What Made you Smile/What Ticked you off Today?

[Flake]

Lol, yeah that new meaning really fits Santorum like a glove.

I could go on and on about how little that twit knows about what he is talking about but I doubt anyone here is interested in me writing a wall of text. I hope he loses in the primaries so bad that he slides back under whatever rock he came from.

[mjmjr25]

I have a ton of respect for a guy like Santorum. It takes a lot of courage to live by, and loudly speak what you believe - knowing that 70%+ of the country is not only going to disagree with you, but incessantly bash you. That is conviction. People like Rick Santorum and Malik Shabazz are what I believe to be great about our country on a small scale, and says something much greater in the grander scheme of things that i'm much too tired to try and illiterate at this time.

[elmagicochrisg]

I have a ton of respect for a guy like Santorum. It takes a lot of courage to live by, and loudly speak what you believe - knowing that 70%+ of the country is not only going to disagree with you, but incessantly bash you. That is conviction. People like Rick Santorum and Malik Shabazz are what I believe to be great about our country on a small scale, and says something much greater in the grander scheme of things that i'm much too tired to try and illiterate at this time.

Thin ice.

You found it... lol

[dsheinem]

I have a ton of respect for a guy like Santorum. It takes a lot of courage to live by, and loudly speak what you believe - knowing that 70%+ of the country is not only going to disagree with you, but incessantly bash you. That is conviction. People like Rick Santorum and Malik Shabazz are what I believe to be great about our country on a small scale, and says something much greater in the grander scheme of things that i'm much too tired to try and illiterate at this time.

You must love the GodHatesFags people, then.

[Flake]

Santorum is a bigot. He also doesn't understand half the shit he talks about.

I cannot fucking stand someone who feels they have sufficient moral authority so as to impose their views on others.

[mjmjr25]

I have a ton of respect for a guy like Santorum. It takes a lot of courage to live by, and loudly speak what you believe - knowing that 70%+ of the country is not only going to disagree with you, but incessantly bash you. That is conviction. People like Rick Santorum and Malik Shabazz are what I believe to be great about our country on a small scale, and says something much greater in the grander scheme of things that i'm much too tired to try and illiterate at this time.

You must love the GodHatesFags people, then.

Well, no. I certainly have "love" for all people though, even though I loathe their personal actions.

Santorum is a bigot. He also doesn't understand half the shit he talks about.

I cannot fucking stand someone who feels they have sufficient moral authority so as to impose their views on others.

Their are many, many bigots - on this forum. People who hate people for a religious belief, or a sexual preference, etc. We've seen this pop up often. Bigotry is bigotry in any form.

As imposing a moral authority - morality plays into I suspect every vote an elected official will make. Take tax systems, a flat tax vs. a system where you the more you make, the more you pay, etc. That is a moral decision. Take open enrollment, "I live here, I pay taxes here, this school is for my kids." versus "It's not my fault my elected officials choose to put money into more city government staff as opposed to schools. I should have the right to bring my child to any school I can get him to." < That is a moral decision. In my view, any elected official is imposing their moral views, there is no way around that. He just happens to be very good at bringing his issues to the forefront, in my estimation, that's being good at your job, the job the people of Pennsylvania in the past have known he was going to attempt to do. I think many simply don't like his moral stances, which I completely understand...but, I admire someone who has conviction in the face of large opposition, someone who's personal beliefs are not swayed by protests or opinion polls, unlike I don't know, most politicians...

He has been elected in the past by stating exactly what he intends to do. When advised in past elections that he could coast to victory if he would just relax his abortion/gay stances, or simply not be so vocal - he bypassed much better chances at re-election for the sake of his beliefs.

[BoringSupreez]

He has been elected in the past by stating exactly what he intends to do. When advised in past elections that he could coast to victory if he would just relax his abortion/gay stances, or simply not be so vocal - he bypassed much better chances at re-election for the sake of his beliefs.

Yeah, I'd rather vote for someone whom I don't always agree with, who means what he says, rather than someone who changes their stances whenever it means more votes.

[Flake]

@Mjmjr25 - fine, I was trying to substitute the word 'moral authority' for 'religious authority' but I guess that won't work. So, I'll be blunt for fear of my point being missed.

Santorum represents the latest wave in the Neo-Con movement. It's a movement that scares the shit out of me. Why? Because I am not a Christian and I have watched this country come closer and closer to being a de-facto theocracy.

Christians run this country - they have for a very long time, almost right from the start. Non-Christians have had to put up with a lot of shit because of people who arrogantly assume that they know better and have a prerogative to make decisions for others. Originally it was in the form of nuisance social movements such as the Temperance Movement (whose effect is still felt today) or any number of smaller, mostly trivial instances where Christian organizations exerted undue authority on the lives of others.

George W. Bush changed all that - the unapologetic imposition of Christianity on those who do not subscribe went from an occasional nuisance like being the only guy who doesn't feel compelled to bow his head in prayer at a sporting event to a major fucking concern as the doors to power and influence were barred for almost any who are not at least public adherents of Christian doctrine. Here was a President and an administration who did far more than just go to church or occasionally thank their God for whatever reasons they had handy at any given time - here was a man who actually called the invasion of another nation a "Crusade" and made his "relationship with God" a centerpoint of his re-election campaign, a key note picked up by the entire spectrum of the media, and the entirety of the Republican party.

As a result, these days it's pretty much fucking impossible to even imagine someone gaining any kind of direct power (read: non-soft) unless they are a Protestant Christian of some form or another, at least publicly.

Now it is here that I feel compelled to say that I have no issues with any one else's belief system - I for one maintain that the universe is too complicated for anyone to claim such understanding as to criticize another's chosen form of belief - but the idea of living in a country where decisions are being made for me by people who I likely did not vote for as a result of their belief in a faith that I am not a follower of is terrifying. There are no historical examples that I can think of where a country's transition into a theocracy resulted in anything good for those who were not adherents.

Rick Santorum is an example of one of my worst nightmares - a guy who makes decisions based on his so-called "relationship with God" and defends the stances he takes simply because he literally believes he is 'holier than thou'. This is what has always lead to the oppression of others.

While it is admirable for a man to stand his ground and maintain his position, it is terrifying for a man to be admired for only that - especially when the ground he stands upon and the position he maintains bear no virtue or benefit for any other than himself. He is an intractable, fanatic bigot and I will sleep more easily when he is no longer a candidate for higher office.

[o.pwuaioc]

Really you can blame Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, one of whom made religion a focus of his life while still doing good, and the other who made religion a focus of his life, and thought his religion should be everyone else's too. More than anyone else, Ronald Reagan hailed in the Religious Right which had been boiling since Oral Roberts decided to capitalize on Christianity by becoming a for-profit televised evangelist.

[Flake]

Really you can blame Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, one of whom made religion a focus of his life while still doing good, and the other who made religion a focus of his life, and thought his religion should be everyone else's too. More than anyone else, Ronald Reagan hailed in the Religious Right which had been boiling since Oral Roberts decided to capitalize on Christianity by becoming a for-profit televised evangelist.

True. It just seems to me that the true realization of this trend occurred while Bush jr. was in the White House.