Family Values? Red States Lead in Divorce, Teen Pregnancy and Online Porn
Lisa Derrick Monday June 29, 2009 10:32 am
There’s been a heap in the news about family values and the GOP. From the New York Times to Theopalinsim.com, the”values” of the Right are called on the carpet (which has some pretty nasty stains). Over at Oxdown, TobyWollin sums it up nicely:
Sorry, guys – in all these cases, we had elected officials who behaved in this way for a very long time and turned what should have been private/personal activities into public issues – AND it might not have been ‘reflective OF’ the GOP but it sure as hell has ‘reflected ON” the party.
And one of the biggest reflections is that you guys are more than enthusiastic about wrapping yourselves in that ‘family values and purity’ flag – but you never, ever are willing to clean your own house or police your own. You are more than ready to dump truckloads of **** on Democrats for their personal peccadilloes – you are more than enthused to go after (and perhaps even aid and abet entrapment – I’m talking to you Roger Stone and Maurice Greenberg vis a vis Elliot Spitzer) anyone who does not agree with you.
What is astounding is the New York Times chart which takes politicians out of the mix and breaks it down into the values that the Right espouses: Anti-divorce, anti-porn and anti-teen sex. Well gosh, even with my admittedly and embarrassingly bad math skills, it’s clear that eight out of the ten states with highest rates in the categories of divorce, teen pregnancy and online porn usage were states where McCain came out ahead in the 2008 election.
Obviously an America with “traditional family values” is a Utopian ideal for some, but one which their party can’t create or enforce–especially when the party has leaders who are just as human as their constituents. Maybe it’s time to take “morality” out of the electoral equation and focus on the Utopian ideals of affordable health care, equal rights, sex education and realistic pregnancy prevention, living wages, and our Constitution.
“Morality” is not inherently bad, it’s just that those who are trying to use it as a weapon don’t think it applies to them.
The private lives of politicians who want to sanctimoniously preach about how much better their morality and religion makes them than other politicians are fair game, as is their religious beliefs and how they intend to let them affect their actions in public life.
Hypocrisy is never off-limits.∠°)
You can’t. People vote based on a huge variation of reasons and try as you might you can’t deny them those reasons..
Clinton did. Obama did.
Why not? It’s been taken out of society anyway. I don’t care who is screwing who, but the hypocrisy is nauseating.
we are moving from morality to necessity when it comes to government.
Liberals would like that, wouldn’t they.
I would never trust anybody for anyone reason who would cheat on his wife and kids. Why would anybody? They are dishonorable and liars. When a matter becomes public it is absolute, without a doubt, proof that the individual can not be trusted about anything. No such person should ever hold office.
Oh, they are human, just like the rest of us? Maybe so, but that doesn’t mean they should ever be trusted with determining the fate of millions of people.
People vote on that spin so it’s important for politicians to exploit that where possible. It’s POLITICS, the ethical and moral boundaries don’t apply the same way.
A wise and informed voter knows that politicians will play any angle for power, and ACTUAL morality doesn’t figure in the real plan. Expediency and the right pitch are the keys to gaining power.
To a degree all politicians are that way because they can get votes. Doesn’t matter how, so long as they pick a platform that appears popular.
Now just wait… the Hard Core Republicans on yahoo answers will smear you and do nothing but bash Democrats and Liberals, because it’s all their fault and Republicans never do anything wrong…. ya right.
In the end there is rock bottom slime on both sides. What does it say about those to passionately deny it in their party?
Remember, you don’t have to be right, you don’t have to be moral. You don’t even have to be honest. As a politician you just have to get votes.
You’re right. That’s why I’m voting for future President Executron in the 2012 election. I mean, heaven forbid our leaders are human and show their humanity from time to time.
You know Matt A, your assertion that Obama probably won 10 out of the 10 states with the highest abortion rates prompted me to look that up, and I guess he did! I was originally looking for something that might refute your statement but to be fair you were right.
Leading abortion states in the age group of girls 15 – 19 (pregnancies per thousand)
1. New Jersey (47)
2. New York (46)
3. Maryland (38)
4. Nevada (36)
5. California (36)
6. Hawaii (34)
7. Florida (33)
8. Delaware (31)
9. Connecticut (30)
10. Illinois (27)
In general, all elected officials in the US are liars and pigs. They have their own personal agenda and the rest of us can go to hell for all they care. There is no morality here at all. They are scumbuckets, every one, from Obama on down.
We have an immoral liar in the white house right now, how is that working out 2 trillion and a ton of broken promises later. Whats wrong with holding elected officials up to a higher standard? I bet Obama won 10 out of 10 of the states with the highest rate of abortion. I don’t know how they record teen pregnancy statistics in states where the teen can have their baby killed without notifying anyone. You have to get married to get divorced. Those numbers mean nothing.
Really no broken promises? I will have transparency, bills will be viewed 5 days on a website before voted on, now they are edited and voted on before they are read. I will have no lobbyists, he has lobbyists. I will not raise taxes on anyone makeing under enter number here. He raised cigarette taxes on everyone reguardless of income. I will end the war, he is still fighting two wars. he will be bi partison, he is the most partison president in us history. He will reform ear marks, then he passed porkulous.
Well said. The only answer I can think of is that no political party can stake a claim to these types of morals. The loudest, most obnoxious Republicans that I have been around also happened to be the most hypocritical. So the GOP is definitely not fooling too many people with that rhetoric anymore, as was reflected in the last national election. When someone is self righteous, and high and mighty you can not convince them of the thorn in their own eye. They just have to hit rock bottom on their own, and be ignored in the process.
Matt A…. What broken promises, he’s been in office 5 months? In that time he at least has the ball rolling on almost every campaign promise he made, even with typical GOP obstructionism in the Senate. Stop listening to Rush. That guy just repeats fabricated extreme right OPINIONS not facts, over and over, until you, the CEO of Illegal Immigrant Plumbing Inc. have his words emblazened in your mind. I ask you for one day to turn your radio off & think for yourself. You might realize a mind of your own.
LMAO! Who gives a **** about a cigarette tax increase. That is a tax that you have a choice about paying. I see so you call progress, pork, ok everybody has a different name for it. What about the NASCAR pork added to the first stimulus bill by the Senate Republicans. We are exiting Iraq right now in order to strengthen our efforts in Afghanistan, which is where the bad guys have been all along! So Iraq is ending, where is the other war? And since when did the sabre rattling GOP have a problem with war. You guys can’t stand it that the leader of this country is a Democrat that protects our nation as well as any war mongering Republican. Just because he’s a Democrat doesn’t mean he’ll take crap from North Korea, Iran, Al Qaeda, Russia, Venezuela, or any body else. With the exception of China, because they now own our country through the loans given to “W” while he ran our country into the ground.
Dear god I wish we could.
For one thing, I don’t require “morality” out of my politicians. If they are smart and get the job done, I could care less what church they go to or who they sleep with honestly.
And for another thing, look at the nutjobs who get to dictate the “morality” of this country. A bunch of lying hypocrite religious wackjobs cashing in on all they can.
No. Show all the stats you want. There’s still not a better character indicator than morality. Republicans absolutely do clean our own house. Your source is therefore bunk. It is liberals who don’t care about morality, yet are quick to judge Republicans for mistakes.
Adultery is still legal grounds for divorce in every state, as far as I know. So no, society has not “thrown it out.”
It’s like this because we don’t have a justice system. If we impaled and burnt half the justices in this country at the stake the other half would throw the stupid golf clubs in the garbage and do some justice for a change.
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