OUR Values - READ OP BEFORE POSTING!!

[dignitized]

I read an article today discussing conservative verses liberal values and I got to thinking - what exactly are the values we hold dearest and nearest to our hearts? SO - I'm posting this thread.

**A few simple rules - use the TITLE value to identify yourself as left, right, or center.

**List what values are important to you - DO NOT attempt to give the values of OTHERS.

**DO NOT RIDICULE OR ATTACK OR MAKE FUN OF values posted by other.

**If you feel the need to ask for an explanation - ask - but then ACCEPT the answer you are given.

** If you want to argue - make your own thread to argue.


Lets show the world that we can converse and act like adults

 

[Spherical Time]

Well, personal freedom and personal responsibility are important to me. I'd like to see a party where the members can take responsibility for their actions, and are willing to go out on a limb to protect others from intrusions in their privacy.

Freedom of religion is important to me because I have none, and I often feel like I live in a society that doesn't value and accept me because of my beliefs or lack thereof.

Freedom of speach, because I worry that one day I won't be able to protest the government, and that's my right. However, I have some understanding of the fear of copyright dillusion because someday I want to be a writer.

Equal (<--edited due to board restrictions) rights are important to me, because I don't want to always be alone, and I don't think what I'm doing is morally wrong.

Education is a big issue to me, because I come from a family of teachers and I see how much sweat and blood they pour into their lives and seem to come away with nothing to show for it.

Peace is an issue for me because my brother is a soldier and I don't want to see him hurt, especially far from home.

Imigration, although less important, is an issue because I work with people that are from imigrant families.

And I don't like taxes, but I understand that they're my duty as an American citizen. I don't think that they need to be lowered, considering that we're not a socialist state. I do appreciate when the government tries to help people, but I find it disgusting when politicians help themselves. I'm not opposed to big government, only to big politicians.

 

[Nightson]

Liberte, Equalite, Fraternite

Liberty: Free speech, freedom of religion, etc. etc. liberty should be restricted only when nessecary for the common good. Link

Equality: Equal rights for everyone, complete equality under the law, equality in health care

Fraternity: We should strive to live in peace and treat all men like brothers

 

[Moros]

Center

Personally, I value integrity, being the opposite of hypocrisy. I value honor. I value respect. I value common sense. I value common knowledge at the very least. I value dignity. I value strength, I value reason, and rationality.

Politically, I value nothing.

Morally, I am mostly a subjectivist.*

*The doctrine that all knowledge is restricted to the conscious self and its sensory states. Any of various theories holding that the only valid standard of judgment is that of the individual.

 

[Kalevalatar]

Human dignity; respecting others regeardless of their deeds (or lack thereof). This includes equality and justice for all. I share my humanity with everyone, and that includes the world's worst husseins. God created us His image and Jesus died for all of us.

Loving thy neighbour (and thy enemies) and doing unto others as I would have others do unto me; social responsibility and neigbourliness, looking after one another, especially the weakest among us, to serve rather than waiting to be served.

Forgiveness and grace; forgiving myself for being imperfect as well as my neighbours, leaving the judgment and judging to whom it belongs. If I cannot forgive, then restrict my grudge to the indivual who has hurt me and not extend it to the whole group of people to which this individual belongs, be it nationality, religion, political stance, place of residence etc.

Turning the other cheek; because I'm responsible for my own actions. If I want change, it starts with me. I cannot change the world but I can change how I react to it.

 

[nvxplorer]

Center

Personally, I value integrity, being the opposite of hypocrisy. I value honor. I value respect. I value common sense. I value common knowledge at the very least. I value dignity. I value strength, I value reason, and rationality.

Politically, I value nothing.

Morally, I am mostly a subjectivist.*

*The doctrine that all knowledge is restricted to the conscious self and its sensory states. Any of various theories holding that the only valid standard of judgment is that of the individual.

Very well put. You’ve stated my values much better than I could have.

I won’t claim “left, right or center,” as I place absolutely no value in identity tags. I’ll leave that to those who have an interest in categorizing such things. If pressed, I would call myself a political moderate; i.e., I tend to reject any extreme position; I believe in compromise.

Your first sentence is key to my value system. True integrity requires being honest with oneself. From this, everything else follows.

