Claimwire's First Year! (+playlist)

If someone were to ask me if I follow politics, I would say definitely. However, there are days when I can't stand politics and I get so sick and tired of politicians I can hardly hold down my dinner. I decided for this blog post to state my opinion on a few issues, as well as a few people associated with politics.

President Obama:

I thought it was pretty amazing and cool that our country elected an African American. Unfortunately, instead of making history for great accomplishments, Obama is making history as the worst president our country has ever had. He is selfish and deceitful. He is trampling the constitution under his feet. When he said he would fundamentally change America, he wasn't kidding.  Unfortunately for us, the changes he wants are not American at all -  he is destroying our traditional ways, and trying to degrade our country into just another European socialist territory.  The "hope and change" I'm praying for is for him to get his keister kicked out of office in November 2012. 

Sean Hannity:

This is a tough one, because idealogically, I am in the same camp with Sean on pretty much every issue. I like his TV show better than his radio program, probably because he has some good guests and it's not just 3 hours of him. I like Sean, but he's a whiner. He always brings up the same points - points I almost always agree with, but come on Sean, you don't have to beat every single issue to death. Also, I've noticed Sean essentially repeating what Rush says quite a bit. Of course, so would I if I had a radio show, so I can't fault him too much for that. In short, I like Sean quite a bit, but I can't listen to him too much.

Immigration:

Wow, this is a tough one! I lived in Honduras for a couple of years as a Mormon missionary. I know what conditions most of the Latin American people live in; they are awful! Dirt floors, no plumbing, no healthcare, corrupt government (oh wait, we have that here!), and so on. I think every American with an honest heart would have to say that if he or she were under the same circumstances they would do the same thing - they would come to the United States. I feel for them, and am compassionate toward them.

On the other hand, they are breaking the law. We can't just ignore that. Laws are established to help ALL people - even those who break them. Think about that for a minute. I do have compassion for the Latino people, and want them to have the same benefits and opportunities I have in my life, but I believe in obeying and supporting the laws of the land.

I think the resolution to this problem is two-fold: First, we MUST secure our borders. Until we solve the problem of people coming into our country illegally, we will never be able to solve anything else. Second, we ought to provide a reasonable way for those people who are already here to become citizens. However, there ought to be some sort of process they have to go through - not just a sweeping amnesty. They ought to earn the right to be citizens. I think performing a certain number of hours of community service, learning the basics of our nation's history and governmental processes, satisfying an english proficiency test, and things like that, should be done. It is human nature to appreciate those things we work for - which means to me, that for those Latinos who want to make a life here in the U.S. and want to be good, upstanding, contributors to our society, they should work to earn that right.  

Religion and Politics:

This is a fairly hot topic these days, thanks to Romney and Huntsman getting into the Presidential race. My personal opinion is that religion does play a role in politics. I believe that religious people are better prepared and more capable of leading in the right way. For example, a person who is religious generally believes in a greater good, and that he or she is not the center of the universe. Religious people generally believe in principles such as honesty, loyalty, fidelity, and compassion.

In the political arena, I don't think the particular religion a person belongs to, or adheres to is important. But, I do think that living ones life in a religious way is important.

Be the Real You...always

I have a hard time understanding some people, and want to say a few things about a particular area that's hard for me. That is: why do some people act differently, or treat people differently depending on where they are?

Take John Jones, for example. Now the John Jones I'm talking about is NOT a real person. It's just a name I picked for our example. John is active in his faith. He attends church on a regular basis, and even participates by helping the youth groups in his congregation. On Sundays, you will see John sitting in the pews and reading from the Good Book. By all appearances, John is a great guy.

Then Monday comes, and John sits in a strategy meeting with the top people from his company. They are trying to figure out a way to beat their best competition. One of the people in the meeting says he has a friend who works at the competitor, and that if this friend happens to receive a nice vacation with his family in Hawaii (all expenses paid), that he would provide some extremely valuable information that would help John's company get the upper hand. John and the others talk about how valuable that would be to their ability to compete, and they decide to go forward with the plan. John leaves the meeting with a feeling of euphoria. "Finally," he thinks to himself, "this could be the break we've been looking for to beat those SOBs."

Do you see the inconsistency between Sunday and Monday? Why does that happen? I just don't understand the ability some people have to turn their religion, their faith, their core values, on and off as easily as a light switch.

I recently experienced this myself. One of these days I'll give you the details, for now I will just say that I've experienced a Monday morning John Jones. I was stunned - maybe I'm just naive, or just plain stupid. I don't know, but I don't get it.

In my mind, stuff like that is just plain wrong. Call me old-fashioned, behind-the-times, out-of-it, or whatever else you want.

I believe that a person should be the same in every situation they find themselves in. Work, home, church, on the beach, in the Boardroom, in their hotel room, or speaking from the pulpit. Shouldn't matter....

I realize we all make mistakes and do things we regret. That's part of life, and recognizing those times and doing something about them - trying to avoid them in the future - is how we become better people.

So that's it for today. My wish for humanity today is simple - be real, be who you are no matter who that is, and no matter where you are. Just be real.

My First Entry - Who I am...

My name is Steve. I'm starting this blog to express my views and opinions on things. I just feel that there aren't enough people with traditional, Christian values making their voices heard. I'm traditional and I'm Christian, and I'm making my voice be heard.

I will just tell you up-front that I have very conservative social views.

I'm not here to judge others, I'm just trying to express my OWN views.

The title of my blog is "My Mormon View," but I want to make it very clear that I do not represent the Mormon Church in any way, shape, matter, or form. I am NOT a Church spokesman. I'm an active member, period. I named my blog like I did because I wanted people to know up-front where I'm coming from, and my religion is a directing force in my life.

It may or may not matter to you, but I think I should tell you a few things about myself in order to put my opinions in context.

• I'm 47 years old.
• I've been married to my amazing wife for 26 years.
• We have five daughters, four of them are married.
• We have four grandchildren - two girls and two boys.
• My ancestors come from Switzerland and other European countries. They came to the United States in the 1860s after joining the Mormon Faith.
• I've spent most of my career in the software industry; mostly in sales.
• I founded a software company, which I later sold.
• My political views are conservative. I'm registered as a Republican, but I'm seriously thinking about switching to Independent. Frankly, I'm pretty tired of all politicians. It makes me sick what is happening in politics. We now have self-promoting grand-standers, instead of servants of the people. I have voted for a few Democrats, but I'll be honest, I can count them on one hand.
• The politician I most admire, at least in recent US history, is President Reagan.
• The politician I most disagree with is President Obama. I'm sure I'll express more on this in future blogs.
• I consider myself very religious. I appreciate people of all religions and am grateful for people all over the world who believe in a Higher Being, and try to live their lives accordingly.
• I do not consider myself better than other people; I don't have a holier than thou perspective on life. I do, however, feel very strongly about certain things in life. I also respect other's opinions and their right to feel strongly about those opinions.

That's probably enough for now. Any more and I'll lose even the most ardent readers. So, welcome to my blog. I hope you find it interesting. You are welcome to comment, but I ask you to be respectful.

Have a good day,

Steve