Democrats Have Faith, in the Issues
(6 Letters)
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, NYTimes on the Web, November 21, 2004
To the Editor:
Re "Some Democrats Believe the Party Should Get Religion" (news article, Nov. 17):
There is only one lesson Democrats need to take away from the recent election:
voters admire candidates who are unwavering in their convictions.
Democrats should not be trying to figure out how to change their stance on core issues like abortion rights or gay rights.
This will only give the Republicans another chance to point out that Democrats merely blow with the prevailing political winds.
Rather, Democrats should recommit themselves to their core values. They should stand firm for a woman's right to choose to protect her life and her health without government intrusion.
They should stand firm for equal rights and protections for all adults, gay or straight, who wish to enter into permanent relationships that should be recognized as such.
Fifty-seven million people voted for the Democratic candidate this presidential election.
The party should not lose them by losing its convictions.
Linda Susswein, New York, Nov. 17, 2004
To the Editor:
I would like my party -- the Democrats -- to know that unlike the Republicans, I did not and do not get my moral values or religion from politicians.
I got them from my grandparents and parents.
If the Democrats start marketing religion and morals to me, I will look for another party.
Terri Pasha, Pompano Beach, Fla., Nov. 17, 2004
To the Editor:
The Democrats need to think long and hard about whether their strategy should be to win away voters from the Republican Party.
With only about 60 percent of eligible voters going to the polls, there are plenty more votes to be had.
The Democrats need to dig deep and reach those they should have reached in this election, mainly the young and the poor.
Reaching these potential voters costs time and money. It's not that the Democrats lack a voting base capable of bringing them the presidency, it's that they were unable to reach it.
The belief that more people should participate in our elections should be a guiding democratic principle for all.
George Samuels, Washington, Nov. 17, 2004
To the Editor:
Let those Democratic leaders who think their party should show more religious faith and moderate its stand on abortion know this:
If the Democratic Party does so, it will lose millions of lifelong members like me.
Moving to the right is not the answer. The Democrats got 48 percent of the vote in the 2004 presidential election.
They don't need to change their positions. They need to take control of the debate, get their voters to the polls and make sure that Republicans don't pull dirty tricks.
If the Democratic Party moves to the right, I will defect to the Green Party, as will many of my friends and family.
Paula Berinstein. Thousand Oaks, Calif., Nov. 17, 2004
To the Editor:
The Democratic Party needs to forget religion.
The Republican Party, and indeed the country, seems to be falling more every day under the conservative Christian spell.
We need a strong opposition, a return to the secular humanism on which our nation was founded.
This doesn't mean that the Democrats should forget about moral issues. They should offer rational solutions without the encumbrance of a particular ideology.
The Democratic Party has historically been the party of inclusion. It shouldn't alienate more voters with Christian rhetoric.
Stephen Teti, North Brunswick, N.J. Nov. 17, 2004
To the Editor:
It's bad enough that the Democratic Party has tilted as much as it has to date toward Republicanism.
Now it wants to shake its secular image?
Do the Democrats really want to win back the Christian right on religious grounds?
If we're going to vote religion, which religion do we choose?
Four years from now, members of the (shrinking) middle class may find that their economic circumstances either have not improved or have deteriorated under the leadership of the faith-based president for whom they voted.
Leah Aronoff, Cincinnati, Nov. 17, 2004
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