 

[Alarum]

Intelligent thought, solid research, and logical arguement are the foundation of my values, at least politically (I won't speak for socially, as what I want in a friend and what makes a good political thinker are often very different).

Anyone who can think a problem through logically, researches a story before believing it, and bases their arguement on solid, logical foundations has my respect.

 

[Spherical Time]

What about you, Max? Would you add yours to ours?

 

[ScottishJohn]

I think as a Christian my values should (and if I am honest do not always) hang off of what Christ tells us is the greatest commandment, and underpins all the other commandments:

34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:

36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[c] 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

28One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"

29"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.[e] 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'[f] 31The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[g]There is no commandment greater than these."

32"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."

34When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.

All the rest of what Christ says comes from this background - Matthew 25 informs us that we will be judged on how we turn this love into action. I want to say at this point that I am not trying to suggest that the Christians have a monopoly on these values, and to add that I often find myself siding with non Christian liberals over how to apply these values.

I don't think the arguments between the liberals and conservatives usually stem from a fundamental disagreement over values, but more to do with how we apply them. For instance in the abortion debate, I am against abortion in most cases, my first reaction is that it is my duty to make sure that I am not responsible for abortions. My second reaction is that abortions have taken place for centuries, only this century they have been made legal and performed in relative safety, therefore I think campaigning against those hwo have them and perform them is shutting the barn door after the horse has bolted. What I think we as Christians should be addressing are the problems which lead us to the situation where people need abortions. I think we could drastically reduce the number of abortions required without one piece of legislation, by showing love for those who need it, by caring for those who find themselves in difficult situations meeting them with compassion and understanding, as well as offers of practical help as opposed to judgement and hateful rhetoric. Other believe differently. The thing that bugs me on this issue is that it becomes a hook used to land the votes of Christians, yet all the conservative parties who have been voted for on the basis of this issue have yet to deliver any significant movement in terms of the law. Partially because I think many of them recognise that legislation is a pretty useless tool for this problem anyway.

 

[Jetgirl]

*I'm actually posting before I read anyone elses reponses, apologies if I've got the wrong format*

~ Responsibility has to be my first and most important. This includes responsibility to self: taking care of your health, working to better ones' self, being honest with yourself. And responsibility to others: not stealing, lying or cheating, etc.., being aware of the affect of your actions on others.

Other minor values would be secondary to being responsible, if you do this one, the rest should happen automagically.

 

[dignitized]

What about you, Max? Would you add yours to ours?

I will most definately - BUT I am currently overly busy with preperations for Cantata and holy week that I have not had the time to edit what I intend to post. I don't want to post something half formed or not completely thought out.

 

[Yusuf Evans]

All freedoms granted in the Constituton should not be taken away,period. I don't believe it's a living or dead document, bent on evolving to society's standards.

I believe that everyone who works hard should have a right to life. If they are doing the best they can and it's not enough, then the government should provide assistance. I think the lazy are a plague on society. They do not want to contribute, only dry out resources that should be made available only to those who are willing to work for it.

I also value integrity and honesty. You can't be respected unless you show respect.

Above all, all men and women are created equal. No one should have their rights stomped on by ideologies, period.

 

[ACougar]

Love - We are all brothers and sisters regardless of race, religion, nationality, color, sexual preferance, ect.. as brothers and sisters we should show love and compassion toward each other just as we would want others to show love and compassion toward us. Love is the Law!

Justice - We should always stuggle for justice, social, economic and legal.

Liberty - We are born free, we should live free and die free. We should be free to follow our consionce and do what we will, so long as those actions don't harm others or bring dishonor to ourselves or our family.

Duty - We should fulfill our obligations. We should always do what we say were going to do to the very best of our abilities.

Integrity - We should do what is right, both legally and morally. Lying brings dishonor, when we lie not only are we dishonoring ourselves, but we dishonor our family, and our Gods.

Courage - We should be able to face fear, danger, or adversity with both physical and moral courage.

Honor - By living up to our values we gain honor. A man with no honor is not truely a man.

 

[Vylo]

Honesty - Above all else trying to always tell the truth. The truth may hurt, but lies cause much more harm.

Loyalty - Always be loyal to those who are loyal to you. Never backstab somoene just for your own gain.

Virtue - Do what is good because it is good. To gain from doing good is always desirable but should not be the sole motivation behind good works. Knowing that you have improved the lives of others should be sufficient reward.

