Bush Wins Ohio and Pennsylvania because of the AMISH?

[Dreadsox]

[Q]Amish almost always side with the Republican Party when they do vote - making them an attractive, if unlikely, voting bloc in the neck-and-neck campaign between President Bush and Democratic nominee John Kerry. A majority of the nation's Amish live in key swing states like Pennsylvania and Ohio.[/Q]

And this is without FOX TV in their homes...hehe

http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestat...71.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp

 

[Klaus]

It's the Republican agenda this time which tries to turn the election into a "spiritual battle"
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/09/politics/campaign/09church.html?th

The Bush campaign is seeking to rally conservative churches and their members to help turn out sympathetic voters this fall

...

So the Bush campaign sent Mr. Reed to recruit pastors at the annual meeting of the conservative Southern Baptist Convention. According to campaign memorandums, it has asked "people of faith team leaders" to help identify thousands of "friendly congregations" around the country. It asked religious outreach volunteers to petition their pastors to hold voter registration drives, and to speak on behalf of the campaign to Bible studies and church groups.

The campaign has asked volunteers to send in copies of congregational directories for comparison with voter registration rolls - a move some conservative religious leaders have denounced as a violation of the privacy of the church and its members.

 

[BluberryPoptart]

Are the Amish allowed to use voting machines?

 

[Popmartijn]

Are the Amish allowed to use voting machines?

As long as they are hand-powered, yes.

 

[speedracer]

It's the Republican agenda this time which tries to turn the election into a "spiritual battle"
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/09/politics/campaign/09church.html?th

Black churches have been urging their congregations to vote Democratic for decades.

I think both sides are acting inappropriately.

 

[Klaus]

speedracer
I don't think that any church should tell their people which men they should vote for.
But i think it's still a difference if a church starts to propagate voting for somebody or if a political party starts it and goes to the church and asks for support.

 

[verte76]

I know I am strongly opposed to our bishops telling us Catholics how to vote. It was recently reported that the RNC was trying to get hold of parish lists to try to get Catholic votes. This made me mad as hell, no pun intended. About the Amish vote, only about 10% of them vote. Many Amish believe that they shouldn't participate in politics because they historically don't like earthly governments of any kind. They are spiritual descendants of the Czech Hussites of the fifteenth century, and these people first opposed their government, getting the Hussites Wars started in the Czech lands. They later adopted their present position about "earthly governments". So the very term "Amish vote" might be an oxymoron. Their more modern branch, the Mennonites, are political. They are conservative on the social issues, like abortion, but liberal on economics and dovish in foreign policy.

 

[nbcrusader]

Many denominations have strayed from spiritual matters to political matters. It has the effect of splitting members instead of uniting them.

 

[zoney!]

I heard the Ohio, Penn and Indiana Republicans are going to charter horse and buggies to the Polls too!

 

[verte76]

Actually I would imagine that most, if not all, Amish have their own horses and buggies. They're big believers in self-reliance. They don't pay taxes and in return don't get social services of any kind. They're allowed not to pay taxes because they historically don't recognize earthly governments. They've only agreed not to resist these governments. It looks like some of them are starting in some way to recognize, or at least not ignore the government.

 

[Scarletwine]

Living in Ohio and employing Amish workers I have to disagree with the Republican vote.

First they don't believe in war in any way. Second most of them do not vote. They are genuine people with the young raising hell like any teenager. I've been taping the Amish in LA show for them to watch. The three we employ the most are a part of one of the strictest sects in the area, no equipment at all even to earn your living, few farms can support the extended families. The rules are decided on by the Elder of the church much like the early Puritans. Many other sects allow power tools for ones lively hood alone. At work they have a boombox, fridge, and use power tools with precision.
OT Their work ethic is great and I wish I could say thje same for other employees.

 

[verte76]

That's interesting Scarletwine. Heck, maybe these Republicans who want to provide horses and buggies had better think about what they get!
*edited due to stupid screw-ups*

 

[shart1780]

LOL.

I'm a republican and I support Bush but that's hilarious.

I didn't think there were enough Amishes to make any sort of difference.

 

[Salome]

And this is without FOX TV in their homes...hehe

not having seen Bush on tv ever and therefore having missed out on his great communication skills probably helps voting for the man

 

[Dreadsox]

not having seen Bush on tv ever and therefore having missed out on his great communication skills probably helps voting for the man

 

[verte76]

On a somewhat different note, some liberals on one of my listservers are taking swipes at the Amish because some of them met with Bush yesterday and gave him a quilt. It's horrible. I'm outraged. This is not fair. The Amish are very gentle, sweet people and it's *so* wrong to judge someone by their voting habits. It's actually judging someone by their religious persuasion. This is wrong. Hell, what about the 90% of Amish who don't even vote? I'm sometimes on the wrong end of anti-Catholic prejudice, and believe me, it's not fun. I'm thinking I should quit my political listservers anyway.