As much as I'm sure I could be posting daily here on my political blog, I've avoided doing so. Sometimes because I find other social media posts, articles or blogs that accurately describe my same thoughts and feelings and many times in a much more eloquent way than I ever could. Sometimes because the thought of taking the time to write out all of my thoughts on recent actions would mean digging up a lot of anger and frustration that sometimes I just don't want to do deal with. And sometimes, things that have happened or have been said have left me completely speechless and I just don't have any words.
But America as we know it is changing. Things are happening that I honestly thought I'd never see in my lifetime. I do believe that America is a great country but this is not the America that I believe in. This is not the America I want to live in. I want better. We deserve better.
But this post isn't about any one event or incident in particular. After recent events in Charlottesville, I've seen this Facebook post being shared a lot.
And I get it. People are angry. But I refuse to share something like this on my page. I refuse to take this route. I think unfriending someone because they have different beliefs from you will only cause a larger gap in our already divided nation.
Now, let me say right here, I am not okay with what that picture represents. I, personally, don't understand how some people have those views, have that much hatred for other people. But. That doesn't mean I don't want to try and understand. It doesn't mean I won't listen to what you have to say.
I am a big believer in listening to all sides of the story. I want to try and understand why you have your beliefs. And I hope in turn, you'll want to try and understand my beliefs. Nothing good can come from us continuing to separate ourselves from those who believe in something so different from us. In order to try and find some middle ground, you have to be able to understand each side.
I'll admit, I don't have many Republican friends on Facebook. Or maybe I don't have many vocal Republican friends on Facebook. And I know Facebook's algorithm doesn't help with this. But I want to hear your thoughts. I want to listen to you. I want to hear from you! My Independent friends, please join our conversation as well! You also have a different viewpoint I'd love to hear more of.
So here's my open invitation. Join my conversation. Share your beliefs. Tell me your thoughts on recent events. I want to know. I hope that you'll take the time to listen to me as well but I can respect if you don't want to. I promise to keep any conversations from me civil. I don't want to fight, I just want to try and understand.
So ask to be my friend if we're not already. Comment your thoughts on my posts. Write something on my wall. Message me. Follow me on Twitter (@lizzaruba) and reply with your thoughts. Maybe we can just spend some time asking each other questions. It doesn't matter. I want dialog. And yes, I will state here that I know I post a lot of political posts on Facebook and I'm sure it could get annoying to see them pop up in your newsfeed so often. What I would ask here is that you just adjust your settings so you see less of my posts or don't "follow" me, but stay connected as friends.
Again, I'm not looking for fights. I'm not looking for arguments. I'm looking for conversation. For dialog. For trying to understand each other's beliefs. If we can't start to do this, we can't start to move forward. I hope you'll consider my invitation to conversation.
I know, I know. I've been way behind on this blog when it comes to all the events that have happened since my last post. We've had quite a few primaries/caucuses and a lot of other things I have comments on as well. :)
Last month, after the Iowa Caucuses, we had primaries in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Florida. I won't go into too much detail about these but what I found interesting was that each state picked a different winner. It came back that Santorum had actually won Iowa (after lost votes were counted). Romney took New Hampshire and Gingrich took South Carolina. So for the first three events, there were three different winners. Romney then took Florida as well. At that point, it seemed like the GOP couldn't yet agree on who should run against Obama. Perry and Huntsman had of course dropped out of the race after poor showings.
February has already seen four votes as well. Romney took Nevada first (a strong Mormon showing). And then in a little bit of a surprise, Santorum swept the board most recently with three wins in a single night in Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado. Again, all this shows me is that there's really no strong consensus in the GOP.
There are also things I just want to say about each candidate. I honestly try to keep an open mind about things and I feel like I stay informed. But I just can't agree with some of the things these Republican candidates are saying and I can't understand why everyone doesn't just agree with me?! :) Kidding. (Sorta!) haha Anyway, so I'm going to just take a little big of time writing out some of the things that I have opinions on. Because this is my blog so I have that right.
