Moral Leadership

Earlier, while watching CNN, I happened to see Tom Delay talking on the floor of the capitol. He was trying to explain why they were taking the time they were to pass that bill for that solitary person. He defended what they were doing not on medical grounds and not on legal grounds, but on moral grounds. He said something to the effect of there being an obvious moral issue.

That really stuck to me.

Through all of my formative years and all those social studies classes I can't ever remember being told that our political leaders were to be our moral leaders as well.

My recollection is that morals really ought to come from Parents - from family, probably clergy, and maybe a little from teachers. But politicians? I have to say that I believe my upbringing has convinced me that they are not a very dependable group, not truthful. Why in God's name would we ever look to people we don't trust as much as used car salesmen to be the guardians of our morals?

Not me. I can think of better people.

This would appear to me to be another in a growing litany of difficulties I am having with the current political power structure. I mean, I guess I would like to have politicians behave in a moral manner. But I don't think I want any of them telling me what is or isn't moral. Might just be too tough wading through the hypocrisy. So many politicians are so obviously two faced, or repressed, or greedy. How are we supposed to believe that will even behave morally, let along make good moral leaders?

Also, I have to say that I think that governing sometimes forces moral choices, or moral relativism that requires more complex thought than I feel a person who feels they have a keen sense of morality might competently manage. Sometimes being in charge means that the moral choice for everyone isn't the moral choice for an individual.

Like just this week, in Florida.

It seems like a slippery slope if we start to believe that morals are the greatest shaping factor to political decision making. How far is it from there to religious republic?

If I get to choose, please give me political leaders who think the moral leadership should be someone else's responsibility.