Interesting...

I was fortuntate enough to have the following blog piece forwarded over to me. I found it extremely interesting given what the Republican party has brought upon themselves over the past couple years, and for one, really can't disagree with the point made below. I encourage anyone reading this blog to think about it in terms of your everyday life.

http://www.radosh.net/archive/002056.html



By their fruits ye shall know them

The Fox News bloviators are trying to gin up some outrage over Barack Obama's refusal to wear an American flag pin on his lapel.

But it won't work, because this debate is actually already a very familiar and largely settled one, particularly among the conservatives Fox apparently wants to reach. Many "real Americans" already agree with Obama's choice, and those who do not still accept it as a reasonable decision, not grounds for vilification.

To understand how this can be, read what Obama said and imagine that instead of talking about a flag pin, he's talking about a tacky Jesus t-shirt.

I decided I won’t wear that pin on my chest. Instead I’m gonna’ try to tell the American people what I believe what will make this country great and hopefully that will be a testimony to my patriotism... I haven’t probably worn that pin in a very long time. I wore it right after 9/11. But after a while, you start noticing people wearing a lapel pin, but not acting very patriotic. Not voting to provide veterans with resources that they need. Not voting to make sure that disability payments were coming out on time.
My attitude is that I’m less concerned about what you’re wearing on your lapel than what’s in your heart. And you show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans, especially those who served. You show your patriotism by being true to our values and our ideals and that’s what we have to lead with is our values and our ideals.

During the two years I spent researching Rapture Ready!, I heard over and over again this exact same argument against the ostentatious, thoughtless or hypocritical donning of "witness wear." Obviously many people do choose to wear their faith on their shirts (or I wouldn't have much of a book), but even they would acknowledge that this is not enough — and that it doesn't matter if someone else chooses not to, as long as they have Jesus in their hearts and reflect him to the world.

Obama, of course, is himself a devout Christian, and the language he so confidently uses here — "testimony," "values," "what's in your heart" — pretty strongly indicates that his feelings about displays of faith are informing his opinion about displays of patriotism. And Iowa audiences will easily pick up on that same language in making their decision about whether or not this is really an outrage.