First off, it is no secret that we are now in the center of the battleground for Barack and Hillary. I had a Barack supporter come to my door. We are seeing fliers on how Hillary supported NAFTA and now she changed her position. I don't think this is our main problem and I support international trade. We can have compassion and help folks who lose their jobs but in the long run we hurt ourselves and consumers with Government protectionism. I like the statement everyone should have health care, but I am worried about who pays for it and what that does to the medical services. Here, I have more of a true Republican position on the economy. (The current administration is anything but this).
However, freedom of conscience, real science, and the environment are far more important issues for me. (These issues in the long run help the economy and are not in opposition to business.) Too many people have lost their lives for us to trade in freedom. Therefore, I will support whoever protects the supreme court from religious ideologies and that puts me on the democratic side for this election. I will have to hold my nose on the economic issues. I haven't really decided who I will vote for in the primary. I love the idea of a female or black president. This is long overdue. Hillary is not as far left as Barack or so I hear and the writer below brings up some good points. I think this may put me more in her camp. What am I missing? I will vote for either of these two in the general election. I know others here are for Barrack.
I am under no delusion that this could be a political activist who searched for atheists in IN, but I think this question and his points are worth discussing. I will write him and tell him to watch this page for our discussion. It is amazing that CNN with Glen Beck and now this recent "Jesus" debate is trying to out "fox" Fox News or out "god" WOWO radio. What is going on? Why can't we get a science debate instead of this faith crap? Both of these candidates say they support faith based initiatives. UGh. Here is Tyler's complete letter:
Hello,
I want to ask you a question. Why aren't atheists and agnostics more upset about Barack Obama saying that we might want to rethink the separation of church and state during the CNN "Compassion Forum"? During that same forum Hillary Clinton had said that she believes matters such as abortion should be decided by the individual and not the government, which shows her long standing view that the separation of church and state is important. I feel that Hillary Clinton respects atheist and agnostic rights, while Barack Obama considers them a low priority. Please endorse and support Hillary Clinton.
- Tyler Young
Federal Way, Washington
P.S. You may publish my letter, name included (I'm openly atheist) or simply reiterate what I have said if you would like. Thank you for listening. I have also listed a few other reasons why I believe you should support Hillary Clinton that aren't regarding atheist/agnostic rights, but are equally important.
Why I support Hillary Clinton:
She has experience in all three of the branches of the government. She has experience as a Senator (legislature), a lawyer (judiciary), and was the first lady of both Arkansas and The US where she held important roles (executive). Both the amount and diversity of her experience are very valuable.
When 9/11 happened George Bush didn't come to New York because there were debris in the air, and his people were worried that he might get sick. Obama didn't come out when that happened either, but Hillary did. She worked towards getting those people help, she used her political power to help those people that had friends and family dead, she used her political power to help those still fighting for their lives while those buildings went apart. That's the kind of person I want to be my president.
So I think she'll be a good president, and because she has so much experience in all three branches of the government I think she's the best person to help redistribute power among them ... and we'll need someone to do that after eight years of Bush pulling power away from the legislature and judiciary.
I also like that she'll have Bill Clinton there with her, because he's a smart guy and he makes a lot of great choices when it comes to economics. When he was president we had the economy grow, something that wasn't happening before he was president and something that hasn't happened since.
She also was an early supporter who created awareness for the Adoption and Safe Families Act which helped abused children be adopted instead of being allowed to stay in abusive environments with biological parents. Hillary also played a key role in helping negotiate between Democrats and Republicans on the issue when negotiations broke down.
She also held the most important role in the Foster Care Independence Act . She held youth conferences and talked about issues, and then went on lobbying congress to pass the legislation.
She was also the first student to give a commencement address at the Wellesley College due to the demand of students, she was only 21, she had a seven minute ovation.
She was one of only 27 women in a class of 235 at Yale Law School.
She created the Vital Voices Global Partnership with U.S. Secretary of the State Madeleine Albright through the Vital Voices Democracy Initiative. Vital Voices Global Partnership is a non-profit organization that advocates women become involved in the political process. They have helped women in many societies and countries where women are still treated badly, and have helped shape world equality. Hillary Clinton still holds an honorary chair, and has since helped fund the organization through the Clinton Foundation.
I should also mention that Hillary is more productive than Obama, already.
Clinton is the sole original sponsor of more bills in the senate than Obama. He has merely 129 against her 358.
She also a higher per year sponsorship rate.
He has merely 43 percent against her 51.1 percentage.
And she has had more bills signed into law. His 0.7 against her 2.7 percent.
Why does Barack Obama refuse to talk to the gay media? Throughout his campaign he has been ignoring the gay media, even in important states like Ohio. None of the twelve member newspapers of the National Gay Newspaper Guild had been granted an interview with Obama, even though all of them had asked. He has only recently talked to a few gay media sources, and even then has been reluctant. And you'll notice that he only started talking to gay news sources after he has been called out for not doing so by the Philadelphia Gay News in Pennsylvania. If you look at his willingness to talk to the gay media before Pennsylvania and after you'll see a stark contrast. Hillary Clinton has been talking to the gay media this whole time, answering their questions and talking openly about her beliefs for gay rights. She was also the first ever first lady to go to a gay pride parade, and helped stop the amending of the constitution from banning gay marriage as a senator. And while Hillary has been touring with Elton John on her campaign, Barack Obama has been touring on his campaign with Donnie McClurkin the anti-gay gospel singer who has called homosexuality a "curse." Another problem is that Obama only believes in civil unions for gays, but not gay marriage. He says that they are separate but equal, the same argument that racists used to keep black and white children separated in school.
And she has done far more as first lady than Michelle Obama could do in a lifetime (the adoption act, foster act, and vital voices already being three accomplishments I've mentioned Hillary has done as first lady.) I'd much rather have Bill as the first man, a spouse that actually contributes, which makes her even more valuable. Bill can talk to political leaders, negotiate with representatives and senators, endorse policy choices with actual credibility, and help Hillary reach her presidential goals in general.
When she was in elementary school, she wrote a letter to NASA (impressive for such a young girl) asking them how she could become an astronaut. They wrote her back and said that women weren't allowed into the program. And she has been proving that women are just as capable as men ever since.There are many more reasons that are just as important, but I feel that these few highlights give you a basic idea about what she stands for and why I'm supporting her.




