News Is Rick Santorum's Religious Extremism a Deal Breaker for Voters?

[Char. Limit]

I'll be honest, here's my views: I can't vote for Santorum. His anti-gay, anti-abortion, rabid evangelical views are sure to turn me off even before I get to the fact that he urges the teaching of creationism in public schools. There is no way I'd ever vote for someone like this.

 

[Jack21222]

Santorum is acting like a contortionist twisting Obama's words on education.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/01/07/santorum-obamas-education-stance-is-snobbery/

Here is Obama's comment:

Obama has repeatedly said he wants the United States to have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020. Earlier this year, while announcing plans to reform "No Child Left Behind," Obama also said he intends for every student to graduate "career and college ready."

Here is Santorum's response:

"The hubris of this president to think that he knows what's best for you [...] This is the kind of snobbery that we see from those that think they know how to run our lives," the former Pennsylvania senator said in a forum at St. Anselm's New Hampshire Institute of Politics.

It goes on with Santorum claiming that Obama said he wants every child to GO to college. All Obama said is that he wants every child to be READY to go to college if they so choose, or a career if they so choose. In any case, Santorum believes that giving our kids a proper high school education is "snobbery."

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

This is funny. Santorum's family back in the old country are communists.

Not that there's anything wrong with it.

 

[ThomasT]

This is funny. Santorum's family back in the old country are communists.

Not that there's anything wrong with it.

That is funny ... especially if true.

 

[turbo]

Apparently, it is.

 

[ThomasT]

Apparently, it is.

Whatever. As far as I'm concerned, Santorum is an extremist religious geek who should be selling hamburgers at McDonalds. (Not that they filter for extremist religious geeks in their hiring practices, but I'm supposing that there's less chance of an extremist religious geek spitting on my hamburger than a wannabe gangsta.)

 

[mathwonk]

Out and out bigots always have a good chance to win a few contests, but hopefully not the big one.

 

[ThomasT]

Out and out bigots always have a good chance to win a few contests, but hopefully not the big one.

I don't think that geeky extremist religious fanaticism implies out and out bigotry. Unless it does. In which case, that's what I think. But I'm not sure.

 

[daveb]

I don't think that geeky extremist religious fanaticism implies out and out bigotry. Unless it does. In which case, that's what I think. But I'm not sure.

I would agree. Believe anything you want, but I don't consider it bigotry. Acting on it is bigotry (imo).

 

[mathwonk]

Gee, I guess I already said this about rick santorum. but i am attracted here again today on MLK's birthday. I marched in montgomery with MLK and saw the confederate flag flying over the statehouse in montgomery alabama in 1965. I was threatened by bigoted scum in birmingham on my way home. I never forgot it.

Just few years ago we had another march here in Georgia when it was publicized that we had a county here which had not allowed black residents for about 100 years. The lady I rented from in Decatur in 1984 confided to me when we moved, and a black couple viewed the house, that she was afraid renting to them would upset the white people across the street. Today I am embarrassed that I did not inform the authorities, or at least the black couple, of that conversation.

to me rick santorum is an out and out total bigot, and it embarrasses and scares me that this kind of creepy person can be seriously considered as a candidate for president of the USA in 2012. There is nothing religious about denying rights to citizens. Jesus was not a bigot, he consorted with everyone, and sinners more than self righteous people.

By the way Herman Cain is about as bad as a candidate. The republican party is currently a ridiculous joke, reaching out for anyone, no matter how ludicrously unqualified, to be an opponent to the current democratic president.

I won't even discuss Newt.

 

[russ_watters]

Can you say why you think he's a bigot?

 

[Number Nine]

Can you say why you think he's a bigot?

I would imagine that mathwonk is referring to Santorum's open disgust with gay people, and his habit of attributing sensational danger to them as a social group (for instance, it's become fashionable among a number of figures within the religious right, and a number of candidates, to suggest that gays are in some way responsible for the current economic crisis).

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

I'm not quoting this to criticize Santorum, but to criticize Yahoo.com which seems to be on a mission. Nearly double? Does this mean he's going to get nearly 200% of the votes? You can read the entire article in a few seconds. It shows an amazing lack of depth.

Santorum immediately enjoyed a small but significant boost in the prediction markets, nearly doubling his chance of winning the South Carolina Republican primary next Saturday from about 2.5 percent to almost 6 percent.

Yahoo.com

 

[ThomasT]

I'm not quoting this to criticize Santorum, but to criticize Yahoo.com which seems to be on a mission. Nearly double? Does this mean he's going to get nearly 200% of the votes? You can read the entire article in a few seconds. It shows an amazing lack of depth.

Yahoo.com

I agree with your assessment, except that I'd substitute something like 'ridiculous' for 'amazing' (wrt the lack of depth). Basically saying the same thing, but in a more pejorative way.

 

[ThomasT]

I would imagine that mathwonk is referring to Santorum's open disgust with gay people, and his habit of attributing sensational danger to them as a social group (for instance, it's become fashionable among a number of figures within the religious right, and a number of candidates, to suggest that gays are in some way responsible for the current economic crisis).

