The Group Mentality

The Obama re-election website - BarackObama.com - has a tab for people to get involved. Under that tab there is a list of groups that people can organize into. These lists include African Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, Catholics, Educators, Environmentalists, Jewish Americans, Latinos, LGBT Americans, Native Americans, Nurses, Parents, People of Faith, People with Disabilities, Rural Americans, Seniors, Small Business Owners, Veterans and Military Families, Women, and Young Americans. 

These individual pages are filled with ridiculous "examples" of why each group should support President Obama in his re-election bid. As an example, the "Catholics for Obama" page notes the START Treaty and President Obama's stated view on taxes as examples of why Catholics should vote for President Obama. There is also the bizarre statement that "As Catholics, we believe that every human being is made in the image of God." This is used as justification as to why each person should care for one another.

Apparently, the separation of church and state doesn't apply when it comes tothe moral standards of people who support Obama. It's perfectly reasonable to use the government to force some people to pay for others if we as a country agree that it is our Christian moral duty.

Noticably absent from groups established by President Obama is the "Taxpayer" group and the "Average Guy that Goes to Work Every Day."

Not to be outdone in placing Americans into clever little boxes, the Romney campaign has a "Communities" tab that discusses its support from a number of groups. These groups include Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, Catholics, Farmers and Ranchers, Jewish Americans, Juntos, Lawyers, Polish Americans, Veterans and Military Families, Women, and Young Americans. You read that right, the Romney campaign is actually promoting the fact that lawyers support him.

The idea behind this group mentality is that each person finds some group that applies to them and then believes that Obama or Romney is particularly aligned with their cause. They seem the Democrats or the Republicans as their team and vote with the hopes that their team wins.

This is everything that is wrong with this country. We are all Americans and each person should seek the policies and people that will result in the best outcomes for the majority of Americans. There are certainly arguments to be had concerning levels of taxation and similar ideas. However, the idea that Catholics, Pacific Islanders, or Polish Americans should be treated any differently based upon which group they fall into is precisely the opposition idea that this country was founded on.

We are one nation under god, not a bunch of little groups looking for the candidate that is going to give them the most bounty.