Humility - There is nothing wrong with pride but keep it in check. Realise that even if you are in fact the best at something, others have put in a solid effort and should be lauded as well.

Justice - Intentional or careless wrong should be punished. Forgiveness should be at the discretion of the victim, so long as it can be insured they are not being intimitaded into doing so.

Responsibility - One should be held accountable for their actions, and should not dodge or shift such responsibility.

 

[DieHappy]

Right - conservative.

Certainly integrity has to be number one. I believe that single word would erase the vast majority of our problems with this system. Why is the health care system in the shape it's in? Lack of integrity. Why are there earmarks? Lack of integrity. But I can't make you be truthful, so I'll just try my best to be truthful.

Somewhat conversely, greed drives us all to be better. I think you can be greedy and hold onto your integrity, but some would doubt that. Greed drives us to invent and better the world around us, not because we want to better our neighbor's lives, but because we want them to give us money.

I think if people simply tried to be the best person they could be, not the richest, not the most envied, etc. but just the best person they can be, we'd be better off.

 

[dignitized]

(sorry that it took me so long to post these . . . .)

What values do I hold near and dear to my heart?

(in no particular order)

Responsibility. Stand up and be accountable for what you have done. If you cannot pay the price - stand up and ask forgiveness. Don’t blame others for your mistakes - don’t expect others to clean up your messes. Don’t expect others to pay your way.

Hope. Lift others and yourself at the same time. Don’t dwell on what is wrong today - look to the promise of tomorrow. Anyone can point to something that is wrong - but it takes hope to get past the wrong to find a solution.

Charity/service. You know - the opposite of selfishness. Doing things for others. Not for any benefit it does you - but for the benefit it has for others. Charity MUST be voluntary or it is not Charity - it is obligation.

Faithfulness. Meaning what you say - saying what you mean - doing what you say you will do - even if it costs you.

Liberty. NOT LICENSE. Liberty, true liberty, is tempered with responsibility and consequences remembering that just because it is possible to do a thing does not mean that that thing should be done.

Temperance. Control over your desires, your passions, and your pursuits of pleasure.

Diligence. The value of work and of movement - follow through with what you have committed to do - follow up on what you have done - follow up on what you should have done.

Humility. Putting yourself and your desires aside in submission to the

Courtesy. MANNERS AND CONSIDERATION!!!

Fortitude. Are you blown with every wind of fad or pressure? DO you stand up for what you believe in?

Wisdom. It’s not enough to know - it’s more important to apply knowledge and use it.

Family. God put so much value on the family unit that He made sure that He was born into a family. Joseph was ready to put Mary away - to leave her to raise Christ as a single mother. It was the words of a Godly messenger that kept that family together despite the tough times they would face - and face them they did. Attempts to redefine the family to make marriage into something other than what it has always been are dangerous and damaging to us all.

Morality. Do what is right - despite or in spite of what we may “feel.” Remembering of course that what is right is neither subjective nor relative - it is absolute.

Mercy. The highest virtue. Acting with compassion and understanding when someone is wrong - admits that they are wrong and repents of doing that wrong. Without confession and repentance - giving clemency is not mercy - it’s license.

 

[Erock83]

You will find Rawl’s

I value equality in opportunity and starting place. I don’t see the use for money except to dived people on the amount of died green cotton you have. We as people should realized that we all bleed red and work together for the betterment of everybody. The Super Rich ie Bill Gates(I know there are a lot of other super rich but he is just a well know example) have only further proven that society is only as strong as its weakest member.
One Love

 

[dignitized]

You will find Rawl&#8217;s

I value equality in opportunity and starting place. I don&#8217;t see the use for money except to dived people on the amount of died green cotton you have. We as people should realized that we all bleed red and work together for the betterment of everybody. The Super Rich ie Bill Gates(I know there are a lot of other super rich but he is just a well know example) have only further proven that society is only as strong as its weakest member.
One Love

Seems more like you are advocating equality in outcomes rather than in opportunity - is that your intent?

 

[Erock83]

Seems more like you are advocating equality in outcomes rather than in opportunity - is that your intent?

I&#8217;ll take both for 800 Alex
One Love

 

[dignitized]

I&#8217;ll take both for 800 Alex
One Love

I do not understand here - are you advocating for BOTH equal opportunities AND equal out comes then?