Joe Allotta

It has felt more complicated to comment on politics lately.  You are either for separating children from their parents; or you are for all of Central America coming to the US and potentially destroying our economy.  You are either for destroying this planet with greenhouse gases, or you are for crippling the 3^rd world by preventing them from using fossil fuels.  You are either for sex-offender Nazis getting elected, or for embezzling socialists getting elected.  I know these aren’t the extreme choices we truly have and that there are reasonable positions that we can all hold.  But the hyperbole on social media and even in real life feels like there are few Christ-like positions left.  The Christians who are Republicans look at abortion as the main reason why they are on that side and no other social issue compares well side-by-side to murder.  There are leaders and aspects they disagree with but the top principles of abortion, freedoms, and some other moral issues keep them firmly in place on the “right.”  The Christians who are Democrats look at a variety of social issues that compels them to vote toward the “left.”  Health care, compassion, and serving their fellow man seem to fit very well into Christ’s very words in His sermons.  They of course have to hold their nose as they vote because of a couple platforms that the Democrats stand for, but they feel like they would puke if they ever voted for a Republican again.  So here we are, locked in eternal disagreements over what should take higher priority.  Some Christians think the government does too much, other think they don’t do enough, and we just keep eating up the agenda that both sides pour down our throats like bubble gum arsenic. (or worse… iocane powder.) But I don’t just want to lament. We got to these divides strategically and rather recently.  I know the 30-to-40-year-olds that actually still read blogs don’t remember the 1960’s, but from watching Netflix documentaries I have discerned that Republicans were the ones who passed the first abortion legislations as well as the ones that passed civil rights reforms.  Democrats were the ones championing free-speech and war mongering in Vietnam.  Now we seem to be playing some kind of messed-up version of Boggle where the parties have switched positions.  My point is, there’s no reason to think that 40 years from now the parties will stand for the same things.  Political strategists have shifted party lines multiple times in the last few decades.  Not because they really care about anything, but because their job is to get people elected.  They test out issues to see what people get all riled up about.  Net Neutrality never really took off as a wedge issue because no one really understands it and the Dems went with whatever Obama said and the GOP went against whatever Obama said on the issue.  That is such a nuanced debate that it’s tough to get people to dig in.  Abortion has been a strong wedge issue since the 80’s, and isn’t slowing down.  But what will be next?  My answer is, I’d rather state what I want as a Christian and then hopefully some political strategist will start to convince party leaders that if they want to get the 18-49 year old Christian vote, this is what they have to do.  Right now these beliefs are spattered around the 2 parties.  But it’s time for one side to secure my vote as opposed to me having to prioritize my beliefs, hold my breath, and bubble in next to the name of the person I think will be the least bad.  I can’t speak for all Christians and I won’t try.  But I can speak for this Christian.  So here’s what I want!!!!

1) Pro-Life

Pro-life when it comes to abortion.  Pro-life when it comes to euthanasia.  Pro-life when it comes to taking care of babies and children. Pro-life when it comes to rehabilitating criminals.  Pro-life when it comes to war.  Pro-life when it comes to taking care of animals and the environment.

2) Take-care of the Truly Needy

This means widows, orphans, the hungry, infirmed, the mentally unhealthy and the like.  I want to rehab the drug addicted instead of incarcerating them.  I want to job train the poor instead of just supporting them.  I want to welcome as many seeking asylum as we can adequately handle, and welcome as many we can into this great country while properly assimilating them into our culture.  I want whatever system keeps our health care the best and least expensive.  (I put it in that order – “best” first and “least expensive” second.)

3) Freedom

I want people to be free to do what they want without hurting another person.  I want when we hurt another person for everyone to be treated equally under the law.  I want more communities helping each other and for the government to get creative in how they can allow and encourage that kind of behavior. I want to actually follow the Constitution and Bill of Rights for once… completely and utterly for everyone. It recognizes the freedoms of all and restrains the government to stay in its lane.

* Fair Tax (this is a little more “Libertarian” than “Christian” but it’s my catch-all)

Feel free to Google the Fair Tax, it’s really not my point though.  There are plenty of things I want.  I’m fine with having free healthcare, housing, transportation, education, and everything else.  My point is always the same.  Don’t spend more than you bring in.  I would prefer the lowest taxes possible, but I get how taking-care of the needy can get expensive.  I’ll give-up SOME of my hard earned money, but when we keep spending more than we bring in, the day is going to come when printing money just doesn’t solve the problem.  Social Security will be bankrupt in the next few years, and I just think the Republicans and the Democrats are going to play reverse musical chairs on the election before it happens so that they’ll not be sitting in the decision making chair when the music runs out and we have to start borrowing to pay for Social Security and Medicare and the like.  I feel like I’m taking crazy-pills in that not enough people are recognizing the huge problem our spending is creating.  Again, let’s live as luxuriously and generously as we can inside the 3-trillion dollars we get from taxes.  There is no taking care of anyone if we are forced into austerity measures.

So that’s my list, you can disagree with it if you want.  You can add to it, or whatever you want.  The Power Is YOURS!