You two will have a lot in common ... I think ... shortly.
(Note to those I pinged: read the exchange in posts #53, 55 & 57.)
Posted on 03/23/2015 6:44:37 AM PDT by Kaled
Because I'm a Conservative, I believe in a strong separation of church and state. As Eliade wrote in The Sacred and the Profane, "the sacred always manifests itself as a reality of a wholly different order from 'natural' realities." We do a disservice to the truly sacred when we force it into Caesar's world. What is sacred to me is between myself and my Maker--and forcing that into the public square diminishes both of Us.
Because I'm a Conservative, I care about the environment. Whether prompted by the Bible or by our own sense of morality (itself a part of the sacred), we are stewards of this earth, and we owe it to ourselves and our children—and to the plants and animals who cannot protect themselves from us—to provide not just good stewardship, but as perfect a stewardship as we can conceive.
Because I'm a Conservative, I support gay marriage. I believe that a family with two loving parents is a benefit to children—and to parents. Kids get to see loving interactions (important to their development and world view) and parents can both join with—and rescue, when needed—each other, having a close friend with whom to share the thoughts, feelings, joys, and stresses of life, amplified even more with children.
Because I'm a Conservative, I care about personal responsibility. Too often, though, the term has been re-interpreted to mean "taking care of #1" when personal responsibility should also include ownership and accountability for what goes on around me. That means I have a responsibility to understand the plights of others, to recognize when and how I might contribute to such ills, and to do what I can to correct them, to create a fair and level playing field where everyone has the same chances given the same efforts.
Because I'm a Conservative, I care about reasonable gun control. For me, a key component of traditional conservatism is feeling safe and secure, knowing that risk is minimal, and understanding what to expect of my neighbors. Randomly politicized gun-waving does nothing to further this cause, instead making us feel less safe, less secure. There is nothing "conservative" about walking into a store armed with semi-automatic weapons; it is egocentric, narcissistic, and dangerous.
Because I'm a Conservative I care about knowledge. Through the ages much has been learned, discovered, explored, and revealed. Not all of it has been good for us, but much of it has. And learning begets learning, all of which raises us up. To be conservative is not about the worn-out equation of ignorance and bliss, but about recognizing that our greatest assets include both our souls and our minds, and encouraging the growth of both equally. They are, after all, both a part of us, and handcuffing the one in favor of the other only insults each.
Conservatism, I strongly believe, is not a bad word or a bad ideal. It is, however, a term misunderstood. Those who label themselves conservative today seem most often not to be conservative at all. They have, in reality, a highly radicalized agenda, one set on taking us backwards. It is that direction which seems to imply conservatism, but it shouldn't. Radicality lacks a vector, and should be known only through the severity of its proposed changes. To roll us back to a time when religion alone led us, to a time when white skin alone defined the rules, to a time when only the few owned nearly everything, is radical and not, axiomatically, conservative.
For those of you who embrace the roots of conservatism, I urge you to continue to do so. For those who seek to call out conservatives, I ask that you recognize the difference between those of us who are, and those who have stolen the terminology from us and bastardized it for their own specious use. And for those of you who claim the role of conservative but so clearly are not… well… I ask nothing of you, for you have already shown us who and what you are.
It was supposed to be on Trolls-R-Us.com.
I am a bit puzzled watching this ZOT in progress. The title of the thread has been changed to one that appears to be post-ZOT, but the original posting n00b’s account remains active, allowing for additional posts. Color me cornfuzed.
Since when is separation of church and state a conservative misreading of the Constitution?
Since when is celebrating two homosexuals being able to marry a conservative principle?
Since when do liberals care about responsible gun control? Gun control is all about denying the 2nd amendment rights and taking guns from responsible citizens to control the populous.
Since when is playing the race card conservative?
IBTZ!
Pro-homo and pro-gun control is what this article is.
SPIT! (how’s that for cap lock?)
You two will have a lot in common ... I think ... shortly.
(Note to those I pinged: read the exchange in posts #53, 55 & 57.)
Well the troll is on TWO threads at once.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3271003/posts
Trolling away. I imagine JR and the mods are having to dial up extra voltage to adequately zot this moron into oblivion.
Play with the troll while you can...I think the mods are letting us have fun with this one...Lord knows it’s been a while since we’ve been able to.
LOL, bait cast/bait taken hahaha!
LOL! Nicely done!
Kittys play with the mice just before they eat them.
Yeah, it’s actually a wee bit more fun to watch the zotee get to keep digging in the hole he’s in. Maybe these go down like this more often. I am not saying it’s worse.
In truth, a lot of people are getting in on the B in IBTZ this time.
I didn’t think there was anyone stupid enough to actually fall for that in real life.
This one is not a retread, or he’d be gone already.
I am of the opinion he’s a bearded 20-something PBR-swilling hipster, home from Spring Break, stealing Mom’s bandwidth while making $8/hr at Lattes-R-Us.
What do you expect from a cat?
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lolol
At least - for a troll - you have a sense of humor.
Ah, he’s just pining for the fjords.
I think we have our explanation.
Sometimes you just gotta bide your time and lower your expectations...in reality though, it’s scary to know that the future of this country may hinge on someone as stupid as that.
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