by David Guzman

Created on: August 27, 2011

There is a famous Texas expression, “It’s getting drunk outside.” It is not a description of the outside environment, but reflects the internal state of the person saying it. This topic is similar to the expression because it reflects an attitude toward Barack Obama rather than actually questioning his beliefs and politics.

The topic actually poses a false dichotomy. This is a logical fallacy that presents only two alternatives when, in fact, there may be many. For example, the statement “Either you are for us or against us,” is a false dichotomy because it does not allow for neutrals.

This false dichotomy questions whether radical liberals can be Christians, with an implied answer of “No.” The actual answer, however, is a resounding “Yes.” Jesus of Nazareth wasn’t a Christian, but he started Christianity. He was a radical liberal by the standards of his time – his preaching and actions speak for themselves. Martin Luther was a radical liberal in his day as well. His challenge to the Catholic Church led to another huge, successful branch of Christianity. And, of course, his namesake, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a radical liberal, a Christian minister who risked (and ultimately lost) his life energizing the Civil Rights Movement. American Society is stronger and freer because of his leadership.

The topic raises four possibilities:

Barack Obama is a Christian and a radical liberal Barack Obama is a Christian, but not a radical liberal Barack Obama is not a Christian, but is a radical liberal Barack Obama is neither a Christian nor a radical liberal

We know that Barack Obama is a Christian.  Not only has he said so on many occasions, he is married to a Christian, prays daily,[i] has been attending mainstream Christian churches for two decades, and is raising his daughters as Christians.

Since he is a Christian, the question remains whether the President is a radical liberal.  This term is often used as a pejorative for “insufficiently conservative,” so the question becomes “Is Barack Obama insufficiently conservative?” It is likely that the creator of this topic is very conservative, and finds the President to be undesirably liberal. Therefore, since Barack Obama is a Christian, and is insufficiently conservative, the resolution of the topic’s false dichotomy is “Both.”

This topic is a small example of the extreme polarization that afflicts American politics today.  One very sad aspect of this is that the extremists do not consider their views to be extreme. They are all saying, “It’s getting extreme outside.”

[i] http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38766014/ns/politics-whi te_house/t/white-house-says-obama-christian-prays-da ily/#.TlgHe12d7-8

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