Extremely disappointed with Catholic Answers

[jack63]

They claim that they do not endorse or support a particular party, but with the way they have been pointing people away from a third party which IS in line with Catholic teaching(the American Solidarity Party) and only needs to gain momentum to make it’s worthy candidates viable

The electoral college system really discourages third parties. I don’t think that has been discussed here. The president is elected by winner take all in the vast majority of states. I understand this was one of the goals of using the electoral college. This means that neither party will ideally represent Catholic beliefs and our choices are limited.

Sometimes a third party is a good choice, but it often is and should be taken as a “present” vote or a protest vote.

Under the electoral college system a third party vote is just not going to be viable…that is if you want the third party candidate to win.

 

[CaptainPrudeman]

There is no point supporting a 3rd party politically or voting for them. The way things are set up they would never win.

Where did all the 3rd party candidates go in 2016- gone , lost to the dustbins of history

Wow, I’ve never heard that one before! Surely I and other third-party voters will change our vote to your preferred party now that you’ve given us this information!

 

[JSAD]

Haha…thats funny. I do believe as a 3rd party voter you’re certainly more well informed about what’s happening politically than a lot of voters. Unfortunately, i do feel that unless a 3rd party candidate has a realistic chance of winning (or at least invited to the debates) it won’t change much , just with how things are.

 

[CaptainPrudeman]

Unfortunately, i do feel that unless a 3rd party candidate has a realistic chance of winning (or at least invited to the debates) it won’t change much , just with how things are.

If you think in terms of “This election is the only one ever” then yes, it won’t do much. However, continued support of third parties makes them more viable to the rest of the public, and can eventually break through the “you’re an idiot for wasting your vote on a third party” voter suppression that’s so popular among partisans today.

 

[Ender]

I suggest you do some research on Trump over the last 40 years. You can start with the book “Football for a Buck”

What is relevant is what he has done while president, and I think that has surprised pretty much everyone, friends and enemies alike.

I look past abortion, because, while it is a horrendous thing, the women and the providers are the primary culprits

If one simply discounts the effects of the law it is simple to discount the significance of the politicians who make them. A very easy way to eliminate abortion from serious consideration in considering which candidates to vote for.

Supporting a bad Presidential candidate because of a tenuous link between the President and Supremes and overturning Roe is bad democracy. You can’t trust how Supremes will vote. Plus, overturning Roe doesn’t outlaw abortion.

This is more of the “well they can’t do anything anyway so let’s ignore it” excuse for discounting abortion as an election issue. Those who aggressively support abortion could never maintain their position without supporters such as this.

Supporting someone who refuses to condemn the Proud Boys and White Supremacy is just shocking.

I would say it is shocking that anyone still believes canards like this, but there is nothing shocking any more about what people will believe about Trump.

Roberts testified that it was settled law, stare decisis at his confirmation hearing.

Gee, a judge who believes in stare decisis and that the rulings of SCOTUS represent settled law. Sounds like nothing will ever be overruled again.

The Supreme court cannot amend the constitution.

Not legally, no, but if the Constitution means only what they say it means then, for them, the amendment process is irrelevant.

The evidence we have is that there is only one vote on the Court to overturn Roe and Casey. In every abortion case, Thomas writes a separate opinion that calls for the overturning of Roe and Casey. Scalia used to join those opinions. Since his death, no other Justice has agreed that Roe and Casey should be overturned.

No other justice has discussed Roe because no case has come before the court that has challenged it. Justices don’t give random opinions on issues that aren’t being considered.

 

[TMC]

No other justice has discussed Roe because no case has come before the court that has challenged it. Justices don’t give random opinions on issues that aren’t being considered.

This is simply untrue. Where do you get this? There have been multiple abortion cases before the Court.

 

[HarryStotle]

HarryStotle:

Somehow no one could get away with saying Proud Boys is just an idea, like the left can get away with all kinds of framing of “ideas,” even when those “ideas” create damages in the billions of dollars.

Without agreeing or disagreeing with the statement, its worth pointing out that Biden’s statement on Antifa was not his own. He was quoting the current (Trump handpicked) Director of the FBI. It was he who said that white supremacists are the largest threat to public safety, and that Antifa is an idea not an organization.

