Why Not To Vote Republican

“I think even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen.”
Richard Mourdock, Senate Candidate from Indiana

Move over Todd Akin, we have a new buffoon on the block.

I didn’t think it possible that a Senatorial candidate could top Todd Akin’s “legitimate rape” remark, but along trots Dick Mourdock to prove me wrong.  Now we have a Republican who not only thinks a woman should carry a rapist’s baby to term, but that it is sanctioned by God.  Really?

When I was young and learned about God at St. Ambrose School in Bridgeport, Connecticut, I was taught that God was all-knowing.  That he knew what was, what is, and what will be.  That he was omniscient.  I think this is what Dick is trying to say, in his convoluted way.  His view is supported by scripture:

1 John 3:20  In whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things.

Psalms 139:4  Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord.

In essence, God knew the rape would occur, and he knew the fertilization of an egg would result.  Hence, both the rape and the pregnancy that followed were “intended” by God, at least according to Dick Mourdock.  O, he can argue against the rape being intended, and he has, but, if logic prevails, one is intrinsically tied to the other.

Any woman who votes Republican is voting against her own self-interest.

I realize that abortion is not the only issue out there, and that a few people will agree with Old Dick, but consider some of the other parts of the Republican platform.  Gay marriage is opposed by Republicans, most specifically by the religious right.  And this belief is also backed by scripture:

Leviticus 18:22  Thou shalt not lie with a man as a woman.  It is an abomination.

What ever happened to the separation of church and state?  Does it only apply if we find fault with the religion, as we currently do with Islam?  Isn’t that a double standard?  Why is Christianity so involved in politics, and with the Republican Party?

And then there is the Republican position on equal pay for women in the workplace?  In June, the Equal Pay Act was defeated in the US Senate by a party line vote of 52-47.  Simply, Republicans don’t think women deserve the same pay as their male counterparts.  In this day and age, when many women are the main breadwinners in the family, how is that fair?  Women should be up in arms over this fact.

Again, I contend that any woman who votes Republican is voting against their own self-interest.

Another plank in the Republican platform is the need to be fiscally conservative.  Republicans want less taxes and less spending, or so they say.  Yet taxes have never been lower, and Willard Romney is on record as saying he will INCREASE spending on defense.  How can he do both?  He is also on record as saying we need less regulations for businesses, which includes the financial industry.  Aren’t they the ones who landed us in this recession/depression in the first place?  It was a relaxing of regulation that began in the Reagan Administration that started this ball rolling, and it continues to this day.

When Reagan began deregulation of the banks at the behest of Wall St, it led directly to the S&L scandals of the late 1980′s.  Did we learn anything from it?  Not a thing.  Fast forward to 2004, when some Congressmen wanted to regulate derivatives trading, but were shot down by those same Wall St. types.  This allowed the packaging of mortgages as AAA securities to continue, and led directly to the financial crisis from which we have not yet recovered.  Is it a coincidence that the two biggest failures of our banking industry in the last thirty years have occurred during the tenure of Republican Presidents?  I think not.

If you are okay with all this, then vote Republican.  But if you are voting Republican because you think that government programs like Food Stamps and Section 8 Housing are helping the poor at your expense, then consider the following:

More people are in need of government help than ever before BECAUSE of Republican economic policy, not despite it.  Millions would not have lost their jobs and their homes if restraints had been place on Wall St.  Those banks that we bailed out with TARP because they were too big to fail are actually bigger now than before the crash.  Bank of America now owns Merrill Lynch and Countrywide.  Goldman Sachs got back every penny back that it sunk into AIG and is now bigger than ever.  (By the way, TARP was the creation of Henry Paulson, Bush the Younger’s Secretary of the Treasury, and a former CEO of Goldman Sachs.)  Billions in bonuses are being paid yearly in this industry, and the 1% continues to prosper.  A vote for Romney/Ryan will just perpetuate the greed rampant here in America, especially on Wall St.

Don’t let your anger dictate who you vote for in the coming election.  Sure, there are people who abuse government programs, but their theft pales in comparison to what Wall St. did to this country.  They stole hundreds of billions of dollars, and did it legally (or so it seems, since not one person has been arrested for this industry wide greedfest.).  And if you feel women and gays don’t deserve equality, then vote Republican.  But if you feel otherwise, don’t elect a Republican, because to do so is a step backwards.  Vote for any other candidate.

Please.