RE: [TruthTalk] Secede from the USA?

[ShieldsFamily]

I thought you might enjoy my older son’s reaction to the WND article about proposed secession from the USA. J   From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of ShieldsFamily Sent: Monday, May 24, 2004 4:04 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [TruthTalk] Secede from the USA?     One state to set up an independent Christian nation? http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=38571    -----Original Message----- Sent: Monday, May 24, 2004 7:52 PM To: ShieldsFamily Subject: Re: Secede from the USA?   South Carolina?  A sovereign nation?  Ridiculous.  What crackpots. People like that make Christians look like a bunch of nuts.    They should get out of defensive mode and go on offense.  Their opponents have not given up, that's why the opposition is making progress.    In our system of government, wanting something very badly is not sufficient to obtain it.  A majority of the population must also want the same thing.  You can't say, "We're right, so everyone should be forced to live according to the way we say they should."  That's how the Taliban governed.  We don't do things that way in America.    Americans must WANT it first.  It is the job of Christians to get people to want to be like them.  The only other way to motivate people is through fear and violence which is, of course, totally non-Christian.    The solution is not for a small number of right-wing whackos to move way further to the right.  That has no positive effect.  The further out you go, the less weight you carry and the more you repel people into the opposite direction.  The solution is to convince a lot of people in the middle to move a just a little bit to the right.  But people in the middle won't have anything to do with people they percieve as far-out whackos and extremists.    So multiply your numbers, and therefore your influence, biologically and/or by living a life of example that will win over friends/neighbors to your side by making them WANT to emulate you.  The more successful you are at selling your belief system and your way of life, the more you can have your way in American governance.  But you can't be a poor salesperson, a lousy representative of your values and still expect to wield a lot of influence.    Christ said to love your neighbor -- not shake fingers at them or dig a moat, pull up the drawbridge, and hide from them, or move away and start your own country.  You get people to like you by treating them well and earning their trust and respect.    A salesman won't make many sales if his potential clients don't even like him.  He won't make many sales if he stays in a bunker and does not get out and interact with people.    I would venture to guess that the Amish don't win over a lot of new converts every year.  They are lucky if they retain a sufficient percentage of their own offspring to maintain their numbers.  They may be hardcore, but they certainly are not a widely catered-to and sought-after voting block.    Advocating nutty ideas will only turn people off to you and make them less likely to identify with you or support the ideals you promote.    If the majority of Americans fail to support Christian values it will be because Christians themselves failed to inspire others to aspire to be like them.   Scot       Scot, I was thinking we need a different state for every denomination, as otherwise there will be too much infighting, anyway.  Well I'm not voting for secession unless they make the state Missouri. :-)  Mom