"Single Issue Voter"? Yeeaah, Baby!
Today our church observed the annual "Sanctity of Life" Sunday, joined no doubt by hundreds or thousands of congregations around the world. As always, it's a time to reflect on the importance and significance of every individual human life, and a reminder that we are called to see life through God's eyes.
Last decade, there was a great condescending hue and cry by political pundits over the phenomenon of "Single Issue Voters." These are people who tend to fixate on one issue or cause and vote for a candidate based on his or her stance on that issue.
These people were deemed by the "elite" to be generally uneducated, naive, short-sighted, un-American sheep, voting with their hearts instead of their heads. Back then, they were generally known as "pro-lifers." [Today we would call them Democrats, with their single issue being the re-election defeat at any cost of our current president. But that's another post for another day.]
For a brief second, back in the 90s, I was one of those people who tended to looked skeptically upon the "Single Issue Voter." Logically, it just made sense that we should view candidates in the totality of their beliefs, positions, dogma. After all, they'd be dealing with all manner of issues, not just the one hot button that "those people" focused on.
But that didn't last long, for as I became more perceptive and educated about the state and direction of our nation, the more concerned I became about its viability. The more I understood about the "sanctity of life," the more I understood that it's not just a theoretical position you take in an abstract argument.
Long story made short: I'm now the quintessential "Single Issue Voter." The issue upon which I "fixate" is the right to life: of the unborn, the elderly, and all those in-between. I will judge a candidate based on his or her stance regarding abortion, and I will not support anyone who is pro-abortion.
It's not a matter of whether the issue is applicable to the office for which they are a candidate. It's a matter of defining the candidate's character...it informs his or her outlook on every other issue.
It's often said in the church that people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. I don't care what your views are on the federal budget deficit or US immigration policies or school vouchers, until I know what your views are on giving babies the right to be born.
I feel strongly enough about this to put my money where my mouth is. I'm getting enough requests to design websites for political candidates that I've put up a new page on my site to discuss my services in this area. One of the sections on that page is a list of considerations regarding who I will and will not work for, and one of those considerations is that I will not design a website for a pro-choice candidate.
So, yeah...I'm a single issue voter. The way I see it, if American continues down this path of removing protections from those least able to protect themselves, we'll eventually cease to exist as a nation, and a federal budget deficit will be the least of our problems.
Photo of Sarah Marie Switzer undergoing intrauterine surgery in 1999 for spina bifida surgery at 23 weeks' gestation. She was born two months later, in good health.
You are absolutely right. Pro-Life is more than "don't abort." It is loving your neighbor, your enemy as Jesus said. That encompasses a whole lot, because if you love your neighbor, you'll care enough about the elderly, the the unborn and the disenfranchised who are there through government meddling.
I have to thank Dawn for leading me to your excellent blog.
Posted by: Larry at January 20, 2004 05:37 AMI'm not a single issue voter, but I tend to vote for candidates who are pro-life anyway.
That's a powerful photo at the end of the post. Wow.
Posted by: jen at January 20, 2004 12:48 PMDawn, thanks for the kind words and the mention in your post. [Question: If we're mutual dittoheads, does that cancel each other out, or is the effect additive, making us twice as, um, whatever?] It's a sad state of affairs when a church that focuses on "sanctity of life" is hard to find. Churches mirror society at their own peril, and at the peril of society as well.
Larry, thanks for stopping by...and for the link. I can see that you're a very perceptive and wise person! ;-)
Jen, that photo is pretty old and I figured most people had seen it before, but it seemed like the right time to present it again in case it had been forgotten. When we have presidential candidates like Wesley Clark who support abortion at any time before delivery, it's helpful to present a picture as a reminder of what that "tissue blob" really is.
Posted by: Eric at January 20, 2004 01:14 PMI'm a single issue voter, that issue being Christian character. I'm not concerned with the 'viability' of a candidate. true, most pro-life candidates proclaim to be a Christian of some sort, character as a whole is, to me, utterly critical. To quote Noah Webster, "Government is nothing more than a reflection of the collective group of people involved." Who is or is not in office speaks volumes about us as a people and nation.
Theongome
Posted by: Theognome at January 21, 2004 11:03 PMTheo, I can't argue with anything you say. For me, one's stand on abortion and other "sanctity of life" issues is a clear indication of that "Christian character" you speak of. I can't look into a person's heart, but I can judge his or her stated stance on important issues...and the respect for human life is at the top of the list.
A corollary: beware of those candidates who refuse to make public their stances on this issue.
Posted by: Eric at January 22, 2004 06:38 AMI looked at your "Website Design for Candidates" page. I am really impressed with your criteria and how your present yourself. *g*
Posted by: Alexandra at January 22, 2004 10:09 AM<blush> Alexandra, you say the nicest things! ;-)
Posted by: Eric at January 22, 2004 10:35 AMOh, Emily at AfterAbortion blog mentioned Midland's "Beyond Choice" ministry website. . . Immediately I was curious if that was your work?
Posted by: Alexandra at January 22, 2004 06:59 PMWell, yeah...I've done Beyond Choice's website on a pro bono basis (via my virtualservant.org entity) for the past few years. We just went live this week with the new Angel Memorial section. They had been using a third party message board and it just disappeared one day without notice, so I rigged up something more reliable and "in-house" for them. They still need to reinput all the old memorials -- I think there are several hundred left by moms (and a few dads) of aborted children.
It's cool that Beyond Choice got a mention in another blog; I'll have to check it out and let the director know. Thanks for passing that along.
Posted by: Eric at January 22, 2004 09:00 PMI had some previous experience/training with post-aboriton issues, but was very encouraged and challenged when I was able to meet with Mrs. Lawson. And, she was able to track down and request the PACE materials in Russian for me. *grin*
I know of a Ukrainian woman in another city who is active with post-abortion ministry, but I still think that sort of outreach is limited here. Unfortunately. It is much needed.
Posted by: TulipGirl at January 25, 2004 01:26 PMI have been told even by some Christians that you cannot let one issue determan your vote.
I'm a single issue voter and did not know it had a name.
Posted by: Michael at January 29, 2004 04:46 PMAbout the publisher
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What a beautiful and powerful post. I too have become a "single-issue voter," for the same reasons. I only wish I could find a good "sanctity of life" church here in NYC! But I'm working on it . Thanks for writing from your brain and your heart.
Posted by: Dawn at January 19, 2004 06:38 PM