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Nov. 9, 2004 I will say what I have said since the beginning: the Democratic Party is in need of an urgent reformation. We have drifted these part four years, part of it from a unity of anger over President Bush’s 2000 – and now 2004 – victories, and part from knowing we are unable to change it. James Carville said it best, “We need to be reborn. I’m not denying it. It opened my eyes.” There will always be partisans in this nation, part of the glory of a two-party system. There will always be those men and women who write me e-mails addressed to “Socialist Dumbocrap,” or “Babykiller Burns,” even though I don’t agree with socialism or abortion. The challenge is now on us, the Democrats, to move past that. The great political chasm is faith. Whether is it right or not to make faith a campaign issue is still a matter of deliberation. Being devout, having great faith, allowing the people to observe that faith, is a central tenet of any responsible social-minded Democracy. It is when that faith influences secular policy that we have problems. Now I have no argument with President Bush being open about his faith, nor do I think any less of him for being a “Born-Again” Christian. I also have no argument with Mitch Daniels, our Governor-elect, offering up Matthew 6 as a reason why he chooses to practice his faith from within his own home and inside his own church. No either is wrong, but this is where the Democratic Party has always misjudged. I was baptized a Lutheran in 1987, when I was still a newborn baby. As a child and a young teen, my faith dwindled and I looked to raw science for the answers to all of life’s questions. What I found was desolate and unfulfilling, and left me a kind of human shell. As I prepare to head off to college, I know now I have my faith, though I am not sure where it falls. What matters is that the fundamental belief is there, and I do not doubt it. If only other Democrats could so understand, perhaps we would fare better among the “Evangelicals” we wrongly vilify, those Christians we see as somehow less than average because they have great faith and allow it to guide them. To be criticized about my beliefs because I am not outspoken about them hurts, and it is wrong. I can see why Evangelicals do not like Democrats – I wouldn’t like someone bashing me, either. This is why we need a fundamental change to a party that respects religion. It can be done. We Democrats must not allow ourselves to be called irreligious simply because we believe speaking out about our personal faith is wrong. We must adopt that belief that accepts all religion and shows the faith of those within our party without attempting to force it on others. We must have a fundamental change in leadership for this to happen. Rudy Guiliani had an affair. So did Newt Gingrich, Strom Thurmond and countless others from both sides of the aisle. George Ryan was a morality void, as was Richard Nixon. We must stop the finger pointing. Every bad thing Bill Clinton did, while inexcusable, has been done by many others, some undoubtedly from the Republican Party. The Republicans must not be allowed to unfairly hold this monopoly on faith, morality and values. People will not expect those qualities from Democrats; sadly, as they have been pushed so strongly to believe Democrats are immoral, outrageous harlots. They will have no reason to see our qualities unless we show them. That should be our first and foremost social mission: humanizing the party again. ------------ About the author: Max Burns is a 17-year-old Democrat with moderate, centrist ideals. He blames John Kerry's 2004 loss on John Kerry, and is authoring a pamphlet on how to refine the Democratic Party for Victory in 2008 and beyond. For more information, check out The New Democrat. Read the fantasy-fiction novel "Alcardia". Email: DeMBurns@gmail.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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