Just a thought on the Presidential campaign in the United States...
Mitt Romney believes in God...
Barack Obama believes in God, or at least generally speaking 'a supreme being'...
...what is the difference?!
Just because Mitt is Mormon some people will not vote for him. It frustrates me because I am sure some people haven't done their research to find out what mormonism is all about and if they have, they have possibly gone to the wrong sources.
People, if you want to find out what Mormons believe, talk to a Mormon. Or go here. The site is legit, which is the type of site you should be reading.
As the documentary The Religious Test film (thanks NieNie) states, if race isn't an issue in an election, why should religion be?
Your thoughts?
7 comments:
Don't forget about the people who will vote for Mitt just because he IS Mormon! Those people have failed to do their research also...they have failed to research the candidate and his position and base their vote on his religious affiliation. If people choose to vote for Mitt because he is Mormon, then they are surely just as at fault as those who will not vote for him because he is Mormon.
Not trying to start an argument, but you would not believe the number of people I run into who are supporting Mitt simply because he is Mormon. I understand your post is more about people not understanding what Mormons believe, but I wanted to throw my thoughts out there too.
P.S. Race is an issue. There are plenty of people who did not vote for Obama because he was black and plenty more who voted FOR him because he was black.
In June I remarked on this type of phenomenon on a friend’s Facebook post. My post was in response to an article my friend posted (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-faith/post/evangelicals-mormons-and-the-beliefs-of-the-president/2011/06/07/AGnGX8KH_blog.html). It seems a re-posting might prove relevant. Keep in mind I am re-posting as written, so any “you” references were to my other friend (and I don’t want to alter the content, so…).
****
There is a gaping hole in this type of dialogue. The primary argument people make regarding race or religion in connection with a political election is that the guy most like me is the one who can best represent me. In 2008, I had a very strange conversation with a black fellow who stated he would vote for Obama because of their shared race. He reasoned that Obama would be a better president for him than McCain because the white candidate could not relate to this black man’s life experiences. In short, he was voting for Obama because he was black. When asked if this decision was tantamount to racism, the fellow assured me it was not. However, I then asked him what I considered to be the critical question: if I choose to NOT vote for Obama because he is black, would that be racist? I don’t recall ever getting a straight answer, but by his attitude he wanted to indicate that my decision would be racist, but perhaps he wasn’t willing to make that statement outright. So one decision based on race is not racist, while the other is nothing but racist. Very odd.
In the same campaign season—and here again for our upcoming 2012 shenanigans—we see Mormons entering into the candidate field. All too often we see critics claiming they would never vote for a Mormon due to religious differences, etc. In response, folks like Otterson stand up and decry such arguments as being “anti-Mormon,” anti-religion, or generally just plain bigoted. Somewhere in there he has a valid point. However, I have yet to find an article from Otterson or any other prominent LDS voice that more substantially denounces the reverse reasoning: “I am a Mormon so I am definitely voting for Romney or whichever candidate happens to be Mormon.” To be fair, I haven’t looked very hard for such an article, but I would be surprised if someone could find one.
The fact of the matter is that many LDS folks seem to be walking that same race-prejudice logic. They get hopping mad when someone won’t vote for a Mormon because he (or she) is a Mormon, but then they turn around and endorse a candidate ONLY because the candidate is LDS. A quick survey of one’s LDS friends will yield interesting insight into the truth of that observation, especially in relation to Romney’s 2008 campaign. I lost count of how many of my LDS friends chose Romney first because he is a Mormon, and then second because of his values or political platform. In fact, given their purported political convictions, Romney should have been their last choice for candidate. Yet for some reason, their social media pages and vehicle bumper stickers announced their support for their fellow Mormon. The interesting part is whether such Mormons realize the hypocrisy of their electoral decisions…
This principle applies to members across any race, religion, nationality, and so forth, not just to Mormons. Your referenced article specifically speaks to the LDS element so I figured I would respond in kind. Would welcome your thoughts on the matter.
Hey you guys, thanks for your comments. Very valid points...some that about hit me in the face and made me realize that I might be doing what I don't like to see others do! Case in point..to vote for a Mormon just because I am Mormon. Although I do feel having someone that truly knows and understands who we are would be a benefit, however not all Mormons think the same and place the same weight on their values, way of life and obedience to commandments as others.
this was fun to read. i'm lame and don't follow much of what goes on down there, but this is definitely interesting.
and who is that cute little fella in your profile pic? congrats, kari! so excited for you!
I, too, am sadly ill informed. But this was a good read! I do agree that religion should be a non-issue.
in other news, I owe you an apology for being a crappy friend. You have a new little dude in your house??? I had no idea! Without facebook I'm so out of touch! Congrats, I'm over the moon happy for you!
Becky, don't feel too bad about not knowing about our little man, we haven't really announced it openly on facebook. I also apologize for not telling you before now!
Post a Comment