Bleeding-Heart Liberal Manifesto.

Yes, I am a Bleeding Heart Liberal. I believe we should take care of "the least of these." I believe that taking care of the poor is a moral imperative and we should do what is necessary to care for the least of these. I believe Welfare is important and a necessary thing because we have people in this country that try but still cannot afford food or housing. Yes, a few may take advantage of the welfare programs but they likely have children that depend on that welfare as well. (Do you really want to take away food stamps from a single mother just because she may not be trying hard enough to find work? Leaving those kids without food or other basic needs? And isn't "hard enough" a subjective view?)

I may not be the most religious person, meaning I do not consistently practice my faith in an organized way, such a church, but I hold dearly the principles found in the Bible and Jesus' teachings and try to practice them. I will admit that I fail so often to do what I can and all I can but I continue to try and be better.

One of the biggest arguments I hear against welfare and any government program to help the poor, including health care reform, is that it will be paid for with tax increases. Yes. And so what? They will not be tax increases on the poor. Maybe they will be imposed on upper middle class, and they will definitely be imposed on the upper class. Does that bother you? Why? Do you not have enough money for your needs and even many of your wants? It is just not fair if I work a white collar job and earn more money than I need and someone works 2 or 3 jobs and barely earns enough to get food and pay rent and some of my money goes to help that person eat and live.

I think our problem in this country is that we live in excess. And if I don't have that excess then I'm being denied something valuable. Do I need that extra house? Does John McCain need 7 houses, especially when he cannot even remember how many he has? Is that not excessive when he works for people (the voters) who cannot even afford one house or a nutritious meal each night?

I believe that when my paycheck, rather than the people around me and their conditions, becomes the center of my life I've lost my balance and my morals and values. I'll admit, each time I see the deductions from my paycheck I squirm a little; it's not fun to see that money taken from my paycheck. But I think where that money goes versus what I would do with it. Even with money gone I am able to pay my bills, buy food, and still have plenty left over for entertainment and other philanthropic activities. What would I have done with that extra money? It would have resulted in additional clothes, regardless of the fact that I have shirts and jeans in my closet that I've yet to wear or even remove the tag. I would have a few extra meals out, even though I eat out pretty much every weekend. It would be several extra Starbucks coffees.

Yes, I'm denied a few luxuries but think about where that money goes. It goes to help those kids down the street have a nutritious meal each night. It goes to help my uncle who is on Medicaid and disability because he has severe Type 1 Diabetes. It goes to my cousin who receives a check because his uncle is on disability. It goes to my grandmother who receives Social Security and Medicare. And if a single-payer health care system was implemented and a few more dollars were taken from my paycheck, that money would go to pay for health care for my parents- my dad who served as a firefighter for 25 years and risked his life to save a few lives and cannot afford health care now from his small pension from the State of Alabama.

As stated earlier, I believe in what I believe because of my values, taken from the Bible and Jesus' teachings. I've picked out a few verses and tried to organize them in a way that they progress.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
-Matthew 22:37-39
(The two greatest commandments, according to Jesus. And these are not just mentioned once but multiple times in the Bible.)


“We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”
-1 John 2:3-6
(The great commandment, according to Jesus, is "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. Well, how does one do that? According to this verse we love God by following God's commands. And we "must walk as Jesus did.")


“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, have the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. “
Philippians 2:1-4
(Again, we're back to this point of looking out for others rather than yourself. I believe that when I look at my paycheck and get upset I'm looking out for my own interests and not looking out for others. And that takes us back to the 2nd greatest commandment of loving others as we love ourselves.)


“What good is it… if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”
-James 2:14-17
(Many people are scared of this verse because of the implications it has and maybe how it goes against the "faith alone" teachings that Evangelicals and Protestants teach. But it certainly fits in with faith alone. If we have faith in God, we follow his commands and his teachings. And those, I believe, require action on our part. Jesus didn't sit around and only tell people to believe in him, he accompanies that with action. What good is the Good News if it ignores people's needs of right now? People cannot focus on spiritual needs if their physical needs are unmet.)

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?”
-1 John 3:16-17
(I think this verse is pretty self-explanatory.)


“Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? But you have insulted the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong?”
-James 2:5-7

“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
-1 Timothy 6:6-10
(This goes back to my argument that if we have what we need why should we care if our excess goes to help those that do not have what they need? I get that we want security and want to secure our financial futures but is storing up excess unbelief in Jesus meeting our needs? When we focus on our paycheck and making money we forget about relationships with others, I believe, and money becomes our object of desire and the only thing that is sufficient for us.)

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasures is, there your heart will be also.
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
-Matthew 6:19-21,24


“Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testity against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you.”
-James 5:1-6


I am no theologian. I am not perfect. And I struggle with posting this simply because I'm putting something out there that I cannot even keep. I fail in these things. I love my stuff too much and too often. But I earnestly try to keep these values and ideals at the center of my life.