Minor political rant

[velvetpage]

I am sick and tired of the "socialism is anti-American" line of argument. It's fallacious on several levels.

Why, yes, I am going to enumerate them for you! How did you guess?

1) You (whoever you are who says this) do not get to dictate what is and is not acceptable to be an American. America is a nation of 300 million people. You don't speak for all of them. Nobody does.

2) I don't honestly care what the founding fathers said about the nation they were founding. That was two hundred thirty-three years ago. They do not live in it now and nobody is obligated to take their intentions to heart when deciding on the future path of the nation they helped fashion, unless those intentions were codified in the Constitution. Even then, they are open to modern interpretation. There are multiple avenues worked into your system of government to allow for exactly that.

3) Speaking of the Constitution, telling someone that they are un-American if they believe such-and-such is incredibly hypocritical for someone who upholds the Constitution and the founding fathers as the highest authorities on which to base current policies. What it's saying is, "You have no right to call yourself American if you believe that." Problem is, the Constitution says people do have exactly that right. That statement contravenes the rights of freedom of speech, freedom of conscience/religion, potentially freedom of association depending on how you phrase it - I could go on.

If you believe in your own constitution, then you must also believe in the right of any American to believe exactly what they want, and say what they want, and continue to live freely without persecution as a result of what they say or believe, provided their actions surrounding those beliefs are peaceful. How does the saying go - I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it? Anything less than that is hypocritical for someone who points to the constitution for their political and ideological guidance.

For the record, Canada has similar values. We have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms that contains all the same freedoms as yours, with the exception of the right to bear arms. I don't have the right to vote in the United States, and I will likely never seek that right. But the rights I claim as a citizen of my own country are comparable. Much as I disagree with most conservative politicians on most items (not all) I want them to change their opinions - not stop talking about them. They have a right to their opinions and to speak freely about those opinions, and I will never, ever tell them they don't. Democracy depends on a free exchange of ideas amongst citizens. I will never accept less than that of myself or any political discourse in which I engage.

Comments

[kisekileia.livejournal.com]

"The Republicans get people angry about gay marriage, abortion and the phrase "Happy Holidays," and those same people turn around and vote to lower taxes on the wealthiest Americans and shoot down a socialized healthcare system that would generally benefit most of them."

Yep. For people who aren't that smart or aren't that interested in politics, gay marriage and abortion seem a lot easier to understand than the complexities of economics and social programs, so they vote with their beliefs on gay marriage and abortion. That results in a lot of evangelical Christians who are genuinely good people, but believe a little too much of what their churches say, voting Republican even though it's probably not in their best interests.