Posted on 06/13/2012 6:05:21 PM PDT by Grig
This may be the post that gets me zotted, and if so, so be it, but it would be a nice sign of respect for free speech, and just plain old maturity if that doesn’t happen. I won’t lose sleep either way though.
All through the Clinton years FR played a key role in helping me really come to appreciate the wisdom of the founding fathers as Clinton violated their principles in so many ways. I found here a large community of wise, informed posters from a diverse background that added depth and clarity to the news of the day. It was here on FR that I found out about the WTC attack. Being Canadian, the second amendment always seemed kind of silly to me, but through FR I learned how wrong that view was and now wish my country had such a right for it’s citizens.
That was then, now more and more it has felt like FR has dwindled into an insular, nearly feral, group of political and religious thought police whose mission is to ferret out anybody who doesn’t fit their orthodoxy and get rid of them, while propagandizing against anything the disagree with. At times it feels more energy is spent attacking those who should be seen as allies rather than the true enemies. I used to spend a fair bit of time here each day, now perhaps a quick look once every few weeks because of this change in climate. I know many have left because of it, many have already posted their concerns about it, and their wise observations and suggestions have fallen on deaf ears.
I do feel I have a small measure of responsibility for the change (but no guilt). When FR started to fail to live up to it’s own rules about not bashing religions (when it came to my religion) we Mormon posters decided that instead of being party to the creation of long threads filled with contention that made it hard for the moderators see the difference in our behavior and theirs, we decided instead to simply post articles putting forward our position and leave the critics to show their true colors. (see http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2013341/posts). Not only did the anti-Mormon posters oblige us and demonstrate the level of hate and bigotry in their hearts, but so did the anti-Momons within the leadership of FR. And thus began the decent of FR from a vibrant ad-hoc conservative think tank into an echo chamber of yes men with a loud group of religious bigots leading the way. It is sad to see it come to this, and I hope that the day comes when sanity returns. Something that needs to happen for that day to come is for the majority of people around here to face this reality: If you are not supporting Mitt Romney, you are playing into Obama’s hands. Any hopes of a brokered convention or third party conservative super-candidate are nothing but delusions fueled by a denial of reality. It comes down to either Mitt or Obama, and if you are not supporting Mitt you are helping Obama. Deal with it.
And don’t try to hide behind the idea that Mitt losing will be good in the long term for conservatism. That is putting your partisanship above your patriotism. Obama has done massive damage to the USA, and if you give him another 4 years you may not have a USA left at the end of his term. What good will this theoretical transformation of the GOP then? Truth is that if Mitt loses, no matter how conservative or liberal his campaign and policies are, the media will blame it on him being too right-wing and drive the GOP to the left as much as they can. Also, the good of the country should come first if you want to call yourself a patriot, and having Mitt in the White House will be much better for the USA than having Obama there.
While Mitt is not perfect (nobody is) I find many of the attacks on him so over the top, so full of exaggeration and fear mongering that ignores contrary evidence or any sense of proportion that I can’t help but suspect they hyperbole is just a mask for darker motives. The fact that in many cases these attacks come from those who also display great hostility towards Mormonism says it all. Deny it all you want, it is easy to see. For a satirical look at it, check this video I made: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG68yz-mMgE
I am going to make some predictions I would like to make, and I hope this thread stays around so that in years to come you can all look back and see how it turned out:
- every conservative you respect will vote for Mitt, all of them (perhaps a couple excepts, but not many) will even endorse him and perhaps campaign with him
- Mitt will become the next POTUS in a landslide victory,
- President Romney will do very well on the economy and on foreign affairs/national security
- President Romney will conduct himself with honor and integrity both in office and in his personal life
- He will be a better president than either Bush was
- You will hear conservative pundits call him this generation’s Ronald Reagan, or Ronald Reagan’s 3rd term or something along those lines
- President Romney will be re-elected in another big victory
- His Vice President will become POTUS after his second term
- If there is an assassination attempt on him, it will either be by the Chineese, or by some religiously motivated nutjob (Islamic or Evangelical)
And for those of you anti-Mormons out there, I have some prediction for you too. And these apply even if Romney is not elected as POTUS:
- Your grandchildren will call Mormons Christians, and look at Mormonism as the third branch of Christianity alongside Catholicism and Protestantism
- All the attacks against Romney that stem from the anti-Mormon garbage you have bought into will result in the attacker either apologizing, or in their loss of credibility. The more anti-Mormon attacks are made in the mainstream media, the worse the attackers will look.
