Follow the Letter

  I try to keep politics off of this blog but sometimes it rears its ugly little head. I hate, loathe, despise politics. Most of the time it degrades normally sweet, intelligent people into a bunch of screaming third graders on a school play yard. Name calling. One upsmanship. Dirt throwing. My daddy can beat up your daddy (In adult political terms, my candidate is smarter/better for the country/ more perfect and never makes a mistake than your candidate). Follow the leader. In adult terms, that seems to turn into follow the letter. As in, I'll vote for the person with the correct letter at the end of the name. Half the time I think I could put my cat  in a suit and tie, slap an R or D at the end of his name--Maximilion A. Catt, (R) for example, or (D), doesn't matter, and the people who root for that team will vote him into office. Simply so that Chubs B. Feline, running on the other ticket, won't get into office. 
  Apparently there are a few taking a step or two back from the fray and watching all the kittens in the race and realizing that both Chubs and Max have roughly the same qualities and realize there must be --has to be-- a better candidate for the job. Some will vote for the person whom they believe to be right for the job based on past record if there is one, and shared ideals. Others will believe one to be right for the job because they've prayed about it, read up on the candidates and given the matter much serious thought --but they will be jeered and bullied into following the party line so the other party doesn't win. Translation? High school all over again.  Two different cliques fighting for the top dog spot. And the media is the football team. They figure out who will let them "have the most fun" and "help" with the final exams and they sway the rest of the school toward that person. 
  As a Christian I have certain beliefs to which I hold strongly. I have a set of ideals that I want my candidate to measure up to. People being what they are no one is going to be perfect. I'm pro life and unashamedly so. If a politician cares nothing about the tiny ones it's a pretty safe bet he's not going to care about the adult people either unless they are rich and or influential. If you aren't pro life, I'm not voting for you unless no one running is pro life. Then I don't know what I'd do. Once I find the ones who believe that life should be a right for everyone, then I go on to other aspects that I believe in. Once I feel good about a candidate's character then and only then will I look into what he or she has in mind for this country. 
 Because I am conservative in many of my views I am pigeon holed by some as being a Republican. I am not. Neither am I a Democrat. I am a Christ believing Constitutionalist. I happen to agree with the Bible and the Constitution. The latter, being written by men, is not perfect nor without its problems I'm sure. But it established certain principles for this country and I for one would like to get back to them. 
  You may not agree with how I feel about politics and that is fine. We aren't going to agree on everything. I'm not going to try and influence you one way or the other how to vote this November. But I will suggest that we stop playing political tug of war and really look at what this country needs, and what each candidate stands for, whether there be two main ones slugging it out, or a brave few "minor" parties choose to step into the fray. Please stop the notion of voting the party line simply for the sake of not diluting the vote so that your team can win. That's voting blindly, folks, pure and simple. Although most would say to the contrary, blindly checking the R or the D without checking your conscience or the facts is throwing your vote away. Stop worrying about what others think or say. Seek God first. Read up on each of the candidates. Vote for the person, and stop following the letter. If the person you choose to vote for truly is the one you'd really like in office and the letter matches your party, great. Go ahead. But if the person who you think would truly be beneficial to this country doesn't share that same letter at the end of the name, vote for him anyway. Be brave. Please. Stop following the letter. 
  Now, back to your regularly scheduled blog posts. 

  I try to keep politics off of this blog but sometimes it rears its ugly little head. I hate, loathe, despise politics. Most of the time it degrades normally sweet, intelligent people into a bunch of screaming third graders on a school play yard. Name calling. One upsmanship. Dirt throwing. My daddy can beat up your daddy (In adult political terms, my candidate is smarter/better for the country/ more perfect and never makes a mistake than your candidate). Follow the leader. In adult terms, that seems to turn into follow the letter. As in, I'll vote for the person with the correct letter at the end of the name. Half the time I think I could put my cat  in a suit and tie, slap an R or D at the end of his name--Maximilion A. Catt, (R) for example, or (D), doesn't matter, and the people who root for that team will vote him into office. Simply so that Chubs B. Feline, running on the other ticket, won't get into office. 
  Apparently there are a few taking a step or two back from the fray and watching all the kittens in the race and realizing that both Chubs and Max have roughly the same qualities and realize there must be --has to be-- a better candidate for the job. Some will vote for the person whom they believe to be right for the job based on past record if there is one, and shared ideals. Others will believe one to be right for the job because they've prayed about it, read up on the candidates and given the matter much serious thought --but they will be jeered and bullied into following the party line so the other party doesn't win. Translation? High school all over again.  Two different cliques fighting for the top dog spot. And the media is the football team. They figure out who will let them "have the most fun" and "help" with the final exams and they sway the rest of the school toward that person. 
  As a Christian I have certain beliefs to which I hold strongly. I have a set of ideals that I want my candidate to measure up to. People being what they are no one is going to be perfect. I'm pro life and unashamedly so. If a politician cares nothing about the tiny ones it's a pretty safe bet he's not going to care about the adult people either unless they are rich and or influential. If you aren't pro life, I'm not voting for you unless no one running is pro life. Then I don't know what I'd do. Once I find the ones who believe that life should be a right for everyone, then I go on to other aspects that I believe in. Once I feel good about a candidate's character then and only then will I look into what he or she has in mind for this country. 
 Because I am conservative in many of my views I am pigeon holed by some as being a Republican. I am not. Neither am I a Democrat. I am a Christ believing Constitutionalist. I happen to agree with the Bible and the Constitution. The latter, being written by men, is not perfect nor without its problems I'm sure. But it established certain principles for this country and I for one would like to get back to them. 
  You may not agree with how I feel about politics and that is fine. We aren't going to agree on everything. I'm not going to try and influence you one way or the other how to vote this November. But I will suggest that we stop playing political tug of war and really look at what this country needs, and what each candidate stands for, whether there be two main ones slugging it out, or a brave few "minor" parties choose to step into the fray. Please stop the notion of voting the party line simply for the sake of not diluting the vote so that your team can win. That's voting blindly, folks, pure and simple. Although most would say to the contrary, blindly checking the R or the D without checking your conscience or the facts is throwing your vote away. Stop worrying about what others think or say. Seek God first. Read up on each of the candidates. Vote for the person, and stop following the letter. If the person you choose to vote for truly is the one you'd really like in office and the letter matches your party, great. Go ahead. But if the person who you think would truly be beneficial to this country doesn't share that same letter at the end of the name, vote for him anyway. Be brave. Please. Stop following the letter. 
  Now, back to your regularly scheduled blog posts.