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BustedBlog
May 1st, 2009
Why I love First Things
Look, they’re a lot more conservative than I am. But they are Catholic, through and through. They are the opposite of the Republican shrills with which they are often associated, and articles like this go to show it.
This is why Catholics should never unequivocally affiliate themselves with a political party. Though one has to admit that nowadays Republicans are more often closer to the social teachings of the Church, some who appear to be on par with most issues (i.e. many in President Bush’s administration) act contrary to true Christian and American values in allowing these kinds of things. As a servicemember, it hurt for this information to come out because I defended myself and others against accusers that all or many servicemembers are perverted, insane torturers like those at Abu Ghraib by saying that it was just a few soldiers who felt like they were above the law. I obviously can’t say that anymore, and though the truth hurts that those in the government I have gone to war for ignored our own values that supposedly put us on the “moral high ground”, I am glad that the truth came out so that this kind of stuff can be put to an end.
Gennie, I do not admit that Republicans “are more often closer to the social teachings of the Church” nor do I find the Bush administration to be “on a par” with church teaching. Preemptive war against a country that did us no harm–Iraq!–is not church teaching! (This is not an attack against you or any other member of the military who went as they were told.) The GOP stance that government is bad, that t should be shrunk so small that it could be “drown in bathtub” (Grover Norquist) is not in keeping with the church’s teaching on the role of government. Insufficiently taxing the rich and cutting social services to the poor is not in keeping with church teaching. And saying you’re pro-life is great, but have the Republicans done to stop abortion in the US?
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