Quote:
Originally Posted by zimmy
Yes, I look at it from the same perspective if he were Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Wiccan, whatever. I am more concerned by his agenda to incorporate his religious beliefs into education than the government's attempts to raise the standards of education. I agree, both are wrong. Only one is fundamentally scary to me.
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If you think what he attempted is scarier than the vehicle that allows him to attempt it, perhaps you're not seeing the forest for the trees.
The Founders intentionally precluded the central government from legislating or interfering not only in religious matters, but the great bulk of matters that pertain to our personal lives and the function of our local and State governments. It was a pre-eminent concern that the central power was limited to specific functions that would solidify the union but not infringe on State and individual rights. They had just freed themselves from a tyrannical government, and there was a great fear of unchecked central power, so they carefully, purposefully, crafted a form of government that would prevent such tyranny. What has evolved is the government they feared. The only reason Santorum could propose what offends you, is what the Federal Government has become. There are no ground rules, no constitution defining what it cannot do. It has abandoned the Constitution it pretends to follow, or that we think it does. There are no limits to its power except the fear that it may offend too many of us. It has the power to tell you what you can grow in your garden, how much, and whether you can sell it, and how you do so. It believes it can tell you what to buy. Santorum's attempt to introduce a counter balance to such power by instilling in our youth the possibility that there is another power and purpose in this life than that of the Federal Government is puny compared to what that government has become. That you can feel that Santorum's gambit is fundamentally scary, but that what the government has become and which allows him to attempt it, is not fundamentally scary, is puzzling.