We Should Lay off Using Romney's Mormon Beliefs as a Criticism [View all]

[MineralMan]

To start off, I'm an atheist, so this has nothing to do with my own beliefs. I consider all religions to be based on mythology and superstition. But, there's a temptation to criticize Romney based on his religion. I think that's a real mistake, especially when it's done in a mocking way or uses ridicule of the religion as part of the criticism. Here's why:

In 2008, when President Obama was running for his first term, the opposition made an attempt to cast him as a Muslim. We all objected to that, since it was both not true and wouldn't matter if it were true.

JFK was criticized for his Catholic background by his opposition. That was the wrong thing to do, too. He had to give a speech about it.

Romney is a Mormon. It's just as wrong to criticize him for his membership in the LDS church as it was to call Obama a Muslim or JFK a Catholic as a way to criticize him.

Romney's politics are all that is needed for more than adequate criticism. Criticizing religious beliefs is a very risky business, especially if it's done in a way that ridicules the religion in the process. That kind of criticism backfires as often as not, and is simply not the thing to do. The whole "magic underwear" meme is a false flag when used to criticize a Presidential candidate.

We all rightly criticized the right for using the Muslim nonsense against Obama. We rightly criticized campaign strategies that tried to negatively associate JFK with Catholicism. We needn't stoop to ridiculing Romney's religion. It's a bad idea. It makes us look foolish. There are plenty of other things to criticize about Romney, like tying his dog to the top of his car and his blindness to the state of so many people's livelihoods.

I have no religion. Others do. That's a personal deal, and doesn't necessarily have anything to do with their politics.

Harry Reid is also a Mormon. Does he wear the "magic underwear?" I don't know, and it's none of my business. But, you're ridiculing his beliefs, too, when you ridicule Romney for being a Mormon. Are you sure that's what you want to do?