I came up with a great list of what I’d like from my elected officials during church today. Yes, I did it during church… weird, huh? I’m not sure what it means, but I’m going to try not to think about it too much. I obviously wasn’t paying attention while I was frantically scribbling notes to myself. Unfortunately, the list is in the car, so you’re not going to see it tonight. I’m physically tired and emotionally tired and just not ready to wade through my notes on all of this stuff, digest them, and then get them up here so we can discuss them.
Kurt’s comments have got me thinking, and I may need to come up with a graceful way to explain my take on them, and come up with a coherent position on them. I understand his points, and they’re good ones.
I want to see a society where everyone is free to worship (or not) as they see fit. It’s defining the “do what you want as long as no one gets hurt” concept that bothers me. I would hope that people would be better and more noble than that. Unfortunately, I’ve watched Jerry Springer and know that a good portion of our society is not that noble, and some things do need to be legislated. That balance between personal freedom and the need of a society to maintain order and provide basic services is what politics is all about. Having the Republicans in power, the scale tips too far to the “order” side of the spectrum for me. The far left is probably a bit too far to the “free” side. How do we find that balance? How do we weigh that needs for personal freedom with personal responsibility (and accountability) with the needs for defense, services, and protecting the weak from the strong, and the powerless from the powerful?
Bah, too many questions and not enough answers. I’ll try to come back with the list of what I’d like to see from my “ideal” elected official, and my “ideal” representative government tomorrow after I’ve gotten a good night’s sleep, and hopefully processed all these conflicting thoughts running amok in my noggin.
As I told Kurt, I welcome all opinions, as long as they’re well thought out and reasoned. Bring ’em on. Share ’em. You never know what it’ll spark.