A Question of Conscience. By Eric Smith

To be opposed to the Republican Party today is more than just a matter of principle; it is a question of conscience or more specifically whether or not one has a conscience.. This decision to oppose or support the Republican Party is therefore ultimately a moral issue. It is to quote President Kennedy a "moral issue as clear as the Scriptures and as clear as the Constitution. The heart of the matter is whether or not all Americans are entitled to equal right & equal opportunities. Whether or not we will treat others as we wish to be treated; as we wish our children to be treated."

"We therefore," to further quote the president. "Face a moral crisis in this country" and that my friends gets to the heart not only of who we are as a nation but who we are as an individual. So it is right to ask how, if a one is pained at the sight of a hungry child, how can they support a party that would deny that child food to eat? If one loves their mother, daughter, sister or niece, how can one support a party which believes in state sanctioned rape through mandatory ultrasounds & other invasive procedures for those women who become pregnant? If one loves their mother, daughter, sister, or niece, how can one support a party that believes that she is not entitled to earn the same pay for the same work that a man earns who does the same job because she happens to be a woman?

If one is pained by America's shameful legacy of slavery, segregation, and Judge Lynch, how can one then support a party that denies the vote of the descendants of these atrocities because of the color of their skin and how can we deny the survivors of these terrible times their right to the ballot; a right that was earned through great personal sacrifice on their part and the wanton slaughter & brutality of their family members and friends? If one believes that love is transcendent then how can one support a party that believes in denying one the right to marry the person of their choice because it does not believe that their sexual orientation is valid, and if one is pained by the sight of the sick & the suffering then how can one support a party that would deny them healing & life sustaining health care?

Again this all ultimately comes down to a question of conscience. You cannot truthfully say that you are a kind person, a compassionate person, an empathetic person, and a loving person, if you support a political party and people who preach, practice, and support policies which do the exact opposite. It doesn't work that way. To feel compassionate, empathetic, kind, and loving, mean absolutely nothing if you support a political party that practices cruelty & selfishness for by supporting this party, the Republican Party, you are helping to make America into a nation that is those very things you claim to hate; an America that cares not for the plight of a hungry child, an America where it is okay for a woman to be subjected to the violation of her body that is state sanctioned rape, to the person of color who is denied their right to vote because their skin is dark, and the gay person who is denied their fundamental right to marry the person of their choice.

In short, if you have a conscience, if you believe in an America that is compassionate, kind, and just then you simply cannot support the Republican Party today because the Republican Party of today stands for, preaches, and practices, the exact opposite of all of these things all these things you say you are not and all these things you swear to be against.