Saturday, March 10, 2012

Questioning The Faith Of President Obama

Many of us on the liberal end of the political spectrum have heard the assertion time and again that our President is a Muslim and not a Christian. It is one of the last ditch efforts that republicans make when they want to dismiss great news like the burgeoning housing market, the improving jobs report or elevated consumer confidence. Of course, their other plan of attack, typically more from republican leadership rather than the man-on-the-street GOPer, involves social issues that we thought we resolved decades ago. Think: availability of contraception, access to abortions and education as a positive rather than a negative.



Still the faith of our President continues to be called into question and I continue to find myself having these conversations on a regular basis. Here are the points that I try to drive home each time that I do..



1.              In a country that supposedly treasures separation of church and state, why does this matter? If you are a true constitutionalist, then the faith of the president or any other elected official should be moot.



2.              What is your evidence? Let’s say that there are 8 pieces of evidence that say he is a Muslim. There are also more than 1,000 pieces of evidence that support the premise that he is a Christian. That would include, but is not limited to: His church attendance, speaking openly about his Christianity, images of him carrying the bible, and being baptized in the early 1990s. Why would you take the side that has the smaller quantity of proof rather than the more substantial and compelling body of evidence?



3.              The Muslim faith does not speak to violence and, at the risk of repeating myself, why does the faith of our POTUS matter? I know, I know….GOPers are going to assert that Muslims are driven by their faith to kill Americans on our own soil and so the very core of their religion is dangerous in nature. This is why republicans do not want a mosque in their town, or their neighbor to be a Muslim, or their child to date someone from this faith. Because….They are out to get us!! In the same why that Christians act out their faith by wearing the cross, attending church, doing charitable acts or engaging in bible study, the Muslim faith dictates violence against Americans….right?? But if this were true, you have to ask yourself why they haven’t done this. Why was there no school shooting by a Muslim last week? No Muslim tainting our drinking water, or taking a gun to the local mall, or sitting atop a watchtower shooting at the ugly Americans. I mean, if I see Christians acting in a Christ-like manner every single day, why is it that I do not see acts of violence by Muslims every single day? In the last day or week or month or year, how many Muslim attacks on Americans on American soil have you read about in the news?



Because the premise of Muslims being a violent group is a myth. There is no evidence to support this premise and anyone who utters such words may as well wear a trucker cap that proudly states “I Am A Racist”.  It is a distraction that we throw at our President because they cannot debate the real issues nor find fault with the economic progress that we have made thus far. It is because they are panicked and scrambling and falling into the abyss of fear.



These allegations will not end anytime soon and may even endure long after President Obama leaves office in January 2017. But liberals will continue to do what we have always done, which is shine a light on ignorance and fight stupidity with reason and enlightenment. Doing anything less is a disservice not just to Muslims, but to ourselves as well.




7 comments:

  1. The meme of Obama the Muslim is as foolish as the meme that Republicans want to prevent women from having access to birth control.

    If this country values separation of church and state, why does this administration want to force a government mandate on a church which goes counter to church doctrine?

    The preponderance of evidence suggests there is a significant sect of violent Muslims which sees women as chattel and infidels as worthy only of death. Honor killings and female genital mutilations are not an indication of a "peaceful" bunch of folks.

    Please stop bandying about the tired argument that people who are not like yourself must be racist. It mocks any rational argument you may have.

    While the White House touts 3.2 million jobs in the last 22 months, the Bureau of Labor statistics says differently. I'll let you do the research because I know you believe I'm stupid and you have the same internet capability I do.

    The President's policies run counter to the best interest of the United States of America. Increased government reduces personal liberty. Increased government spending requires more money extracted from private sources; the government only has the money it takes in taxes or borrows. "Alternative energy" is demonstrably expensive and unreliable. A technologically advanced civilization cannot survive using it. The laws of physics also make "alternative energy" a lousy choice.

    He may or may not be a Muslim. I don't really care. But he's making an awfully big mess my grandchildren will have to clean up.

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    1. Quit bringing the damned church into the conversation. The "church" (Catholic) is the one bitching about birth control, abortion, Planned Parenthood and the rest of the war on women. The church is lobbying hard and fast and politicking. They should lose their tax exempt status over that. The faith of POTUS matter not one whit!

