Vote for values ​​in November

I studied martial arts here in Athens for years, starting when I was almost 40. (I bet I can still do a pretty good spinning hook kick!) I loved the camaraderie and had wonderful teachers: Jim Couch, Chang-Bae Yi and Jason Hughes, all men of integrity and skill. They helped each student progress, cared about each one and encouraged collegiality.

I still remember the principles we recited at the beginning of class: courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit.

My thoughts returned to this list of values ​​when I learned of the new law in Louisiana that requires the Ten Commandments to be posted in every public school classroom in the state, from kindergarten through high school.

Come on, folks! If you’re a Christian, you know a central tenet of Christianity: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The Ten Commandments are inadequate as the sole guide to righteous behavior in the public sphere of our country, because we are a nation of many faiths, and some people believe in no God. The Pilgrims, for example, came here seeking refuge from religious persecution, and the Founding Fathers, well aware of the dangers of theocracy, made the separation of church and state a core principle of our Constitution.

And why, oh why, do children need to be warned not to commit adultery?

On Facebook, my friend JR Green suggested we instead post the Boy Scout Oath, a promise to be “trustworthy, loyal, helpful, kind, polite, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.” Or, he added, we should just tell kids not to be bullies.

Ed Vaughan listed the core values ​​of the U.S. Army as “loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage.” Other people mentioned the 4-H pledge, which reads, “I pledge with my head clearer thinking, with my heart greater loyalty, with my hands greater service, and with my health a better life for my club, my community, my country, and my world.”

The perverse thing is that the Republican Party, which ordered the posting of the Ten Commandments in Louisiana, is pledging allegiance to a presidential candidate who does not embody a single one of the core values ​​we want to teach our children.

I want someone to lead our country with unassailable values ​​like my husband or my father. President Biden fits those requirements, while Trump is a notorious adulterer and liar who bullies and demeans others. We certainly don’t want our children to follow that leader.