Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Can You Vote Against a Muslim?

There has been a lot of conversation recently in different news sources (talk radio, newspapers, TV, etc) regarding Senator Obama’s possible Muslim upbringing. On one message board I read, one of the users was afraid of being called racist for pointing the story out. This led me to a question: Is it acceptable for a voter to vote against a candidate because they are Muslim?

Mitt Romney is probably going to run for the Republican nomination. He is a Mormon and I have heard people say they can not vote for him because he is a Mormon. I have heard many people say they can’t vote for certain candidates because they are Christian, or in some cases, simply believe in God. There is even a book now that argues that anyone of faith should not be allowed in politics. In my eyes, many in the media are more sensitive of offending Muslims than of offending Christians. Without naming any candidates, I want to look at a made up example.

“Candidate X” is running for the Presidential nomination in his party. This candidate has an assortment of platforms. Some of them are in line with his party, some of them are not. He is a Muslim. He also doesn’t hide the fact. In many of his public appearances he thanks Allah for guiding him to this point in time. For the sake of argument, let’s say that you agree with many of Candidate X’s positions. With all else being equal, would you vote for someone else simply because this candidate is Muslim? What if your neighbor encouraged you to vote against this Muslim Candidate?

At the end of the day, you can vote for or against someone for any reason (right or wrong) that you want. One of the beauties of our system is that your vote is between you and the voting machine. No one else knows what it is unless you want them to know. However, in your opinion is it acceptable for someone to vote against a candidate because they are Muslim?

2 comments:

G_in_AL said...

Andy, I visited my blog and saw your comment. You're free to be a guest poster on mine if you choose.

let me know via a comment on my bible blog (gsumcbibleblog.blogspot.com) since I physically monitor my comments there.

If you're getting yours going and dont have time... TRUST ME.. I understand.

Either way, thanks for the invite.

Anonymous said...

I think that it is important for everyone to feel represented when voting. Which Person would best represent them, who has the same morals and ideas? If I feel that a Muslim, Jew, Mormon, or even a Christian, does not have the same morals or ideals as me, I will not vote for them. I do not feel that Mormons have the same morals as I do, and I don't believe they would properly represent me, so I would not vote for a Mormon, same with Muslims... unless the can show me otherwise.