@bobsal u1553115,
bobsal u1553115 wrote:Re: wmwcjr (Post 5634293)
What kind of liberal were you anyway????????????????????????
Oh, my . . . the cat's out of the bag! Well, let's see now. What shall I say?
My dear friend and fellow Texan
, your long line of question marks made me smile and chuckle -- not in derision, but in sympathy and with all due respect. You must understand. First, there is a generational factor at play here. I'm nearly 64 years old, a bit younger than you. (I mean, what happened? The years pass by so quickly!) The issues were different when I was young. (But I'm still young in spirit!
) There's also the fact that I'm a Christian, which is an extremely unpopular position here at A2K.
I'm still a liberal, but with a difference: I'm a deactivated out-of-date liberal. In a sense, I haven't kept up with the times. Rest assured, I will never become a political conservative or join the Republican Party. If I ever did either of those, my close friends and loved ones would know I had "flipped my lid" and would therefore call for the men in white at the nearest psychiatric ward. I have good friends who are Republicans, but I will never join their party.
If you read certain of my posts, you would see that I'm extremely critical of political conservatism on the issue of civil rights. That is because I grew up under Jim Crow and personally saw just how terrible it was.
(A certain A2k member who shall remain unidentified hates emoticons and has told me so, but I don't care. I thought they were dumb at first, but now I love the little critters!) I've been critical of conservatism on other points as well, such as the long record of the United States supporting right-wing dictators. (Not knowing JTT's age, quite possibly I was being disturbed by the policy before he/she was even born.)
I am unacceptable to today's "progressives" because I'm pro-life (except to preserve the health or to save the life of the mother). I have always been sympathetic to girls and women who have been treated badly and actually agree with feminists on many points; but because I am not "pro-choice," I'm supposedly a bad person. There was a time in this country when liberals such as Edmund Muskie, Jesse Jackson, and Edward Kennedy were pro-life. The late Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, who ran the 1972 presidential campaign of George McGovern in his state, was always pro-life to the day he died. His credentials as a liberal (except for that one issue) were impeccable. At one time some conservatives, such as Ronald Reagan and John Tower, were pro-choice. Barry Goldwater continued to be pro-choice.
Because I'm a Christian, the assumption is made by many that I hate sinners; yet I don't hate sinners because that would be wrong. Besides, in my life I've been guilty of more than my share of shortcomings and just plain stupid judgment. I am appalled by all the hatred that is directed against gays and lesbians. I am opposed to them being demonized and subjected to outrageous lies, and I believe they deserve the same rights as everyone else. The recent activities by American evangelicals in Uganda has been nothing less than an exercise in vicarious cruelty.
But I do not support same-sex marriage, which was undreamed of not many years ago. I believe the institution of marriage to be inherently exclusive. Besides, considering the fact that men and women are not exactly alike, a child benefits the most when he or she has a mother and a father.
My heart bleeds for gays and lesbians. People don't understand that some kids end up with a homosexual predisposition through no fault of their own. This is a far cry from, say, the randy teenage boy who plots to seduce the nice teenage girl who lives down the street. But none of that matters to some people. For simply not supporting same-sex marriage, I am to be labeled a bigot, despite the fact that I had a close friend who was gay before there was even a Gay Lib movement. A casualty of the AIDS epidemic, he was one of the nicest persons I've ever met; and I thought very highly of him.
So, bobsal, I'm out of date; but that's just as well. No, I will never support the Republican Party.
Just consider me an oddball. (Actually, that's a fact. I
am an oddball!
) You probably think I'm out of my mind.
But I'm not your enemy. In a sense, I'm not anyone's enemy. Aside from losing my temper a few times since I started posting, I'm one of the mildest members (although I do pump iron at a local health club) you'll encounter here. I implore you, consider me to be a friend!
Or you could view me as being just another harmless small-town crank!
I'm also not popular here at all. So, I expect to get at least one "thumbs down." Probably more. I've learned to accept my punishment!
(I just wish those who dispense the punishment would reveal their identity -- in other words, their usernames.) The Internet is not a tolerant place.
