Sunday, April 13, 2008

God, Guns, and Obama

Well, not surprisingly Barack Obama's foes are giddy at the Senator's recent gaffe, which seems rather insulting to rural Americans when you hear it:

"You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of
small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing
[has] replaced them. And it's not surprising, then, they get bitter, they cling
to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or
anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their
frustrations."


Sounds really out of touch, right? There are so many things wrong with the statement, at least in my South. First, most people I know often are faithful church members whether they have a good job or not. Most are grateful for the comfort our faith brings when the bad times come. We praise him in the good times and bad which is how He instructs us: True Religion.

Though I personally am not a hunter, this is so common where I've grown up that its obvious men and some women do so for the pure enjoyment. Some really enjoy the taste of wild game, and uses the sport to cut down on the grocery bill. I can't imagine someone so upset over losing their job that they suddenly decide to go hunting!

Finally, a common assumption our politicians make is that ordinary Americans outside California are against immigration as a whole, when it is illegal immigration and the unimpeded flow of ever more dependents on our schools, so-called jobs Americans won't do, plus the strain it has on our hard pressed hospitals and government institutions. By claiming rural citizens are against all immigration, they shut down the debate, claiming we are a bunch of racists, all for the sake of more votes for whatever Party.

I must admit that Hillary is making alot of sense on the subject, whether her motives are noble or not. For once she didn't sound like she was pandering or phony when she stated:

"Americans who believe in the Second Amendment believe it's a
matter of constitutional right. Americans who believe in God believe it's a
matter of personal faith," she said. "The people of faith I know don't 'cling'
to religion because they're bitter. People embrace faith, not because they are
materially poor but because they are spiritually rich."


Sounded much better on video if you happen to catch it on the news.

Surprising words from Obama, considering his well-known faithfulness to a single church for 20 years. It begs the question, what would the Senator and his elite supporters have us replace the Joy of Living with? Perhaps his own faith that government is so all powerful that that it can supply the common man with all the answers, which we think we have found already in our God and traditions.

Interesting-This is via Daily Kos"Pennsylvanians fought and died for liberty, a Constitution, and a government that would obey the law. When they thought it was stretching its powers, they had the Whiskey Rebellion. When they ask about "patriotism," you can talk about the Constitution. It was written here, OK? People get it.
Religion? This state was founded on religious tolerance, with Quakers, Shakers, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, and lots of Catholics. You can still hear Mass in Polish, and churches aren't the size of aircraft carriers. People know the "The Rapture" is strictly from crappy paperbacks, not the Bible."