Romney: Really, probably the most "liberal" conservative in the race but he's playing up that he's not liberal. But if you look at this record, you'll see otherwise. I feel like he's only had a lot of wins because he's the least hated out of all the candidates. But that's just me. One thing I really can't stand about Romney is the fact that he pays a lower tax rate than the average American. I understand that a lot of his money comes from investments or whatever and that he's following all the right laws, but how is this okay? The fact that his housekeeper probably pays a tax rate at 35% and Romney only pays 15%? Granted, I don't know a lot about tax rates and whatnot, but why can't everyone pay a flat rate? We all work hard for our money and the rate deserves to be fair. This needs to change. If anything, I'm glad he's running because it has really brought this issue into light and I really hope it can change.
Gingrich: I think he's a little crazy. I mean, a moon colony? Really? I think there are more important things to try and accomplish before sending people to live on the moon. But hey, that's just me. I also feel like he's just out of touch on a lot of issues. But the biggest thing I want to say about Gingrich is this: I'm personally torn on how much one's personal life should affect their run for office. I can see the arguments both ways. And normally, I'm not sure I would have a problem with Gingrich and his three wives. I don't know what happened in those marriages and I don't think it's any of my business. But what I do have a problem with, is Gingrich going on and on about the "sanctity of marriage", "traditional marriage" and how gays shouldn't be allowed to marry. Not cool. If anything is destroying traditional marriages, it's divorces, and Gingrich knows all about those.
Santorum: Well frankly, there are a lot of things I don't like about Santorum. I feel that he is a radical conservative with a lot of radical ideas. Again, I go back to my point about how Republicans are all about not wanting a big government and to get the government out of our lives, but they have no problem pushing their religion at everyone. How is that not hypocritical? I believe that Santorum does this. He's also told people that kids are better off with a dad in prison than with two moms or that people born with cancer and thus a "pre-exisiting condition" are on there own when it comes to health care. I just can't agree with what he says and I honestly don't understand anyone who does. He is pushing his religious morals on to the American people - which is not okay.
And a couple of other events... I thought it was pretty crazy when the Susan G. Komen Foundation decided to pull their funds from Planned Parenthood. For an organization trying to find a cure to fight breast cancer, it makes sense to not support another organization that provides thousands of free breast exams to women every year. I was glad when they reversed their decision but now they have a PR nightmare on their hands.
Another is the issue about birth control, which is getting a lot of press and I don't understand why. President Obama has made it so that women should get provided free birth control by their employers - this means everyone. But the Catholic Church has made a big fuss about it because they don't believe in birth control. The Republicans have of course started to claim that the President has waged war against religion - which is so not the case. He's not saying that every women needs to be on birth control. He's simply stating that all women should have the opportunity to receive free birth control from their employers. There are so many women that maybe work at a Catholic institution but aren't Catholic - why shouldn't they receive the benefits of everyone else? And why is anyone arguing against free birth control? Aren't the Republicans the ones that are so against abortions? You know, if more people had access to free birth control, I'd bet there would be fewer abortions. I'm just saying.
And of course, perhaps some of the most exciting news lately - Prop 8 in California was official overturned and has been ruled unconstitutional! This is a huge victory but there is still a long ways to go. People need to understand that marriage in the governments' eyes has nothing to do with religion or belief. It's about the benefits that all married couples should get. I was really excited to hear this and I hope this great momentum keeps going!
Most of this post was a rant and I apologize for that. I get a little frustrated sometimes. :) But if you have any different opinions from mine, I would honestly love to hear them. I'm always open for some good conversation and maybe a little debate. :)
I read an article a while ago called "What it means to be a Liberal Person of Faith". While this might seem like an oxymoron to some people, we are out there. If you haven't read the article, I encourage you to do so. It is well written and brings up many good points. You can find the article here.
