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One last thought about Rick Warren's forum
http://www.janereinheimer.com ^ | August 19, 2008 | Jane Reinheimer

Posted on 08/19/2008 8:28:38 AM PDT by quintr

Originally I wasn't going to get into that whole commentary about the Rick Warren forum between the presidential candidates at Saddleback. But -- since McCain outshined Obama and the Obamanites started screaming foul because (they say) McCain answered so quickly that he must have had some forewarning of what the questions would be. That way, he could cram for the exam.

The first thing that strikes me is that people will often accuse other people of doing something that they would have done or would like to do.

The second thing is that the reason for McCain's quick responses could be based on two points that make his answers more real: (1) his answers reflected his core beliefs and values, and (2) his answers brought in experiential material embedded in his psyche.

Neither of those two points require rehearsals or foreknowledge.

For instance, he does not need to rehearse or know the question ahead of time that has to do with his opinion of when life begins: "At the moment of conception," was McCain's answer.

Whether we all admit it or not, we know that's when life begins. A woman knows when she's pregnant. And if it's a life she's looked forward to bringing into this world, she's very excited when she knows she's pregnant. She gets on the phone to share the joy of her news with everyone she loves.

On the other hand, if pregnancy is not news that brings her joy and she is bent toward abortion, another woman still knows she's pregnant. In that instance, she'll start looking for an abortion clinic so that the new life within her can be snuffed out.

Different core values for two different women.

For the two presidential candidates, the same question could not have posed more polarized core values. When does life begin? It's at that point that a new baby has the constitutional right to live his or her life.

The other point has to do with how McCain could answer a question so quickly about the meaning of Christianity to him that was wrapped around his prisoner-of-war experiences. All those experiences of life as a POW, especially when the experiences brought him face to face with the very real thought that each day might just be his last, or each moment for that matter.

Anyone who confronts mortality comes away from that experience with a deepened spirituality. When it's just you facing God, you can believe that nothing on earth matters except your relationship with God. It's a mountaintop experience that leaves you forever humbled.

It's an experience that makes you realize that all the toys and all the fun and all the life engagements we enter into can be over in a flash. And whatever we are not willing to walk away from in life becomes an idol of sorts. Because in one nanosecond, you become one with your Maker again. And you take nothing with you.

And if God blesses you with another day, or another decade, then you are truly blessed. And changed forever.

So the difference in how these two men answered the questions that Warren gleaned from hundreds of thousands of questions sent in to him from across the country, comes down to very real differences in how they have experienced themselves against the backdrop of their lives.

It seems to me that Obama is still on stage.

McCain, on the other hand, is out there in the audience where life plays out.


TOPICS: Miscellaneous; Politics; Religion
KEYWORDS: forum; mccain; obama; rickwarren; saddleback

1 posted on 08/19/2008 8:28:39 AM PDT by quintr
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To: quintr
Obama is not on the stage, he is staged.

THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH ABOUT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

2 posted on 08/19/2008 8:32:04 AM PDT by Jeff Head (Freedom is not free...never has been, never will be. (www.dragonsfuryseries.com))
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To: quintr

Obama “thinks” he can just say what the audience wants to hear but we are past the Clinton Days...and I believe we all learned from that chapter. Obama may have charisma but he doesn’t have charm and America is waking up to reality. McCain revealed himself...Obama rehearsed his lines....


3 posted on 08/19/2008 8:36:07 AM PDT by IndianPrincessOK (Native American pleading for Truth!)
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To: quintr
Jane really nailed it dead-on here. McCain answers so quickly because he's straightforward and honest.

Obama's answers are often so slow, deliberate, and drawn-out because he's not telling us what he truly thinks.

4 posted on 08/19/2008 8:36:31 AM PDT by jpl ("First come smiles, then lies. Last is gunfire." - Roland of Gilead)
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To: quintr
It's so pathetic how the Obama camp has tried to spin this...
"McCain had the answers beforehand."
"Well, Warren's an evangelical
[read: he's a Falwell clone] so what did you expect? Of course McCain did better!"

