Nobody Left Standing

Clearly there is a place for protest and activism among people of faith. When a person's conscience feels convicted to the need to say or do something regarding a particular issue then I commend those who exercise that right in a free society. We have that right under the first amendment and those who use it should be commended for standing up and having the courage to speak their mind.

There are lots of things that may get people off the sidelines and into the action so to speak. Family values are a hot button issue with many folks, particularly church folk, and many of them will voice their opinion when an organization promotes certain things which many may find offensive, indecent, sacreligious, etc. I'm sure many will agree that there are causes that are worth fighting for because they affect them personally. Many mothers who've had children die in automobile accidents may protest advertisements that somehow glamorize alcohol. Parents who may have had a child who is gay may protest information that they believe may incite gay bashing. Citizens who homeschool their children were mobilized greatly to protest legislation that may have made homeschooling practically impossible. The list goes on and on.

One of the things used by protesters is the boycott. An example may be consumers threatening a company by not buying their products because they may be promoting something the offended group may deem inappropriate. This is all well and good and people have every right to do that. I have one observation though for thoughtful educated people who keep up on all the issues of the day. Recently as I was listening to a very opinionated sports radio show following the Super Bowl, one of the hosts mentioned how great Bruce Springsteen was during half time. That comment caused ire with another of the hosts who called Springsteen a "commie pinko, " a remark that made me spill my coffee from laughing out loud. The first host then said, " You have to separate." To this the anti-communist sports host said,"You can't separate." After a brief pause a third host threw his two cents in with this classic and I'll end with it, "You got to separate or their will be nobody left standing."