Not quite. He took what Wray said out of context. On the other hand, Wray’s characterization was intentionally ambiguous; some might say squirrelly.

(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)

If Wray wants to stick with his depiction that Antifa is merely and ideology he might want to explain why the FBI has investigated the “violent anarchist extremists” “any number of times” with solid predication. Also he might want to disabuse his listeners of the notion that “real thing” entails much more than merely people somewhere thinking something. Sounds a lot like Ilhan Omar’s depiction of 9/11 - some people did something.

As much as I don’t like being cynical, Wray left the impression that he was handing Biden a talking point and running cover for Nadler. Something stronger than Nadler’s “Antifa is a myth,” but not so much that that anyone could use Wray’s depiction as evidence that Nadler is either naïve or out of touch with reality.

 

[BornInMarch]

An unfortunate reality about American politics is that it’s a two-party system. At best a third party has no chance of winning, at worst it’s likely to cause a spoiler effect by taking votes from the party that it’s ideologically closer to and causing the more ideologically distant party to win.

Having said that, I wish traditionalists would stop endorsing President Trump and I especially wish they’d stop claiming that “real Catholics” only vote Republican. Voting for the Democratic Party is not an excommunicable offence, nor does it invalidate baptism.

 

[HarryStotle]

HarryStotle:

He condemned white supremacy. The Proud Boys are not of the same ilk.

Know them by their fruits. Here is an interactive map of Proud Boys incidences. Some are innocent enough. Others, not so much. Just zoom the map and click on a few and see what their fruits are.

And here is one of the black leaders, Thad, within the Proud Boys “ideology” denouncing white supremacy.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1311488168026284032

So the leader, Tarrio, of the “ideology” is black, it has many black followers and one of those followers who calls himself a leader in Utah of the movement denounces white supremacy, but you still want claim they are white supremacists? Besides it’s as much an ideology as Antifa, so Trump could use the Biden defence to sidestep any further criticism. See how that works - the rules applied equally?

 

[Ender]

This is simply untrue. Where do you get this? There have been multiple abortion cases before the Court.

Name one which both challenges Roe (or Casey), and has been heard by Roberts, Alito, Gorsuch, or Kavanaugh.

 

[PaulinVA]

This is more of the “ well they can’t do anything anyway so let’s ignore it ” excuse for discounting abortion as an election issue. Those who aggressively support abortion could never maintain their position without supporters such as this.

No, this is an intelligent way to look at what really matters.

Abortion is horrible. I don’t support abortion for any reason at all. Even if it was made totally illegal, however, abortions would still be performed. I’ve said before, pinning your hopes on a magical series of events that will ultimately end abortion is not realistic.

I would say it is shocking that anyone still believes canards like this, but there is nothing shocking any more about what people will believe about Trump.

Heh heh. Still believes canards about something that happened two days ago? I’m not sure what you mean by that.

Trump and his advisors are unable to say on the record, “We repudiate white supremacy”. Why is that?

 

[HarryStotle]

Abortion is horrible. I don’t support abortion for any reason at all. Even if it was made totally illegal, however, abortions would still be performed.

Murder IS also completely illegal but there are still murders “being performed.” What’s your point?

Slavery is completely illegal, but there are people here and there being treated as slaves.

The difference is that the state does not sanction slavery so citizens do not presume it is just fine to buy and sell slaves.

The state, unfortunately does sanction the willful killing of babies so citizens have come to think the murder of babies is an acceptable practice.

Why not take the “pass” that you give to abortion providers and extend it to slave owners and murderers? Clearly, it is because you don’t really think abortion is akin to murder or slavery, despite what you posted upthread.

 

[njlisa]

I’m half Puerto Rican. Telemundo is a Spanish language network. There is no monolithic Spanish-speaking culture.

Native English speakers are diverse, whether you’re talking about Canadians, Australians, Americans, etc.

Native Spanish speakers are just as diverse. Spanish-speakers in the Caribbean have many commonalities, which are rooted in African cultures.

Mexican cultures is more rooted in indigenous customs.

Argentina has a strong European influence.

You get my point.

 

[Ender]

Abortion is horrible. I don’t support abortion for any reason at all. Even if it was made totally illegal, however, abortions would still be performed. I’ve said before, pinning your hopes on a magical series of events that will ultimately end abortion is not realistic.

