This election year provides one of the starkest contrasts in governing philosophies in modern times. Today's GOP has shed it's moderate wing and, like in 1964 when Barry Goldwater ran against LBJ, is running a campaign that is far to the right politically. This has implications for people of faith who across theological lines share concerns about issues ranging from poverty to the environment to war and peace.
Just recently the U.S. House voted again to overturn President Obama's health care reform -- the Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare and recently upheld as constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. Thirty million Americans will receive coverage under this plan -- millions already have -- and while GOP opponents call Obamacare socialism, the reality is that it is a largely private -- not government run -- plan molded after Mitt Romney's Massachusetts reforms when he was that state's governor. President Obama's efforts to reform health care were backed by large numbers of religious organizations, including the National Council of Church and a number of Roman Catholic bodies.
The reform of our broken health care system has long been a goal of religious leaders in the United States and one shared by both Democrats and Republicans. Richard Nixon proposed a universal-style coverage plan. George H.W. Bush worked to reform the health care system. Mitt Romney paved the way as a governor. President Obama's plan won't cover every American, only a single payer system would come close to that goal, but it significantly closes the gap and address one of the great moral issues of our time.
On the environment, the National Council of Churches have been joined by the National Association for Evangelicals and the U.S. Conference of Roman Catholic Bishops in calling for action to reverse human caused climate change. Many in today's GOP still question the reality that human activity is a major factor behind climate change and the "global weriding" that has caused extreme weather across the planet. President Obama has pushed for important legislation in this area -- legislation that doesn't go far enough, frankly, but in our current political environment might be the best we can hope for -- but even here Mitt Romney and his allies in Congress have called for inaction and used their campaigns to questions whether or not climate change is even real.
Americans were mislead by President George W. Bush into fighting the war in Iraq and clearly wanted an end to that sad chapter in our nation's history. As promised, President Obama has brought the troops home and is reducing troops in Afghanistan. Many of us hope for a faster withdrawal there but it is important -- vital -- that the human rights of women and others be protected as we leave. President Obama, with the support of the Pentagon, has called for a reduction in military spending as these conflicts wind down. But GOP leaders, including Mitt Romney, are calling for increased spending. Congressional leaders even pledged to take money set aside to help people with their health care to pay for higher military budgets.
President Obama said earlier this year at Easter:
...so when I talk about our financial institutions playing by the same rules as folks on Main Street, when I talk about making sure insurance companies aren't discriminating against those who are already sick, or making sure that unscrupulous lenders aren't taking advantage of the most vulnerable among us, I do so because I genuinely believe it will make the economy stronger for everybody. But I also do it because I know that far too many neighbors in our country have been hurt and treated unfairly over the last few years, and I believe in God's command to "love thy neighbor as thyself." I know the version of that Golden Rule is found in every major religion and every set of beliefs -- from Hinduism to Islam to Judaism to the writings of Plato.
Follow Rev. Chuck Currie on Twitter: www.twitter.com/RevChuckCurrie
Gadadhara Pandit Dasa: The 33 Million Gods of Hinduism
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 |
|
| Obama | Romney | |
|---|---|---|
| Electoral Votes (270 to win) |
332 | 206 |
| Obama | Romney | |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 65,899,660 | 60,932,152 |
| Percent | 51.1% | 47.2% |
| Democrats* | Republicans | |
|---|---|---|
| Current Senate | 53 | 47 |
| Seats gained or lost | +2 | -2 |
| New Total | 55 | 45 |
| Democrats | Republicans | |
|---|---|---|
| Seats won | 201 | 234 |
Are many of the people collecting benefits truly in need, or are they simply taking advantage of the system?
How many people unemployed are taking classes at local schools to be retrained?
How many people with medical issues that could be reduce by stopping bad habits like drinking and smoking, or eating a good diet and exercising actually doing so?
How many people are claiming they are incapable of work when in fact they are?
How many people are using food stamps and other benefits like welfare check to buy things that are truly unnecessary?