Idiots. I don't particularly care for McCain, but he wiped the floor with Barry and the leftists know it.

5 posted on 08/19/2008 8:37:57 AM PDT by opus86
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To: Jeff Head
Obama being on stage and following a script is exactly what the Gov. of Kansas Sibelius does and did during her election cycle. It is amazing to see how Obama was unable to really think a though on his own. The same was our observation of the good govenor. I heard she was on his short list this for VP this morning. Well ... Lord help us all!
6 posted on 08/19/2008 8:44:35 AM PDT by Eternally-Optimistic (anything is possible)
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To: quintr
Photobucket
7 posted on 08/19/2008 8:45:51 AM PDT by Pistolshot (NO B.O.)
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To: quintr
It seems to me that Obama is still on stage.
McCain, on the other hand, is out there in the audience where life plays out.

Well stated.

8 posted on 08/19/2008 8:47:12 AM PDT by MosesKnows (Love many, Trust few, and always paddle your own canoe)
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To: quintr


Penetrating Insights into the Obvious
9 posted on 08/19/2008 8:57:08 AM PDT by MichaelAsher54
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To: Pistolshot

10 posted on 08/19/2008 9:03:21 AM PDT by EscapedDutch (I spent $5,000 to become a LEGAL resident of the US. If illegals get amnesty, I demand a refund!)
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To: quintr

Anybody and everybody KNEW there was going to be an abortion-related question (or more than one question) at the Civil Forum meeting. That Obama knew this well in advance, and gave the answer that he gave, shows that the job of President is well above his pay grade.


11 posted on 08/19/2008 9:07:43 AM PDT by ikka
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To: ikka

DITTOS!

Even if both candidates had been given the questions beforehand, how would that have affected their answers. That is, if their answers truthfully reflected their points of view.

— Jane


12 posted on 08/19/2008 9:12:58 AM PDT by quintr
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To: jpl
Jane really nailed it dead-on here. McCain answers so quickly because he's straightforward and honest. Obama's answers are often so slow, deliberate, and drawn-out because he's not telling us what he truly thinks.

I once got into an argument with an office manager because someone once got upset at something I said (which they later admitted they had misconstrued). The office manager told me that I needed to think before I spoke. My response was that I was striving to think LESS before I spoke.

He was dumbfounded with my answer, and despite my attempts to explain it, he never did quite understand it - but I thought I put it quite succinctly: if you shape your character and your mindset accordingly, there is no need to screen your thoughts from your words. In a perfect state of mind, only truth and kindness will live in your head, and you can let your words spill out without review.

Yes, it's a theoretical state that few truly achieve, and I'm certainly nowhere close - but it's still an ideal to emulate. And, once you've decided to speak honestly, it's easier on the memory - you rarely have to remember what you said, you just have to consult your beliefs to regenerate the answer from scratch.
13 posted on 08/19/2008 9:17:24 AM PDT by beezdotcom
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To: EscapedDutch
Two Big EMPTY SUITS in the news this week. Obama at the SaDdleback forum, and the supposed frozen Bigfoot body.
14 posted on 08/19/2008 9:25:27 AM PDT by NavyCanDo
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To: beezdotcom

I agree completely. This premise is something that pathological liars just don’t get.

I parrot you when I say the great thing about being honest is that you don’t have to remember what you said to whom.

— Jane


15 posted on 08/19/2008 9:25:43 AM PDT by quintr
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To: beezdotcom
“Jane really nailed it dead-on here. McCain answers so quickly because he's straightforward and honest. Obama’s answers are often so slow, deliberate, and drawn-out”

We have to remember also - that Warren said the first question was given to both candidates in advance to ease their tension. Even knowing the first question Obama blows the answer big time. That first question? The 3 wisest people who you would consult as President. Mom and Grandma, followed by a drawn-out explanation why.

16 posted on 08/19/2008 9:29:44 AM PDT by NavyCanDo
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To: quintr

mark for later


17 posted on 08/19/2008 9:35:00 AM PDT by Christian4Bush (About Obama: "Overinflated balloons pop suddenly and catastrophically." - Bill Dupray)
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