How long before America becomes a Theocracy?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Wildkow @ Sep 5 2007, 09:57 PM) [snapback]507688[/snapback]</div>

Re: this and hyo's comment -

I have to say, I had the dirty thought that you would be someone who would love to see your religious beliefs incorporated rigidly into our government. I'm relieved to see that you think it would be a dangerous situation, and I'm sorry for making that assumption. I've seen you support positions that (I believe) work at tearing down that Religion/State wall, but I've managed to miss posts where you are this defensive of that separation. I'm glad I caught this one.

In actual response - what are your throughts behind the above statement? Do you really feel like the reason God hasn't instituted a global theocracy is because it wouldn't *make sense* for him to do that, having given us free will? I may have read that tone into your comment - you might have been getting at this next point.

I rather like the idea (especially its greeky origins) the founding fathers subscribed to - that one of the biggest reasons to separate church from government was to allow our free will to mean something. While they may (or in some cases, may not) have been convinced that their religious way of life was the 'right' one, they didn't think that there was any virtue to be found in being legally required to act in accordance with those beliefs. To them, to be moral meant to make the 'right' choice when presented with alternatives - without choices to make, a person who does no wrong is merely obedient. Obedience might be an important value, but to them, you could not claim morality simply by being well-trained.

Liberty, the parent of virtue, is the idol of my soul too. Wish I could remember who phrased it so well the first time around.

 

God I hope this never happens.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tripp @ Sep 5 2007, 10:51 PM) [snapback]507731[/snapback]</div>

Maybe when there is only one man left standing. Then again, I might be of two minds on this...

Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Wildkow @ Sep 6 2007, 12:17 PM) [snapback]508012[/snapback]</div>

Seems like that's what we've got (and have had for 6 years) now. Except the "tax" part. We've got a very good spender in office now. I think (and hope) that most voters are getting forced into the middle by what's going on here (including our foreign policy in that, of course). I know many republicans who are fed up with the GOP and the way they're conducting themselves. They also don't particularly care for the dems. I'm certainly in that camp and I know many, many people who are there as well. The latest round of voting here in CO suggests that there a loads of people here who feel the same way. I see this as a good thing. Extremes don't work. They never have and they never will. The center is where it's at. Balance grasshoppa and all that. Frankly, I think most people are sick of the partisan politics. Unless we can return to a less contentious state I think we'll end up with a shite-ocracy. We're pretty damn close to that now and BOTH parties (and their extremist supporters) are to blame.