I grew up with a different definition of morals. Morals were
not conveyed by words, but by actions. How can one say he or
she supports the traditional family, and then make it
impossible for the traditional family to survive? When we are
seeing more and more families with parents who are working two
jobs and still not able to afford health care, is the priority
really to ensure that credit card companies collect money from
those Americans who are finding it harder and harder to make
ends meet?
I grew up with a different definition of morals. Morals were
not instilled in what you said, but in what you believed. How
can one say they are a Christian when Christ himself said we
will be judged by how we treat the least among us? The least
among us are struggling. The least among us are not asking for
much. They are asking for a chance to guarantee their children
can go to the doctor, should they get sick. The least among us
are asking that their children have the opportunity to obtain
an education, should they want to succeed. The least among us
are asking that the leaders of this country listen to them,
should they make their voices heard.
I grew up with a different definition of morals. Morals were
not something that could be altered, because they were
something innate in your heart. Morals were the burning desire
to see the world change for the better. Morals were the golden
rule. Morals were making decisions that might not make you
money. Morals were making decisions that might not make you
famous.
Morals were saying you were wrong, but you would try to
reconcile it. Morals were doing something you believed would
make you a better person. Morals were doing something that you
believed would make everyone around you a better person, and
make this a better world. Most importantly, morals were the
ability to look yourself in the mirror each and every day and
say, “I have nothing to be ashamed of.”
They, the experts, said the last election was about morals:
The Republicans won because of their moral clarity. The
Republicans won on a moral platform. The Republican Party is
a party of morals.
I look at the leadership in Washington, and I wonder where
real morals have gone. They go out the door the second that
the election is over. I look forward to bringing real morals
to the House, and I won’t leave them at the door as the
Republicans are so fond of doing.
David Gill