Kerry Connects Faith And Foreign Policy

[DrFunkenstein]

Spirituality is a fundamental for us. I mean, it's the-it is the overpowering, driving foundation of most of the struggles that we go through here on earth, in my judgement. I am a believer in the Supreme Being, in God. I believe, without any question in this force that is so much larger and more powerful than anything human beings can conceivably define.

I think the more we learn about the universe, the more we learn about black holes and the expansion of the universe and the more we learn what we don't know about: our beginnings and-not just of us, but the universe itself, the more I find that people believe in this supreme being. I'm a Catholic and I practice but at the same time I have an open-mindedness to many other expressions of spirituality that come through different religions. I'm very respectful and am interested-I find it intriguing.

I went to Jerusalem a number of years ago on an official journey to Israel and I was absolutely fascinated by the 32 or so different branches of Catholicism that were there. That's before you even get to the conflict between Arabs and Jews.

I have spent a lot of time since then trying to understand these fundamental differences between religions in order to really better understand the politics that grow out of them. So much of the conflict on the face of this planet is rooted in religions and the belief systems they give rise to. The fundamentalism of one entity or another.

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT

http://www.americanwindsurfer.com/mag/back/issue5.5c.html

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[wtmusic]

1. They're all tied together!! Black holes and his war vote!!

LOL

[Dr Fate]

2. Care to adress the topic?

Which is kerry's take on faith- I find it pretty refreshing and much closer to my own view- Contrast this with Bush and Ashcroft's and many Republican's simplistic, comic-book views of "bible stories"...

[blm]

7. Kerry looks at the IMPORT of understanding ALL faiths and

and how they effect the culture and policies of their coutries, including those of NO faith which is RARELY addressed. I find it incredibly attractive in a world leader that he BOTHERED to listen, learn and understand.

[DrFunkenstein]

3. What Is Laughable

Is Dean's foreign policy. At best, it is Kerry-lite. But mostly its conceived around what will get the most applause at the rally. How much do you think Dean knows about loose nuclear materials in the former Soviet states? Probably about as much as he knows about trade in the Far East, or the role the IMF played in Argentina. Kerry is an expert on these things and more. Kerry chaired the Committee on terrorism. He wrote a book on the subject. Dean's foreign policy is culled together by a couple of leftist websites, or at least sounds like it.

[DrFunkenstein]

4. Let's See The Role Faith Played In Dean's I/P Position

WASHINGTON -- On a recent trek around the capital seeking support from pro-Israel lobbyists and Reform movement activists, Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean may have been the only non-Jew in the room.

But Dean, the former governor of Vermont, should be used to that. It's the same way in his own home.

Dean, a Congregationalist, has a Jewish wife, and both his children, 17-year-old Paul and 18-year-old Anne, have chosen to identify as Jews.

He has been aided by a key figure in Democratic and Jewish politics, Steve Grossman, the former president of AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby, and national chairman of Democratic National Committee.

Dean believes the Bush administration should be giving Israel $4 billion in military aid to fight terrorism, not the $1 billion it proposed last month.

http://www.jewishsf.com/bk030418/us02.shtml

Dean traveled to Israel on a trip sponsored by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). After meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Dean stated: “I do not think that as long as Yasser Arafat is president there will be peace." Before leaving, Sharon asked if Dean would support requests for new loan guarantees to Israel. Dean “promised him he would.”

http://www.aaiusa.org/countdown/c120602.htm

Last December, Dean told the Jerusalem Post that he unequivocally supported $8 Billion in US loan guarantees for Israel. "I believe that by providing Israel with the loan guarantees...the US will be advancing its own interest," he said. His unconditional support for the loan package, in addition to $4 Billion in outright grants, went further than even some of the most pro-Israel elements in the Bush administration, like Paul Wolfowitz, who wanted to at least include some vague restrictions like pushing Israel to curtail new settlements and accept a timetable to establish a Palestinian state.

http://www.muslimwakeup.com/mainarchive/000119.html

And, finally, Dean's foreign policy speech at Drake. Note how one-sided it is.

When they have bothered to state them, the Administration's guiding principles in the Middle East are the right ones. Terrorism against Israel must end. A two-state solution is the only path to eventual peace, but Palestinian territory cannot have the capability of being used as a platform for attacking Israel. Some degree of separation between Israelis and Palestinians is probably necessary in light of the horrible bloodshed of the past two years. To be viable, the Palestinian Authority must become democratic and purged of corruption.

http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/PageServer?pagename=policy_speech_foreign_drake

[AnnabelLee]

5. DrFunkenstein

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AnnabelLee
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[DrFunkenstein]

6. I Broke It Up To Be Read Easier

But your point is taken.