Small Town Values

Small Town Values

A beloved family member called me last night to lecture me about what is wrong with the Republican Party and why we lost the 2008 election.

According to him, we are living in the past and can't overcome our insular and narrow "small town values"!

Allegedly,we are all a bunch of racists and homophobes unwilling to focus on the real issues that face America.

I plead guilty to sharing those small town American values as I grew up in a small Kentucky town (Tollesboro)with less than 700 people, 2 churches, 1 school and a profound respect and love for my country. Here are the small town values that the majority of Kentuckians and most Americans share,both Democrats and Republicans:

-We tear up when we hear the National Anthem or a band playing My Old Kentucky Home;

-We value the sanctity of life and the rights of the unborn over "freedom of choice";

-We believe that marriage is and should be legally defined as between "one man and one woman" and not between "Adam and Steve";

-We believe that no one should have an advantage or disadvantage because of the color of his skin,his ethnic background,gender,sexual orientation or religion;

-We believe that everyone should be judged by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin;

-We believe in freedom of religion not freedom from religion;

-We believe in separation of church and state and that the church should stay out of politics and vice versa;

-We believe that united we stand divided we fall;

-We believe that freedom is not free and is worth fighting and dying for in the cause of liberty,justice and country;

-We believe in the sanctity of marriage and family;

-We believe in the absolute right to bear arms for our own defense and to protect against government tyranny;

-We believe in a hand up not a hand out;

-We believe that ours is a nation of laws not men and that judges should interpret the law rather than legislate from the bench;and

-We believe in lending a helping hand to our friends and neighbors in trouble!

I am very proud to be an American with small town values and pray to God we never forget or forsake those values and the principles or self-reliance and personal responsibility in favor of globalism or a one world mentality that sacrifices our national identity and character!

I couldn't of said it any better!

Gsmanning, there is, actually, in the way you describe it, not that much difference between the republicans and democrats no? I mean all democrats will probably affirm that the points you made apply also to them....

Hello GS,
I'm really glad you wrote this post for it helped me to identify what has happened to my connection with the Republican party.
I too share many of the sentiments / opinions that you expressed.
- The goosebumps / watery eyes when hearing the National Anthem.
- No advantage or disadvantage to anyone regardless of race, sex, orientation, or religion.
- Separation of church & state
- That freedom shall be challenged and that we must ne prepared to meet these challenges.
I also believe in a small government, as few taxes as possible, and a balanced budget.
Here's where I lose my connection with what I see is the party's path.
- Separation of church & state. Yet this statement gets wishy washy when considering abortion, marriage between people, the death penalty, and other topics. I am struggling to see how the party supports a separation between church & state when it appears we often use religious statements in our arguments against issues that we oppose or to strengthen our position on issues we support. Feels like hypocrisy to me.
- When I hear "Adam & Eve" not "Adam & Steve" aren't we dragging religion into the argument (Genesis)?
- Isn't the fact that we prevent some people from marrying each other a disadvantage to them despite our stated opinion that we do not wish to disadvantage anyone? How do we get to speak out of both sides of our mouths?
- I believe in freedom from religious oppression & influence. It works both ways. No one should be able to punish or influence our choice to or not to worship. No religious entity should be allowed to have any influence over the laws or positions of our nation. I most definitely believe the goverment needs absolute secularism. Any religious expression by the government is a choice to support one religion over others. How will we attain a true democratic society when we continue to dabble in theocracy as long as we allow religion to enter our politics?
- I no longer believe in the argument that we must be allowed to arm ourselves for protection from a tyranical government. Long ago technology passed the citizen in our ability to "fight" our own government. We have neither the money or the means in which to win such a battle. This is an old excuse that allows us to disregard the true problem. That we did not play our roles as responsible citizens and thus we allowed a goverment to become something we did not want nor have the ability to stop. It's like saying my child was bad so I spanked their bottoms. It does not actually correct the issue it only creates fear and teaches kids to react with violence when frustrated and / or the parent is too lazy to actually teach someone to do better.
- I no longer believe we are responsible enough to strive for an economy based upon a free market. That due to greed & lack of accountability it is essential that we put oversight & regulations into our economic system. I am now wondering if a "free market" is equal to the theory of communism in that both look good on paper but neither is actually achievable due to the imperfection of people.
- We say that we support freedoms for everyone but the fact is that most of us are white, go to similar churches, fear that someone we care about might be gay, are not in dire need for basic supplies, seem to make statements such as "if your not with us your against us", fear that we are being over run with immigrants, and other stereotypes that do not seem inviting to anyone who isn't just like us. We seem to think that the thoughts & ideas from the generations before us cannot be improved upon. That to consider new, more inclusive policies & ideals is a betrayal to our forefathers. Thank God they did not think as we do for how would they have succeeded in establishing this great country we all live in?
I've mentioned before that if you go to the NRC website you can lookup the "values" supported by the republican party. Yet I witness almost daily how we have abandoned those principles & created new ones. Ones that are exclusive, separatist, almost fearful of change towards a different but better society. That we might lose something as others gain benefits we've long enjoyed or hoped to attain. This is my lost connection to this party. I cannot think of a party that seems to represent my values, ideals, and dreams.
I truly & sincerely am glad I read your post. Though I may not agree with all of your stated values I know that you believe in them & that you are not afraid to say how you feel. I too want to understand what I am feeling and your post has inspired me to clarify my thoughts regarding the state of politics in the US.
Regards,
BH