Personally, I am sick to death of being called a liberal by Republicans, just because I am a Democrat. I realize that they do it in order to falsely discredit me and, incidentally, to get under my skin. I should be able to shrug it off as another example of disingenuous Republican propaganda, but it does rankle. The Democratic Party has countered by characterizing themselves as “Progressives.” I reject that label too. I prefer to look at the facts. The welfare of society, of the world, of civilization, require that all of us innovate, or conserve, or dare, or avoid, according to the situation, and in what ever way best benefits mankind.

        First, I am a fiscal conservative. I spent many years as a professional accountant and business consultant. I counseled hundreds of people on how to get out of debt and the virtues of paying for what they buy. I consider abuse of credit, or living beyond ones means, a sin akin to gambling, or to covetousness. How is opposition to a state lottery liberal? We used to send mafia dons to prison for running a numbers racket that paid off better than our state lottery does. It is demonstrable that the State Of Tennessee is more greedy than La Cosa Nostra ever was. They brag about having contributed over $487,000,000 to Tennessee education already, relieving selfish Republicans of that amount of taxes.  The use of lottery proceeds to advertise and to entice the weak and ignorant to gamble is particularly egregious. At the same time, the refusal of the people of Tennessee to initiate a state income tax, unquestionably favors the rich and powerful at the direct, express expense of the poor. Tennessee tax policy is therefore not only unfair, it is immoral. I am also particularly proud that, during the Clinton administration, Democrats erased the national debt and created a surplus. I also believe that fiscal responsibility is one of the many conservative reasons that citizens should vote Democratic.

        Second, it is not true that Democrats favor big government and that Republicans are the party that supports less government. Republicans favor less regulation of business, less protection from corporate and government abuses of power, less foreign aid, less equity in tax law, less freedom for citizens, less majority rule and less support of the poor and helpless, but that does not equate to less government, as clearly demonstrated by the current Republican administration. Republicans favor more intervention in the affairs of foreign nations; more money squandered on ships, planes and tanks that would not be needed if we had not expended munitions in a preemptive war; more largess to the rich; more exploitation of the poor and more power to an aristocratic ruling class. Democrats, on the other hand, favor majority rule and carrying out the informed will of the people, whether that represents larger or smaller government.

        Third, it is not true that Christians should be Republicans, or that the Republican Party promotes morality. Neither Tom Delay, Kenneth Lay, George W Bush, Dick Cheney, Jack Abramoff, Bill Frist, nor congressmen Cunningham or Ney could be characterized as anything other than self serving. Neil Bush, the president’s older brother, bankrupted Silverado Savings and Loan to finance their father’s presidential campaign. Jeb Bush subverted the Florida electoral process in support of his brother. I am an ordained Presbyterian deacon and I firmly believe that the Republican Party consists, in large part, of elitists, bigots and hypocrites. By contrast, the Democratic Party is committed to values of patriotism, inclusion and fairness which Republicans never espouse. Oh, Republicans wave the flag alright, mouthing all the popular slogans. But they always support causes which favor themselves. Republicans seem to truly believe that what is good for them is good for the nation. They never put the nation, or the world, or God’s work first. They are also quick to condemn and take vengeance on anyone who opposes them on any issue, as they did Ambassador Wilson, hardly a Christian virtue. Republicans are quite good at name calling. There are corrupt Democrats too, but the basic axiom of Andrew Jackson remains valid. The only security for the nation resides in the virtue of the people.