We have heard a lot in the past few years about family values, core values and values voters. The word values is much like the word change that rolls forth off the tongue of Barack Hussein Obama. Just as change is subject to a definition supplied by each individual hearer, values fall into the same realm. Values can mean anything you want it to mean when politicians spout the word. Family values can apply to every relationship from an actual biblical defined family to those living together with or without children to homosexuals with or without children. Family values also will apply to single parent heterosexuals and single parent homosexuals. The conclusion is that the idea of family values is defined relative to what those who hear the words believe to be a family. The same is true for values voters. Whatever the values are that a family holds will generally define the values voter and that they aren’t necessarily biblical based values is readily apparent.

The foregoing paragraph brings us to core values. Core values are the basics from which all beliefs and behavior originate. A system of core values will keep behavior and speech on a line that won’t deviate very much. The person without a set of core values will wobble and stagger from one idea to the next like a man loaded with Saturday night liquid values. Thus, that brings us to John McCain and Barack Obama. One wobbles and the other is mostly on a line that doesn’t deviate much from speech to speech.

Barack Obama has a fairly solid set of liberal core values from which he draws his political gamesmanship. He knows that he can appeal to millions of people by promising “goodies” of all kinds to those who want the “rich” to divvy up their income.  So he speaks in favor of raising the tax on dividends; of raising the tax on certain individuals to pay for Social Security; of providing more money for college;  of recognizing homosexual marriage; abortion on demand paid for by the government; of maintaining the moratorium against drilling and the domestic production of oil; and of removing more people off of the tax rolls. Basically, his core values come from believing the rich should support big government, which will solve all our national ills. Unfortunately, millions of people hold the same values that he holds. Make no mistake about Obama; he has core values that for the most part, aren’t biblically based and dangerous to our republic.

On the other hand, John McCain’s main core values are that of the man wobbling on Saturday night. He was against the Bush tax cuts and now he is for them. He didn’t want to drill anywhere but now wants to drill offshore but not in ANWR. Earlier, he would consider a “windfall profits tax” on oil companies and now he is against the tax, only now he is for reigning in obscene profits. His stand on gay marriage and homosexuals is suspect. He could rally true value voters, the ones holding biblical values by saying he won’t support it and it is wrong. So far, he has equivocated. (Google John McCain and homosexual Marriage) Four verses, (James 1:5-8) expresses his values well. 5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.  Verses 6 and 8 identify John McCain well. If he tried verses 5 and 7, he would be on his way to terminating his wobbling about.   

The people of this nation face a dilemma. On the left hand, we have a man whose values are an antithesis to biblical and constitutional values. On the right hand, or in the middle, and at times on the left, the other man isn’t sure where he stands on many issues. It appears that neither one has the core values that will keep the nation on a secure course. In Sorting It Out, core peril might be a better way to express the dilemma of worthless core values.

© 06-22-2008 DEC