Louis
Posts: 6436 Joined: Jan. 2006
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Quote (dheddle @ Sep. 02 2008,16:39) | Quote (Louis @ Sep. 02 2008,10:29) | Just as a side point, if Obama WAS a muslim, would it really matter to you Dave?
The question I suppose I am asking is "Is the single issue of a candidate's specific religious/non-religious stance sufficiently important to you to vote/not vote for them?". Which immediately springs the follow-on question of "Would you excuse a member of your own sect for unpleasantness X and not excuse a member of another sect/non-religious candidate for unpleasantness X?".
Louis |
It might, I don't know for sure, but it might. Maybe I'm alone in this, but I tend to vote for people in part because they are like me. Part of Obama's appeal to me includes that he is a Christian, part of the appeal is the history making aspect of an African-American president, and part of the appeal is that he is smart. I am so "not a Moslem" that I don't honestly know if I would vote for one. I think I could, but that is purely hypothetical.
So that answers the first question--somebody being "like me" in their biography is absolutely appealing. I have a lot in common with Palin: lower middle class upbringing, handicapped child, evangelical Christian. There is no doubt that I find that commonality appealing.
As for the second question, I would not excuse a member of my own "sect." If Palin is corrupt, I will not vote for her. On the other hand, I don't expect her to be a saint, either. |
Thanks for being honest.
I have to say that for me, I practise what I preach (ha ha ha), I think religion is a private, personal matter, and that it shouldn't be involved in politics (as far as is practicable, I understand how individuals might be influenced etc), hence I don't care if the candidate is a christian, muslim, sikh, cargo cultist, whatever. And I think it's safe to say I am at least as "not a muslim" as you are! ;-) In fact I'd go further, I'm even more "not a muslim" than you, given how I am also "not a jew" and "not a christian"!
I tend to vote for people whose ideas I think are good (by which I mean based on the available evidence). It's all about the ideas/issues for me, and agreement doesn't always feature. I have voted for people I vehemently disagree with on (perhaps minor) issue A because I think they are going to do a good job on issue B (which I may or may not agree with them on). Oy, such a headfuck! I don't have to like them, in fact in many cases I can guarantee I DON'T like them, or that they have to be like me. I also really, really don't expect candidates to be saints.
So to follow-on the follow-on, would you have any choosing between two otherwise identical (hypothetical) candidates one of whom is black (and thus presumably unlike you) and one of whom is white (and thus presumably like you)?
Louis
-------------- Bye.
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