I've been meaning to write about this article since I read it, but I figured after the Iowa Caucuses and the speeches from candidates that followed after, now would be a good time to discuss this. If you listen to the speeches that candidates gave after the votes were in on Tuesday, almost all of them mentioned God and thanked God. Now, don't get me wrong, I am a Christian and I have no problem if you want to mention God or even thanks Him. After all, He does great things. The problem with most of the speeches after Tuesday is that they felt almost like a sermon. This is where politicians need to be careful not to cross a line. They need to remember that there are other people of different faiths out there.
Going back to the article, it talks about what it means to be a "liberal person of faith". The quote from the article is this:
"It means to believe in God... It means to draw on religious teachings and beliefs when making judgments about matters of public policy. But at the same time, it means to know that when we, as people of faith, make a public argument, we must ground our statements in reason and a language of morality that is accessible to everyone -- to people of different religions, for example, or of no religion. It means to understand that "person of faith" does not only mean the Religious Right... It means being concerned about the poor and the needy, and giving a fair shake to all... It means that we share many of the concerns of conservative people of faith... It means that we welcome dialogue with our fellow citizens who have a more conservative religious viewpoint..."
These are some of the things it means to be a liberal person of faith. Not that our faith is the right way or the only way for that matter. Not that we don't take our faith into consideration, but that we also take everyone else into consideration as well.
Christians are not the only people here in America. America was in fact founded on religious freedom - not Christianity. So if you're a politician and a Christian - great! I have no doubt that their faith makes them who they are as a person. But they have to be willing to open the doors for conversations with people of other faiths. They have to be willing to understand that their personal belief in something might not be the best action for the entire country. They have to understand that there is a separation of church and state and it is there for a reason. Don't forget, there are many different types of people of faith out there. They deserve a voice too.
Another reason why I decided to write this post today was because of another article I read, although this one was rather more frightening. Rick Santorum placed a very close second in the Iowa Caucus on Tuesday. But even so, not much is known about him and he really hasn't gotten much media attention before now. I didn't know much about him either so I'm not claiming that I did. One thing I did know however were his extremely conservative beliefs. Now, as a liberal, that's already not going to make me like someone very much, but after reading this article and hearing some of the things Santorum believes, I really don't like him. In fact, I'm scared to think of what would happen if he were to get into the Presidency. Read the article here.
To understand this article plainly, here is a quote that sums it up:
"Plainly put, Rick Santorum wants to convert our current legal system into one that requires our laws to be in agreement with religious law, not unlike what the Taliban want to do in Afghanistan."
Of course, his religious law would be the Christian law. The ironic thing, of course, is that Santorum has also been telling everyone that "Muslims want to impose Islamic law -- called Sharia law -- upon non-Muslims in America." Exactly what he wants to do, but it's okay if he does it because he's a Christian. What?! No. That's not how things work, buddy. America is not a Christian nation and how anyone can think it would be okay to make our laws in agreement with a specific religious law is beyond me. I mean really, how is this okay? That is not what America stands for - at least not the one I believe in. Yes, I'm a Christian and I have faith, but I acknowledge that not everyone shares my same faith.
The article states that Santorum has not shied away from these thoughts either. And he has stated that his policies would be based on "biblical truth". Some of the possibilities if Santorum was in office?
- Rape victims would be forced to give birth to the rapist's child. Life begins at conception you know.
- Gay marriages would be annulled. He also supports a federal constitutional amendment that would ban them - which is totally unconstitutional and would totally destroy all current gay marriages and their families.
- Santorum would also ban all federal funding for birth control and would be okay with making it illegal if states wanted to.
That is not the type of place I would like to live. All of Santorum's beliefs are a direct danger to the separation of church and state. Although I know this is an ironic choice of words for me to use, but I pray to God (my God) that there are not enough people in America that also support these ideas.
Finally, one thing that I personally find ironic... most conservatives want less government. Less government control in our lives. But they have no problem pushing their faith and beliefs on all of America.
