[AngryGerbil]

I was thinking about this Terri Schaivo case and it seems to me that it is an opportunity to identify the real threat to the freedoms provided by this country, the religious right.

To me, the most seductive aspect of the Republican party is their supposed advocacy of "small government". Now, I don't always agree with it, for instance, I DO think there should be a social medicine program, but generally speaking I do see where they are comming from and alot of times I even agree with it. Now whether or not they actually practice it as a party is still up in the air, but that's not really what I'm getting at. That being said, their most repulsive aspect is truly their tendency to placte some of their base voters by constantly referring to the bible in the case of civil matters. As much sense as alot of their "small government" talk may make to me, I simply cannot vote for these people while they still think their personal religious beliefs have any business being in the federal government. But anyway...

I've read alot of opinion pieces on this Schaivo case from average citizens. It seems to me that most people are in agreement that the federal government is way out of line by interjecting themselves in a personal family matter. Alot of people simply say "the feds are out of line, case closed." But alot of people say this and also preface it by stating that they have been supporters of the Republican party for years on the basis of thier supposed advocacy of small government and that they are ashamed of what their party is doing in this case. Then you have the Democrat people who say the same thing but also bring God into the equation by saying something like "Even Mrs. Shaivo's personal beliefs on this is between her and her God, the state still has no say in it."

Then you have the true wackos. The ones who praise Bush for signing the bill to make this a federal case. They praise him as an advocate of life and as an instrument of God, as if they even knew what God wanted in the first place. And, it appears to me that Bush is just basking in this "err on the side of life" praise from some of his basest constituents.

This is an opportunity for the rest of us to identify which kind of Republican you are. Are you the political "small government, big business" type of Republican? Or are you a ten-commandments-in-the-courthouse "American (read: Christian) Values" type of Republican (read: Theocrats). If it wasn't for the Republican party currently having a theocrat as their commander in chief, I think this would be an opportunity for them to seperate themselves from the religious wingnuts and possibly shed some of their supposed affiliations to said wingnuts. If they were to manage that, they may once again be able to hold my ear in a political debate. Return the wingnuts back into their little splinter cells, whig parties and cult compounds, get them out of the Republican party, and let the business of true constitutional politics continue in this country. Unfortunately, this cannot happen while Bush is in office because he is one of them.

Alot of people are showing their true colors when voicing their opinions on this case. My sister went beserk when Bush was re-elected, talking mad shit about how she doesn't even want to live here anymore and stuff. I tried to calm her down by reminding her of the political pendulum and how it always has and always will swing back and forth. The right wing currently has the pendulum on their side. They have the power. But I promised her that the American people have historically been able to sense when the pendulum has swung too far and they will push it back the other way. I reminded her that although the right wing may have the power now, that eventually they will go too far and the american people will balk and check them. I see this as an example of that happening. Most people agree, the Bushs' and the right wing controlled federal government have gone too far here.

With any luck W. will do something equally retarded again soon and we'll start to see the pendulum swing back the other way.