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  2. Ahhh, such a well-written and totally right on post. THANK YOU for taking the time to write this! The whole "concern" about President Obama being Muslim is just a disguise for racism.

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  3. The first comment on this page intriges me.

    Physics? "The laws of physics." Interesting.

    Let's see . . . people on this planet began using fossil fuels to replace earlier technologies. Now that we know how harmful the waste of fossil-fuel usage is, we need to look at the earlier technologies that fossil-fuel usage replaced. These "alternatives" are simply older, more reliable sources of energy that no one can own.

    I am speaking of wind and sun.

    Nowadays, the windmill's "sixteenth-century technology," as the uninformed call it, is far more effective than ever before. For example, New Mexico has miles and miles of energy-producing wind mills. If windmills could be erected on abandoned oil rig platforms, our Gulf states would have another reliable source of clean and much-needed power.

    Then there's the sun.

    There is one thing that this planet will never be able to do without: the sun. Perhaps I should state that there are houses in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, that use solar power. Yet the first comment, here, states that old Sol, as a source of energy, is "lousy" according to "the laws of physics." Hmm.

    If someone has concerns for the world her/his grandchildren will have to "clean up," I'd think that person would readily embrace alternative energy sources.

    And, the poster opines, ALL of President Obama's "policies run counter to the best interest of the United States of America." What--no specifics? All we get is a sweeping generalization, here. Maybe the words sounded good. Now it's time to think about what they actually mean.

    How have any of President Obama's policies been harmful? For most of us, taxes are lower. Health insurance will be available to those of us even pre-existing conditions. The plan is to turn health into CARE again instead of bowing before a health care INDUSTRY. And if you're struggling with a mortgage, THIS president is the one who has helped you.

    Chagrin at the cruelties of Islam towards women are expressed. Yet the fanatical conservatives in the Senate tried to foist The Blunt Amendment on us. Looks like Islam isn't the only restrictive institution in the world.

    Physics. I love it.

    Dr. A.S. Long (posting as "Anonymous" because I don't deal with any other selection)

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  4. Dr. A. S. Long...what are you a doctor of? It cannot be physics, engineering, mathematics or another science. As an engineer, I can tell you windmills are neither energy efficient nor reliable. We have miles and miles of them here in Wisconsin and they don't amount to squat for energy generation. Solar energy can never be viable for a growing industrial society. The sun only shines at about 1kw per square meter at the equator on the equinox if it is a perfectly clear day. Get beyond that and it falls off dramatically. Again, here in Wisconsin, the best we can get is about 300 watts per square meter. And most of the year it is far less. Conversion factors in photovoltaics may be nearing as much as 20%, so I can get a whole 60 watts per square meter. That won't run this computer. For solar-thermal, the total efficiency of the cycle is far less...and the Law's of Thermodynamics say it can't be better. You can certainly power a house up there in Yellowknife. If you cover enough habitat with panels. But I suggest you look for the extension cord to the neighbor's house.

    I do not know how your taxes can be lower than they were under Bush, since those "tax breaks for the wealthy" remain in place. Perhaps it is because you lost your job in this recession.

    What gives you the right to have me pay for your pre-existing condition unless I choose to do so? This President didn't help out people struggling with their mortgage, the taxpayers did. At the cost of our own property values. had the market been allowed to fail completely, fewer people would have been injured by the loss of value and inability to sell their homes. but let's by all means bail out people who chose to buy a home they couldn't afford and add the boat and truck to their debt to keep up with their neighbor.

    Regarding the Blount Amendment, you do not believe in Separation of Church and State? you believe the State should tell the Church what to do even if it violates their beliefs? Then there is no First Amendment to The Constitution of the United States. There is no liberty, there is no free speech. Now this may be all well and good for you when it is churches and Conservatives who are stifled, but the worm turns. Power is fleeting and eventually, it will be you who is shut up. Is that really what you want? I prefer the free exchange of ideas, even those with which I disagree.

    Like yours.

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    1. There is a Proposal on the Michigan Ballot related to alternative energy. The nah sayers are trying to knock it down by saying the sun doesn't always shine here in Michigan & the wind doesn't always blow. That's their argument?

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  5. Just as a guess: I'd say Obama is probably an atheist. He didn't start going to Church until close to when he started in politics. Coincidence? I think not.

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