Your personal view of abortion is commendable, your argument, not so much. Murder is illegal, but murders still happen. Would anyone consider that a sane argument to legalize murder? Sorry, silly question given that (at least) late term abortions (not to mention the infanticide committed on born alive abortion survivors) actually are murders.

Nor does dismissing as “magical” the hope of finally reforming the law to make abortions illegal deal with the issue. It is an evasion to avoid having to address it at all. After all, if overturning Roe is a fantasy then there is no need to trouble ourselves about supporting politicians who support abortion. And we can equally ignore all the laws that actually can and have been passed to limit the effects of abortion…and the politicians who make that possible.

 

[PaulinVA]

Why not take the “pass” that you give to abortion providers and extend it to slave owners and murderers? Clearly, it is because you don’t really think abortion is akin to murder or slavery, despite what you posted upthread.

Harry, I’m not going to engage further with you.

 

[HarryStotle]

Trump and his advisors are unable to say on the record, “We repudiate white supremacy”. Why is that?

The problem is not that Trump and his advisors haven’t condemned white supremacy, the problem is that he has multiple times but the mainstream press and those who only accept what is reported there simply ignore what he does say and they pretend something else entirely.

But just to set the record straight that you are wrong on this…

He stated categorically (direct quote)…

Racism is evil. And those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other hate groups that are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans.

See…

Trump Has Condemned White Supremacists - FactCheck.org

Now any more claims from you about Trump’s refusal to condemn white supremacy will be legitimately taken as a LIE by you because you now know better.

 

[TMC]

Name one which both challenges Roe (or Casey), and has been heard by Roberts, Alito, Gorsuch, or Kavanaugh.

Every abortion case challenges the precedents that establish the law. The Court could decide any of those cases by overruling, narrowing or altering the precedents. For example, June Medical Services (decided in June of 2020) could have been a vehicle to overturn Roe and Casey. That is why Thomas writes a dissent in that case (as in every abortion case) arguing that Roe and Casey are wrongly decided and should be overturned. How does Thomas write such a dissent, if the issue is not presented? The fact is that no other Justice joins Thomas’ opinion that Roe and Casey should be overturned because no other Justice wants to overturn them.

 

[PaulinVA]

After all, if overturning Roe is a fantasy then there is no need to trouble ourselves about supporting politicians who support abortion.

Well, now you are thinking a little more pragmatically.

Abortion supporting politicians have been in power and abortions didn’t go up-. Anti-abortion politicians have been in power and abortions didn’t go down because of them. The Supreme Court has had conservative Justices for a long time, and yet, Roe wasn’t overturned. Abortions are trending down because the 18-29 demographic is having less sex.

And we can equally ignore all the laws that actually can and have been passed to limit the effects of abortion…and the politicians who make that possible.

These laws have been passed at the state and local level and are commendable.

 

[HomeschoolDad]

Native Spanish speakers are just as diverse. Spanish-speakers in the Caribbean have many commonalities, which are rooted in African cultures.

Mexican cultures is more rooted in indigenous customs.

Argentina has a strong European influence.

You get my point.

I see what you mean, but I was just thinking of Latin cultures as being more demonstrative, more passionate, and more animated than many of their non-Latin counterparts, and therefore heated political rhetoric would not be as strongly frowned upon.

It is hard to imagine the Argentine tango originating instead in, let’s say, Sweden or Korea.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

PaulinVA:

Abortion is horrible. I don’t support abortion for any reason at all. Even if it was made totally illegal, however, abortions would still be performed.

Murder IS also completely illegal but there are still murders “being performed.” What’s your point?

Two points about that: Murder, as it currently defined, is much more broadly condemned and support for criminal sanctions for murder is much broader than with abortion. Even murders believe murder should be illegal (even while they try to get away with it.) Not so with abortion.

Second point: If the ultimate goal is to reduce abortion, and criminal sanctions is seen as the means to attain that goal, then it matters to what extent criminal sanctions would accomplish that goal. I can see how criminal sanctions would have a big effect on abortions done though a licensed practitioner, but with chemical abortions, or DIY abortions, it is much harder to enforce. So while eliminating all abortions is the goal, one needs to evaluate the degree of effect any specific measure would have.