A Confession and a Promise

happily RESISTing!

I am ashamed to say that I am responsible, at least in part, for the mess our country is now in.

Yes, it is true that I am not in politics, nor do I have a weighty voice of authority. But I still have to take some of the responsibility for where we find ourselves. I am sure we could, without reservation, call the present political situation a dumpster fire.

My family was and is blue - forever blue. And so was I until I entered religious life. As a Christian, and then as a Messianic Jew, I was compelled to vote red. Why, you ask? Because Family Values. Because conservatism. Because all my friends did. I am ashamed to say that I voted red usually, but I didn't always vote red, I did vote for Obama's second term...but I didn't tell anyone. Still, those red votes gave place and validity to some of the politicians that are in office presently.

I am chagrined to think that I was pushed along with the peer tide of religious conservatism. I have always hated peer pressure, but sure enough, I gave in. If it was blessed by the Almighty, perhaps I was wrong to vote blue, I was told. Maybe the liberals were all about a scary one-world government, ID chips inserted in people's hands as Revelation predicted, and ushering in the Tribulation. How was I to know? The sad fact is that I believed what I was told, either overtly or implied, instead of reasoning things out for myself. I caved.

I admit I watched Fox News, much to my shame. Well, actually, I am glad I did in a way because now I know what it truly is - propaganda. I listened to the hate speech of Hannity, Limbaugh, and Coulter, and carefully considered the arguments of O'Reilly (I didn't know at the time he was a sexual harasser, although I am not surprised, frankly). I convinced myself  I was still rational - I often disagreed with their stand, but I could see where they were coming from. But the problem is that they were and are not completely forthcoming with their agenda - they ultimately fuel a political machine of elites. They are on the front lines convincing the masses what to believe. And they succeed most of the time...at least with their listeners, who usually don't listen to anything else. Perhaps anyone with a steady diet of Christian radio, Fox News, conservative talk radio, and Sunday sermons would end up voting red, as well. I guess that is how you get people to vote against their best interests and be happy about it...even defend it - convince them that it is God's will.

I am not positive about how all my religious friends voted, and sometimes one would admit that they grew up blue. Who is to say that they weren't manipulated or felt pressured to vote red like the rest of us? But, come on...what Christian is gonna vote blue - they are pro-choice!

And there is the problem. Religion and politics need to stay separate. Yes, I have heard the argument: we want God to run our affairs. Sounds good, but it is all wrong. Why not keep the two separate in order for them both to do their jobs effectively? Religion can speak to individual and community morality, while politics can concern itself with the protection and well-being of the entire population, whether religious or not. Once the two are combined, all hell breaks loose and rampant manipulation ensues. Thank you Jerry Falwell.

But I digress. I am sorry to say that I listened to and allowed myself to be persuaded by the Religious Right. As it turns out, it is so wrong. And this is how we have ended up here in the dumpster fire we call the Trump Administration of lies, sexism, bigotry, racism, elitism, and white/male privilege. So much garbage to burn.

I look very happy in the picture above. I am happy, ecstatically so. I am happy because I am no longer supporting the misguided social harm of the supposedly Grand Old Party with their legislation of hatred and restrictions. And now they can't even keep the government running. They can't even manage to pay the military on which they rely so heavily to get them elected.

I am happy even though I feel as though we are drowning in the storm. I hate to think about what will happen when all the Trump supporters and Christians who voted for him against their better judgement realize their healthcare is taken away, or their disability checks don't arrive, or when that lovely tax break isn't as great as it was touted. What then? I guess I will tell them I am sorry because I was, in a small way, a part of it. I did not vote for Trump, and you can be sure of this: I will never again be manipulated to vote a certain way to win favor in a specific group, and I will NEVER vote red again. Full Stop.