Now Mephistopheles has come to collect.
Tomorrow, the voters of Alabama go to the polls to elect a U.S. Senator in a special election to fill the Senate seat left vacant by Jeff Sessions. The two candidates are Alabama judge Roy Moore for the Republicans and former U.S. Attorney Doug Jones for the Democrats.
Last month, several women came forward and accused Moore of sexual misconduct. One of the women was 14 at the time that she said Moore dated her. During one of their dates, she said, he approached her while wearing tight underwear and guided her hand to touch his private parts.
Okay, when I hear the word, "date", here's what I envision:
A man calls a woman and asks her out on a date. He picks her up. They go to dinner. Maybe they go to a movie. Or to a play. Or to some other event. They talk. He pays for dinner or for the other events. He takes her home. If they had a good time, they repeat the process. Lather, rinse, repeat until a) they decide they want to get married, or b) one, the other, or both decide they don't want to date each other anymore.
Nowhere in that description do the words "guiding your hand to touch my private parts" appear.
There's questions as to whether or not the women are telling the truth. There's speculation as to why they waited until now to tell their story.
It's legitimate to ask, are their stories true? I do believe they should be taken seriously because they do involve a man who has power in the legal system and who wants to be entrusted with the duties of a United States Senator.
I also think it's legitimate to ask, why come forward now? while bearing in mind that there are good reasons why victims of sexual assault don't report it at the time it happened. (I almost said "women". Men are also victims of sexual assault; in fact, actor Terry Crews has filed a lawsuit against a man that he alleges groped him at a party in 2016.)
My main problem with this whole scenario is the reaction of some Christians: Well, maybe Moore did do what he's accused of, but hey, he's pro-life and Doug Jones is pro-abortion, and if Jones gets elected, it'll mean another liberal in the Senate, so Moore needs to be elected to the Senate. Besides, not only is he pro-life, he's a godly man who defended the Ten Commandments, even though it got him thrown off the bench in Alabama.
To borrow a Southernism, that dog don't hunt.
I am sick and tired of the bad behavior of our elected officials being condoned because he's "our guy". People did it with Bill Clinton, they did it with Donald Trump, and now they're doing it with Roy Moore.
A man calls a woman and asks her out on a date. He picks her up. They go to dinner. Maybe they go to a movie. Or to a play. Or to some other event. They talk. He pays for dinner or for the other events. He takes her home. If they had a good time, they repeat the process. Lather, rinse, repeat until a) they decide they want to get married, or b) one, the other, or both decide they don't want to date each other anymore.
Nowhere in that description do the words "guiding your hand to touch my private parts" appear.
There's questions as to whether or not the women are telling the truth. There's speculation as to why they waited until now to tell their story.
It's legitimate to ask, are their stories true? I do believe they should be taken seriously because they do involve a man who has power in the legal system and who wants to be entrusted with the duties of a United States Senator.
I also think it's legitimate to ask, why come forward now? while bearing in mind that there are good reasons why victims of sexual assault don't report it at the time it happened. (I almost said "women". Men are also victims of sexual assault; in fact, actor Terry Crews has filed a lawsuit against a man that he alleges groped him at a party in 2016.)
My main problem with this whole scenario is the reaction of some Christians: Well, maybe Moore did do what he's accused of, but hey, he's pro-life and Doug Jones is pro-abortion, and if Jones gets elected, it'll mean another liberal in the Senate, so Moore needs to be elected to the Senate. Besides, not only is he pro-life, he's a godly man who defended the Ten Commandments, even though it got him thrown off the bench in Alabama.
To borrow a Southernism, that dog don't hunt.
I am sick and tired of the bad behavior of our elected officials being condoned because he's "our guy". People did it with Bill Clinton, they did it with Donald Trump, and now they're doing it with Roy Moore.
It's even worse with those that call themselves Christians. Apparently, we have decided that someone's position on abortion trumps all (pun only slightly intended.) If you hold yourself out as being Christian and pro-life, you can get away with just about anything.
Please do not give me this nonsense about "everyone makes mistakes". A "mistake" is taking the wrong exit off of I-285. Or adding up two and three and getting six.
And please, do not tell me, "But David sinned and God used him!" Yes, David in the Bible sinned. Yes, God used him. However, 1) David repented (see Psalm 51) and 2) God, through the prophet Nathan, told David, "the sword will never depart from your house". David's son conceived with Bathsheba died. His daughter Tamar was raped by her half-brother Amnon. Tamar's brother Absalom murdered Amnon in revenge. Absalom tried to take the kingdom from David. David paid a tremendous price for his sin.
When did we decide that the kingdom of God was best advanced by political power and political expediency? When did we decide that someone's position on abortion--as serious an issue as it is--outweighed everything else that a person did or said? When did we decide that having people that support "us" in positions of power was more important than holding those people accountable for what they did and said?
Tomorrow, the voters of Alabama will go to the polls. I fully expect to see Mephistopheles standing there grinning with his hand held out, demanding payment.
Goethe would be proud.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Please do not give me this nonsense about "everyone makes mistakes". A "mistake" is taking the wrong exit off of I-285. Or adding up two and three and getting six.
And please, do not tell me, "But David sinned and God used him!" Yes, David in the Bible sinned. Yes, God used him. However, 1) David repented (see Psalm 51) and 2) God, through the prophet Nathan, told David, "the sword will never depart from your house". David's son conceived with Bathsheba died. His daughter Tamar was raped by her half-brother Amnon. Tamar's brother Absalom murdered Amnon in revenge. Absalom tried to take the kingdom from David. David paid a tremendous price for his sin.
When did we decide that the kingdom of God was best advanced by political power and political expediency? When did we decide that someone's position on abortion--as serious an issue as it is--outweighed everything else that a person did or said? When did we decide that having people that support "us" in positions of power was more important than holding those people accountable for what they did and said?
Tomorrow, the voters of Alabama will go to the polls. I fully expect to see Mephistopheles standing there grinning with his hand held out, demanding payment.
Goethe would be proud.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
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