 8 voucher is about $7000-8000 per year, if memory serves. That is a little more than $650 per month, on the high end. Find me some cities that have apartments which rent for $650 a month. And if they do, have vacancies for Section 8 renters.

---WIC is even more stringent. It covers women and children to age 5 and only a small selection of nutritious food and infant formula (plus, in some states, breastfeeding supplies like pumps).

---People don't get tax refund checks. They get an earned income tax credit. It actually incentives work. Or so says, y'know, the folks with PhDs in economics: http://www.brookings.edu/metro/EITC/EITC-Homepage.aspx