A conservative's surprising (to me) viewpoint

David Frum is a former speechwriter for George Bush. I found this article on his website today, highly critical of some of his fellow conservatives. From what I read, he's probably right that the Health Care Reform bill in its final version is fairly close to some previous Republican versions, but I don't have any comments about the remainder of his blog, except . . .

I have to say AMEN to his comments about the "conservative entertainment industry."

What do you think about his comments?

Waterloo by David Frum

National Catholic Reporter Backs Health Care Reform

As most of you know, I'm not Catholic, but I have been impressed by the number of Catholic organizations who have made statements in support of health care reform the past few days. I may get this wrong, but I believe an organization of Catholic hospitals, Catholic nuns and another group of Catholic leaders have looked past the rhetoric, studied what is actually being proposed and made a coherent and informed public statement about their stance.

Here's a link to the National Catholic Reporter's statement.

Facts on Health Care Reform

Our ongoing debate on health care reform has been energetic, passionate, illogical, false, irritating, scary -- and a few other adjectives I could think of . . .

It has not been our finest hour.

In an effort to inject some facts into the debate, here's a link to the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Energy and Commerce, which prepared a fact sheet for each Congressional district. Check it out to see what the impact might be in your community.

JoAnn

For the Seriously Faithful, Choosing Resistance . . .

For the Seriously Faithful, Choosing Resistance as an Organizing Principle (and becoming Glenn Beck's worst nightmare??

I came across this article by the Rev. Peter Laarman, executive director of Progressive Christians Uniting, on Huffington Post today. I'm including it on the Encouraging Civil Discourse blog, because of a couple of coincidental conversations I had recently: (a) Twice this weekend, someone voiced the opinion that there are a lot of similarities between the United States today and mid-1930's Germany, and, of course, (b) the ongoing discussion about Glenn Beck's attack (or perceived attack) on churches who practice social justice as part of their faith.

I was especially intrigued about the idea of a "Safe Space in Tough Times." This seems like a simple idea that many could adopt, not just religious organizations. Would anyone be willing to approach their church, business, school or civic organization about beginning such a program?

Encouraging Civil Discourse

Civil Discourse

It will be a surprise to some that I spend time every day reading political websites and blogs – from all sides of the political spectrum. I believe that being informed is the first responsibility of a citizen and to me that means getting the facts and understanding-- or at least attempting to understand -- all viewpoints on an issue. (Understanding does not mean you agree.)

I have become increasingly concerned about the lack of “civil discourse” on these sites. The comments – and sometimes the blogs or articles – are filled with disrespect, misinformation, hatred, name calling and an absolute refusal to even try to understand an opposing viewpoint – and that statement applies to BOTH sides. This is not “civil discourse.”

At the same time, our country is facing major challenges that will only be solved with civil discourse that results in solutions to those problems. “My way or the highway” does not work – there must be a coming together to develop useful solutions.

So I’m stepping outside of my comfort zone to start a series of posts Encouraging Civil Discourse. I will be posting statements or links to articles from all sides of the political spectrum that make me think -- even if I disagree. If you want to read them, great. If you want to ignore them, that's okay. You may comment, as long as it is respectful and helpful to developing civil discourse. What I would hope is that you share with others -- both the posts and your own willingness to try to understand differing opinions -- and that we have some interesting and informative discussions.

This is not an attempt to push my viewpoint onto anyone else or to support a particular party or movement. This is my simple way to encourage civil discourse about issues and to encourage you to start your own civil discourse with family, friends – and strangers.

It can only make us stronger.