Love Your Neighbor With Your Vote

Voting and the 10 Commandments

This is the great commandment, you shall Love the Lord your God will all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself. And the second is like unto it: Love your neighbor with your vote.

I would like to vote for a Christian. However, I would quickly vote for a small-government non-Christian over a Christian socialist. The former is more considerate of your neighbor than the latter.

6. Does he honor the life of his neighbor? This applies to abortion, as well as gun rights; it even applies to defense issues. Pacifism often loves the neighbor abroad at the expense of the neighbor next door. "Speak softly and carry a big stick" means that we show respect for sovereign nations but that we will intervene to protect our people.

7. What is his stance on obvious public sexual sins? How about his personal life? There's only so much you can do here. You don't know if the wife is photo-shopped in and the mistress or male lover has been photo-shopped out. Opponents will run smear campaigns and we are better off in the long run if we do not accept charges of wrong-doing too quickly. And the media hubbub may shout down the contrary testimony of friends.

8. Do not vote for someone who intends to steal from your neighbor's paycheck or wallet. Not even for charity. (Especially not for charity. Give it voluntarily. Don't be a Warren Buffet hypocrite on this one.)

9. Examine his words and his actions throughout his past career. Are they consistent? Are there good reasons for inconsistency. Is it truly an inconsistency? Does he explain himself? Does he just back away and deny his past publicly stated opinions? He's trying to paint a particular picture of himself.

10. We can't search his heart. But we can examine the rhetoric: is he appealing to envy and covetousness in you? Note: capitalism wants self-interest to motivate you to get off your butt and work. The rhetoric of class warfare and envy wants you to ask the government to serve you.

I'm for Newt Gingrich in this election. I know that many of my fellow Christians are hesitant to vote for him because of his past infidelities. But here's the thing. He's been faithful to Callista for over a decade. He's publicly repented. We cannot refuse to extend grace lest grace be denied us. He's been faithful to all of his other principles. (I think the consulting thing is BS. Getting paid for advice is not evil. Advising stupid companies is not evil. Frank-Dodd is a much greater evil.)

I've overheard a couple people say that they're voting for Ron Paul "to send a message." What message is that? Is it really what you think it is? Even if he is marginalized and misunderstood, is your message going to get through? Paul seems to be spending more and more time tearing down his fellow candidates than really espousing a message. His main message seems to be: "distrust everyone--except me!" He preaches the Constitution but doesn't teach patriotic love or loyalty. The loyalty of the Ron Paul club is directed towards a person, not principles. What is going to happen to you when he dies?

Foreign policy has become a much greater issue for me in the last year with my brother in the USAF. Paul's isolationist stance leaves our country and our people vulnerable. Do you remember when T.R. sent the "great white fleet" around the world? He intended it as a demonstration of strength, but it turned out to be a goodwill tour and a great marketing event. People thronged to see the ships and welcomed them with joy. We must rebuild our reputation internationally. America has long been a refuge for the nations: the tired, poor, the masses yearning to breathe free. I want her to continue so.