- Your grandchildren will likewise look at such attacks as being as bigoted and wrong, even when they come from you.
- Some of your grandchildren or great-grandchildren will become Mormons, and after you are dead they will have temple ordinances performed for you, and you will be glad at the time that they do.
I dare you to post your own predictions of what a Romney presidency will result in.
I dare FR to leave this thread open and available for comments and to not delete a single comment from it.
I dare FR to start respecting freedom of religion by not playing favorites towards one religious group as is currently done by disallowing Mormon caucus threads, and if that is too big a challenge for you, the do away with the Religion Forum altogether.
I dare you all to give Mormons and Mormonism the respect it deserves to have as the 4th largest denomination in the USA, stalwart defender of traditional values, glowing example of Christian charity at home and around the world, the most conservative people of all religious groups, and staunch defenders of the principles of the constitution and values that built the country. No matter how much you disagree with us on religious matters, we are and should be treated as valuable conservative allies. Until FR does that, all they do is shoot themselves in the foot.
The SCRIPTURE part, or my words that surround it?
Watch out, Monson: we've an up and coming PROPHET on our hands!!
I really don't want to argue about it. There's bigger fish to fry, like whether America as we know her, will survive. Let's ally up where we can and drop the rest.
It was my pleasure.
I swear I only hit post once on the Viking Kitteh reply!
You’ll Never Beat The Irish!
I’m not worried about other people’s ‘heresies’ unless they’re using them to try to slit my throat. That’s what freedom of worship is about.
Free Republic is a wonderful place to hang out, but just as you would not want to stay in a group with people who are abusive, those who make wild accusations or are just plain rude & nasty, make this a less pleasant place to be. Conservatives are justly enraged by the nasty behavior of those on the left. We should be careful of our own behavior, & think before we type, especially when responding to something we disagree with.
I really don't want to argue about it.
Too late, since you have already commented on what I posted; that I consider to be true.
Now then, just WHICH of these 'interpretations' do find to be false: #1, #2, #3 or some combination thereof?
1. Study just a little about the man the MORMONism calls JESUS; and you'll find that he doesn't quite match up to the One who has been described for over 2000 years by CHRISTIANITY.
2. He qualifies for being a FALSE messiah: one who CANNOT save a person from every sin.
3. Place your trust in a FALSE JESUS, and I can tell you for sure that you'll receive a FALSE salvation!
Perfectly put. I agree with this.
Besides, I'm way too busy trying to get my own spirituality on-track to worry about someone who isn't 'doing it right'.
Kid Im more Canadian than you are...
My family was one of the very first to arrive from the US in the 1770s..
Other than the Mormons who live in Bountiful and live the first principle of polygamy in obedience to Joey Smnith that same so called prophet you worship, and who are waiting in excitement and anticipation for a Mormon US president to advance the faith of his fathers AKA polygamy here in the US,
What other group did you think might be standing with their hot breathes steaming up the candy store windows of the border that effects you personally ???
Are you an illegal alien ???
Dont worry, Willard has your back...
I agree wholeheartedly.
You should have seen how nasty I USED to be!
Request denied.
The godless/cult always "TRIES" to associate itself with goodness to gain credibility for the weak minded but THE LIGHT/HIS WORD always exposes the dark/cult.
John 8:44 "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."
If you want to believe that a person can spit in the face of a true prophet of God and reject the word of God that comes through him and still legitimately claim to be a follower of Christ,
DON'T EVER USE GOD'S NAME IN VAIN for your own agenda in PUMPING up a CULT LEADER, A Baby killing and same sex marriage candidate which are an abomination to HIM!
Is 5:20 " WOE to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter."
Don't you take WOE lightly - you already went over the line.
I envy your ability to post unencumbered by facts, truth or reason.Your should. Because I'm still waiting for your own "facts, truth or reasons" for your dislike of Arpaio...Since you brought it up.
Perhaps you spent your 9yrs there living in a tent wearing pink underwear.
Thank God!
Yes, that happens. I went for ten years without any double posts, but once it finally happened, it seems I can’t stop, LOL!
And that comes after the spiritual collapse which was evident.
Sorry, Romney will be a weak president and will make George W look like Reagan.
Any 3rd term comparison will be to W.
Bah! You’re right. Yes. I am on FR and saying, “You’re right” ;)
I have to stop second guessing myself. My first instinct said what you did. I had a soft moment because he wasn’t Obama. Going back to first impression of Obama Lite.
What is the choice at now?
I agree with you. The self-congratulation over there is pretty ironic.
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