How many people, particularly the eldery, who may be well off, taking social security payments when they really don't need to?
How many people are writing off big business expenses to cover boondoggles...
The fact is moral values start with the individual, and their responsiblity to do everything they can to stay off assistance from the Government. But instead, people take the easy route, effectively demanding more tax dollars from those of us who pay the bills. I don't see anything moral about that.
You want to solve the medical problem -- put in high righ pools for pre-existing conditions, and force young people onto the system by denying them care in the emergency room. They'll get the message quick enough.
Q: Are many of the people collecting benefits truly in need?
A: Ask Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase & GM if they really NEEDED billions of dollars.
Q:How many people unemployed are taking classes at local schools to be retrained?
A: Millions.
Q: How many people with medical issues that could be reduced ... [sic].
A: Fewer than you think. How many kids with cancer need to stop drinking & smoking?
Q: How many people are claiming they are incapable of work when in fact they are?
A: How many people who are willing & capable of work are being told they are unemployable because they were laid off through no fault of their own in 2009?
Q: How many people are using food stamps and other benefits like welfare check [sic.] to buy things that are totally unneccessary?
A: Is the total amount of federal aid to the poor less than the billions given Too Big To Fail corporations?
Q: How many people, particularly the elderly, who may be well off [sic.], taking social security payments [sic.] when they really don't need to?
A: How many billions did elderly savers lose in the stock market crash in 2008? How many billions does it cost to keep paying former Congressmen salary & benefits for life?
Q: How many people are writing off big business expenses to cover boondoggles?
A: How about Mitt Romney and that $77,000 tax credit for his horse?
It was surprisingly refreshing to see I was WAY off this time. :)
You do give me at least some hope that the sincerely religious (as opposed to the "show" religious) will look beyod labels, and slogans and pay attention to the effects of proposed policies. I applaud your efforts in that regard.
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Good Reverend, the reason the withdrawal is not faster is because of the politics of military contracting. The human rights of women in Afghanistan were tossed away when Karzai's government appointed ultraconservative Islamic clerics as judges shortly after it took power. The human rights of countless common folk in Afghanistan are repeatedly violated by the nightly raids carried out by our military in search of the elusive Taliban. And the common folk are prevented from adequately protecting themselves from the Taliban due to a policy of limited weapon ownership rights that is enforced by our military. And our military protects the kleptocratic Karzai government from the common folk who don't support it. Seriously, Reverend, wake up from your delusion about our military's presence there "protecting human rights". Economic rights of the well-connected-to-the-US-military-contract-dollars-network, surely, but not the broader human rights so often touted by proponents of that war.
When I read things like this, it warms my heart and gives me hope that reasonable people of faith will prevail.
For those of us who grew up during the second world war, for those of us who witnessed almost everyone in our nation contributing to the cost of the war in money with tax brackets as high as 88% for the wealthiest among us, for those of us who saw so many in service for the military, in neighborhood volunteer efforts throughout every state in our union, listening to those of our leaders and their supporters who have done everything to block efforts to have all Americans contribute their fair share of taxes based upon an ability to pay brings a deep sadness into our hearts. In 1942, I lived in an American community, and all around me, my neighbors and friends acted as such. For me, the time is now to return to those days when Americans were called upon and agreed to contribute financially and otherwise so that America might continue to live out that dream passed on to us by our Founding Fathers and by those American generations that followed in their footsteps.
1. Most voted Dem in the 30-40's.....and were in or sympathetic to unions....
and most of the fighting and hard work was done by Dem's in the factories
or armies/navy/air force......[ right winger's hate to acknowledge that ]....
so give Dem's most of the fair share for defeating the bad guys
2. What's the big deal with a little higher taxes on the Super Rich ?
They will still be Rich ! $$$$$ Mansions, car's, secret bank accounts, etc....
is Greed really that bad, the worse you have apparently ?
Romney a perfect example.....does not think he's rich.....at $ 250 MILLION !
This article, based on these issues, says to me that Caeser and God are in harmony with one another.