Are You A Faithist?

Okay, so what is a faithist?  Hint:  It's similar to a racist.  And, just as we have, regrettably, racism, we also are plagued by faithism.

Still not clear about faithism and faithists?  Most of us are pretty clear as to what race and racism is.  Nevertheless, most would be hard pressed to actually define "race."  Well isn't it true that the world is divided into the following races: black, white, yellow and red?  Hey, wait, that's not right.  If you have a black father and a white mother, what does that make you.  Well, it depends.  In the U.S. you'd be black, although the expression "mixed race" is beginning to gain acceptance.  In Cuba, you'd be a mulatto, a term in extreme disfavor in the U.S.

At one time Jews were considered to be a separate race; namely, the Semitic race.  Indeed, that's how we arrived at the terms "anti-Semite" and "anti-Semitism."  The word "Semite" came from linguistic jargon and referred to the language spoken by people in the middle east.  It must of necessity have also included Arabs.  But, at the time, when "Semite" was coined, no one had an over-favorable view of the Arab, and the objection was conveniently ignored.  The term served its purpose; namely, as a way of labeling Jews.

But words do have a way of slipping into, and out of disfavor.  People who came from China, Japan, or Korea, were once referred to as "orientals."  Any French major can tell you that "orient" means "east."  For Europeans, people from China, Japan, and Korea from the far east; hence, orientals. We now refer to these people as "Asians."  The Arabs occupy the middle east, and, while I'm not exactly sure who the near easterners are, my guess would be Bulgarians.

But, I've digressed.  Faith is a belief system.  Such systems include Judaism, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Bahaiism, Islam and so on and so forth.  And, there's nothing wrong with faith.  Indeed,  atheism, communism and capitalism can all be viewed as kinds of faith, although there is more in the way of "fact" behind communism and capitalism than there is supporting the other faiths.  But using race or faith as a way of denigrating other races or faiths is wrong.  It is an outrage for White Supremists  to spew their poison regarding people of another race or faith.  This makes them both racists and faithists.  Faithism is simply a form of racism that focuses exclusively on faith.  And, it is wrong.

It is wrong for Egyptians who are Muslims to oppress Copts.  It is wrong for Sunni Muslims to oppress Shiite Muslims.  It is wrong for Catholics to defy the edicts of their Church and continue to argue that Jews murdered Christ.  This sort of behavior is not racist.  It is faithist.  And, no group or faith can lay claim to respectability if it does not deal with the faithists in it's ranks.

The American Budget -- Republicans vs. Democrats

Raise taxes or cut spending, that, it is generally agreed, is the question.  So where do the parties stand?  Here is how I see it:

Republicans -- Republicans are against raising taxes.  Their reasons are as follows:
1. Higher taxes tend to depress the economy.  That ultimately reduces tax revenue and retards job growth.
2. Even if they were to consider higher taxes as a short term fix, they are acutely aware that every time they have gone along with a tax increase, the Democrats, while promising spending cuts, have reneged.  In short, they feel that any concession they might make on taxes will fuel the same old spending that got us in the fix we're now in.

Democrats -- Democrats want to stimulate the economy.  They hope to do this through targeted spending.


The problems facing the parties:

1. The financial pain about to be inflicted on the American public.  Publics nowhere like financial pain.  They don't like it in Italy.  They don't like it in Greece.  They don't like it in Israel.  And, they don't like it in America.  But, ultimately it's coming and it's already started.  The only questions are how much worse is it going to get and how long will it last.

Both the Democrats and the Republicans know this.  And, each is trying to maneuver around it.  The Republicans see the Democrats as being the prime villains.  Both Republicans and Democrats know that the biggest source of today's financial problems have resulted from giving entitlements to the people of America that the people had no way of paying for.

So why did the parties do it?  That's a silly question, because everyone know the answer; to get voter approval and get reelected.  Getting reelected means gaining power and, as most people know, money follows power.  As to the pain that inevitably must follow such irresponsible behavior?  Well if the problem can be kicked down the road and made to fall on another generation, the perpetrators will be off the hook.  It will become someone else's headache.  The trouble for present day politicians is that the road has come to an end.  The few yards left lead to a precipice.

2. The Republicans hope to define themselves as the doctor who will remedy the disease and heal the patient by administering admittedly bitter medicine. By doing this they hope to gain voter approval for their good work.

3. The Democrat's objective is to undermine the Republican's plans and aspirations.  Their strategies include the following:
a. Energize the unions, especially the public sector unions, by pointing out the many ways they will be hurt by the economies the Republicans hope to institute.
b. Undermine the Republican argument for maintaining current tax rates by arguing that the Republicans refuse to consider raising taxes only because they want to protect the "millionaires and billionaires."
c. Argue that by reducing spending the Republicans are denying America the seed money it needs to repair roads and other infrastructure so important to America.
d. Paint the Republicans as being heartless for their cruel cuts to medicine, health insurance, education, and social services.


The issues that get lost as the parties struggle for the hearts and minds of the American public:

Tax reform --  Inequalities will forever find themselves into our tax code, just as we will never be free of foreign enemies, or crime, or corruption.  Iron rusts.  You've simply got to keep scrapping it clean.  Consequently, tax codes, too, must be revisited periodically to keep them fair.  It's not easy.  Both Democrats and Republicans have their sacred cows that demand protection from the tax collector.

Medical reform -- There are two aspects to this issue.  First, since America spends more on healthcare than countries like Canada or England, and since American supposedly offers healthcare of lower quality than these other countries, ways of reducing the cost of American healthcare should be something that's within our ability.  I would further note that some communities in America offer healthcare than other American communities and are able to do this with no impairment in quality of their care.

The other aspect of healthcare has to do with end-of-life issues.  There are illnesses that today are cured by methods and medicines that were unavailable to earlier generations.  And, that's all to the good.  But, what's not possible is being cured of an illness for which a cure might become available some years hence, but for which no cure is presently available.  Money won't change that.

Reform of our educational --  Whether we will ever find our way in our effort to reform our system of
education is a real question.  There are so many voices; educators, administrators, community organizers, mayors, theoreticians at schools of education, and a great number of gadflies many of whom write books, that I wonder whether any real progress is possible.  This also happens to be an area where political correctness has an especially stultifying influence over any hope for progress.  But, we live in hope.



We all know the road is about to fall away.  It's kind of breathtaking to be standing around watching to see how it all ends up.