Your larger point should resonate with anyone who does not want to see the United States devolve into the long arm of the (rather unorthodox and flimsy) fundamentalist law. McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate has slaked the Dobson electorate’s insatiable appetite for vapid politicians who at least, by god, preach that life begins at conception. Never mind stepping all over the Sermon on the Mount . . .

Or did I miss the part about “Blessed are the Annie Oakleys, for they shall get their gun”?

Having grown up in the thicket of fundamentalist behavior and mind control, I can comment with experience that the political agendas of the organized religious right conflict deeply with the entire gamut of the message of the man who asked his followers to “sell everything and follow me.”

But that is no longer the key issue, not in this election or otherwise. Doctrinal tweaking of the Gospel According to What Suits Me is as old as the faith itself. People of faith must understand that they have both the option and the calling to evaluate the candidates’ visions for America and determine which is truly in the best interest of all Americans, never mind which candidate does a better job convincing us he or she is the prayerful person in the pew.

All this talk of “values” is itself a smokescreen. What are the “values” of a nation in which good education and healthcare are market-driven and parceled out accordingly? What are the “values” involved in rallying the so-called People of God around the flag of keeping legal relational status a privilege for those who happen to be opposite-gender? And where the hell have our “values” gone when one of our own is ridiculed and raked over the coals for suggesting that we just might be “citizens of the world” in the long run?

Perhaps this IS an election about values. I sure hope so. I just hope every single American voter takes stock, takes a good look at our neighbors within and without, and takes into account the devastating track down which Republican leadership has led us in the past eight years. Only then will I feel safe that we won’t be fooled again.

Glad to be your first commenter! Godspeed–