In that case then, yes, it would seem that geeky extremist religious fanaticism does imply out and out bigotry.

 

[turbo]

Santorum wants to deny abortion rights in all cases. He says that rape-victims should just get over it and make the best of it. What a monster.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Santorum wants to deny abortion rights in all cases. He says that rape-victims should just get over it and make the best of it. What a monster.

link?

 

[Evo]

link?

He's also against contraception and pre-marital sex.

Rick Santorum On Opposition To Abortion In Cases Of Rape: 'Make The Best Out Of A Bad Situation'

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/23/rick-santorum-abortion-rape_n_1224624.html

 

[turbo]

Thanks, Evo. I thought that would have been all over the net, but should have linked it.

Sorry, Greg. Rules are rules, and especially in the political vein, I should have been more meticulous.

 

[russ_watters]

You still haven't substantiated the "just get over it" part.

And everyone is entitled to their opinion, but calling him a "monster" for saying people should make the best of a bad situation seems pretty far out there to me.

 

[turbo]

Does this satisfy you?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2091170/Rick-Santorum-Rape-victims-gift-baby-pregnant.html

'And so to embrace her and to love her and to support her and get her through this very difficult time, I've always, you know, I believe and I think the right approach is to accept this horribly created - in the sense of rape - but nevertheless a gift in a very broken way, the gift of human life, and accept what God has given to you.
'As you know, we have to, in lots of different aspects of our life we have horrible things happen. I can't think of anything more horrible, but nevertheless, we have to make the best out of a bad situation and I would make the argument that that is making the best.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...victims-gift-baby-pregnant.html#ixzz1kUmBd1Ls

 

[russ_watters]

No, it doesn't. He didn't say it, did he?

 

[turbo]

Here your go: from a Christian site.

http://www.christianpost.com/news/s...est-of-a-bad-situation-and-choose-life-67816/

 

[russ_watters]

Are you being purposely dense? You're completely ignoring what it is you need to substantiate. Again:

1. You: "He says...make the best of it."
Santorum: "make the best of a bad situation"
Conclusion: Close enough to an exact quote (you didn't use quotes - you paraphrased).

2. You: "He says...just get over it"
Santorum: ...?
Conclusion: You need to substantiate that Santorum said something approaching "just get over it".

Re-linking the first quote over and over again does not substantiate the second one!

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

Mighty thin if you ask me.

 

[ThomasT]

Santorum is, clearly enough, imho, a geeky extremist religious fanatic bigot. Which, minus the geekiness, is, afaik, and wrt my personal experience, pretty much the norm in some regions of the US.

I grew up in a time and place where extremist religious fanatical bigotry was the status quo. It was what laws were based on.

It makes me a bit sad that the US still produces Rick Santorums by the millions. But I wouldn't call them monsters. Just victims of a certain socialization. That is, I think that people, like Santorum, who hold extremist religious fanatical bigoted views, aren't, just because they hold those views, psychopaths or sociopaths or in any way bad people.

But because Santorum holds the views that he does he can't, imho, be considered a serious contender for the highest administrative office in the country.

 

[lisab]

Santorum is, clearly enough, imho, a geeky extremist religious fanatic bigot. Which, minus the geekiness, is, afaik, and wrt my personal experience, pretty much the norm in some regions of the US.

I grew up in a time and place where extremist religious fanatical bigotry was the status quo. It was what laws were based on.

It makes me a bit sad that the US still produces Rick Santorums by the millions. But I wouldn't call them monsters. Just victims of a certain socialization. That is, I think that people, like Santorum, who hold extremist religious fanatical bigoted views, aren't, just because they hold those views, psychopaths or sociopaths or in any way bad people.

But because Santorum holds the views that he does he can't, imho, be considered a serious contender for the highest administrative office in the country.

I agree, I don't think he's an evil person, and I don't think he is personally a monster.

But forced pregnancies are as appalling as forced abortions - I put both of those actions in the "monstrous" category.

 

[Evo]

But forced pregnancies are as appalling as forced abortions - I put both of those actions in the "monstrous" category.

AFAIK, no pregnant women are being abducted and given abortions against their will.

 

[ThomasT]

AFAIK, no pregnant women are being abducted and given abortions against their will.

Afaik, I think you're right. But I think that lisab was just making a point. Wrt which I agree ... except for the "monstrous" characterization. I think that 'misguided' or 'ignorant' or some such characterization would be more correct. Religious zealots, bigots, etc., aren't, imho, monsters. They're just ignorant, somewhat backward. There's no crime wrt that. They are, as are we all, simply products of their socialization. Some of us have been fortunate enough to have had a wider range of influences than others, and therefore have a wider, and maybe deeper, view of things.

 

[Evo]

Afaik, I think you're right. But I think that lisab was just making a point. Wrt which I agree.

Me too. Just wanted to make sure no one got the impression that abortions were forced.