I cited Nathan Newman yesterday and I’m doing it again–he’s one of the most underlinked bloggers on the net.
What’s remarkable about some of the blog and other reactions is that folks seem to be talking about every policy other than the one Obama himself seemed to emphasize for change, which is progressive opposition to allowing prayer in public institutions. Opposition to prayer and other expressions of faith in public institutions is hardly a fringe position on the left– it was decided by Supreme Court Justices and supported by liberal opinion editors for most of the last four decades.
Obama did not suggest changing progressive positions on abortion.
Obama did not suggest changing progressive positions on gay rights.He suggested changing progressive positions on expressions of faith within public institutions such as schools.
I slightly disagree on the prayer issue–voluntary prayer has been pretty consistently backed by a pretty wide array of progressives especially with the passing of equal access to public facilities laws regardless of faith. That’s a small quibble though.
Our failure as progressives to tap into the moral underpinnings of the nation is not just rhetorical, though. Our fear of getting ?preachy? may also lead us to discount the role that values and culture play in some of our most urgent social problems.
After all, the problems of poverty and racism, the uninsured and the unemployed, are not simply technical problems in search of the perfect ten point plan. They are rooted in both societal indifference and individual callousness ? in the imperfections of man.
Solving these problems will require changes in government policy, but it will also require changes in hearts and a change in minds. I believe in keeping guns out of our inner cities, and that our leaders must say so in the face of the gun manufacturers? lobby ? but I also believe that when a gang-banger shoots indiscriminately into a crowd because he feels somebody disrespected him, we?ve got a moral problem. There?s a hole in that young man?s heart ? a hole that the government alone cannot fix.
I believe in vigorous enforcement of our non-discrimination laws. But I also believe that a transformation of conscience and a genuine commitment to diversity on the part of the nation?s CEOs could bring about quicker results than a battalion of lawyers. They have more lawyers than us anyway.
I think that we should put more of our tax dollars into educating poor girls and boys. I think that the work that Marian Wright Edelman has done all her life is absolutely how we should prioritize our resources in the wealthiest nation on earth. I also think that we should give them the information about contraception that can prevent unwanted pregnancies, lower abortion rates, and help assure that that every child is loved and cherished.
But, you know, my Bible tells me that if we train a child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not turn from it. So I think faith and guidance can help fortify a young woman?s sense of self, a young man?s sense of responsibility, and a sense of reverence that all young people should have for the act of sexual intimacy.
It seems to me the media coverage missed his point that the stereotype is wrong and he can support his positions based on his Christianity. Go figure, the Washington Post cannot cover a religious story or a politicsl story well, they can’t cover a combined story any better.