Get High On Life
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, January 2, 2001
Harold Keller
I read, with great interest, an opinion column by William Raspberry, a writer for the Washington Post. The headline got my attention: “Senate should reject divisive Ashcroft.”
President-elect Bush, in my opinion, has made some pretty good selections to fill important positions in his administration. One of his nominees is John Ashcroft from Missouri. Ashcroft is a one-term Republican senator who will be remembered for losing a close election to a dead man. Thats right! A dead man!
The Democratic governor of Missouri decided to challenge Ashcroft for his senate seat. The governor was killed in a plane crash, but under Missouris state law, his name had to stay on the ballot. The deceased governor won. (Only in America.) The acting governor has said that he will appoint the widow of the former governor to serve a full six-year term in the powerful U.S. Senate. That makes as much sense to me as the reasons Mr. Raspberry mentions in his article as why Ashcroft should not be confirmed as Bushs choice for attorney general.
He stated that the confirmation of John Ashcroft seems certain to be a highly divisive force in an administration committed to healing across lines of party, ideology and race.
In the article, Mr. Raspberry also gave the following reasons for rejecting Ashcroft, and I quote:
“Some of the division is ideological – even theological. The 58-year-old former Missouri governor is pro-life for fetuses, pro-death for a wide range of criminals, in favor of vouchers and school prayer, for a constitutional amendment to ban desecration of the flag and, at best, shaky on gay-rights issues.”
In other words, Ashcroft has too many moral convictions. For every reason Mr. Raspberry gives condemning the nomination, I on the other hand, rejoice that a man with such convictions might be our attorney general! The one reason given by Mr. Raspberry, which caught my attention, was that Ashcroft was pro-life for fetuses. Pro-lifers like myself consider what is referred to “just as fetus,” a human being. We call it a life.
Even though Im for the death penalty, I can understand someone being against it.
I think school vouchers would help to heal a sick educational system. Come to think of it, being pro-choice for abortion and against choice for education sounds contradictory to me.
I am also for school prayer and against the desecration of the flag taht many Americans died to defend.
As far as Ashcroft being soft on gay rights, I dont know what that means. Im for the rights of all Americans, but against promoting a lifestyle that, in my opinion, is against Gods plan for mankind.
After writing this article, Im more convinced than ever that America needs John Ashcroft as Attorney-General, especially after the eight years weve just experienced.
HAROLD KELLER writes this column as part of his affiliation with the Get High on Life religious motivational group. Call him at 652-8477.
