One of my favorite pastimes is playing a game I like to call Versus vs. Verses. I’m a sucker for useless trivia any day, but when it comes to making useless trivia useful—I am definitely all in.
Call me a nerd, but it goes something like this. Coffee talk with friends. Each person proposes his or her own “versus” question sparking some casual chitchat. Casual chitchat leads to deep conversation that ensues until the next topic is presented and you start all over again.
What’s the difference between anthropology and sociology? Or, simply stated: anthropology vs. sociology. Friends chime in. After some brief discussion, bantering, arguing, and laughter, the smart phones engage. The iPads are on fire.
If there aren’t any inquiring minds that are willing to cooperate, Google and Wiki are always ready and able. Why, I think Versus vs. Verses is to the Apple generation what solitaire was to June Cleaver!
Some favorite topics include alien vs. immigrant, race vs. ethnicity, adsorption vs. absorption, meiosis vs. mitosis, RNA vs. DNA, agnostic vs. atheist, cat scan vs. MRI, full bed vs. queen bed, airsoft vs. paintball, or, perhaps one of the most discussed topics of all–Democrat vs. Republican.
With the approaching election, Democrat vs. Republican practically has its own talk show. One hundredfold. It is a walking, breathing podcast. The savants involved like to play my little game Versus vs. Verses and they are quite acerbic. A far cry from your run-of-the-mill empathy vs. sympathy discussion, the people involved not only hate the respective values represented by each party, they hate…each other. Deeply. Or so it seems.
There truly IS nothing new under the sun.
When Democrat Barack Obama was sworn in as POTUS on January 20, 2009, just hours after the milestone of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s 80th birthday, many called it a victory for minorities, recalling the words of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his notable dream.
For those who voted for Barack Obama NOT on the basis of his skin color, there was no way to overlook it once he was elected. History’s call had made it apparent to the world that BO was a black man in spite of his white mother and him being only 50% an African by his Kenyan father. Contrary to Dr. King’s dream, he seemed to be constantly classified based upon the color of his skin, while a supposedly now colorblind America anticipated a look into the content of his character.
For history’s sake, I celebrated my African-American friends’ unprecedented journey to the White House. Seeing two little girls walk into those doors and emerge as two young ladies with lives unfurled before the majestic Washington backdrop has been more touching than a picture perfect J.Crew catalog photo.
That historic day has given way to an unsettling feeling in my heart, however. Uneasiness vs. Queasiness, you might say, when I think about how far the social envelope has been pushed and how vast the financial divide between instability and prosperity has grown under the current administration.
Additionally, the Democrats’ battle cry to career women initially sounds appealing–something girls like myself might want to embrace. Yes, I am finally being heard!
“We work so hard! We are better women for it! We deserve the things we want!”
Then, “Our bodies are our own!”, a jab at the life movement, challenging logic that an ultrasound should be required by law before every choice to end an unborn baby’s life. That one issue alone is a huge indicator for so many others. Interestingly enough, ultrasounds are already performed before abortions. The deception: An ultrasound law would ensure that no mother is ever again denied the right to see the results! No one ever mentions the burden of the proposed requirement resting on the clinic, not the mother. If I were to play Versus vs. Verses where Democrats and Republicans are concerned. I’d have a major problem with some things like that.
But, Dear Reader, the choice is yours. Democrat vs. Republican has dwindled down to the choice of Obama vs. Romney. If you don’t know where to turn for the answers…just turn to the life-speaking verses, pray and seek God’s face, first and foremost, for the knowledge to see the difference between the negotiable and non-negotiable issues facing this nation.
These life-speaking verses of ancient scripture are the prophecies fulfilled throughout the ages. Why, in America—a nation founded on these principles, should we ever vote for a candidate who blatantly supports values that are specifically mentioned as evil and sin if we believe the Author of this nation’s heritage to be the same yesterday, today, and forever? I am not fit to cast the first stone, but neither can I deny the truth of these living words.
If you still find yourself playing Obama vs. Romney, access the FRC Action Voter’s Tool at www.frcaction.org/votertools. FRC Action is the legislative affiliate of Family Research Council. I have found that this is a trustworthy and fair source of facts that keeps voters up to date on the issues. Until we meet again next month, Dear Reader, God bless America!
Read Brandi’s column each month in The Cross Timbers Gazette newspaper. Follow Brandi on Twitter @BrandiChambless
