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No, I am neither Dem nor Rep

 I am neither a democrat or a republican.

I base my politics on the ideals and ideas of two Americans .. Jefferson and King. They defined .. for me .. America in terms of opportunity.  I judge political ideas by whether they promote equal opportunity for Americans but also for all humans.

I also use moral criteria. These largely come from the twin Jewish concepts to mitzvot and teshuvah.

Neither term translates well but mitzvot are close to natural laws described by Jefferson but with deep roots ranging through Confuscious, the Buddha, Hillel, the Roman Catholic Church, and the enlightenment.

Determining what is a mitzvot, for me, starts with the 613 commandments of Judaism but is tested by all the other efforts of good people, my own experiences. and the experiences of the many people I admire.

Teshuvah is the action incumbent on mitzvot, sometimes translated as restoration. I take seriously my need to restore any damage I have done by not following the mitzvot.


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  1. Mark Adams #
    1

    I am an independent. I also have a degree in political science although I have been irreverent and skeptical of both major parties. I believe both major and minor parties do try to expand their political power, and when either has too much power for too long a time that is not good, usually voters tastes change, and of course events change reality, and possibilities.

    I find Jefferson difficult. A great man and leader, but one whose words and actions do not always end on the same page. Nor are we a Jeffersonian America.

    Societies, nations and political parties are generally immoral, and some are moral, and some amoral, and a special few are morally amoral.

    A pandemic is underway. There is a lot about the disease that is unknown or there are counter narratives. Yet the typical horrible situations are repeating such as people on ships spreading the disease through the ship and then the ship is put under quarantine and more people get ill. This happened in 1919 and ports were the major location where the Spanish flu first made an appearance in a country. The amoral things our government should do to stop the spread may not happen. There is friction between our Constitutional rights, and what needs to be done to shut down transmissions and yet keeping things running.